The Accident: A Tinker Bell Fanfiction

6. Bad Dreams

The Accident

6.

Days often passed far too quickly for Terence. His work was long and repetitive, not that he cared. Being a dust keeper was his talent, and a sparrow man's talent was his joy. This week, however, crept painfully along. For the first time in his memory, he wanted these seven days to be done with as soon as possible. Each second, each minute, each hour that ticked by did so far too slowly for him. It kept Terence in a constant state of anxiety that he would lose his precious tinker fairy. Each day kept Tinker Bell's life in peril and he wanted to move beyond this week of hell so that he could breathe easier.

Each day that passed, he would sit by her side, read books to her and talk about whatever he might hear from visitors. Tink's friends, Iridessa, Vidia, Silvermist, Fawn and Rosetta came by regularly to check on Tink's progress. Rosetta always brought arrangements of flowers to cheer up the room for both Tinker Bell and Terence. Since he usually sat all alone in that room, she wanted him to have color to keep up his spirits. He thanked her every time because it did help.

When the nurses came to change bandages or swap the linens, he would lend a hand. Terence wanted to be as much a part of Tinker Bell's recuperation as possible. The nurses didn't appreciate his interference at first, but they quickly warmed up to him. His likeable personality and charming demeanor won them over.

Terence also assisted with something else. He would move Tinker Bell around a bit in her bed to avoid bedsores. Letting her lay motionless in one place too long would eventually lead to painful sores on her body. Shifting her around prevented that. The young dust keeper was instructed how to do it so that he could be more involved. He would fluff her pillow, kept her blanket just so to keep her warm. He did almost everything the nurses did except give her a bath. He thought that Tinker Bell should at least keep some of her dignity. All of this kept his mind alert and distracted from the terrifying possibilities of her recovery. If he had nothing to do, his thoughts would always come back to what the doctor had said to him at the beginning of this interminable seven days.

She could have brain damage from being denied oxygen for so long, he remembered. Or she may remain in a vegetative state, never to wake up.

He would imagine what that might be like. Tinker Bell, forever confined to the bed in her teakettle home. Her wonderful tinker mind ruined forever. No more new inventions, no more incredible ideas. All of it gone. If she needed care for the rest of her life, he would do it. Terence believed he could manage on his own, balancing work and care giving.

He would have to keep her house neat and clean, turn her body over to avoid bedsores. Terence imagined having to give her regular sponge baths to keep her clean and he would feed her regularly to keep her strength up. As he had done in the hospital, he would talk to her. Tell her what new idea Bobble had, or what silly thing Clank did. "You know, Periwinkle wants to visit soon. Should I let her, Tink? It hurts her whenever she sees you like this, but she is your sister. She deserves to be a part of your life."

However, as his mind kept focusing deeper and deeper on how is life would change it became quite clear that even his love for Tinker Bell wouldn't allow him to care for her indefinitely. Such a lonely task would overwhelm anyone, even him.

"You have to wake up, Tink," he told her. "You just have to wake up."

~O~

By the fifth day, the work was taking its toll on Terence. He was wishing he could leave, but his devotion to Tinker Bell would not allow it. The constant need to talk to someone, but having no one to converse with was the most damning of all constraints. The occasional visitor became his lifeboats, but for hours on end, it was he and the unconscious Tinker Bell. In the beginning, he spoke to her to keep her mind focused on recovery. Now it was simply to hear a voice, any voice, to keep him from going mad.