Class is Now in Session

"Ms. Ericson, I'm Dr. Butler. I'm calling from Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital. I'm afraid your friend is here," Dr. Butler told me.
"What happened to him?" I asked, my heart sinking lower and lower every second.
"He's hurt pretty badly. He's going to need surgery."
"What happened to him?" I repeated.
"I'm not really sure, but it looks like he was stabbed or he fell on something sharp," he explained. "I'm afraid you're going to need to come down here if you want any more information."
"Fine, but just tell me, is he going to be alright?" I asked desperately. There was a sigh from the other end of the line.
"I don't know..."

I sped to the hospital as fast as I could. I wanted to know what the hell had happened to Tre'. I kept praying that he wasn't dying.

I arrived at the hospital around 8 o'clock. I went up to the front desk and asked about Tre'.

"I'm afraid I don't really know what happened to him, but he's in surgery now. If you'll just take a seat over there, Dr. Butler will speak with you when your friend gets out of surgery," the desk attendant told me.

I did as I was told. My hands were shaking, I was so scared. I wanted to know what had happened. I wanted to know why I was there. I wanted to know why Tre' was having surgery.

After sitting in the pastel colored waiting area for about ten minutes, I remembered that you couldn't have cell phones turned on inside a hospital. I quickly dug my phone out of my pocket and was about to switch it off when I had a thought. Did Billie Joe and Mike know about Tre' yet? I thought that I should call them, but then I figured that I'd wait until Tre' was out of surgery. I didn't want to go calling attention to the situation already.

Another fifteen minutes passed. I was still anxious. And I was coming close to boredom. I hadn't been inside Lourdes in years. I remembered that it was nice, the whole area. There was a convent right next door because, when Lourdes was first built, the nuns used to care for the patients. I also remembered a small lounge type of room on one of the upper floors, complete with old magazines and an amazing view. Then another memory hit me. I remembered the beautiful chapel-type wing they had. You could go in and light a candle for whoever was in the hospital and say a prayer or two for them. Now, I'm not that great of a Catholic, but, having gone to Catholic school for twelve years, I decided it was time to put all those religion classes to use. I got up, told the desk attendant where I was headed in case anyone needed me, and headed down the long hall on my right.

The chapel was just as I'd remembered it. The stained glass windows, the dim lighting, the numerous candles, it was all so familiar. I slowly made my way up to the rows of candles that were providing the only light source. The chapel was empty. It usually was, for some reason, even though there were always fifty or so candles lit. I picked up a stick that resembled incense, held the tip in the flame of one of the candles by the altar, and then lit one of the smaller candles that were in front of me. I blew out the lighter and knelt down on the kneeler that was put in front of the many rows of candles. I bowed my head and said a few quiet prayers for Tre'. Hey, I can be a good Catholic when I want to be.

After looking the chapel over one more time, I made my way back to the waiting room. I didn't know how much longer I was going to have to wait before I could talk to Dr. Butler.

As it turned out, I didn't have to wait any longer. Dr. Butler was sitting in one of the stiff uncomfortable chairs, just waiting. He stood up when he saw me.

"Ms. Ericson?"
"Yes, that's me."
"Ms. Ericson, I'm Dr. Butler. It's nice to meet you," he said, holding out his hand for me to shake, which I did.
"Nice to meet you, too, Dr. Butler," I said. "Did I keep you waiting?"
"Oh no, don't worry. You just looked like you needed to be left alone for a bit," he said.
"Oh, okay then." I paused. "Um...so..."
"Oh yes, your friend," he said. "Why don't you sit down and I'll try to explain what happened."
Dr. Butler and I both sat down. My hands had started shaking again.
"Well, first of all, the surgery was a complete success. We were able to fix the problem before it got any worse," Dr. Butler told me.
"And what was the problem?" I asked.
"Well, your friend wasn't conscious when he was brought in so I don't know what happened exactly," he explained. "But what I do know is that your friend had a rather nasty accident. He still has a few minor cuts and bruises. But the big thing was that one of his ribs had broken and punctured his right lung." I gasped and covered my mouth. How the hell do you break a rib and puncture a lung so easily?
"But he's okay now?" I asked, still shocked.
"So far, so good," he replied. "He's been moved to a private room and he's sleeping now. The anesthesia hasn't worn off yet. But he is going to have to stay here for a while so we can monitor his recovery and make sure that he doesn't develop any infections or anything."

I sat there for a second, letting everything sink in. I still couldn't believe it. I was overjoyed that he was okay, but I still wanted to know how it had all happened.

"Would you like to see him?" Dr. Butler asked.
"Could I?" I replied, looking up at him.
"Go right ahead. I'll get a nurse to show you what room he's in."
"Thank you, Dr. Butler, for...everything you've done," I told him.
"Hey, it's my job to help people," he replied.

As a nurse was about to show me where Tre's room was, I turned back to Dr. Butler.

"Oh, Dr. Butler?"
"Yes?"
"Now, you say my friend fell?"
"That's what it looks like," he said. "Either that, or he was pushed."

A nurse escorted me up to Tre's room. Walking through the hospital brought back so many memories. Even more memories came flooding back when I discovered that Tre' was in the same room that my grandfather had been in when he was sick with pneumonia.

The nurse opened the door and stepped aside so I could go in. I thanked her quietly and walked into the room. It looked just like it had when my grandfather had been there. The view from the window at the far end of the room hadn't changed much either.

I looked over at the bed nearest the door. Tre' was laying there, still sound asleep. A tear came to my eye. He had an IV in his arm and his face had some small cuts and bruises on it. It also looked like he was developing a black eye. I quietly pulled over a chair and sat next to him. I didn't want to wake him. He looked like he needed all the sleep he could get.

I watched Tre' sleep for a long time. He had moved a few times so I knew that he was probably just sleeping now and that the anaesthetic had probably worn off. I wanted so much to hold him, but it looked like even the slightest touch would hurt him.

I soon found myself dozing off every few minutes. I was so tired, both mentally and physically. I just wanted to fall asleep and find that it was all a bad dream.

I woke up the next morning to the sound of the tv and a stiff back. I was slumped over onto the hospital bed, but still in a sitting position. My first thought when I woke up was that it wasn't a dream. Tre' was really hurt and in the hospital.

I hesitated in lifting my head and looking at Tre'. I could never look at an injured person easily if I knew them. But I wanted to talk to Tre' and, seeing as the tv was on, he was already awake. I yawned and rubbed my eyes while leaning back in my chair.

"Well, sleeping beauty is finally up," Tre' said. I looked over at him. He had a smile on his bruised face. When I saw him awake, and smiling nonetheless, I couldn't hold it in anymore. I broke down on the edge of the bed. It was a mixture of joy and sadness. I was so happy that Tre' was alright, but I couldn't stand seeing him the way he was.
"Come on now, what's with the tears?" Tre' asked kindly. He lifted my head up to look at him.
"Oh God, Tre', I'm just so happy that you're okay," I managed to say through my sobs. "I was just so worried about you."
"Well, I'm fine. A little sore, but fine." He wiped a tear away from my eye. "Carrie, I love you more than anything. I'd never leave you for anything." Tre's words brought a new wave of tears to my eyes. "Now, I want you to stop crying. There's no need for it."
"Okay, you're right," I said, wiping my eyes with my sleeve and sniffling a little. "I just can't believe this happened to you."
"Well, look on the bright side," he said, "at least I'm a rock star instead of a rapper."
"What difference does that make?"
"If I was a rapper, I would've been shot instead." Tre' always knows how to make me smile.