Chapter 4

Now that Tommy had finally graduated and was out of high school, his next step would be heading off to college that fall. He had mixed emotions about this next life step. On one hand, he could hardly wait to get to college and find out what college life was all about.

He had heard from his mother and from others how much fun college life could be, and he was slated to go to a good school, which would definitely give him an advantage in finding a good paying job once he got out. He was planning a career in computers and the college he had picked was one of the tops in that field.

But as much as he was looking forward to going off to college, he couldn’t help but be sad that he would be leaving his mother and Connie and the life he had here at home. It had been just him and his mother since his father had run off with that blonde secretary of his. How would she be able to handle things here without him? How would he deal with things being so far from home?

Additionally, he had developed a very pleasing and satisfying new relationship with Connie and he was quite happy with the way things were right now. If he went away, would he come back to the same situation?

He couldn’t expect Connie to wait for him – he would be away for four years and he didn’t know if he would be able to come home or how often. Connie’s sex drive made it hard for her to go even a week without sex! It would be very hard to say goodbye to such a hot, sexy, and thoroughly arousing woman such as Connie. Who knows if he would find someone at college that could hold a candle to this sexpot!

Tommy knew that college was his ticket to the future, though, and while it would be hard to say goodbye to his two favorite women, he would need the education and experience that college would give him if he was to compete in today’s job market.

So he decided to make this a summer to remember, and he was well on his way too! Tommy and Connie spent many wonderful times together and their sexual games were only getting hotter and hotter. He was also very close to his mother and helped her around the house now that school was over for him for the summer. It was a great time and he was thoroughly enjoying himself.

But life has a way of throwing a curve ball at your plans and Tommy was about to be served one of his very own.

It happened on a beautiful, warm summer day – the kind of day when trouble and tragedy seem a million miles away. Tommy had just dropped his mother off at work at the hospital for her shift and was headed to the mall to do a little shopping.

He was stopped at a traffic light waiting for it to change to green before proceeding. Once the light had changed, Tommy started through the intersection when, from the left-hand side of the car, a blue and white pickup truck ran the red light and smashed into the driver’s side door of Tommy’s small car.

Tommy was transported to Rolling Plains Memorial Hospital – the same hospital that his mother worked in. She was in a different department, but word spread fast that her son had just come into the Emergency Room by ambulance and she rushed down to be with him.

A couple minutes after Barbara got to the E.R., Connie showed up as well and both women waited scared and anxious until the doctor came in to talk to them.

“Mrs. Andrews?” the doctor said when he walked up to the two women sitting in the waiting room.

“I’m Barbara Andrews,” she said.

“Well, Mrs. Andrews, I just left your son. He’s kind of banged up a bit but he’ll be okay. He’s going to be out of commission for a bit and sore for a while longer than that, but he’ll recover,” the doctor said.

“Oh thank God!” she said, letting out the breath that she had been holding. “What happened? How badly is he hurt?” she asked.

“Well from what I can gather, he was hit at an intersection by a truck that ran a red light. The police have the other driver in custody. Your son has a mild concussion, a broken left upper arm, a couple broken ribs on the left side and his left leg is broken in three places ... one femur fracture and both bones in his lower leg have been broken.

Fortunately, the fractures all occurred in areas that won’t require pins or plates so no surgery needs to be done. We’re going to keep him here for a couple of days under observation though, because of the concussion,” he said.

“Thank you, doctor,” Barbara said.

“Oh, one more thing ... I understand your son was planning to go to college on a football scholarship?” the doctor asked.

“Yes, he has been accepted to a very good college in Massachusetts. He wants to be a computer somethingorother,” she said.

“Well, I’m afraid his football days are behind him now. While we didn’t have to pin his leg for normal everyday life, it won’t support that kind of abuse ... the first good hit he would get, it would break all over again. I’m sorry, but he will have to find another way to go to college,” the doctor said.

“Can I see him?” she asked.

“Let’s get him into a room and then you can see him. Right now he’s pretty groggy from the pain meds anyway,” he said.

It was about an hour later when the doctor came back to where the two women were waiting. “Okay Mrs. Andrews, your son is on his way up to his room. He will be in Room 215. You can go up now and he will be there in a few minutes,” he said.

“Thank you, doctor,” she said. Barbara and Connie made their way up to the room and were there waiting when they wheeled Tommy into the room. Tommy had his head bandaged and his arm and leg were in casts.

His ribs were taped and he was quite lethargic from the pain medications and slipped in and out of consciousness, but he was a welcome sight to his anxious mother. She helped the other nurse get him set up in his room, and made sure that everything was done and done properly – this was more than the average hospital patient here!

Once Tommy had been made comfortable and was safely in his room, Connie turned to her best friend.

“Barb, honey, you may as well go back to work. I will stay here with Tommy. But you don’t need to be missing work – you are going to have hospital bills to pay hon!” she said. “I will be here with Tommy, I won’t leave his side. And you can come by after your shift. But you are here in the hospital if we should need anything. Just go back to work sweetie ... Tommy will be sleeping for several hours yet anyway,”

Barbara knew Connie was right, so reluctantly she went back to work, but only after she made Connie promise to call her if anything changed at all. She didn’t know how she was going to keep her mind on her work, but Barbara knew that she couldn’t miss work. It was hard enough making it on a nurse’s salary, and now there would be medical bills and a car to replace.

