Unexpected

Part 17: Treatments

They immediately called Lauren to help. They gave Daphne Lidocaine to numb her stomach and a small sedative to calm the poor overwhelmed child.

Max, who should be in bed resting, is now sitting on the couch, holding the child on his lap as Lauren and Helen both work to clean her bites.

"Luna did this?" Lauren asks shocked and Helen nods- trying not to make a big deal out of it, but inside she's fuming. Not so much that Luna bit her niece several times, but that Brenda didn't do anything nor inform them of what happened. "How are you doing, Max? Need a break?"

"No, I'm fine. Just chillin' with my best friend." He sweetly says and kisses Daphne's temple. The women look at each other and smile in aw of him. He really is the sweetest guy they know.

"Well if you're chest starts to hurt or you're having trouble breathing- get tired- let us know and you and Helen can switch out." Daphne, who's head is in the crook of Max's neck- looks up hazed and reaches up with her hand and plays in his beard.

"Hi." Max says and she smiles- drugged out of her mind. "How's my best friend?"

"You...you're fuzzy..." She says out of it.

"Yeah."

"Am...I fuzzy?"

"You? Oh yeah. Very fuzzy. So much fuzz." Max says and she starts giggling happily. It warms the women's heart to see it.

"Is...Auntie...fuzz...fuzzy?" She asks and Max looks at Helen with a small smile.

"No...only us cool folks are fuzzy. Super fuzzy."

"No...."

"No?"

"She fuzzy..." Reaching over, she touches Helen's extensions and beams at her tiredly.

"Oh...Sorry- I guess you're right. She is fuzzy. My mistake." He states, winking at Helen- who blushes madly.

"Okay- these three are cleaned the best I can. I'm gonna go grab a bag of Saline. I hope if we push it, we can keep it from getting worse. I'm just hoping the infection doesn't spread." Lauren says as she gets up and removes her gloves before leaving.

"I have this last arm to do and we should be good." Helen says, her mind filled with what if's and nervous thoughts.

"You hear that, Sweets, almost done." Max says and kisses her head again.

"My brave little, Pearl."

"Can I ask you a question?"

"Of course."

"Why Pearl?" She smiles warmly and begins taking off her gloves and cleaning up the mess.

"Pearl and Persians...the Persian Gulf has always had the biggest oyster beds in the world and several Persian poets have written in such beauty about them. I remember when I first met Daphne. She was three- tiniest little tot I ever seen. She was so beautiful to me and I could see how smart and strong she was. I had given her this tiny little pearl on this dainty silver chain. It kinda just became a thing. It symbolizes beauty and innocence- intelligence and love. So ever since- she has been my little Pearl." Sitting beside them, Helen pushes a few baby hairs out of Daphne's face and finds the child slowly falling to sleep as she does so. "I loved her from the moment I saw her. We would chat at least once a month over video calls. Fehrad was always away and my father was never up on technology— so it really strained us, but now she's here and I feel...I feel like this was always meant to be. That she was always meant to be mine. Not that I wished I'll of Fehrad- he was a very hardworking, sweet man."

"She is a lot like you. Stubborn, smart, funny..."

"I'm hardly funny. I've never been known for my humor, Max." She corrects him and he shakes his head gently.