Chapter 17
Buffy was lying back dozing, her mother had gone home saying she would be back that evening with more clean underwear and Pyjamas for her.
There was a knock, and one of the candy-stripers that had helped her shower earlier, Patty, came in carrying some crutches.
“Here you go, Dr Carling said he thinks these are about the right height for you…have you used crutches before?”
“Yes, but years ago, when I was 9, I got a septic in-growing toenail and had to have it removed…”
“Well it’s most important that you take the weight on your arms, not under your arms…here let me help you swivel round in bed………okay now, put your left hand on my shoulder…that’s it, now can you slide to the edge of the bed…that’s right…now don’t put your bad foot down…here’s the right crutch………okay, now stand…that’s it, just on the good leg…here’s the other crutch…”
Buffy let go of the girl’s shoulder and took the other crutch
“Now slowly………”
Buffy tentatively moved the crutches forward and followed with her good leg, holding her bad foot up off the floor. She did several turns around the room
“There – it’s like riding a bike, you never forget!” Patty said grinning at her
“I can do this, I can stand up on ice...but I can’t ride a bike!” Buffy said, concentrating on taking small steps.
“Well that’s enough for today, Doc said 5 minutes tops, but you can probably go outside tomorrow, I’ll take you down to the gardens in the wheelchair, and you can walk along the path for a while if you like”
“Great!” Buffy rested the crutches against the bed, leaning on the bed herself standing on one leg.
“Okay, turn around…that’s it, put your hand on my shoulder if you need to balance and slide your butt back onto the bed…there!” Patty helped Buffy lift her legs back into bed and she pulled the covers straight.
“I’ll put these by your locker…and I’ll see you tomorrow”
“Thanks Patty”
“Welcome”
Buffy lay back, she suddenly felt weary, that small amount of exercise had really sapped her strength, so she lay back and dozed again, thinking about Christmas.
*******************
“William…WILLIAM!”
“Oh, sorry Dru, miles away…which floor?”
“Fourth…and you forgot, didn’t you”
“Forgot what?”
“Our coffee date at lunchtime?”
“Oh god, sorry! I did, I clean forgot all about it! In fact, it was so much about forgetting, somehow lunchtime bypassed me altogether, I had to play catch up on my correspondence, letters and emails and what have you, I checked my watch and it was twenty past two, and then I saw the Daly’s, you know, Donovan’s parents…they’re totally devastated about their son’s condition”
“They would be. Is there to be an enquiry?”
“I asked Travers about that – even before I met the Daly’s, but he said that the board of governors wanted things to be kept low key and discreet, I was told ‘don’t make waves’”
Dru rolled her eyes and said,
“Figures………and because you’re not contracted to the hospital…”
“I’ve just got to grin and bear it and take it in my stride. Except, well, his parents, his father is a minister in the Pentecostal Church, and his mother is a lay-preacher or something, they seemed quite resigned to what’s happened, not so his fiancé, Janine her name is, she wanted to know how long would his condition take for him to start feeling something, bad pain as opposed to just a little niggling ache, to feeling really bad – I told her straight, anything from 1- to 3 or 4 months”
Dru nodded sympathetically.
“And there was misshapenness to the bone?”
“It was grossly misshapen and hollow sounding, they must have been pumping him full of painkillers so much, I said to Travers, I could have nailed the guys feet to the floor and I bet he wouldn’t have felt anything!”
“Oh god, poor guy, and all that suffering just for a stupid game!”
“My argument precisely!”
“So, are you busy now?”
“Sorry, in ten minutes I’m due in theatre with Dr Inkerman, he wants me to supervise his cartilage op”
“Oh yes, you said, okay then, I’ll try and catch up with you tomorrow”
“Right, bye then Dru”
She waved and the lift doors slid shut.
********************
“Mom………”
“Yes?”
“Now don’t start raining on my parade or anything, I know it’s only a possibility, a very remote chance, BUT………would you mind if I asked Dr Carling to spend Christmas with us?”
