Chapter 47

Sam's Story

Dr Bradley was examining Wes before Mom and I made it into the room.

"He's still in a deep coma. It's not unusual for a patient in a coma to make involuntary noises. I'm glad you called me when you heard it. It could have been something else."

Poor Wes. He looked like someone was playing a sick joke on him. A guy who thought nothing of running 10 or 12 miles in a track meet or jumping on a bike, riding 25 miles to the beach, swimming all day then riding back. Laying on his stomach, legs and torso enclosed in plaster, unable to open his eyes. He looked like he was in the middle of solving a complex math problem. Not like he didn't know how to solve it, but like he knew exactly what to do and was working his way through it, step by step. That kind of concentration, ignoring everything else in his environment.

"Dr Bradley? Can I roll him over?"

"I suppose you could if you had help. Why?"

"He looks scruffy. I want to give him a haircut and a shave."

"You should be able to do that but I want you to wait until Nancy is here. She knows how to maneuver his body and I've made her responsible for his hygiene. It may take all three of you with all the casts."

I touched Wes's face. He seemed to relax a little. I don't know if it was real or my imagination.

Dr Bradley was explaining Wes's condition to Les when I walked in. I hadn't even thought. She must have been going crazy having heard him when I did, then being stuck in her bed with no word from any of us till now.

He was prodding her, listening to her, flashing lights in her eyes and ears as he talked. When he finished he asked if she had any questions.

"When can I have some real food?"

"Whenever you want. Have you had a bowel movement yet?"

"No."

"Well, do you remember the pain when you peed after we removed the catheter?"

"Oh, yeah."

"Well, this will be worse. Take it easy on the solid food. You can pretty much eat whatever you want, but do it in moderation. No heavy spices or sauces. If you have a hamburger, eat it without the ketchup. Just remember that everything you put in there is going to have to come out. I'd work up to it if I were you. Maybe some mashed potatoes with gravy. Or noodles or spaghetti with a white sauce or even one of those cream soups they have. A light salad would be OK but skip the dressing for a few days. As I said, eat whatever you want, but I'm not running over here just because you went overboard and you're paying the price in the bathroom."

Les held out her arms to him and he bent over and kissed her on the cheek as she hugged him.

"And another thing. You looking fat and scraggly. You need to start walking around. You can get up and down the stairs and out in the sun. Just take it easy. If you get tired outside and can't make it back upstairs right away, rest up on the couch for a couple of hours. And for God's sake, get Sam to take the hose out with you and wash that hair of yours."

"Really? I can wash my hair? Oh, thank you Dr Bradley." She reached up for another hug. This time she kissed him on the mouth.

Dr Bradley and Mom were hardly out the door when Les said "Quick. Get my bathing suit out of the second drawer of my dresser." She was turning over and sitting up at the same time so she ended up on her butt with her legs hanging over the side of the bed. She threw the bed covers out of her way and tore at her nightgown to get it off. "Damn, this is going to be good."

She held the top over her tits while I fastened it. I worked the bottoms up the where her legs were on the bed, then lifted her up so she was standing so we could ease them up the rest of the way.

She looked good. The main thing was her hair. That on her head needed to be washed. That on her legs and under her arms had grown wild since the surgery. A section of her back, maybe 6 inches by 6 inches was covered with tape to hold a 3 inch bandage in place.

We headed across the hall into the bathroom. She was perfectly capable of moving herself, I was just there to steady her. We worked her bottoms down and she sat down to pee. "Get that apricot shampoo. Oh, and that conditioner in the tall white bottle. This is gonna be so good." I put them on the counter along with a hairbrush. I'd pick them up after I got her outside.

The stairs didn't go quite as easily as Les anticipated. She ended up holding onto the banister with both hands and kind of sliding down while I walked backwards down the stairs, holding on to her waist in case she lost her balance.

I got her out the kitchen door. There was a chaise lounge out in the sun. We headed over that way. "I've got to go in the house and get the shampoo, towels and some warm water. Do you want me to put you on your back or your stomach?"

"On my stomach. Damn, this sun feels so good."

We got her down and the first thing she did was reach back to undo her top. I helped her take it off, then headed back after making sure she was alright.

The first thing I did was go to the kitchen and get her a tall glass of ice water. She was glad to get it.

I stopped in the garage and found a plastic bucket we used for washing cars. They had a deep sink in the garage right next to the washer. I put the bucket in the sink, rinsed it out and filled it with warm water.

Next I grabbed a big Tupperware container and a plastic pitcher from the kitchen and headed upstairs to the bathroom. Shampoo and conditioner. Shaving cream. A bag of disposable razors. A new bar of soap, a couple of washcloths and towels. I found a plastic shower cap and a roll of white medical tape and took them, too.

I made sure one of the towels kept her from seeing inside the Tupperware as I took it out and set it down on the ground next to her butt. As far as she knew she was just getting her hair washed. After making sure she was still OK, I went into the garage and brought out the bucket.

I had everything set up and was starting to inch Les forward when Daisy came through the gate to see what was going on. I put my hand in the water and splashed. "Ready for a bath, Daisy?" She took off through the gate. I finished moving Les forward so her chin was off the lounge. She could lean down and all her hair would be reachable. "Ready, Les?"

"Oh, yeah."

I pulled her hair up over the top of her head and filled the pitcher with warm water. I slowly poured water on her, working it into her hair with my other hand. Les was making purring noises while I did this. I used both hands to make sure her hair was completely wet, then used a little more water.

I found the shampoo and poured some in my hand, rubbed my hands together and worked it into her hair. I repeated several times until her hair was covered. I worked it all in, making sure to massage her scalp. "Alright, that's as clean as it's going to get. Hang on while I rinse you off."