She learned that the car had been totaled – the truck hit the car so hard that the frame was bent and it would never be driveable again.

After her shift was over, Barbara returned to Tommy’s room and found Connie still there watching over him. But visiting hours were coming to an end and it had been a very long day. So Connie drove them both home and Connie said she would take Barbara to work and watch over Tommy again while she worked.

The next day when the two women went to the hospital, Tommy was awake and alert. “Hi Mom, Hi Aunt Connie,” he said as they walked in the room.

“How are you feeling today, sweetheart?” Barbara asked.

“Well, I am sore and it hurts to breathe too deep, but I’m okay. Sorry about the car – I don’t know where that guy came from! He was just there and I didn’t have time to even blink before he hit me!” he said.

“Don’t worry about the car, honey. As long as you are okay, that’s all that matters,” Barbara said.

“Amen to that,” Connie added.

“The police and the insurance companies will deal with the accident. You just concentrate on getting better so you can get back home,” Barbara said.

“Well, they tell me I can probably go home tomorrow if nothing happens between now and then. Of course, I will be in this cast for a while, I guess, which sucks. So much for my last summer before college!” he said. Barbara and Connie just looked at each other, neither of them saying anything about what the doctor told them.

While Connie stayed with Tommy, Barbara went off to do her shift. After work, Barbara returned to his room and visited with him for a while before the two girls left for home. Tommy enjoyed spending the day with Connie, but he wished he wasn’t so banged up so he could have had some fun with her there in the room!

“Damn Connie, I have you all day to myself and I’m so messed up I can’t even play with my little fuckslut!” he said, making sure no one was coming into the room.

“Well, you just get healed up ... there’s plenty of time for fucking and sucking once you are back in service!” Connie said, smiling. “But thank you for thinking of me!”

“Oh, I’m always thinking of you, sexy lady. And usually dirty thoughts too!” he said, with a wink.

Connie giggled. “Oh, you are a naughty one!” She leaned over and kissed his cheek. “And I love that about you too,” she whispered in his ear lustily.

When Barbara’s shift was over, she came by Tommy’s room and they visited awhile. She made sure that he ate his dinner (the three of them ate dinner together in his room) and that he had everything he needed. When visiting hours ended Barbara kissed her son’s cheek. “Goodbye, honey and good night. Sleep well and we will see you tomorrow. Maybe you can come home with us tomorrow night!”

Connie leaned over and kissed his other cheek. “Yes, hopefully, we will have you back home where we can properly fuss over you! Here, we have to share you with the nurses and doctors, but back home we have you all to ourselves!” she grinned.

“I hope so too. It’s nice here, but they are always coming in and waking you up! I haven’t slept all through the night since I got here!” he said.

The next day was Friday and the end of Barbara’s work week. As with the last couple of days, Connie took her to work and waited there with Tommy, visiting and keeping him company, until Barbara got off work.

Today though, Tommy was able to go home with them so when her shift was over, Barbara went to his room. He was already packed up and ready to leave, anxious to get back home to his own bed. The nurse in charge got him a wheelchair, then the four of them went downstairs and out to the car.

Getting in the car with a full leg cast was a bit tricky, but he found if he got in the back seat from the right side, he could position himself diagonally on the seat with his left leg (the one in the cast) propped up on the seat. Not the most comfortable way to travel, but it was enough to get him home at least.

Since his arm was broken as well as his leg, crutches were of no use, so Barbara had arranged for a wheelchair to come home with him. She would have to push him around in it, but at least he would be somewhat mobile.

Tommy spent the weekend at home, mostly indoors in his wheelchair, but occasionally he would ask his mother to move him out onto the porch so he could enjoy some fresh air and sunshine. It was a lovely weekend weather-wise and Tommy hated being stuck in that wheelchair.

The tow truck driver had brought the wrecked car home once the police had finished with their investigation, and the insurance company sent an adjuster to take Tommy’s statement and look at the car on Monday afternoon.

Tommy slowly mended as the days and weeks went by. Barbara had rented a car so they had transportation until the other driver’s insurance paid off. One day when Connie and Barbara and Tommy were all home together, a man came by claiming to be from the other driver’s insurance company.

“Mrs. Andrews, we have gone over the police reports and your son’s statement about what happened in the accident. It is clearly not his fault and so I am here to try to settle this matter. I understand that there were some hospital bills as well as the loss of your car. Do you know how much the hospital bills came to?” he asked.

“Well, I work at the hospital where they took my son – the only hospital in Sweetwater, and I was told by the administration there to keep all the bills I received until I heard from your company. So far they total roughly $338,000 in medical bills alone with his broken upper arm, his broken upper and lower leg, his concussion, and his broken ribs.

Then there is the matter of replacing the car which was totaled. And finally, my son had a full scholarship to go to college in Massachusetts Institute of Technology to play football for the school. He cannot play football ever again according to the doctors so his college scholarship had to be forfeited,” she said.