Joyce grinned
“Oh course I wouldn’t mind – I’d LOVE to have him at the house, give me somebody to lavish Christmas on for a change!”
“Good, okay, I’m gonna ask him, so don’t you say anything, promise?”
“I promise…but honey, don’t get your-“
“A-a, you promised, my parade” Buffy held her hand up not wanting to hear her mother say not to get her hopes up – she knew she had about a 1 in a million chance of him saying yes, but that 1 chance was still a chance as far as Buffy was concerned, and she was determined to ask.
************************
William stood by Buffy’s bed smiling
“So, I heard from Patty you did well earlier on the crutches!”
“Yes, felt a bit shaky at first, but it all came back to me! She said I could go outside tomorrow, a walk along the path in the garden or something”
“Excellent idea, but remember, no over-doing it, and no putting that bad foot on the ground yet, okay?”
“I Promise”
“Dr Carling…can I ask you something?”
“Sure, fire away!”
“It’s nothing to do with the injury or the hospital or anything like that”
“Go on”
“Well…I was wondering…would you like to come to my house for Christmas? – I mean mom would love to have you, to be able to spoil somebody rotten with all the traditions. In the past, I’ve either not been there coz of competitions, or in strict training so the diet alone meant I couldn’t celebrate properly.
“Buffy – this is, well…I mean surely you have friends?”
“Oh yes, but my friends go home to their families”
“What about that red-headed girl that comes to visit you, she lives local to you doesn’t she?”
“Willow, well yes, but she’s Jewish…” Buffy realised she’d probably embarrassed him and she half wished she hadn’t said anything, she could see he was in a bit of a turmoil.
She could feel the tears at the back of her eyes and her throat tighten, and suddenly she rushed,
“Oh gods I’m so sorry, look, forget I asked – there’s probably a million and one things you’d rather be doing than spending Christmas with mom and me!”
Spike dropped his hand lightly on top of hers, and they both felt a spark of something. Buffy looked down at their joined hands, and William broke the silence by saying,
“No, Buffy, it’s not that, I mean I don’t have any plans, well I thought I might, well, um I was going to –“
Suddenly the door burst open, and looking past William’s shoulder Buffy saw her father standing there with a cuddly toy, a helium balloon and a bunch of flowers
“PRINCESS – DADDIES HERE!”
Cringing with embarrassment, Buffy closed her eyes and dropping her head forward she whispered,
“Oh g-g-o-o-o-o-d-d-d-d!” William withdrew his hand
“Well, I’ll leave you to your visitor – I’ll um, I’ll try and drop by later”
Buffy went to call out to him, but he was swiftly out of the door
“Hey young lady, you leave these young interns alone!” Buffy looked daggers at her father and said,
“Dad, he was my surgeon, he’s a consultant surgeon, and one of the top bone specialists in the world!”
Hank looked at the door but William was well gone
“Looked like a kid to me…anyway, forget about him, don’t look at your old dad like that, one who’s travelled miles just to see you - how’s my widdle Princess den eh?” Hank pinched her cheek, grinning inanely at her.
“Ow…dad do you mind, I had brain surgery too you know, don’t be so rough!” Buffy frowned and rubbed her cheek
Hank pulled a chair up to the bed and sat, resting the flowers and ‘bunny’ on the bed, earning a sharp,
“Not by my foot – careful!” Buffy had thrown her arms out to try and protect her bandaged foot.
“Where shall I put this?”
Modesty prevented Buffy from telling him EXACTLY where he could put the helium balloon, but she told him to tie it to the bed-head.
While he did this, she looked at the lemon and white stuffed rabbit. Frowning, she raised the toy to her nose and sniffed and thought ‘ew, sour milk’
“Was this one of Chelsea’s toys?”
“Yes, she said she wanted to send Mr Bunny to help you get better quicker!”
With a roll of the eyes Buffy said,
“Really, advanced for her age, isn’t she?”
Hank ignored the inferred sarcasm and asked her how she was feeling, what happened and so forth.
