Chapter 34

Skylar

The smell of sterilizer, gauze, and rubber gloves was overwhelming, but pleasant, familiar. I was back at the hospital for my first shift, and I felt a little more like myself than I had when I was back at my apartment. Adjusting to life back home was proving to be difficult, but at work, everything felt the same as it always had.

I made my rounds and visited patients. Some were old patients who had been there before I left. They all asked me about Las Vegas, and I took the time to sit beside their beds and tell them all about it, minus any details concerning Greyson. Most questions were about the city itself. Was the Golden Nugget still on Freemont Street? Did I go to the M&M store? What was my favorite hotel?

I answered all their questions with a smile as I tended to my patients.

When I went back to the nurses’ station during rest time, none of my coworkers asked me about my trip. I sat in one corner while we had our meeting and went over all the rest of the day’s duties. My shift would be done at six o’clock. I still had a few hours to go.

I sat and ate the snacks I had brought: an apple and peanut butter and carrot sticks. All the while, the other nurses sat and chatted amongst one another. For the first time since working in this hospital, I found myself wishing that they would include me.

When I was done eating and rest time ended, I went back out into the ward to visit a new patient. Her name was Gloria. She was being prepped for open heart surgery the following morning. When I went in, her husband was just leaving to grab dinner. I smiled at him as he left and then went and took a seat beside Gloria’s bed.

“Hello, Mrs. Hutchins. My name is Skylar. I’ll be your nurse until six this evening, and then I’ll be the one coming back tomorrow morning to be with you before your surgery. Do you have any questions or concerns you would like to run by me?”

Gloria smiled softly at me. She had full lips that I was sure were not natural. They were lined in a shade that was three times darker than her natural lips, and I wondered if it was tattoo liner. Her eyes were dark brown but twinkled with life.

“Nice to meet you, Skylar,” she said.

I smiled.

“I don’t think I have any questions, my dear. I’ve been well taken care of since arriving here. I confess, I’m quite nervous. I don’t really know what to expect.”

I nodded knowingly. “This is a daunting procedure, but you are the perfect candidate for it. You are in great shape, and you have no health complications. This will make your recovery much faster and easier than someone who, say, smokes a pack of cigarettes a day or suffers from diabetes. It’s scary, but this is routine surgery. This hospital performs six per day.”

“How long is the surgery?” Gloria asked.

“Four hours. You will wake up probably after eight. Has anyone gone over that part with you yet?”

Gloria shook her head and her fingers tightened in her blankets. I reached out and put a hand over hers.

“It’s okay,” I said. “I promise. Everything will be fine. When you wake up, you will be disoriented. That man who just left, who is he?”

“My husband,” Gloria said. As the words left her mouth, her grip on the blankets loosened, and she relaxed against her pillows. That sparkle returned to her eyes, and color returned to her cheeks. “His name is Bruce.”

“Will Bruce be here tomorrow after your surgery?”

Gloria nodded. “He told me that he’ll be waiting outside the operating room until I wake up.”

“Okay, wonderful. I’ll let the nurses in the cardiac surgery recovery room know that he’s there. When they know you’re going to start waking up, one of them will come get him so that you wake up to see a familiar face. That will make it so much easier. All the confusion as you come to will be easier to navigate if you see his face and hear his voice right away.”

“Oh, thank you so much,” Gloria said, her eyes filling with tears. “Bruce is my everything. This makes me feel so much more at ease, knowing he’ll be there. He’ll feel better, too.”

I patted her hand. “Good. I promise he will be there. He’ll help you through it. You will have one nurse with you when you come to, and she’ll make sure Bruce has proper instruction on how to help you best. When you first wake up, you’ll have a breathing tube in. Just try to remember that it’s there for your own good, okay? Your lungs have to be collapsed before the surgery begins, so the breathing tube is necessary. After waking up, you’ll probably have to keep it in for an hour at the least. It’s not comfortable. Your body will want it out. Bruce will be there to remind you why you have to keep it in.”

“Okay,” Gloria said. “What about pain? Every other doctor I’ve asked hasn’t really been able to tell me anything other than I’ll be really uncomfortable for the next little while.”

I always shared the truth with my patients. I pulled my chair closer to her bed and put my clipboard behind my back. “Uncomfortable is not the right word,” I started. “When you first come out of surgery, the breathing tube is what you will hate the most. Once that comes out, you will just want to sleep. You will be on a lot of pain killers. This is important. With a surgery like this, it is best to keep the pain at bay because you need to push yourself hard if you want to get better. Nurses, me included, will be coming in about fifteen hours after surgery and making you stand.”

“Really?” She blinked.

I nodded. “Yes. The painkillers keep the pain at bay, but not all of it. You will still be seriously hurting. You will have breathing exercises that aren’t pleasant, but they are crucial. You need to inflate your lungs again, and that is the only way. You will probably wake up several times feeling short of breath. It will scare you when it happens, but try not to panic. Take breaths as deep as you can. Press the red button at your side if you need one of us to come help you. That’s what we’re here for.”

“Okay.”

“And remember this, okay: day one, you’ll be feeling groggy. The pain will definitely be there, but you will have been expecting worse. Day two is the worst. The pain is intense. We cut back a bit on the pain medication so that you can be more active. You will enjoy this day the least. Sleeping will be difficult, and it’s all you will want to do. Day three, you will notice significant improvements. You’ll be up and walking and doing physiotherapy sessions. On day four, if all goes well, you will get to go home to your husband.”

Gloria nodded. “Thank you for sharing all that with me. You are so much more helpful than any of the other nurses I’ve spoken to.”

“I try my best,” I said. “The best part of this is you have Bruce.”

Gloria beamed. “I know. I am so truly blessed to have him. I couldn’t do this without him.”

“You are,” I said, getting to my feet. “I’ll come say goodbye before I go home tonight. Then I’ll see you again in the morning.”

“Thank you, Skylar.”