Halcyon

Sedation

Today is the day of Nikki's operation for the baby's holes in the heart to be repaired, Nikki has been at the hospital for over an hour and the surgeons have just come down to see her.

As well as coming to talk about her health before the operation they give Nikki vital information about the procedure and what is to be expected. Jack isn't currently with Nikki as he has taken Poppy to the nursery, Jack has made a promise to Nikki that he will definitely be back for when she comes round from the operation. 

Due to the risk to life during the operation, they have now decided that Nikki needs to be sedated for the entire thing as she slightest movement could harm the baby. 
"...So that is all, someone will be down shortly to take you up to theatre" the surgeon explains before leaving the ward. 

Nikki sits there quietly stroking her bump like usual, she picks up her phone and texts Jack to let him know that if all goes well she may be home tomorrow and that the healing of the wound won't take long due to it being a keyhole entry. 

She doesn't get a reply from Jack and assumes he has been called into work, A nurse comes to Nikki's bay with a tray and places it down on the table beside her, "So I am just going to fit a cannula to your hand this is for the anesthetist" the young nurse smiles at her, Nikki nods and allows the nurse to insert the cannula. 

Once the cannula is inserted into her hand the nurse secures it with a clear plaster that fits the shape of the cannula. "I am also going to attach a heart rate monitor to you to monitor the baby if that's okay" She smiles and Nikki nods. 

"Will I be able to hear the heartbeat?" Nikki smiles.
"Yes actually, it will all be recorded on the reader here and it will print so you can see that too" she replies with makes Nikki at rest slightly. 

Half an hour later Nikki has been taken down to theatre, She is currently receiving a spinal block before they put her under sedation. While sitting on the bed Nikki holds the hand of the scrub nurse as the injection into her spin is rather painful and it making her slightly tearful but not to the extent of crying about it. "Okay, we shall give that a moment to work before we lie you down" The anesthetist smiles at her as he comes round the front of her. 

Two minutes later Nikki is completely numb from the chest down, they lie Nikki down on the bed and make sure she is comfortable. The place an oxygen mask over Nikki and the anesthetist takes her hand with the cannula in and inserts a syringe with the sedation in. 
The anesthetist applies the sedation into her, "Okay Nikki, can you count backward from 30 please."

"Okay... 30, 29, 28, 27, 26, 25..." Nikki begins but slowly drifts off into a comfortable sleep. 

Three hours later. Nikki slowly begins to open her eyes, the oxygen mask now remove and she now has a nasal cannula, there is a dull ache but she can't pinpoint the area, her eyesight still adjusting to the harsh lights of the recovery ward, everything still sounds so distant. 

A face appears in front of Nikki, her eyes roll slightly before she starts to squint to try and restore some normality to her eyesight. "Nikki?" The familiar voice begins, she smiles slightly and she raises her hand to her head to rub it, she meets some resistance from her hand that is attached to an IV line. "Nikki" The voice starts to become closer and Nikki makes out who it is. 

"Jack" She mumbles tiredly.
"Oh thank god," He says brushing the hair out of Nikki's face for her.
"I survived" She croaks looking down to see a very firm bump in front of her. 

Jack smiles and holds her hand, "Yes you both did."
Nikki breathes a sigh of relief and looks up at the blinding light above her before retraining her focus on Jack. "How did it go?" She questions.

"Erm... I am not so sure" Jack states looking around himself for a clue. "But for the time being, you're both here, and that heartbeat is going ten to the dozen" Jack smiles looking up at the fetal heartbeat monitor.