Amnesia

Chapter 4

Emily remains in the room after the doctors leave and Penny sits patiently as she moves around, obtaining her vitals and documenting various things. Once she's done, she perches herself against the IV pumps and says with an enthusiasm Penny doesn't feel, "Going home soon! That's exciting."

Penny just nods and Avi remains silent.

"Oh!" Emily exclaims, moving to grab a pair of gloves and a few other items Penny doesn't recognize, "I can disconnect you from your IV lines. Slowly but surely losing lines." Penny thinks she says the last line mostly for herself.

Penny doesn't say anything, her attention drawn towards Avi, who still hasn't moved in the chair, his gaze remaining toward the outside window. Penny sighs and allows Emily to maneuver her arm for better access at disconnecting the three lines infusing into her. Once Emily is finished, she turns towards Penny and asks, "Want to try getting up?"

"Oh, um," Penny starts, glancing over towards Avi, "Standing maybe?"

Emily nods and helps Penny pull the blankets from her legs and swing so she's sitting at the edge of the bed. Penny sits for a moment, swinging her legs and wincing slightly as the movement tugs on her incision. "You okay?" Emily asks, placing a hand on Penny's shoulder.

"Yeah, my leg just hurts," Penny replies, absently rubbing along the staples.

"Still want to try standing?"

"Yeah."

Emily helps Penny to a standing position, Penny's entire right leg screaming in sharp pain as she fully puts her weight on it for the first time in nearly six days. Penny grips onto Emily's shoulders the best she can with one hand, blowing out a hard breath and groaning at the searing pain down her thigh. She can hear Avi shift behind her and he must have reacted to her cry because Emily looks past her and says, "She's okay, Avi."

Penny works on steadying her breath and working through the pain as she takes small steps in place, barely lifting her feet off the ground. Her entire body is shaking and at her second attempt in lifting her right foot, she buckles and loses her balance. Emily quickly assists in lowering her back to a sitting position and Penny feels a warmth press against her back as she leans against the side rail, taking in deep breaths.

She turns to find Avi kneeling on the bed, one hand propping himself up, the other lightly splayed across her skin. Catching his eye, Penny gives him a weak smile and a hoarse, "I'm okay." Avi stares at her, eyes wide and scared, for a few moments before slowly pulling his touch away from her skin. Penny shivers at the break in contact and breaks out in goose bumps.

Emily kneels before her, rubbing a reassuring hand over her good knee. "You did well. For your first time up, that was very good. Next time I think we'll pre-medicate you before doing a lot of movement, okay?"

It takes Emily lifting her legs to get Penny fully back into bed and once she's in position, Penny flops back against the pillow her eyes squeezed shut. Her right knee throbs in time with her heartbeat, her incision sending out small bursts of sharp pain and Penny feels like her whole leg could explode.

While Emily briefly exits to get Penny pain medication, she grips the side rail, gritting her teeth and trying to focus on her breathing. A warm hand slides over her curled fingers and opening her eyes, she finds Avi sitting at the edge of the recliner, his right hand over hers. For a moment, he just rubs soothing swirls over her knuckles before slowly uncurling her fingers and allowing Penny to grasp onto his hand.

Penny watches as Avi lets out a deep breath and stares down at their joined hands. Giving her fingers a small squeeze, he glances up at her, his green eyes peeking out from underneath his eyelashes. She offers a small smile and whispers, "Thank you."