Every Rose Has It's Thorns (Patrick Kane)

Love Sick

Patrick

No athlete ever wants to miss a game. If they're not feeling well or have a little injury then most likely they'll play through it if it doesn't have some long term effect on them. A lot of the good athletes have their best games when they're sick, I mean Michael Jordan had the flu game and Walter Payton had the most yards in a game when he was sick. It happens.

But when Maddie woke up with a high fever and throwing up this morning I just knew it wasn't good. She was so pale and sweaty, she could barley walk she was so weak. She had to get rushed to the hospital and looked at because she was in so much pain. Turns out she had a 24 hour thing going around here and she had it bad. With traveling like she does these things tend to happen, she just so happened to get the worst of it. So she was staying in the hospital for a while to be pumped with liquids and given some pain medication to help her get better sooner.

Today was her first show ever in Japan and she didn't want to cancel it. She's never canceled a show before and she was bound and determined to not start tonight. The doctors tend to think differently, but when her mind is made up it's hard to change. Trust me... I know.

"How are you feeling" I ask as I sit next to her bed. She had her cold little hand in mine holding on to me for dear life. Her hand was nearly lifeless as I try to hold on.

"I've been better" she mumbles.

"You know, your show starts in 5 hours and that doesn't take into consideration the private performance and sound check" I say.

"I know. But I'm gonna make it. I have to" she insists.

"No one would be mad if you canceled because you're too sick. You can always reschedule" I remind her.

"I would be mad" she claims and I let out a sigh. I figured she was going to say that.

"Alright. If your fever is down to a low fever then they technically can't say no to you. But I really don't want you to get really sick because you didn't take care of yourself and wanted to make everyone but yourself happy" I insist.

"I'm not just a artist Patrick. I'm these peoples inspiration, I can't let them lose their inspiration" she explains. I let out a long sigh as I hold her hand tighter.

"Alright. I just want you to know I'll be here for you" I say and she gives me a weak smile. I can tell that this was hard for her but she wanted to do it. She had to do it.

So she gets released from the hospital and we head straight to the venue. She gets changed and makeup done so she looks less like she's dying. She pulls on her game face and gets through the private performance and sound check. Instead of doing her usual pre concert warm ups she curls up in my lap while I sat in a chair by the stage as I hold her close. She closes her eyes and tries to rest a little before going out there. Her skin was so hot that it felt like she could have caught on fire.

"I hate seeing you like this" I whisper as I start to rock her in my lap. I run my fingers through her hair and it was wet from how hot she was.

"Then close your eyes" she quips and I start to laugh.

"I still know you're hurting, it doesn't really help much" I assure her.

"Then close your eyes and imagine us back in Paris in the Eiffel Tower. Imagine me in that dress smiling bigger than ever because I was happy and healthy and in my favorite non America city in the world with my favorite person in the world" she says.

"And what happens when I open my eyes and you're still sitting here in pain" I wonder.

"I'll leave so you don't have to see me anymore" she teases and I just shake my head.

"At least you still got your terrible sense of humor" I say as she laughs. She looks up to me and I can see in her eyes how uncomfortable she was, I could feel how much pain she was in. And if I could I would take it all away in a second. But I can't, so all I could do was hold her.

After a while it was time for her to perform. So they pray like they do before every concert and we pray hard that Maddie can get through this and make her fans happy.

And as soon as she hit the stage it was like nothing was wrong. She looked amazing out there, not that I think she could ever look bad. But she was killing it out there. Like I said most of the great ones have their best performances when they're sick because they have to try so much harder now. And she gave it her all, I honestly think it's her best performance of the tour and the fans were lucky she didn't cancel like they wanted her to. They would have missed out on probably one of the best live performances to ever happen.

I wait in the wing like always for Maddie to come off once the concert was done. She still had the encore to do but she usually gets off the stage then comes back out. But this time when she comes off the stage she doesn't wait there. She quickly finds me before falling into my arms. She starts sobbing as I hold her limp body in my hands. I could hear her struggling to breathe and terror instantly took over me.

"Medic! I need a medic" I yell as I help her to the floor. She was sweating like crazy and was probably dehydrated from performing. So they get her some water and help her cool off before a ambulance comes. They take her back to the hospital and I meet her there.

The hardest part of this all was finding someone who spoke english and could tell me what these people were saying. Luckily for us she had a interpreter who helped me find her room and figure out what was wrong with her. She hadn't eaten all day because the first part the day was spent just throwing up so she was mighty weak. They quickly hook her up before administering fluids and steroids for her pain. The fever had returned since she left the hospital earlier but they got it under control quickly. They were going to keep her over night for observation but they really think this is a 24 hour thing and should be over soon enough.

Finally they let me see her as she rested in the bed. She still didn't look the healthiest but she looked better. She wasn't as pale and she looked a lot more peaceful than she did earlier. I pull up a seat next to her and grab her soft little hand. She opens her eyes and looks at me before smiling.

"Did I scare you" she asks.

"A little, yeah. I have no idea how you did that tonight based off of what I know. You're a superhuman" I admit.

"I had so much adrenaline that I didn't notice that I wasn't feeling well. But it all hit me after the performance was done and my lungs burned and I felt so nauseous. I couldn't go back out there for a encore. I feel awful" she claims.

"Well don't. You gave them what the paid for and then some on that stage tonight. I'm so proud of you" I insist as I squeeze her hand. She lightly squeezes mine back with what little strength she had left.

"Thanks for being here" she says softly.

"It's my pleasure."