Overboard: Somebody to Love #4

1

Madelyn’s POV

            “Mads, where are you going?” Justin asked as I rolled out of bed early.

“Just a quick jog. I’ll be home before the twins are up.” I hadn’t been feeling so good for the last couple of weeks, so my morning runs had taken a hiatus. Between sleeping in and taking a nap when the kids did, I was still exhausted. I hoped that it was just a bug, and that running would make me feel better. Today was beautiful and I was finally able to get myself out of bed to go enjoy a nice jog.

As I started out, I thought about how great our life was right now. Things had been really great between Justin and I lately. He hadn’t brought up having another baby since our anniversary. I knew he still wanted one, but at least he wasn’t arguing with me anymore. I knew with time, he would realize that we already had the perfect little family. Another baby would’ve just screwed it up.

            I ran up the hill, around the corner, past Selena and Nick’s and down the hill. I passed Pattie’s two miles later. I thought about taking a break to say hi, but I realized it was only seven and Pattie probably wasn’t awake. I stopped on her corner to catch my breath. I had only gone five miles, but I was already exhausted.

            I turned around and started home. I was so into my music and thoughts that I completely missed the pothole in the sidewalk. My left foot caught the edge and I went straight into the concrete. I heard a huge pop sound as I went down.

            At first I thought it was my wrist that I landed on, but then I felt the radiating pain in my knee. I couldn’t see any deformities, so I figured it was just a sprain. I made it to my feet and tried to put pressure on it. The first few steps were really painful, but I managed.

            It took me thirty minutes to hobble only a mile home. Justin was waiting when I got there.

Justin’s POV

            “Where have you been? I was ready to call the cops!” I joked as I heard the door open, but then I saw her limping towards the table where the kids were eating breakfast. “What happened?”

            “I didn’t see a pothole and I fell. Thank god there were no paparazzi following me this morning.” She joked, but I saw her wincing with pain as she sat down.

            “Babe, your knee is really swollen!” I set a plate of pancakes in front of her and bent down to get a closer look at it.

            “I know. But it’s fine.” I didn’t believe her. “Really.” She sighed and started to get up.          

            “Oh no, you sit. What do you need? I’ll get it for you.” She reluctantly sat back down.

            “Juice, please.” She rolled her eyes.

            “I’m going to call my mom so she can take the kids today and you can go to the doctor.” I said, pouring apple juice into a cup for her.

            “Juice!” Stella yelled. I grabbed a sippy cup out of the cabinet and filled it, too.

            “Say please, Stella.” Madelyn said before turning her attention to me, “I don’t need to go to the doctor. It’s probably just a sprain. I’ll go tomorrow if it is still swollen.”

            “Alright.” I sighed. “But I’m going to have my mom come and help you today. I don’t want you to walk on it if it is something serious.”

            “Justin, I’m fine.” She got up and started to walk towards the couch, but halfway there she doubled over in pain.

            “Here.” I smiled and picked her up. I gently laid her on the couch and handed her extra pillows so she could get it elevated. After that I got the kids all situated with a movie so Madelyn didn’t have to do anything until my mom got there. She hated when I let them watch television, but today she didn’t seem to mind.

“Don’t move.” I kissed her forehead. “My mom will be here in a little while. Call if you need anything.”

“Thanks.” She sighed. I felt bad leaving her, but I had to film today.

Madelyn’s POV

            My knee didn’t get better. I was able to walk on it, but not without quite a bit of pain. I finally gave in and called to arrange a doctor’s appointment. I found the best orthopedic doctor in Los Angeles and was able to get in the same day. Luckily, Pattie had taken the kids to sleepover at her house the night before, so Justin could go with me.

            “Do you want me to carry you inside?” Justin asked as he parked.

            “No! There are paps right there. I will not have pictures of you carrying me like I’m some fragile pansy. I can walk.”

            I winced as I put pressure on it. Justin put his arm around me to help a little, which made it easier to walk. After what seemed eternity, we were inside.

            The doctor came in and sent me down for x-rays and an MRI. Afterwards I was sent back up to the room to wait for the results. When the doctor came back in, he didn’t look pleased.

            “Well Madelyn, it’s not good. You can be sure you won’t be running your next marathon.”

            “Fantastic.” I sighed sarcastically.

            “You have torn your ACL and your meniscus. If it was one or the other, it wouldn’t be such a problem, but you have torn both of them pretty severely. Normally we could wait a couple of weeks before surgery, but I want to operate sooner rather than later in your case.”

            “She needs surgery?!” Justin piped up.

            “She does. And soon. How is next week for you? And I want to warn you, that because your injury is so severe and because of your diabetes, your recovery is going to take a little longer than normal. You won’t be able to walk without crutches for at least five weeks.”

            “Next week is fine. Will I be able to run again?” I needed to run. That was how I dealt with my life. Between the stress of marriage, having three kids under three, and the media, running was what kept me sane.

            “With proper recovery and lots of physical therapy, you will be running again in no time. I want you to go downstairs and get some preliminary blood work done before you leave today. I want to make sure your diabetes is under control before I put you under the knife.” He got up and shook our hands. “Now, I’ll send my nurse in to schedule the surgery. But stay off that knee for now, okay?”

            “Okay.”

            Justin took me home and set me up on the couch. Thanks to Pattie and Paige I was relieved from much of my duties. I was basically stuck laying on the couch or in bed for the next week. My surgery was scheduled for Thursday. I figured I wouldn’t hear from the doctor until then, but I got a phone call from his office on Monday morning.

            “Madelyn Bieber?” A female said on the other end of the phone.

            “This is her.”

            “Hi, this is Dr. Pulmor’s nurse, Cynthia. We just got the results back from your blood work from last week. We found some abnormalities, so Dr. Pulmor would like you to come in as soon as possible so he can discuss them with you.”

            “Okay.” I stammered, trying to mask my nerves.

            “And Mrs. Bieber, you should probably bring your husband with you.”

            When I hung up, I was in shock. My heart sunk. It was cancer. I knew it.