Angel's Hero

Chapter 13

Angel woke the next morning, early.
The sky visible through her window was only just beginning to change color. It could have been late evening, but the freshness of the air blowing in through the open window carried a hint of dew; that unmistakable spring morning scent.
Her mouth felt furry.
What had happened?
Memories returned quickly. Birds. Cake. The ocean in his eyes. Pain. His earlobe. Conner not kissing her. Michelle. Sandwich.
Sitting up slowly, she braced for the headache.
It came on gradually, the dull throb behind her ear seemed like a beating heart within her head, moving determinedly towards the front of her skull as if it was trying to push her eyeball out.
Not able to wait much longer, she slipped her feet to the floor, and then dropped down to her knees.
She would crawl.
Feeling proud of herself for coming up with this solution, she made her way back to bed the same way after relieving herself.
She found more painkillers on the bedside table, and the bottle of water from her fridge. It was warm.
Michelle must have not wanted to wake her, but left these for her, just in case.
Angel thanked her stars for Michelle's thoughtfulness.
Swallowing the pills, she rolled water around her mouth a few times.
The television high up on the dresser directly opposite her bed between the two bay windows offered her a solution to being awake and not being able to do anything.
She took the remote from the bedside table drawer and flicked the screen on.
Using the smart TV app, she switched to her preferred movie-streaming platform.
Searching through the program's archives, and choosing the classic movie category, she found one of her mom's older films.
She turned the volume down, aware of her guests.
Not ten minutes into the movie, she heard a creak on the stairs. Turning, she smiled as Michelle walked across in the still dark room.
"Sorry if I woke you," Angel hit the volume button, dropping it lower.
"You didn't, I heard you shuffling about up here. I was going to come up to see if you needed anything, but nature called." Michelle yawned loudly before coming around and climbing into bed beside Angel.
She had to crawl a bit to get close to Angel and rest her head on her shoulder, as the bed was enormous.
Angel had spent a good number of hours at the store choosing this bed. It was a super-king, extra length, innerspring, plus memory foam topper. It was the king of all beds. The bed was so comfortable, Angel almost forgot about those awful beds they slept on in boarding school all those years ago.
Almost, because unfortunately, there were just some things you never forgot.
"Little man still snoozing?" Angel turned to look at her friend, blonde hair piled on top of her head in a messy bun.
"Yup," she yawned again. "Kid sleeps like the dead. Which isn't surprising with how manic and active he is during the day."
Angel agreed. Jackson was a real firecracker.
"I am so looking forward to when he gets older and joins a team of sorts, and uses that energy up before coming home. He exhausts me." The last wasn't a complaint. It was just a fact.
"Yeah, I don't blame you. But you'll miss it when he's a zonked out teenager, who's pissed at you for some other such reason." Angel rolled her neck to loosen the stiff muscles. The painkillers had started to kick in and her eyes were beginning to droop.
Her mom's voice was filling the room, and she could smell Michelle's scent.
She'd never felt more secure. Surrounded by love as she was, she slept.
Angel's eyes shot open four hours later.
The room was bright, the television off, and Michelle was no longer next to her.
She reached for the bottle of water next to the bed, and downed the rest of the liquid inside; thankful she'd only taken a few sips that morning.
She lay there for a second, still propped up on her elbow, waiting for the room-spinning pain in her head.
A dull ache behind her ear was all she could detect.
Manageable.
Throwing the covers aside, she was determined to get up and out of this room.
"I'll just check to see if she's up."
"I'm up!" Angel grabbed the top line of the dress she'd yet to change out of, to pull it back into place over her breasts. It must have slipped off in her sleep again.
Well, that's what she got for going strapless.
"Hi sweetheart," Angel looked up to see Mavis stepping into her room from the stairs; the room was open plan, so she had no door.
"Hi Mavis, how are you?" Angel was polite.
"I'm well, thank you, dear." She stepped into the room, and came straight over to Angel. "I told Michelle that I would be over today to check the cut, and change your bandage. Turn your head for me would you?"
Angel shifted and lifted her hair out the way. She winced as the bandage pulled at some of it.
"How's your pain?" Angel gasped as Mavis gently prodded the lump back there.
"The headache is much better today. Not great yesterday afternoon, but I think I could manage to get downstairs today, and get by without painkillers."
"Don't try to rush yourself. You gave yourself quite a solid knock on the head. You're extremely lucky it wasn't worse."
Angel grimaced. Mavis was right. "Yeah, okay."
"But I do think you will be fine to move around slowly. Any dizziness?"
"Not now. I had a little when I got up earlier to use the bathroom." Speaking of...
"Great. Let me just get a fresh bandage on here then I'll be on my way. I'm satisfied that you're progressing well. But," she took Angel's chin in her hand to bring her eyes up to hers. "As soon as you feel yourself getting another headache, I want you to get horizontal, and rest. The only way you're going to get through this is by resting enough. It'll take twice as long if you fight me on this."
She must have seen the spark of rebellion in Angel's eyes, or perhaps she was just accustomed to years of patients thinking they knew best.
Giving in, Angel smiled.
"Can I have a shower?"
"I'd feel better if you sat down and washed," Mavis looked into the bathroom. "How about a bath? Or at least sit in the bath and wash with the handheld showerhead. No washing your hair until the day after tomorrow. I don't want the stitches getting wet just yet. Keep it bandaged even when you do wash your hair to protect it, then let it air out after that. And under no circumstances are you to fiddle with the scab or try to remove those stiches yourself."
Mavis continued with her instructions.
Angels eyes went blank.
"I'll write it out for you and leave it with Michelle downstairs," Mavis laughed.
"Great, thank you for your help Mavis. Please tell Doc I appreciate everything. I'm going to bake you something. What's your favorite?"
Mavis told her she loved cheesecake, but Doc preferred lemon meringue pie.
"I'll make both. You deserve it. You're amazing." Angel hugged her.
"Ah, sweetheart, you'll make me cry. Just doing our job," Mavis gave her a quick squeeze back. "But please don't make both. Harry and I would then feel obliged to eat both, and his blood sugar levels aren't what they used to be." She smiled.
"Alright. I'll make one, then the other the following week. Deal?" Angel reached up and squeezed the older woman's shoulder.
"I'll let you get to it then. Just a second, and I will get Michelle up here to help you."

