Dandelion Lover

As soon as I held her in my arms and was reassured that she is not injured, I felt I could finally breathe. Her body went limp in my arms after whispering something which I couldn't understand. Her voice was raspy and her eyes were puffy. A single glance at her face and I could tell she had cried for a long time. The imprints of a runny nose and tears on her cheeks made me feel miserable. Maybe if I would have been there with her, she would not be in such a state.

Gathering myself, I raised her in my arms and tried to set her down in a more secluded corner of the waiting ward but her hands were unwilling to let go of my shirt. I had to yield and seated myself on a chair while placing her on my l.a.p. People around us were throwing glances our way but I didn't care what they thought or how we looked like to them.

The warmth of her presence near me was calming me, and I hoped my presence here would soothe her even if it is only for a bit. Time seemed to pass slowly as I concentrated my attention towards Kate, gently patting her back when she seemed to be uncomfortable. I only snapped out of it when Vivian shook my shoulder.

"Luke, are you ok?"

"Yeah… What actually happened?" I turned towards Vivian who was looking at me weirdly.

"I'm not sure myself, Kate called me once she was already here, from what I could gather her grandmother fell sick and was brought to the Emergency room."

"I see. She must have been really scared." I started wondering if she had tried to contact me and I wasn't reachable. Or did she think of Vivian first?

"Are you sure you're okay? You're really pale."

"Yeah I'm fine, just went through a scare right now."

Vivian looked at me strangely before adding:

"I knew you cared for Kate but I didn't think your relationship had evolved so much in a few short months."

"What do you mean?" It seems weird that she mentioned this. Was it just because I came here in a rush?

"Well, everyone in the company received this email." She took out her phone and showed me the picture of me and Kate back in my office. I knew this picture well and I didn't need to ask in order to know just who sent this.

"Hmp, just delete it. What does she think that she can threaten us with?" I almost laughed at Anne's naivety. Did she really imagine that she could ruin what we have? We had already discussed this before Kate quit.

"This might seem like no big deal for you but for Kate, if she knows of this, and coupled with her grandmother's problem, she might feel pressured to do the 'right' thing and back off." Hearing her say this I knew she was right, she knew Kate just as well as I did, but this only made me mad.

"I won't let her back out. It's too late to pretend it's nothing." I grumbled as Kate stirred into my arms. I continued slowly patting her back and lowered my voice.

"We talked about such a situation, she'll be all right. She's stronger than we give her credit."

"Maybe. But no matter what, we must take care of Anne. This time she went too far."

"And how do you suppose to do that? We got rob for divulging company secrets, but Anne covered her tracks well."

"How about… making her an accomplice to Rob's crimes."

"I knew she is but how do you propose we prove that?"

"Some simple investigation over what she had done in the last few months should suffice. As long as we can place her at the same time and place as Rob when he met with the clients to steal them, the investigators will do the rest of the work."

"You know it's not so easy, it takes time, and from how she's acting, she seems to be in a hurry to hurt Kate."

"I'll go have a talk with Rob. Knowing him, he'll gladly throw her under the bus if there is something to gain from it."

Just as I was about to agree, the doctor came over to us.

"Are you friends of Miss Ross? Do you want to wake her up now or should I come at a later time to discuss the situation?"

"Let her sleep, she seems exhausted. Tell us what happened?" I asked without holding it back. After all, whatever her problem was, it automatically became my problem.

"I am only allowed to tell such information to the relatives of the patient… I think it's better to wait." The doctor hesitated which only pissed me off more.

"I'm her husband so it's fine. What's the situation?" Vivian's jaw dropped at my shameless lie. The doctor looked over at us and glancing at the wedding ring on my finger must have felt reassured.

"I understand. It seems the patient suffered a mild ischemic stroke caused by her high blood pressure. Fortunately, the ambulance was called promptly which in turn allowed for the treatment to take place sooner rather than later. As for the extent of the complications, it remains to be seen when the patient wakes up."

In my head, I was already thinking of ways to tell all this to Kate. I could already see how she would blame herself for this. I couldn't let that happen and I couldn't allow for her to run away.

