My eyes barely opened as I felt someone rubbing my shoulder. “Mr. Carter? Excuse me, Mr. Carter.” I frowned and glanced up at the man in the lab coat. I rubbed my eyes with a yawn and looked down at the head on my chest. Shelby and I had fallen asleep in probably the most uncomfortable position possible. The chairs both had armrests, but yet she ended up leaning over an armrest with her head on my chest. I was sitting sideways in the chair with my head against the wall. I glanced down at my watch. 1:45 in the morning.
“Yeah?” I whispered and turned toward him with concern all over my face.
“Listen, Mr. Carter. I’m really sorry to wake you,” the man whispered. “We tried to let ya’ll stay here for the night since your daughter’s been brought in, but technically you aren’t supposed to be here since she hasn’t started chemo yet and there really isn’t any danger at this point. Visiting hours were up a long time ago, and my supervisor spotted you and asked me to wake you and your wife.”
I sighed and nodded that I understood. Shelby was not going to be happy about leaving Lanie, but there wasn’t much we could do. “Shell,” I whispered and shook her shoulder gently. “Shelby, wake up.” She stirred and moaned, but reluctantly brought her head up off my chest.
“Hmm?” she frowned.
“Shelby, we have to leave. Visiting hours were up a long time ago,” I explained what the man had just said.
“Sorry, Miss,” the man said sympathetically.
“But my baby’s here,” she moaned with a frown creased over her brow. “I’m not leaving Lanie here by herself.”
“Mrs. Carter, we open back up at seven in the morning. There’s a hotel across the street. I suggest you go and check in now and then come back in five and a half hours,” the man said.
“I-I’m not leaving,” Shelby began to get upset. I rubbed her shoulder sympathetically.
“I know you don’t want to go, Shell,” I whispered. “But he reassured me Lanie’s going to be fine. They haven’t started chemo yet so all she’s going to do for the next five and a half hours is sleep.”
“What if she wakes up and I’m not there, Nick? She’s only three-years-old, for God’s sake,” Shelby muttered, getting angry. “You go and find Dr. Michaels.” She commanded the man to do. “You tell him that we are not leaving. I can’t leave her here.” Tears were welling in her eyes. I sighed and stood up and faced the man.
“Ask him if there’s any way we could stay here. We can go and sleep in her room so we’re out of the way. Just…please check and see if we can stay,” I tried to say as calmly as possible. The man nodded and walked away to go and find his supervisor. I turned back towards Shelby, who was now in tears.
“I can’t leave her, Nick,” she sobbed as I reached out and pulled her into a hug. “I can’t give up on her.”
“Shhh,” I tried to calm her down. “Just relax, Shell. I understand. I know.” I ran my fingers through her hair as a soothing gesture. “Just relax.” I repeated. “We’re not giving up on anything.”
She nodded against my chest and I felt her breathe heavily. I let my chin rest on the top of her head and closed my eyes. Shelby and I hadn’t been able to get along this well for years. It was weird. They say, unfortunately, something good can’t happen until something bad does. In this case it was true. As much as I resented Shelby for keeping Lanie all the time and always asking me for things, I felt so safe with her in my arms. She was the only other person that could possibly understand what I was going through at that very moment.
“Mr. Carter?” The man returned to my side. “You and your wife are free to stay in your daughter’s room. You just can’t come out or make a sound until seven A.M in the morning.” He whispered and walked away.
“Thank you,” I called softly after him. “Come on, let’s go get some rest.” I said and we walked into the room. Lanie was still sound asleep. Shelby quietly found her way to the bed and scooted Lanie over.
“Shhh, it’s okay, baby,” she soothed. I watched from a chair as she shook off her shoes and lied still next to Lanie, cradling her in her arms. She closed her eyes and fell asleep as I rested my head on a wall in a chair at the end of the bed and found a little comfort knowing my daughter and her mother were sleeping in front of me.
Author's Chapter Notes:
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