Making a Splash

Mackenzie stood at the side of the pool, waiting for the kids to arrive for the day. The guys had just gotten finished with their practices, and they were currently eating a quick lunch before they had to get back into the pool. Mackenzie turned around and saw Skye walking her way. “Hey, what’s up?” she asked her with a smile.

“Nothing much,” Skye answered. “It’s been a long day, but I’m excited for the kids to come in. They remind me why I put up with everything else,” she said with a laugh.

“Yeah, it’s always great to see the kids,” she said as she saw the four guys walk inside the aquatic center. They saw her and Skye sitting on the bleachers, and they made their way over to them.

“Where’s Addie at?” Ricky asked, looking around as Michael sat down next to Skye.

“I don’t know,” Mackenzie answered.

“You don’t know where your own girlfriend is?” Ryan asked in disbelief. “Dude, you need to keep tabs on her or something.”

Mackenzie’s eyes widened at Ryan’s words and she looked up at him. “Excuse me?” she asked him, and he looked down at her, wondering what she was making a big deal about. “Keep tabs on her?” she questioned. “Do you keep tabs on me?”

Ryan stuttered a bit, knowing he had dug himself into a deep hole. “Yes…no…I don’t know,” he muttered. “I just meant…” he trailed off, not knowing what to say to keep himself out of as much trouble as possible.

Mackenzie stared at him, waiting on him to continue. “Leave the poor guy alone,” Garrett spoke up for him. “Can’t you see he’s not going to be able to get himself out of this one? Dude, you did that to yourself,” Garrett informed him, slapping Ryan on the back.

“When are the kids coming?” Ryan asked, trying to switch subjects.

“Lochte, they come in at the same time every single day. It’s been this week for the past how many weeks now? Six?” Skye asked him. “And, yet, you still have to ask every single day,” she said with a laugh.

“Sorry,” he apologized as they saw Addie walk inside. “Ricky, there’s your girl,” he said, pointing towards Addie walking their way.

“Why is everyone staring at me?” Addie asked, looking between everyone.

“We were wondering where you were,” Ricky told her, giving her a quick kiss.

“Yeah, you missed Ryan digging himself into a big hole that he couldn’t figure out how to get out of,” Mackenzie told her, laughing.

“Eh, he seems to do that a lot,” Addie joked, smiling at Ryan.

Ten minutes later, the kids were coming inside, and everyone stood up to go greet them. As Mackenzie walked ahead of everyone, she felt her foot hit a puddle of water, and she ended up falling, hitting her already injured shoulder.

Ryan was at her side in a minute, as tears sprung to Mackenzie’s eyes. Everyone else stood around her as the kids noticed she was on the ground and began making their way over to her. Skye instantly moved them away, telling them that Mackenzie needed some room.

“Mack, are you okay?” Ryan asked, crouching down next to her.

Mackenzie shook her head, and Ryan immediately knew why. Her arm was hanging limply at her side, and it was obvious that she had dislocated her shoulder. “Mack, we need to get you to the hospital,” he told her, knowing how serious of an injury it could be.

“No, stay here,” Mackenzie said, tears streaming down her face from the pain in her shoulder. “I’ll get there on my own,” she told him.

“Mack, sweetie, you’re in no shape to get to the hospital on your own,” he told her softly. “You’re not going to be able to drive, so let me. Otherwise, we’re calling an ambulance, and all the kids are going to be worried, wondering what’s going on,” he informed her.

“Fine,” she sighed, wiping at her tears with her uninjured arm. Ryan attempted to help her up, but he was having difficulties trying to make sure he didn’t hit her right shoulder, causing her even more pain. Skye rushed over to them, asking who was going to take her to the hospital.

“I am,” Ryan told her. “We’ll be back as soon as we can.”

“Don’t worry about it,” Skye told him. “Just make sure she’s okay,” she called after him as he guided her through the throng of kids that were all staring at Mackenzie, wondering what had happened.

By the time they had reached Ryan’s car, Mackenzie’s pain had increased even more, and she began feeling dizzy. As she leaned into Ryan, he caught her, putting his arm around her left shoulder. “Hey, are you okay?” he asked her, trying to get her steady on her own feet.

“I don’t feel so good,” she told him.