"When can we see her?" I asked the doctor.

"She is currently in the ICU, you can go visit her until 9 in the evening, just make sure not to disrupt other patients."

"I understand, thank you."

"If you need help explaining the medical situation to your wife, or you have any questions, you can ask a nurse to page me."

"Thank you for your hard work." Although I was sad for Kate, I still needed to be the rational one.

"Vivian, please go and take care of what we discussed before. Kate will also need a change of clothes and some food, can you please take care of that as well?"

"Sure thing. Do you need anything?"

"I wouldn't mind a miraculous recovery in this situation, but I doubt you can help with that."

"I'll pray for it."

"Thank you, Vivian."

Her only response was a barely visible smile before she took off.

I slowly raised ourselves and carried Kate as steady as I could have, all the way to the ICU, next to her grandmother's bed. She fitted just right in my arms and I was reluctant to let go of her warmth but I had to.

Just when I placed her on one of the plastic chairs she stirred awake. She looked around the beeping machines confused, up until her sight landed on her grandmother. Soon, tears started trailing her cheeks and without even thinking about it, my hand moved forwards and I wiped them off.

She flinched and looked at me with complete disbelieve in what she was seeing.

"Gray? What are you doing here?"

"What else, I'm here for you."

"How? How did you know?"

"At first I didn't, I only wanted to see you, and when I couldn't get in touch, I turned to Viv."

"Right, Vivian..." She seemed to have realized the situation from my short explanation and turned her attention back to her grandmother.

"I'm fine now, thank you for coming. Go ahead and go back home, you must be tired." She said in a low voice.

"How could I? Do you think you're talking with Vivian or one of your other friends? I won't leave you here alone so don't even think about it." I was upset at her distancing herself from me. Although I knew it was to be expected, it still hurt.

She turned towards me and with slight panic in her eyes, she took my hand in hers, while slowly letting go of a deep sigh.

"I'm sorry, I know I shouldn't say this. It was by habit. I am just used to… doing things on my own."

"You don't need to anymore. Not while I'm around." I proudly reaffirmed my position. I wanted to stay by her side and if she thought she could just retreat into her shell and leave me hanging, she was gravely mistaken.

Another sigh escaped her lips.

"Thank you! I'm glad you're here." She said and squeezed my hand harder, getting a firm grip. Her small hands felt cold and her whole body seemed like it was trembling. I used my free hand to feel for the temperature of her skin but there was nothing out of the ordinary.

"Are you feeling okay? Are you cold?"

"I'm fine" I could only patiently wait for her now.

"What did the doctor say?"

"She had a mild stroke caused by high blood pressure."

"Is she going to be okay?"

"We'll know once she wakes up." I was just about to try and reassure her again when one of the nurses passed us by announcing the end of the visiting hours.

"Let's go. I'll get you home so you can get some proper rest." I tried to guide her towards the exit.

"I don't want to go home. I'll just stay in the waiting room." I understood her more than I thought. She reminded me of myself back when my mother first got sick. I was just as unruly, always wanting to stay close. I now understood why I annoyed my father and was not allowed to remain over the night. Some decisions, as much as we hate them, are for our own good.

"You can't stay here. You're weakened, and in here it's cold and drafty. Let's stay in the car." I guided her towards the car and covered her up with a blanket I had in the trunk. I ran to a small shop nearby and bought a bottle of wine and an opener.

Once I was back in the car I turned on the car radiator and opened the bottle.

"Here have some to warm up."

"I don't need it."

"Just drink it. You look awfully weak and you're making me uneasy. It's either this or we can go get you checked in the hospital yourself."

After a few moments of thinking it over, she accepted my offer. She took a small sip directly from the bottle and snuggled back in the blanket.

"Won't you have some?" She asked giving the bottle back.

"I need to be able to drive. Don't worry and just sleep for a bit. Before you'll even know it, it'll be morning."

"Mhh..." She nodded and closed her eyes.

"Will you stay with me?" She asked while drifting away into dreamland.

"Always!" And this was my vow to her and to myself.