Only Once

Chapter 10

She sat, book in one hand, his hand in the other. Isabelle held firmly even though his hand was unresponsive. She didn't have much going on in the hospital today and had asked for some time to collect her thoughts. It was evident to her coworkers that she would not be able to do any good work today, her mind was elsewhere.
The heart monitor was steady, no crashing in sight. Thank god, she thought. His heart had already stopped enough for the rest of his lifetime.
She had heard that in surgery that although there were few complications, something had gone terribly wrong and his heart had begun to fail. They were about to give up when finally his blood pressure and heart rate began to increase, normalising.
He shouldn't have been a part of her life, but Isabelle knew that she would be by his side through the recovery. She knew he deserved as much. And, if he requested her to leave, she would.
Isabelle sat down her book. She had been reading the same page for a long time, unable to focus.
She knew she would not be able to focus until Scott woke up. It should be any minute, he got out of surgery hours ago. However, she knew he could always not wake up. He could be brain dead or comatose, there was always a chance a patient would not wake up after surgery. After all, he had gone through an intense surgery, it had taken a couple handfuls of hours.
Using her free hand, she brushed a bead of sweat from Scott's forehead. It was bandaged, he would need the wrapping changed soon to keep the area as sterile as it could be. She knew how and planned to do the changing for him instead of having a nurse do it.
Some of the staples escaped the bandage and were buried beneath his dark brown hair. She could see where his skull had been removed, knew his dura would have been cut open underneath.
"I said you'd survive surgery, now all you have to do is wake up," she whispered aloud.
His hand still in hers, she settled back into the big chair that was positioned beside his bed. Tired, she examined the monitor once more. When content, Isabelle allowed herself to drift off for what she told herself would be a quick nap.

Scott was groggy and disoriented when he woke. His eyes were foggy as he opened them, he had to blink a few times to get used to the bright lights. It felt like he had slept for a long time, although he knew it couldn't have been that long. Maybe a few hours at most. From what he could tell, it was light outside. Probably around noon.
He tried to move his head to get a better look around, but it hurt too much. He stared content on looking at the dull white celling.
Scott noticed the hand that was in his, and he squeezed, almost positive it was Karen. He felt warmth flow through his aching chest, happy she had stayed with him. The thought of her waiting made him sure he'd be able to forget about Isabelle. Karen had stayed and that was more than Isabelle would ever do for him – that he was sure of.
He was certain then that Karen must have been the one who had visited the room while he was unconscious, it only made sense.
"Hey, Karen," Scott said, hoping he'd wake the woman up. He shook her hand a little and grasped it a little tighter.
"Karen, wake up."
He glanced around as much as his positioning would allow, and noticed movement. He could hear her rustling, waking up beside him. She squeezed his hand in return.
She released his hand and cleared her throat.
"Karen should be here soon," the woman, who he realised was Isabelle said.
She adjusted the hospital bed so he could be elevated. Isabelle moved the pillow under his head so he could be more comfortable. He looked at her now. Scott had been so sure that it had been Karen with him.
Her dark hair fell in layers around her face as she made sure he was comfortable. Scott longed to reach out and brush the hair from her face, but knew he shouldn't. You don't brush away the hair of someone who has a boyfriend. You don't sleep with someone who has a boyfriend either, Scott reminded himself.
He noticed she wore scrubs, meaning she worked here. The fact that she had sat beside him, holding his hand for who knows how long baffled him.
"Sorry, I didn't realize it was you."

Isabelle nodded, she understood why Scott thought it had been Karen at his bedside. After all, what reasoning did she have? That she slept with him? That he was her fiancé's employee?
It made sense for it to be Karen here instead, they had gone out. They had gotten into the accident. Not her.
"It's okay," she smiled weakly. "Karen should be here soon. She went home for the night."
"Did you stay?"
Isabelle nodded, brushing her hair behind an ear to look at him. He was badly beaten up, but his eyes shun and his skin was no longer transparent. He looked alive again.
"I've only been here for a few hours," she said, downplaying how long she had actually been sitting beside him.
She adjusted his sheets, unsure of what to do with her hands now that Scott was awake.
"You work here?" Scott asked, trying at conversation.
"For a few years now, I'm in the surgical residency here." She smiled briefly, locking eyes with him. They were searching for something, however she was unsure what it was they were looking for.
"What do you plan specializing in?"
"I'm not sure yet, maybe neurology." He smiled up at her.

Scott extended his hand back to her, grabbing at her wrist. He grasped her hand in his and squeezed, interlacing their fingers.
"Thank you, for staying with me."
"Of course," Isabelle nodded. "I'm glad you're going to be okay."
Isabelle relaxed back into the chair still holding his hand. They sat in silence, enjoying how comfortable it was even though they weren't talking.
Scott rubbed her knuckles with his thumb, knowing this was the most intimate they would ever be. However bittersweet, he smiled lost in the moment.

"Hey," Karen stood in the doorway, looking in on the two. Isabelle ripped her hand away from Scott's. No matter how innocent the gesture had been, it had felt more intimate than it was.
Isabelle stood abruptly from the chair, "I'll see you later." She spoke to Scott as she crossed the room, afraid that if she looked back she wouldn't leave.
She forced a smile as she passed Karen.
"His surgery went well, he woke a few minutes ago."
"Thank you for being here for him," Karen smiled, oblivious.

Scott watched as Isabelle left, unable to take his eyes off her. The way her body moved and how her hair tossed as she walked had him captivated. He seemed to always be captivated by her.
When Isabelle was gone, he glanced at Karen.
"How are you?" Karen asked, grabbing hold of the hand Isabelle had left feeling empty.