Page 68 of Three Times You

“Step had a crash. I’m going to the hospital, I’m bringing Aurora over now.”

“Yes, of course. Is Step all right?”

“I don’t know anything. I’m on my way to you.”

“Okay, but take your time.”

***

Gin arrives in a rush at the ER, hurries down the hallway, and meets Renzi, who’s been waiting for her.

“How is he?”

“It was a bad accident. He broke his arm, and I’m afraid he hit his head pretty hard. He’s under observation. He has a hematoma, but luckily it’s at the top of his head, the least dangerous location. They say they don’t yet know how serious it is. They can’t be sure yet. You know what doctors are like, they’re always cautious.”

“So what happened?”

“I don’t know. He had an appointment for work, and apparently because we were running late, he decided to take his motorcycle to get there quicker. But I don’t know exactly how the accident happened. He’s here, in intensive care, but maybe we can see him.”

They talk for a long time with the nurses and a doctor, and in the end, they’re allowed through. Step is in a bed, surrounded by various monitors and an IV stand. His left arm is in a brace, there are stitches in his right eyebrow, and there’s a large swelling to the left, and then there’s a bump on his head. In short, it doesn’t look as worrisome as they feared at first.

Renzi smiles at her. “He’s not in such bad shape.”

“There were times, when he liked boxing, that I’ve seen worse…”

“He’s got a powerful physique. You’ll see, he’ll get better.”

“Let’s hope so…”

“Do you want to go home?”

“No, I’ll stay here. Maybe we can take shifts. I took Aurora to my mother’s place. I’m not worried about her.”

“Well then, I’ll go get something to eat, and then I’ll come back to see you.”

“Thanks.”

“Should we alert his family?”

“Let’s wait until we learn more. It doesn’t do any good just to worry them.”

“They’ve given him a sedative. They said that it’s not very strong, though, and he might wake up any second now. Do you have my number?”

“Yes.”

“If you need anything, call me.”

“All right. Thanks.”

Renzi turns and leaves. Gin walks around to the other side of the bed, pulls up a chair, and sits down next to her husband. Then she takes his hand and holds it tight in her own.I can’t believe it, now that I’m so weak, now of all times, when we need you so badly, especially Aurora, now is not the time to play tricks on me.

She pulls out her cell phone and calls her mother, who answers immediately.

“Well, how is he?”

“He’s okay. He doesn’t seem all that bad off to me, after all. He’s resting, and he broke his arm. The only real problem is that he hit his head, and there’s still no way of knowing what the outcome is there. But they’re monitoring him. How is Aurora?”

“She’s just fine. She’s fast asleep, like the little angel that she is. We put her in your bed, surrounded by cushions and pillows. She’s fine.”

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