Feelings

Chapter 9

Lim had been surprised, yet extremely elated when she had woken up the next morning and Melendez was still in the room. She also noticed he had been spending more and more evenings with her. Sure, he didn't sleep at the hospital every night (he did have things to take care of at home, plus he was also visiting Gabi more as he had promised her), but he was staying in her room three or four times a week. As the weeks went on, her numbers slowly improved and she was able to function with less and less supplemental oxygen. She only used it at night most of the time. Her appetite returned once she had been completely weaned off of the antiviral medication and her energy levels steadily increased over time. Around the end of January, the doctors, respiratory therapists, and pulmonologists determined it was safe for Lim to continue her recovery at home. Lim was, of course, more than looking forward to being at home, eating her own food, sleeping in her own bed, and not getting woken up every two hours for vital checks (she was really starting to think the doctors and nurses had made it their God-given mission to invade her personal space). Melendez had agreed to drive her home and check-up on her periodically; Lim wasn't looking forward to that. Okay, maybe she was. Just a little. But seriously, not a lot. She wasn't falling for Melendez.

The pulmonologist went over the discharge instructions after Melendez signed off on them and handed Lim the scripts for the medications to be taken either over a period of time or indefinitely. They also gave her the schedule and exercises for rehab and told her to dial 911 if she exhibited any signs of severe respiratory distress and the emergency inhaler didn't work. Once the nurse had finally remove her IV (of course, it took 45 minutes just to have that task done), Melendez came into the room and asked, "So, are you ready to go?"

"More than ready," she chuckled honestly, "It'll be nice to eat non-hospital food, take a nice long bath, and sleep on non-sterile sheets."

Melendez smiled and laughed, "Well, as soon as Carrie gets you a wheelchair, we can go."

Lim wanted to argue that she was fine, but she knew it was St. Bonaventure policy for patients to be escorted out in wheelchairs. She sat down and pointed a finger at Melendez, "Don't race me down the hall."

"Oh man, taking all of the fun out of it," Melendez joked, "Besides, I thought you were an adrenaline junkie."

"I still am, but I remember a certain doctor harping on me to take things slow," Lim smiled up at him.

"Sounds like a wise doctor," he said. Once they reached the entrance to the hospital, Melendez asked, "Um, are you okay to walk to employee parking or do you want to wait here while I go get my car?"

"Well, it's probably better for me to walk and I can walk longer distances without becoming short of breath," she smiled proudly.

"Okay," he agreed. She hesitantly stood and took a deep breath before they both made their way to Melendez's car. They began their journey to Lim's house, but Melendez couldn't help but notice how quiet Lim was, "Is everything alright, Audrey?" he asked quietly.

"Yeah, just have nothing to say," she answered, though there was a slight waver in her voice.

Melendez just nodded, deciding not to pressure her into talking. It didn't take them long to get to Lim's house; she only lived ten minutes away from the hospital. He parked on the street since Lim's car and her Ducati were both in the driveway. They went inside and Lim couldn't help but feel an overwhelming sense of comfort to finally be home. Sure, she was used to being at the hospital more often than not, but being the one poked and prodded for a month and a half made her miss the comforts of her home. One thing was for sure: it gave her a whole new sense of empathy for her patients. Melendez came in behind her and placed her bag on the floor, "So are you good for now?" he asked nervously.