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Wenona's eyes roamed around the waiting room anxiously, her nails digging indents into the chair’s fabric armrests. The entire emergency department was filled with overwhelming stimuli: the sounds of the sick and injured, the sights of frantic doctors and buzzing monitors, and the smells of blood and alcohol wipes. It did nothing to dispel Wenona’s latent anxiety.
Cassidy is beyond those doors – the ones that separate the waiting room and the ER department floor – lost somewhere in the sea of hospital staff. Wenona glanced up at the digital clock hanging on the wall, its neon red numbers glowing against the stark white walls. 1:43 AM. She wouldn’t have imagined an emergency department would be so busy in the middle of the night. But, emergencies can happen at any time, at any moment, she supposes. And Cassidy’s situation goes to prove that.
The entire day prior to this, Cassidy had seemed off. To an outside observer, this change would’ve been so slight that it would appear as though nothing were wrong. But Wenona knew Cassidy better than anyone, and something was up.
Wenona could see it in the way she had walked with a slump in her shoulders, the way her voice sounded quieter and forced, and the way her smile never quite seemed to reach her eyes. She started getting worse as the day went on. She complained to Wenona about nausea, and Wenona found she had a low grade fever. Her appetite started to wane, and by the time dinner rolled around, she had refused to eat anything at all. Her usual excitable spark was gone, replaced by a subdued, despondent exhaustion that seemed to hang over her every step of the day. Wenona tried to talk to her about it, but Cassidy had insisted it was nothing worth worrying over, playing it off as just an abdominal cramp or a case of mild food poisoning.
Wenona didn’t buy it, but she could tell she was fighting a losing battle. She relented, letting Cassidy try to “sleep it off” (with a promise of visiting the doctor first thing the next morning if she didn’t improve). They never got that far, though, after Wenona woke up to an empty bed and the sight of Cassidy curled up on the bathroom floor, tears of pain welling up in her soft green eyes.
Wenona had gotten them out of the house and to the hospital in a blur, throwing nothing but her fur coat over her pajamas in her haste. She barely even registered the speedometer on her dashboard, indicating what were surely felony level speeds. All she knew was that they were at the hospital now, and Cassidy had been whisked away behind a flurry of staff, gone from Wenona’s sight. Wenona stood at the entrance like a lost puppy until an employee had guided her to her seat.
Wenona took comfort in knowing Cassidy was in better hands now, but she couldn’t shake the anxiety she felt about Cassidy being so far out of sight, so far out of reach.
A nurse had come by around thirty minutes ago to update her. The man had told her it was appendicitis, but that they’d caught it before it ruptured, and her prognosis would be very good with surgery.
“She is waiting on an operating room now,” He reported, rifling through a small notebook, “But once she gets in, it will be a very brief surgery. I imagine she’ll be out of there and in a recovery room in about an hour or two.”
“And then I will be allowed to see her?” Wenona’s voice wobbles. She hates the vulnerability it reveals, but she simply can’t help it right now.
“Well, not exactly.” He looked away apologetically, “Once she is transferred out of the operating room, you will have to abide by the hospital’s guidelines on visitors. No visitors are allowed between 9pm and 8am besides immediate family and spouses. You will have to wait for the morning to visit your friend.”
Friend. She had not thought it important at the time to announce to hospital staff that Cassidy was her girlfriend, so it’s not like he could know better. Wenona opens her mouth to correct him, but realizes that there is no point regardless. They aren’t married, so “friends” or not, Wenona won’t be allowed to visit her until morning.
Suddenly, a pager at the man’s hip started buzzing urgently, and a look of alarm flashed across his face. “Sorry, I need to take this. Please speak to the lady at the front desk if you have any more questions.” Before Wenona could utter a single word in reply, he was gone.
So, still worried, and now slightly agitated, Wenona slumped back in her chair. The man had said one to two hours until Cassidy was out. But even then, she would be unable to even see her until morning anyway. Why stay here at all, she wonders. But then again, where would she go? Back home to an empty bed? Without Cassidy, there was nothing there for her. Everything she ever needed was sitting in that emergency department right now.
