Oh Captain, My Captain

Chapter Forty Eight
-Sidney-
It's been almost two weeks since that game that landed Alex in the hospital, she was still in a coma and I went to visit her every chance that I could. Before and after practices and home games, I would make sure that I would see her before I left for an away and game and go to her as soon as I got back. The guys all come to visit her and Alex is definitely missed by them. Coach broke the news to them that she was going to be cut, and none of them took it well. Last week we had a meeting with the owner, Mario Lemieux, to discuss with him why Alex should stay on the team. We think it went well, but we're not too sure. Alex has missed nine games and right now, it was the second week of April, and we were getting ready to leave for a weeklong trip, going to North Carolina to play the Hurricanes and Florida to play the Panthers and Tampa Bay.

"Did you see Alex last night?" Geno asked and I nodded my head and walked onto the plane.

I knew that I was quiet; I didn't really talk much now that Alex was still in the hospital. I wouldn't see her for a whole week, and I think I was getting on Mel and Sam's nerves when I told them to make sure they call me if anything changes.

"I hope she doesn't wake up until I come back."

"Sid, come on," Geno said and shook his head.

"What? All I'm saying is that I hope I'm there when she wakes up!" I said and Geno snorted and shook his head.

-Sam-
I was in the hospital sitting next to Alex watching TV, making sure to keep an eye on my friend. It was two days after the boys left for their weeklong trip, and Alex was still not waking up. I looked around her room to see that flower, balloons, stuffed animals and cards were everywhere in her room making her room look like a ‘get well soon’ jungle.

The day the boys left, the doctor came in and looked over Alex to see that she was in good condition, and can be brought out of the coma and was taken off of the breathing mask. When she didn't wake up when she was suppose to, this drew some concern, and when I called James to tell him, I could hear Geno yelling at Sidney to calm down.

My phone alerted me that I had a text and I looked down from the TV to see that James was texting me asking how I was and how Alex was. I replied with still the same for both and then put my phone back in my lap. There was a knock at the door and I turned around to see Marc's wife, Veronique walk into the room and smile towards me.

"No changes?" she asked and I shook my head. Veronique walked in and saw in the chair that was on the other side of Alex and then held her hand, "I don't understand why she's not waking up."

"No one does, the doctor thought that she would have woken up a few hours after they gave her that medicine," I explained and Vero nodded her head.

"Marc called me right before I came in here. He told me that they ran into the Hurricanes last night when they went out to eat and they wished Alex well."

"That was nice of them."

"I know. The guys really miss her," she said and I nodded my head.

"I know they went to Lemieux last week to try and get him to talk to the league about having Alex stay on the team."

"Those boys aren't going to let Alex go down without a fight. I know Marc was saying that when her old team the Kings were angry about this whole situation," Vero said and I nodded my head.

"I figured they would be. A lot of people look up to Alex, and I'm surprised that the league hasn't figured that out yet. For a woman to make it as far as she did, that's incredible."

"I know, it's just a shame that she had to deal with so much, just to get her dream," Vero said talking about Alex's relationship with her mother, "I don't know where I would be today if it wasn't for my Mom."

"Same."

We sat in silently watching the boys’ game on the small TV in Alex’s room. They weren’t doing too good, they were losing by two in the second period and I sighed and looked back towards Alex.

‘…Come on Alex, your boys need you…’

“Any changes?” I looked over and saw that Mel walked into the room with Alex’s father right behind her. I shook my head and she sighed, “Steph has been texting me nonstop wondering how Alex was doing.”

“Has Alex’s mother even called to see how Alex was doing?” Vero asked and Alex’s father shook his head, “What a shame.”

“I hate to say it, but Alex’s mother, she doesn’t care,” he said and we sighed and looked towards Alex.

“How are the boys?” Mel asked and then looked over towards the TV.

“They’re losing.”

Mel sighed and then looked over towards Alex, “If she doesn’t wake up soon I’m gunna shake her awake.”

“Mel.”

“I’m getting grey hairs over this! Look!” she said and I smirked and shook my head.

‘…Wake up, Alex…’

“I’m going to get some coffee,” Vero said as she stood up, “Would anyone like anything?”

“No thank you,” Alex’s Dad said and Mel shook her head.

“Sam? You’ve been here all day; do you want to at least go for a walk?”

“Sure,” I said and then Vero and I walked out of the room and heard down the hall for the café.

-Mel-
Vero and Sam left the room and a few minutes later the doctor and nurse walked into the room to check up on Alex. When we asked him if there were any changes internally he shook his head and sighed.

“I don’t understand this, she should have woken up two days ago,” he said then his beeper was going off, “I have a call in to another doctor who specializes in comas, when he calls me back, I’ll explain Alex’s situation to him and see what he thinks. When I looked at Alex, I see that her body is back into the shape it was and if she was awake, I would clear her to be on the ice again, starting off slow of course, but this- I don’t what is going on.”

“Doctor, could it be that she doesn’t want to wake up?” Alex’s father asked and I looked at him shocked.

“Why wouldn’t she want to wake up?” he asked and I nodded my head in agreement.

“Just a question.”

“I suppose that could be it, but physically and mentally, this girl has every reason to wake up,” he said and then left the room and I heard Alex’s father sigh.

“Why wouldn’t she want to wake up?”

“I said it was just a question, I just thought that maybe that was the reason, but I don’t know,” he said and I rubbed my face and walked over towards Mel and held her hand.

“Come on boys,” I muttered as I saw that the boys doing badly. I mean the other day the Flyers beat them, and that was just pathetic.

“They’re worried about her,” Alex’s father said and I nodded my head, “Their heads aren’t in the game.”

“They know she’s in good hands,” I said and then ran my fingers through my hair, “But I know that’s not enough for them.”

I watched on the TV as Geno had the puck and was skating down the ice, he tried to make a goal, but the puck shot off of the side of the net and I closed my eyes, ‘…It’s ok, babe…’

Alex’s father’s phone rang and he walked out of the room just as Vero and Sam came back with coffee and sandwiches in hand.

“I ended up getting you a coffee, Mel,” Sam said and I smiled towards her and them and took the cup.

“Thanks.”

“We saw the doctor walk out, what did he say?” Sam asked and I told them about what he said about having a call in to another doctor and about how Alex’s father said that maybe she didn’t want to wake up.

“How are they doing?” Vero asked and I shook my head.

“They’re getting frustrated and not concentrating,” I said and Sam and Vero sighed and then watched as the Hurricanes scored again against Fleury.

“Oh, I’m gunna hear about that,” Vero said and Sam and I nodded our heads.

“We all our,” I said and we all sighed.

“Alex really needs to wake up.”