Fate's Cruel Hand

The drive to the emergency room had felt as if time had completely stopped, every traffic light flicking to red when they could easily drive through. Kelly had become irritable in the back seat every time they got stuck in traffic, her patience wearing thinner and thinner.
Wayne had struggled to find a parking space and dropped Marilyn and Kelly off at the ER department, saying that he would catch up with them. Kelly hadn't expected a small group of reporters, being held back by security staff to be blocking the main entrance. Eventually, they had passed through the chaos and into the hospital.

The relatives room is painted a pale purple and has old sofa's sitting around a wooden coffee table. One of the walls are covered in information leaflets, offering various services like counselling and support groups. Another wall is decorated with bright drawings from kids who were bored and given paper and pens to doodle on, the youngest eight. Some of the drawings are mostly scribbles made by crayons, but it made a kid feel special that their very own artwork is on display. The room smells of burned coffee and disinfectant, the same smell that you can smell around the whole building.

Marilyn stands by the window that looks out at the waiting room, the blinds slightly open and she can see uniforms of purple,blue and green. With a heavy sigh she sits down next to Kelly who has barely said a word since being asked to wait.

All kinds of crazy things are rushing in and out of her head, hope dropping like a lead balloon. She's worried. No, she's not just worried, she's petrified. She's petrified that she's going to lose him so soon.
Wayne leaves the room, muttering something about trying to find a bathroom. Every minute that passes feels like an hour and it doesn't bode well to think they haven't had any news yet. When a nurse or doctor passes the door, Kelly gets her hopes up that they will come in and talk to them. She had tried to call Jeremy's cell on the way to the hospital, hoping that maybe his car had been stolen and it was the thief that was lying in a ditch.

Tears sting her eyes and she bites down on the inside of her bottom lip. She never would have thought a vehicle collision would bring serious harm to him. Especially after trying to take his own life and his dependency on prescription medications and booze. She always thought he would overdose, slipping away quietly from the world without so much as a goodbye or a reason.
Kelly shakes her head. These thoughts aren't helping, but she can't help but think them. Marilyn is talking to her, but she can't hear a word she is saying.

"Sorry. What?"

"I was just saying that I'm sure Wayne's got lost"

Kelly nods. He's been gone maybe thirty minutes or longer.

"He's going to be okay, you know. The media don't know shit and make mountains out of molehills all the time" Marilyn says. She isn't sure who she's trying to convince,
herself or Kelly.

They jump as the door opens. Wayne hands Kelly a filtered coffee and a chocolate bar, telling her to eat it because she looks as if she is going to collapse.
Kelly does as she's told and nibbles at the chocolate, It tastes sour and unpleasant. She doesn't want chocolate or coffee. She just wants to know if Jeremy is alright and she wants to see him. She wants to make sure that whoever the paramedics brought in isn't Jeremy.

Ten minutes later a doctor in green scrubs and a nurse in blue scrubs enter the room. Kelly hits them with questions and they are asked her to take a seat.
Kelly looks at their grim and exhausted expressions and wonders if they are here to deliver the ultimate bad news.

"How's Jeremy?" Marilyn asks as if she knows what Kelly is thinking.

The doctor sits across from them, the nurse hovering by the door.

"The good news is that we have him stable. The bad news is that he needs to urgently go to theatre" The doctor says. "Jeremy is suffering from multiple serious injuries. What we are more concerned about is the broken ribs and punctured lung, the internal bleeding and possible rupture of vital organs. "

"Oh my-"Marilyn begins to say but is cut off by Kelly.

"Please can I see him?"

"That can be arranged" the doctor confirms. "I also have to tell you that his injuries are extensive. Jeremy's shoulder has dislocated and the tendons are probably damaged. A few small bones in his wrist and hand are also broken, his skull fractured from the impact of the crash. His kneecap is cracked, but they'll be able to fix that in surgery. I must warn you that he doesn't look quite like himself. His face is swollen from bruising, the left cheekbone cracked and the eye socket smashed. A lot of the cuts and bruises are superficial, but it's the internal injuries we are more worried about"

"Will he be okay?" Kelly splutters.

"Honestly, he's critical. But we'll know more when he's back from theatre and transferred to intensive care."