She’ll wait as long as it takes.
Wenona could’ve spent all of the time ticking away until Cassidy’s surgery ruminating in her own anxiety. She would’ve been perfectly content to do it, too. But, sitting in the plush chair of the waiting room, deep into the depths of the night, and exhausted from hours upon hours of worry, Wenona drifted off to sleep.
It was a dreamless, restless sleep. And, just as quickly as she had fallen asleep, she was being woken up again. Another nurse was here, different from before. She was a young blonde woman, appearing not much older than Wenona herself. She could’ve been no more than a few years removed from nursing school, it seems.
“Excuse me, are you the wife of Cassidy Amber?”
Huh?
Wenona slowly opened her eyes, blinking a few times as they adjusted to the bright light of the waiting room. Her gaze flitted briefly to the chairs on either side of her, stupidly believing there was anybody else the nurse could’ve been addressing at that moment. Wenona was the only one in that row of chairs – the nurse had meant her.
“Wha…? Wife? Huh?” Wenona grumbled, rubbing the sleep from her eyes.
The nurse’s confidence seemed to falter a bit, seeming a bit unsure now if she was speaking to the correct person or not. “Uhm, we are looking for the wife of Mrs. Cassidy Amber. Would that be you? You are the woman she came here with, correct?”
Well, she was half correct.
“Wh… I, uh, I did come here with her, yes.” Wenona fumbled, trying to blink away the residual sleep from her eyes. She darted a glance at the clock from before. 3:17 AM. God, she had not meant to sleep for so long. She felt disoriented, and it was taking her longer than she would’ve like for her to regain her bearings.
The nurse relaxed a bit, seemingly reassured of Wenona’s identity. “Mrs. Amber is out of surgery now. She's been asking for her wife ever since she woke up, she says that’s who drove her here to the hospital. I presume that to be you?”
“Uh, yes, that’s me, but we aren’t…” Married, was what Wenona wanted to say, but she stopped herself just before the word left her mouth. She thought back to what the other nurse had told her before Wenona fell asleep. No visitors besides immediate family and spouses after 9pm. But this nurse hasn’t spoken to her yet – she has no idea what Wenona is to Cassidy.
“Yes, that’s me.” Wenona said decidedly.
The nurse smiled down at her, gesturing for her to stand up. “Please, come with me then. I’ll lead you to Mrs. Amber’s room.”
The nurse chattered most of the way, and while Wenona would’ve normally been annoyed, she talked mostly about Cassidy’s condition, so Wenona tried to pay attention. Through her exhausted and sleep-addled haze, Wenona could only process so much of what the young woman was saying. But, she got the cliffnotes: the surgery was a success, she would need to stay overnight, and she was very, very out of it.
Absently, as the nurse droned on in the background, Wenona wondered if this was some plan Cassidy had cooked up to have Wenona be allowed to see her. Maybe Cassidy knew you couldn’t visit a partner after hours unless you were married, and maybe that’s why Cassidy had asked for her “wife” instead of her girlfriend. Wenona smiled to herself. It would be quite clever, if that were the case.
Now that she was sitting down by Cassidy’s bedside, though, Wenona realized she may have given Cassidy too much credit.
“Wenonaaaaaaaaaa!” Cassidy slurred as soon as Wenona came into range, holding her arms out in front of her and making a grabbing motion. She twisted her body with great effort in an attempt to embrace Wenona.
Wenona shut it down quickly with a hand on her shoulder, gently pushing her back down into the bed. “Stop trying to move, you’ll mess with your stitches.” Wenona huffed. Annoyance aside, she had a hard time containing the smile that spreads across her face. Words couldn’t describe how good it felt to see Cassidy, her Cassidy, happy and healthy again. “Does that not hurt?”
“I don’t feel a thing.” Cassidy smiled dopily.