Buffy answered all his questions, but all the time she was thinking about William, and how he was ‘saved by the bell’ – or her dad, he didn’t have time to answer her, and the way he left so suddenly…she’d ruined everything now, and even though he said she’d see him later, she doubted if she would, he’d probably give her a wide berth now………
******************
“You PROMISE me William it wasn’t you that bought up the subject of an enquiry to the Daly family?”
“I swear Quentin, Donovan’s parents both seemed quite resigned to their sons fate, but Janine – hoo! She’s a right little fire-cracker, waded in all guns blazing about the coach and the doctor’s and negligence and all sorts. Anyway, now he’s at the Cedar’s, I don’t see why it should involve this hospital”
“You involved me” Travers said
“What? – Are you telling me I did wrong?”
“No, of course not!”
“Because procedure states, that if you find something unexpected during an operation, you have to call for the registrar of whatever department the trouble lies with, ergo, I called you as you’re the osteo-reg to confirm my suspicions”
“William! I know, I know! You did exactly right, everything by the book” Travers concurred.
“So there should be no come-back then” William said simply
“No, there shouldn’t…”
“But what your saying is, it won’t stop Charles Heaton from trying to have the hospital name kept out of things – I don’t see his problem, it’s not like WE caused it – it isn’t negligence on OUR part”
Travers sighed and said
“I know”
“Anyway, with any luck, I won’t be here when the enquiry starts”
“Oh?”
“I had a request yesterday, via email – to go to Germany, Munchen-Gladbach want me to go to Munich to operate on their top soccer striker, Gerhardt-Wolfgang Schroeder”
“Cartilage?” Travers asked idly doodling on his pad.
“Yup…I mean, he’s getting on now as regards his career, he’s 31 – but still a brilliant player”
“Do you ever get tired of it?”
“What?”
“All the travelling. Ever thought about putting down roots – setting up a clinic of your own, people coming to you rather than the other way round?”
“I’ve thought about it yeah…it would be nice not having to live out of a suitcase all the time, but…” William shrugged, and idly tapped the desk leg with foot
“But what?”
“One, I couldn’t afford it and two, to be affiliated with some hospital or other – I couldn’t be doing with the bureaucracy – have the likes of Charles Heaton breathing down my neck all the time telling me I’m using too much suture-silk or what have you – drive me nuts” William perched on the end of Quentin’s desk.
“There is that I suppose”
“I’ve had offers”
“Really?”
“Yeah, The London College of Surgeons wanted me on their teaching courses. I’d be doing the rounds of three hospitals, but well, London…I know it’s my original home town, but no thanks – I don’t like the place and to live there – no way!”
“I was thinking more along the lines of you being head surgeon somewhere…a Swiss clinic or something” Travers said
There was a knock at the door and one of the secretaries said,
“There’s a Mr Hank Summers would like to talk to you, Dr Carling, is it convenient?”
William looked at his watch and nodded
“Tell him I’ll be down directly” The secretary nodded and left.
“Is that our little skater’s father?”
“Yes, first time he’s been in to see his daughter, I understand her parents are divorced, so he’ll want all the details I suppose”
**************
Buffy grabbed her mother’s wrist and hissed
“Go with him, I DON’T want him asking anything embarrassing!”
Joyce looked at Buffy then nodded
“I’ll come with you Hank, there’s something I want to ask the Dr too”
“Mom, not about, you know!” Buffy warned
“No…I’ll ask him what he thinks about when you can start training again, because it’s bound to differ from Coach O’Connor, and I don’t want any damage doing to that foot okay?” Buffy nodded and Joyce followed a grumbling Hank out of the door.
After five minutes of talking in the corridor, a beaming Hank came back into Buffy’s room, followed by a glaring Joyce, Buffy just looked worried and asked,
“What happened, what did you say – what did he say mom?”
“Honestly – I’ll give you three guesses – Joyce put on a ‘funny voice’ and mimicked,
‘Only I’m not a rich man doctor, and your fees, well I’m just wondering what to expect – have I got to pick up the tab?’ Joyce slipped back to her normal voice and said angrily,
Is it REALLY your only one topic of interest, money?” Joyce glared at the back of her ex-husband. Buffy rolled her eyes and said,
“Oh daddy you DIDN’T!”