*

Angel hated to admit it, but she did need the help. Her legs shook with weakness when she climbed out of the tub after her very careful shower, refusing to sit, and now regretting it.
Michelle locked forearms with her, and walked backwards to the bed, where she helped Angel sit down in her towel.
"What would you like to wear?"
"I can dress myself, really," Angel took the lotion bottle Michelle had brought from the bathroom, and began moisturizing her arms and legs.
Michelle had brought another bottle of water up, plus more food. This time, it was a snack platter of crackers, cheese and ham, and a sliced apple with peanut butter spread on it.
Angel teased her, "Isn't this for Jackson?"
"Shut it. I'm not the chef, you are, but I do kid food real good. Eat up."
Angel had to agree that it hit the spot, plus it covered all the food groups.
She swallowed the rest of the water, and let out a little burp of happiness.
She looked at the large clock on the wall above the stairwell. It was closing in on ten.
Angel ran a brush through her shoulder length hair, and then added her tinted moisturizer to her face.
She'd seen how just pale she looked when stumbling past the mirror on her way out the bathroom. Angel appreciated the way Michelle ignored her when she put on some blush and mascara, too.
Angel knew why she was putting make up on, but she didn't have to admit it.
"Here," Michelle walked back from the exposed closet on the other side of the room with a dress Angel hadn't worn yet. It was a chiffon button-up in burgundy, sleeveless, with a collar, and cinched in around her waist, before the extra material flared out slightly and fell to her knees in folds of buttery fabric.
Angel looked at Michelle like she'd sprouted antennae. "Are you nuts?"
"It's comfortable. You want to be comfortable don't you?" Michelle said innocently.
"It is really soft," Angel agreed, fingering the material and reluctantly giving in. "Fine."
"As you wish, highness. Aah!" Michelle ducked as a pillow flew at her.
"I just need some underwear please." Angel blushed as she remembered she hadn't been wearing any when she'd been in Conner arms yesterday as she lifted the dress over her head.
"I wish I was brave like you. Oh the joy of not wearing a bra," Michelle said handing her a pair of plain black cotton panties.
"You could you know, your girls are still perky," Angel said from inside the dress. She hadn't undone the top two buttons, and now she had her arms out the holes, with her head still inside. "Gah! Help me!"
Michelle snorted at her. "Wait, here, let me." She undid the fastenings, and carried on their conversation when Angel's head popped out. "I know I could, I just don't know if I would be comfortable, knowing that they were on the loose, and all it would take is one cold breeze, and everyone would know." Michelle held her hands in front of her chest, and pointed her index finders out.
"You overthink things too much," Angel laughed then cut the sound off at Michelle's pointed look, and raised a hand in a non-commital shrug, because the same was true for herself.
Angel stood, and felt like a new person. The aching lump behind her ear was barely noticeable, almost like a stiff neck. She resisted the urge to tip her head to the side and crack the joints.
She walked away from the bed easily, refreshed after eating and rehydrating herself, and made her way to the stairs with Michelle at her side.
"I don't think I have seen you in as many dresses as I have in the last week. I see you're enjoying having your legs waxed."
"Shush, that was a one-time thing, and I'm just going to make the most of it while I can. I've already got a razor in the bathroom waiting." The two women giggled as they descended the stairs.