The nurse cleared her throat from behind them, turning to address Wenona. “We have her on some pretty strong pain meds right now. She may be a little disoriented for a while.” The nurse turned to leave. “I’ll be going, but I’ll come back to check up on her every few hours until discharge. If anything comes up in the meantime that needs my attention, push the call button and someone will come by.” The nurse smiled politely and left, shutting the door behind her. When Wenona turned back around to face the bed again, she noticed Cassidy was still staring at her.
Cassidy made no attempt to get up this time, but now reached her hand out to brush against Wenona’s cheek.
“You don’t know how glad I am to see you.” Cassidy hummed, still slurring her words. “My beautiful wife.”
Wenona chuckled and grabbed Cassidy’s hand from her cheek, pulling it down to clasp between both hands. “We aren’t married, Cassidy.”
It’s only when Cassidy’s entire face fell that Wenona considered that this was not some elaborate bit. Those anesthesia drugs must’ve been something.
“Huh? But I thought…” Cassidy looked off in the distance, confused. She processed for a minute before sinking deeper into her hospital bed, dejected. “Aw man…”
Wenona laughed the comment off, placing one hand in Cassidy’s hair, leaning a little closer. “How are you feeling, love?”
“Fine.” Cassidy sighed. When she locked eyes with Wenona, she continued. “Better now. You’re beautiful. I can’t believe I haven’t married you.”
Wenona snorted, hoping the dim lighting of the room can hide the way her face heats up. “How could I lose out on this opportunity to marry into all the medical debt you’re about to acquire?”
Cassidy scoffed in offense. “You’d pay for it anyway! I know you will. You could buy the whole damn hospital if you wanted!” Cassidy’s volume rose exceptionally by the end of her sentence, having way more energy than someone coming out of surgery ought to have.
“Shhh,” Wenona placed a finger to Cassidy’s lips, and Cassidy didn’t move to stop her, staring at her lovingly instead. “It’s nighttime, people are sleeping. Aren’t you tired?”
Cassidy waved her off with a gesture. “Pshh, I slept the whole surgery. That’s enough for me.” She giggled. The anesthesia was really taking its sweet time wearing off. “They took out my… uh… adden- no, my appen… uh…” Cassidy trailed off, the word escaping her in her altered state.
“Appendix, dear.” Wenona smiled.
“Yeah, that.” Cassidy sighed and nuzzled her head into Wenona’s hand, which still rested in Cassidy’s red hair. “I feel better now. Hurts less.”
“Good. I’m glad.” Wenona sighed, relieved. Cassidy didn’t say anything in reply, only leaned further into Wenona’s hand, where she’s now gently scratching Cassidy’s scalp. Wenona drank in the peaceful silence, allowing her eyelids to flutter closed. She thought she may have dozed off for a bit, but she perked back awake when Cassidy’s quiet voice cut through the air.
“Wenona?” Cassidy slurred out, clearly on the verge of sleep herself.
“Yes?”
“Thanks for being here tonight.” Wenona smiled at Cassidy in reply.
“Where else would I rather be than here, with my dear wife?” She teased.
Cassidy chuckled and sank further into the mattress, her eyelids drifting shut. “I swear I’ll marry you when I’m out of here.”
Wenona snorted. “I’m sure you will, Cassidy.”
She seemed to have fallen asleep shortly after, and Wenona is unsure if Cassidy even heard her reply at all. Still, Wenona was exhausted, and now that Cassidy had gone to bed, she had no reason to stay up anymore. Pulling down the guardrail of the bed, she scooted her chair closer to the edge of Cassidy’s bedside. She folded an arm in front of her, using it as a pillow as she rested her upper body on the bed, nestling herself as close as she could be to the side of Cassidy’s chest. She kept one hand in Cassidy’s hair, holding her close as she drifts off to sleep after her.
–
“Oh my god, I said what?” Cassidy exclaimed in horror, hiding her face in her palms. “God, just kill me.”
Cassidy had been discharged the following morning, taking with her a small collection of medications and a short list of post-surgery care instructions. Wenona had been laying out all of Cassidy’s medications on the bathroom counter while she recounted the whole experience to Cassidy – who had absolutely no memory of anything that happened post-surgery, it seemed.
