Scared Angel

3. Eleanor and frog*

I arrive at the hospital with Linus behind me and the little one on my hip. She seems scared and like she won't come out of headspace if that's even what this is. Linus on the other hand put his pacifier in his pocket and straightened up before taking a big breath.
"Aunt Penny, is she gonna be okay?" Linus asked looking spooked. He doesn't like hospitals and frankly neither do I. We sit for what feels like ages after talking to the nurse when A different nurse calls us back.
We follow the man in blue scrubs to a room with a 3 on it. We all scramble inside and the nurse takes some notes before leaving saying the doctor will be with us soon. I sigh and adjust the girl on my lap, who has been clinging to me like a monkey this whole time.
20 minutes go by before the door opens again. "Knock knock," the doctor says and opens the door. "I'm Doctor Conner's. What seems to be the problem today" the doctor says while sliding his stool out and sitting down.
"Well, it's kind of a long story. This girl was in the mall today and got Abandoned by a man who barely knew her. She was crying and screaming when she came with us to our table. She ate like she hadn't been fed in... I don't know how long. And when she messed up her diaper I had to change her, only seeing the worst rash I've ever seen, with blisters and blood. And when I went to bend her knees she wailed in pain. It seems she fell and her hands are bloody as well as her knees. I'm worried something might be broken." I shiver at the thought. "I also don't know her name or where she came from, doctor"
Penelope finished feeling out of breath. "Alright, so I'm gonna get some blood work, see if there's any trace of her in our database. I'm also gonna take a look at this rash and also just do an overall check of her to make sure she's healthy in every other area, then we'll have to wheel her off for an x-ray. okay?"
The doctor is very caring and Penelope agrees. It took 45 minutes for it all since the girl kicked and screamed when he tried to touch her. He even brought in a female doctor to help but it was no use. He finally got what he needed and excused himself saying a nurse would be in to take her to the X-ray room and that he'll be back with the results afterwards.
Penelope sighs and leans against the hospital bed with a wailing girl in her arms. She rocks and bounces the girl only causing her to scream louder. It's then she realizes she left her frog in the car. "Linus, could you go get her frog?" she'd normally never ask but since he's out of headspace she can trust the 20-year-old. He nodded and rushed to the car with Penelope's keys.                   
        Meanwhile, the nurse enters the hospital room to take the girl for her x-ray. She sees the wailing girl and coos "Oh how heartbreaking."
"Is there any way I can come with you?" I ask hoping they can pull some strings for the distressed girl. "I'm sorry ma'am but it won't be too long. Penny sighs and gets off the hospital bed, causing the girl to snap her head over to the woman she's been receiving comfort from with wide eyes. She reaches over and rubs her arm. "I'll be here waiting, buttercup" she tries to soothe but the girl doesn't understand and just reaches for the woman as she's wheeled outside. Linus comes back with the frog asking where the baby is. I explain as we sit and wait.
        It takes about 15 minutes before they hear the screams of the girl from down the hall. The woman leaves the room and makes it pretty far down the hall before spotting the girl. Penny runs to the girl and picks her up, the baby grips her shirt and sobs into her shoulder. The nurse pushes the empty bed into the room behind them. "The doctor will be in shortly with the results." Penelope just nods while comforting the girl.          She hands the frog to her and gets the blanket out of her bag, and then sees the new pacifier she grabbed at the store. She walks to the sink to clean it quickly with warm water and dish soap. She makes sure the soap is gone before putting it in the girl's mouth. The girl who thought it was a bottle opens her mouth. Although disappointed it's not milk she still happily lays her head on Penelope's shoulder.
      A few more minutes pass and Penelope is rocking the girl on the hospital bed when the doctor appears. He knocks and opens the door. "So I've got lots of information." He states while sitting in his chair.
       "This sweet girl is Eleanor Rose Wilkins" he gestured to the girl. Penny and Linus take a moment to say hello to Eleanor. "She was abused by her parents and never grew older than 6 months. They never taught her a thing" the doctor sighs before continuing. "She's 23 now and I assume her parents left her to care for herself which she clearly cannot do. It doesn't mean she's not capable of growing mentally though, She's just quite behind for her age." The doctor adds. "She doesn't have a broken knee thankfully but it needs some bandaging. That rash is also pretty bad so I'm giving you some antibiotic rash cream. Lastly, she's severely malnourished resulting in having low iron and other vitamins. I suggest getting her adjusted in a good meal plan and keeping it consistent, as well as protein shakes, smoothies, and milkshakes are suggested." he stands and walks over with bandages. The girl stays in Penny's lap and only cries slightly from the bandages. Afterward, the doctor stands to shake Penny's hand. "Do you have any more questions?"
"Well, I was wondering if there's anything I can do to help her with her weight that might work a bit faster?" Penny asks wearily. "Well since she's in a young mindset of an infant, you could always induce lactation but that's assuming you're going to care for her and if you're willing." He says that while Penny had always wanted to breastfeed her little she knew this baby wasn't even hers and was afraid she may get attached. "Can you prescribe the lactation pills and I'll decide later?" She asks and the doctor nods. "That's no problem, anything else?"
"No that's all thank you," she says.
       The doctor hands them the discharge papers and says they're good to go. So Penny puts the baby on her hip and grabs Linus' hand thinking 'This is going to be a crazy week' as they head to the car.