Facade (Romola 1)

Chapter 30: Not Clinically Dead

"The man in the scrubs. Removing the bed sheet from the room. You told me she was going to be fine." His words were blessed with Venom.

"And she is," Vicky yelled.

"What?" Olumide asked. Was Vicky still trying to lie to him. Why was she doing this?

"When you came to me earlier, I was just coming from her room. Her heart stopped beating. For about three minutes we could almost say she was clinically dead. The doctor was trying to revive her when you came in. That's why I asked you to wait," Vicky explained in a rush.

"If this is a joke, please stop it. It is not funny," He pleaded. "The room was empty."

"She's stable now. We had to move her to another room. I was just going to get the two of you."

"But the man said she bled to death. There was blood on the bed sheet." He muttered.

Vicky rolled her eyes as it brightened. "Oh. I get. She was sharing the first room with a pregnant woman. It's a pity. I guess the woman must have died. That's so sad. After waiting fifteen years for a child and now she's dead."

Olumide wasn't interested in Vicky's thoughts about the dead pregnant woman. His one concern was Romola but at least he now understood why the orderly had given him that disgusting look. The man probably thought he was the pregnant woman's gigolo.

"Please Vicky, tell me the truth. I can't take anymore lies."

"Would you like to see her now?"

"Definitely." Excitement raised his voice by an octave.

Vicky led him through the hallway, up the staircase to the second floor. She wasn't working fast enough for him but he had to accept that she couldn't walk any faster because her legs were smaller than his.She stopped outside a large door labeled 'Women's Ward.'

His body reacted physically to being so close to Romola. His heart raced. His fingers tingled. His tongue became an arid land and it took all of his will power to keep himself from opening the door.

"What are you waiting for?" He asked.

Vicky's eyes assessed him. "First of all, the fact that she is stabilized does not mean that she is perfectly hale and hearty. Second, I just want you to know that overdosing on cocaine can cause a wide range of problems including brain damage."

"But she only took it once. Doesn't she have to be addicted or something before that can happen?" He asked.

"No." Vicky's answer surprised him. "While her body reacted to the overdose, the cocaine affected the blood vessels leading to her brain. I can't say how bad she has been affected or if she will ever be normal again. I just want you to know so that you don't expect too much."

Vicky pushed open the door. Wordless, Olumide stepped in. His eyes hovered around noting two empty beds. His heart jerked when he didn't see Romola. He wondered if Vicky had brought him here so that he wouldn't break down in public when she told him that Romola's blood was the one on the bed sheet.

His eyes roamed further into the room. Then he saw the third bed at the right corner of the room. Romola lay on the bed free from the machines that had encumbered her in the emergency room. The white hospital gown she wore was the same shade as that on the hospital bed sheet. It contrasted with her dark brown skin but the serene look on her face made her look like an angel. His heart relaxed as he walked to her.

"When will she wake up? When will we know if she'll be okay?" He whispered, settling into the soft blue couch beside Romola.

"She's sedated right now so she'll wake up in a couple of hours and as for her being okay, the fact that she is alive is a miracle but we'll wait and see what the doctor says." Vicky placed her hand on his shoulder.

No word was said in the several miniuties that passed. He filled those miniuties by feeding his eyes with images of Romola. He stared at her, marking the line on her face and the pores of her skin. She was alive. She would be fine. She had to be.

"Can I touch her?" He stared at Vicky. She was still assessing him. He wondered what she was thinking about.

"Yes, but no sudden and inappropriate movements okay?" She added, "I'm sorry I didn't tell you of her condition. I wanted to be sure. I didn't want you to get worried. After Muyi's death, you were depressed and-"

"Sshhh..." he said. Romola was fine now. The danger had passed. He could relax. "It's fine now but next time... don't keep something like this from me. I tend to assume the worse and believe it. It scares me, Vicky. Just tell me the truth. I can handle it. I hate being lied to and you know that."

"Yes, I'm sorry. Dami insisted on it."

"That's right." Olumide tapped his knee. "I left him downstairs."

"Do you want me to get him?" Vicky hurried towards the door.

Olumide held up a hand. "No. I have a better idea."