Wenona chuckled at her. “It was cute. I didn’t mind pretending to be your wife for a night if it would fool the hospital staff into letting me stay.” She carefully read over the instructions the doctor had handed her before throwing Cassidy a small bottle of pills. “Take one of those.”
Cassidy listened without even bothering to check the label, swallowing the small pill before throwing the bottle back. “You can’t tell anyone about that. Ever.” She muttered, face heating up into an embarrassed blush.
“I make no promises.” Wenona flashed a coy smile, placing the medication bottle back on the bathroom counter.
Cassidy grumbled, knowing she was fighting a losing battle, and flopped backwards onto the bed. “I feel gross. Are you sure I can’t join you in there?”
Wenona was getting ready to take a shower – she had also felt gross after the eventful night she had just had – and was looking forward to a nice, relaxing, hot shower to lift her spirits. She pitied Cassidy at that moment, who had had a verifiably awful night, and no doubt felt ten times worse than Wenona did. Still, the instructions were clear.
“It says it here, Cass.” Wenona shrugged apologetically, holding up the care instructions for Cassidy to see. “You can’t shower for at least 24 hours post-operation. It’s bad for the incision site.”
Cassidy had no snarky reply for that, collapsing into the bed with a displeased look on her face. Wenona could see the physical discomfort on her face, evident with her tight-lipped frown and furrowed eyebrows. Wenona felt a pang of sympathy in her chest. Cassidy was clearly trying to downplay how badly she really felt.
Wenona swiped a bottle of pills off of the bathroom counter and sank down onto the bed beside her. Cassidy had just taken one of the antibiotic pills they had prescribed her, but, glancing at her wristwatch for confirmation, she was pretty sure Cassidy was also due for another round of her pain medication.
She shook a small white pill out of the bottle and handed it to Cassidy, along with a glass of water. “Take one of these.”
Cassidy, once again, took the pill without question. She settled back onto the bed, staring up at the ceiling dejectedly. Gently, Wenona leaned over her, brushing her bangs aside to plant a kiss on her forehead.
“I’ll be out of the shower soon. Once I’m done, I can make you some breakfast – whatever you want – and we can stay in all day. I already let my employees know I’d be out of the office for a few days.” Wenona looked down at Cassidy with a mix of care and concern, waiting for a sign of life from the girl beneath her.
Cassidy’s face softened into a gentle smile. “I’m making you watch the Minecraft movie.”
Wenona cursed internally. She really had no interest in watching that classless movie in the slightest. But, if it would make Cassidy feel better, she could relent.
“Fine. We’ll watch the Minecraft movie.” She sighed, using every ounce of restraint in her body not to roll her eyes. She stood up and walked back through the bathroom door. “I’ll be out soon.” She called, shutting the door behind her
Wenona turned to face the mirror, taking her appearance in. God, she looked exhausted. Through all the interruptions of the night, she had managed to get in no more than four or five hours of real sleep, and it showed. Hopefully a shower will freshen her up a bit.
As she reflected, Cassidy’s words from the hospital room rang out through her mind.
“Thanks for being here tonight. I swear I’ll marry you when I’m out of here.”
Wenona chuckled to herself. She dug through one of the bathroom cabinets – the one containing her makeup supplies – and searched for a small box of lipsticks she had tucked away in the back. Cassidy didn’t care for makeup, and Wenona had made it clear that her meticulously organized beauty supplies were not to be touched. That’s what made the lipsticks such a good hiding place.
She fished through the cardboard box, finding the desired object and pulling it out to admire it. It was a small, black velvet box, with a hinge on one side that controlled the seam running around the box’s midline. Wenona cracked the box open to reveal the beautiful diamond ring inside. The way it reflected the bathroom light around the room was almost ethereal to look at. It had been a real pain to try and figure out Cassidy’s ring size without her noticing, but it had been worth it. Cassidy will love this ring one day. Soon.
She hid the ring box back in the lipsticks, putting everything back in its proper place. As she finally stripped out of her pajamas and turned on the shower water, she smiled to herself.
She can’t wait to tell this story at the wedding.