“Okay, let’s just get you into the car and to the emergency room,” Ryan told her, trying to guide her into the car. As soon as he had gotten her inside and her seat belt on, he shut the door, and she leaned her head up against the window. Ryan ran around to the driver’s side, getting inside and starting the car. “Mack, how are you feeling?” he asked her as he turned the car on and backed out of the parking space, racing towards the hospital.

“My shoulder hurts,” she informed him, and Ryan had to bite back a laugh at her obvious statement.

“I’m trying to get you there as soon as possible,” he told her.

“Thank you,” Mackenzie said, staring out the window.

“Well, I know you’re in pain. I’m not going to drive ten miles an hour there,” Ryan said.

“No, for coming with me,” Mackenzie said. “You didn’t have to.”

“Sure I did,” Ryan said, shrugging his shoulders. “It’s not like you could have driven yourself, and I wasn’t going to send one of the other guys with you.” Mackenzie just nodded her head. “Are you sure you’re alright?” he asked worriedly. “Besides being in pain?”

“It just hurts,” she told him as she watched him turn the corner towards the hospital.

Minutes later, he was pulling into the emergency room parking lot, helping Mackenzie get out of the car. “Let’s get you inside and that shoulder back in place,” he said, as they walked inside and Ryan went to the check-in desk for her.

An hour later, Ryan was pacing the waiting room, having just texted Skye, telling her that they had just put Mackenzie under anesthesia in order to try to get her shoulder back in place. Apparently, the dislocation was worse than they had first suspected, and the doctors thought that she might need surgery in order to repair in fully. A nurse came out, telling Ryan he was able to go back and see Mackenzie, and he followed her to her room.

“It’s nice to see that this lovely girl has such a great boyfriend, one who stays here and waits for her,” the nurse spoke as they walked down the hallway. “You two seem like a great couple,” she added, as she pointed towards a door on their left, informing him that that was Mackenzie’s room.

“Thanks,” he told the nurse as he walked inside. He saw Mackenzie lying on the bed, and it seemed as if the full effects of the drugs they had given her hadn’t worn off yet, as she still looked sleepy. “How are you doing?” he asked, looking at her right shoulder.

“I’m not in pain anymore,” she smiled at him.

“That would be because of all the drugs they gave you,” he replied. “I’m sure once those wear off, you’ll be in a lot of pain again,” he spoke without thinking.

“Thanks, Ryan. Thank you for that,” Mackenzie said sarcastically, but with a smile on her face to let him know that she wasn’t too angry with him.

“Sorry,” he apologized. “I seem to keep sticking my foot in my mouth today, don’t I?” he laughed, and Mackenzie nodded her head. “So, has the doctor come in here yet to talk to you?” he asked.

“No,” Mackenzie said, shaking her head. “The nurse said he’d be in here soon, though,” she spoke just as the door opened and her surgeon came walking into the room.

“Mackenzie,” Dr. Logan smiled. “How are you feeling?”

“Pretty good right now,” Mackenzie responded.

“Okay, well, I just wanted to talk to you about a few things,” he said, going over the instructions she would have to follow in order to leave. “And, I wanted to talk to you about swimming.”

“Am I going to be able to swim anytime soon?” Mackenzie asked hopefully.

“Well, to be honest, you’re not going to be able to swim for a long time,” Dr. Logan said. “You’re going to need to start rehab on your shoulder fairly soon, and you’re not going to be able to go back into the pool and swim again until you’ve got your full strength and range of motion back.” Mackenzie’s eyes widened at the news. “I’m sorry.”

“Me, too,” she muttered under her breath.

Dr. Logan told her a few other things before he left to get her discharge papers to let her go home. As they were walking out of the hospital, Ryan looked down at Mackenzie, not knowing what to say to her to make her feel better. He knew that if he was told that he wasn’t going to be able to swim for a long time that he wouldn’t be happy. “Do you want to talk about it?” Ryan asked cautiously as he helped her into the passenger’s seat.

“About what?” Mackenzie asked.

“About what the doctor just told you, about not being able to swim for a while.”

“It doesn’t matter,” Mackenzie lied, staring out the window. “It’s not like I could swim competitively before. Now, I just can’t get in the pool at all,” she muttered.

“Mack,” Ryan began.

“Can we just not talk about it right now?” Mackenzie begged. “Please?”

“Sure,” Ryan said reluctantly.