“Well Joyce, I have another family to think of besides Buffy!”
Joyce’s brows rose and she said,
“Do you know how much you’ve given me for Buffy since we split, hmm? Shall I tell you? Exactly $134 – and I had to nag you for every dime of that!”
“Look, the doc said his fee will go to Buffy’s Coach, who’ll pay it out of any insurance they’ve got coming, and then they can see if there’s any compensation due – did you hear that Princess – you’re going to be rich!”
Buffy just blinked at her father and then shook her head
“Well, I better get going…I’ll tell Chelsea that you love Mr Bunny she sent you, and MWAH – MWAH! (he gave her a hard kiss on each cheek) You take care now, ring me when you’re out of hospital okay?”
“Okay dad, bye”
Hank just looked at his ex and said,
“Joyce” and left. Buffy heaved a sigh, threw her arm back against the pillows and closed her eyes.
“He couldn’t have picked a worse moment to announce his arrival – I’d just asked William about, well you know…then the door flies open and it’s ‘PRINCESS, DADDIES HERE!’ – It reminded me of that film, when Jack Nicholson’s at the door saying ‘Daddies home’ in that horrible creepy voice – William couldn’t leave quick enough!”
“Well he seemed fine when I spoke to him just” Joyce said, trying to arrange the wilted flowers Hank had bought.
“Well he would be to you and dad…I’ve ruined things, I know I have!”
“He didn’t give you an answer?” Joyce asked smiling
Buffy just miserably shook her head.
“Well, look on the bright side, he might not have said yes, but then he didn’t say no either!”
“He didn’t have to, he couldn’t get out of the door quick enough!”
“Yes well, Hank has that same effect on me!” Joyce said with a wry smile.
“Yeah but you know dad, William doesn’t!” Buffy turned on her side, determined to be miserable.
“Did he say anything at all?”
“Only he’d see me later”
“Well there you are then, no doubt he’ll explain then. Honey, chin up. Look, Mr Duggan wants me to go to the gallery tonight to meet an artist who we will be having an exhibition of next month, so would you mind if I went early?”
“Course not…I’m not good company Buffy anyway, I’m in brooding wallowing-in-self-pity Buffy mode”
Joyce looked at the flowers and put the vase next to the bouquet Buffy already had on the side
“Well, I did my best with them…knowing your father, he probably bought them at a gas station somewhere”
“Did you see this? ‘Mr Bunny – it’s one of Chelsea’s – stinks of sour milk, would you wash it please?”
Joyce took the toy with a tut, and shoved it in her bag
“Tight-wad to the last, I bet the poor mite will be crying for this – well honey, I’ll see you tomorrow, and try not to worry or brood, after all, you did say yourself it was a long shot”
“Yeah I know…night mom”
“Night honey”
An hour later, Buffy hadn’t moved. She was ‘miles away’ thinking and then there was a soft knock at the door, and through the glass Buffy saw William standing there
“Come in!”
“Sure I’m not disturbing you?”
“Honestly – sit down…wanna grape?” Buffy offered the fruit bowl, trying to put off the inevitable ‘why I won’t be coming to your house for Christmas’ speech he’d no doubt prepared
He surprised her when he grinned and took one, throwing it into his mouth and catching it expertly.
Smiling at each other Buffy said
“Sorry about my dad” William closed his eyes, smiled and shook his head
“Don’t worry, my dad used to embarrass me all the time at one time”
“And now he’s proud of you I bet!” Buffy offered the bowl again, and he took another one
“I wish…I wish he was around to embarrass me sometimes…he died when I was 15…my mum died when I was 9, I went to live with a series of maiden aunts, the one, Aunt Cecily was so Victorian in her attitude, thought children, even though I was a teenager, that didn’t matter, she thought children should be seen and not heard!” Buffy’s brows rose high as she bit into another huge seedless black grape.
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