Page 26 of Andy

“We’ve got a live one here,” Peach said to someone. “An explosion rang his bell, and he’s leaking a bit.”

Andy didn’t hear the other person’s response as he was taken from the helicopter and carried down to the medical unit. The lights were way too bright and threatened to make his head explode. He closed his eyes and lay there for what seemed like forever. It wasn’t. The medical team moved fast, and scans were made. The doctors didn’t seem happy, but they didn’t knock him out immediately. Instead, they hit him with local pain shots so someone could pick the bits of crap out of the wounds on his left side.

Time seemed to float by him at an undetermined speed. Then, the doctor came in with the news. He had a piece of shrapnel in his skull. It wasn’t deep, but it was why he was in so much pain.

“Fuck. Sorry, didn’t mean to curse.”

The doctor chuckled. “No, this is a proper time to say that. We’re getting you prepared to fly to Germany.”

“Fuck.”

The doctor patted him on his right arm. “Trust me, you don’t want me doing brain surgery on this ship. You’ll be okay in Germany. Your team has been informed. You’re a lucky man. The shrapnel hit you just right, so it didn’t sink into your brain tissue or explode your brain. You’re really lucky. But still, this is a delicate procedure. Even the wind blowing in a different direction or at a different speed could have meant you were going home in a body bag. Like I said, you’re very lucky.”

The reality of the situation hit hard. When Wild came in to say goodbye, he almost lost it. This had been as close to game over as he’d ever been. “Really, man, tell Mel I’ve fallen in love with her.”

“I’ll tell her. They’re shipping us to Germany, too. We’ll see you there when you wake up from your surgery. Hang tight, man.”

Andy wasn’t prepared for how rapidly the Navy moved. He was loaded into a different helicopter, and they were airborne fast. He had no idea how long it would take, but now that they knew what they were dealing with, he was given pain meds. He slept. He didn’t know if it was good or bad. When he woke, he was surrounded by medical personnel.

“Germany?” he asked.

The man standing next to him nodded. “Yes, sir. You’ll be going back for surgery in about ten minutes. We’re about to start pumping you full of medicine that will knock you out.”

“Great.” He wasn’t sure why he’d woken up before they knocked him out. Maybe they just wanted to make sure he really was out when they put him under.

“Sleep well. We’ll see you on the other side.”

The blackness took him down deep and fast, blanking everything. When he woke up in recovery, he felt like he’d been hit by a truck. Nurses asked him how he was, and he answered, which he guessed was good because whatever the doctor had done hadn’t killed him.

Later, not sure how much later, Wild came in. “Hey, you look like shit,” Wild said.

“Thanks. I try. Did you talk to Mel?”

Wild’s lips thinned. “We decided not to call any of them until we were sure you made it.”

Agitation ran through him. Had he really been that close? “I’m out and fine. Will you call her?”

“We will. I’ll keep you in the loop. Right now, you need to recover. Get some sleep.”

“Fuck. How is everyone else?”

“We’re all good. We’re finishing our briefing with command.”

“Fuck. I’m not off the team, am I?”

Laughter spilled from Wild. “Dude, you just had brain surgery. You’re lucky to be alive. Take it one day at a time for a while.”

He didn’t want to take it slow. He wanted to speed through this bullshit and be on the other side. Sitting at home while his team worked blew. “Shit. This sucks.” He closed his eyes and groaned. “Did you talk to Mel?”

“Not yet, buddy. I’ll call her soon.”

“Fuck. This hurts. I don’t want to be off the teams.”

“You aren’t. You’re lucky. Having your brain blown all over the place would have sucked more. People get hurt. You’ll rest, do some PT, and come out the other side.”

“Yeah, I’ll get it together and come out the other side. Would have sucked if I’d been closer.”

Wild tapped him on the shoulder. “They said they were going to get you up and make you walk in just a bit. Don’t throw up on them, but I’m going to stick around and see if you do.”

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