The Daddy Diaries

Chapter Seventeen

Damien woke up staring at the waiting room ceiling after falling asleep in the chair. He looked at the clock on the wall and it was 12:30. Midnight. 

"She woke up again but they took her around twenty minutes ago to do some brain function tests since she woke up on her own." the nurse said as she walked into the room, noticing the concerned look on Damien's face.

"Okay. When will she be finished?" Damien asked as he ran his hands through his hair.

"She should be back any time now. Testing doesn't take very long." The nurse said as she gathered up some papers and walked into one of the rooms.

Damien returned to his seat in the waiting room as a doctor walked in and called for him. "Family of Annabelle Adams."

"Yes? Right here." He said as he stood back up.

"Annabelle just came out of testing. It doesn't look like she will have lasting brain damage but she will need to recover for a bit. For now, she will need help getting dressed, tying her shoes, walking, etcetera since her coordination and balance will be off. Will you be her primary caregiver or would you like the hospital to set up a home care nurse?"

"Wait she has brain damage?"

"Yes. She had increased some intracranial pressure with the hemorrhaging and it caused some issues, but she should be back to normal in a few weeks or so. She's up and talking but her motor skills are going to need physical therapy, as well as help at home. Her hands are shaky and her balance is off so she will most likely need care for at least a month. She might also need to be brought to physical therapy which you can schedule with physical therapy downstairs. I'll send over the referral for you. Now, will you be her primary caregiver or would you like a home care nurse?"

"I'm going to be her primary caregiver, yes."

"Okay. She should be back in her room now. Feel free to go in and talk to her."

"Okay. Thank you, Doctor." Damien said as the doctor walked away.

He made his way towards the ICU units and into Anna's room where a nurse was taking her temperature. She was pale and sickly looking, but many of the monitors were gone.

"Anna?" He said as he knocked on the glass door to her room.

Her eyes lit up when she noticed him at the door in front of her as the thermometer beeped.

"Daddy!" She said loudly.

"Hi baby girl. How are you feeling?" He asked as he ran over to her bed and started stroking her hair that still had glue from the monitors in it.

"I feel sick and dirty but I'm okie." She answered softly.

"Anna, we're going to move you downstairs to recovery in a little while, okay? Your...boyfriend? Can come down with us." The nurse said as she looked questioningly at Damien.

"Alright. And yes, boyfriend." He laughed.

They sat and talked in private after the nurse had walked out. They both cried and Anna kept apologizing for not being more careful in the bathtub. She was playing music on her phone and she reached out of the shower to skip a song, but when she did she slipped and her head collided with the side of the tub. Their bathtub was surrounded by a stone platform with a sharp edge. She had called at the worst angle and cracked her head on the stone portion instead of the plastic tub, which would have been much safer.

"Okay, we're getting ready to move you downstairs. There are cots available for you, if you're staying the night" the nurse said as she gathered the chart and other things from Anna's room and prepared to transport her.

She tried to hold her hand out for Damien as he was talking but her body was so tired, she barely moved an inch before giving up. She grunted and threw her hands under her blanket.

"Hey. Don't get upset baby. We can fix it, okay? Let's go." He said as another nurse came in to wheel her to recovery.

Once they got into her new room, Anna was struggling to keep her eyes open.

"It's good to go to sleep whenever you feel even a little bit sleepy. It will help your brain and your body recover." The nurse said as she wrote down Anna's stats.

"Okie." Anna said as she closed her eyes. A few moments later she drifted off to sleep.

"How is she really doing?" Damien asked the nurse once Anna was fast asleep.

"She's doing well. Better and worse than expected in some areas. Did the doctor tell you about her home care?"

"Yeah. She needs help doing basic tasks for a bit."

"Yes. In physical therapy, they can show you some exercises to do at home to help her as well if she needs it. Right now she can't write or read but we're hoping that she will be back to normal in a few days. Other things like balance may take longer"

"Well, it's not like I don't do that stuff already" Damien laughed.

"That's so cute! But take a shower and get something to eat while she's sleeping. She'll need you when she wakes up."

"Alright. Thank you." He said as the nurse walked out of the room, shutting the glass sliding door behind her.

Damien looked down at Anna, who was now peacefully sleeping. After a year and a half together, he knew she was the person he was meant to spend his life with. Of course, it didn't take a terrifying experience to make him realize that, he just couldn't help but to think of how lucky he was as he stared at her sleeping in the cold, dark hospital room.