Life Interrupted

Chapter 4

The first night with the cast on proved challenging, not only was she not able to do anything like normal physically, but even her mind hadn't been as occupied as usual. Mike did what he could to make Deanna comfortable as she settled into bed, but no matter what he seemed to do nothing appeared to be helping. The splint had allowed just a tiny bit of movement and was much softer than the cast. So the couple of times a charley horse had hit, she'd been able to gently massage the sore muscle. Now, she was unable to knead at any sore part of her leg. The cast was rigid. Her leg was held in one position, not allowing any movement (which earlier had been good, now it was painful, if for nothing else but her mind).

Finally, with a set of four pillows situated this way and that under the span of her leg, one behind her back and two under her head, Deanna dozed off. Mike looked at the clock, it was just after midnight. The reality that it had taken two hours for Deanna to fall asleep struck him hard. The next few weeks were more than likely going to be miserable for each of them. He was just grateful he didn't have to set an alarm for the next morning.

A little before dawn, Deanna woke again, this time she opted to drag a blanket with her out to the recliner in the living room. She hoped that she might be able to get a little rest there. Mike was fast asleep and snoring softly as she shifted her weight off the bed.

Deanna sank gratefully into the oversized chair. As she leaned the chair back and set the footrest, it was as if every muscle in her body relaxed.

Mike awoke to an empty side of the bed and instantly was concerned. "Deanna?" He had to stop himself from tearing through the house at full steam. Suddenly, as he rounded the corner, the den coming into view, he spotted her. A smile crossed his face as he realized she was fast asleep, her breathing deep and smooth, so he pulled the door closed a bit so as not to wake her as he set about his morning routine.

"Hmmm, Saturday..." Mike announced to no one inparticular as he stretched before picking out his clothes. Once that task was done, he peeked in on his bride again. She had shifted positions a bit, but was still sleeping peacefully. This time Mike moved to the kitchen to start the coffeemaker and breakfast.

It was nearly ten AM when he heard movement from the den. As Mike realized Deanna was awake, he pushed the door open. "Good morning, love." A gentle kiss on the forehead brought a sweet smile to Deanna's face. "Did you sleep okay?" "I did, yeah. I hope I didn't wake you when I moved." Mike smiled. "Nope. I did however have a bit of fun this morning as I tracked you down." He winked, the playful banter some of the first Deanna had offered since her accident.

"I've got breakfast and coffee ready. Would you like it here, or somewhere else?" Deanna stretched, sitting up in the recliner. "How about in the living room?"

A few minutes later Mike had transformed the couch to Deanna's throne for the day. After helping his wife freshen up, she moved toward the couch.

"That was delicious!" Deanna exclaimed as Mike began to clean up. "I'm so glad you liked it!" He said from the kitchen.

The rest of the weekend was filled with reading, sleeping, writing, a couple of movies and some go old fashioned rest.

Monday morning gave way to a completely different mood:

"The doctor said you needed another week of rest before heading back to the office!" Mike yelled as he buttoned his shirt the following Monday. Deanna was at her wits end with her current "house arrest" state as she referred to it. "Why? I'm perfectly capable of sitting at my desk doing paperwork!" Deanna fired back.

"Listen babe, this sniping isn't helping." Mike finally stated. "You can't go back to work yet. Doctor's orders. You know the sarge won't approve if you don't have medical clearance." Mike gave her a sad smile as she nodded. Knowing her husband was right. "I'll be home as quickly as I can, but in the meantime why don't you let me pull out a puzzle or something for you?" Sighing in defeat, Deanna agreed.

Mike leaned in to kiss Deanna as he buttoned his blazer. "Okay, there's fresh coffee in the kitchen, your computer and a puzzle are out on the table. Sorry I have to leave, but I promise to get home as quickly as I can. I love you." Deanna leaned in to kiss him too. "Love you too, babe. Have a good day."

Deanna hopped over to the table, laying her crutches on the floor and lifting her broken leg on to a chair. She settled in for what she figured would be a long day. Writing and puzzles only took up so much time when you were alone. After completing the puzzle edge, Deanna stood, steadying herself with the back of the chair, poised to hop the ten or so steps to the coffee maker for a fresh cup. Right then her phone buzzed with a text from her best friend. "How does lunch out and a little window shopping sound? Don't worry, I already cleared it with Mike. :)" Deanna's spirits rose as she read the text. Marissa was a Physical Therapist who was only working part time at the moment thanks to having a three month old.

Not only would time with her friend be good, but getting to hold a baby? That might be the best medicine. Deanna quickly hopped the few steps back to a chair and sat, ready to reply to her friend. "That sounds amazing, 'Riss!" The reply came immediately. "Alright we'll be by to pick you up in fifteen minutes."

Sure enough, fifteen minutes later the doorbell rang. She checked the doorbell app to make sure it was her friend, once she saw her friend on the screen, she hit the door unlock bottom and talked through the doorbell. "It's open. C'mon in."

Deanna heard the door close and lock and poked her head around the corner, crutches hindering her from moving quicker to embrace her friend.

"Oh, it's so good to see you!" She exclaimed as she leaned back after the long and much needed hug. "How's this little dude doing?" She said in a higher pitch as she gently tickled the baby's tummy.

After a brief catch up, Deanna confessed. "I'm not at all dressed to be going out. Can you help me get upstairs to change?" "Sure! Let's get you all fixed up."

A few minutes later, Deanna was dressed in a pair of wide leg jeans, light pink long sleeve t-shirt and a gray sweater. With a cute sneaker on her good foot and hair pulled up into a bun, she was ready to go.

Marissa parked at the mall and pulled Deanna's crutches and a baby carrier from the backseat. Deanna opened her door and prepared to get out. Marissa removed Ben from his seat and carried the carrier.

A quick stop at customer service for a wheelchair and they were almost ready. "Here." Marissa said, handing the carrier to Deanna. "Okay, what am I supposed to do with this?" "Well, I thought you might like to hold Ben while I push you." She smiled at her friend. "Seriously?" "Yeah, holding babies is some of the best medicine there is."

As uncharacteristic as it was for Deanna, she enjoyed holding little Ben so much that she ended up so relaxed that she wasn't quite ready to give him back. Marissa and Deanna had such a good time together that when they arrived back at Deanna's house, Marissa and Ben hung out a little while longer. The time together did Deanna's heart a world of good. 

That evening, as Mike and Deanna relaxed on the couch, Deanna admitted her desire to have children. Especially after holding Marissa's son for a good portion of the afternoon, she realized just how much she wanted a baby.

"Well, then I think our trip will be the best thing for us." Mike dropped a kiss on her forehead as he wrapped his arms around her.

"Hey, I did bring home a surprise for you." Mike said as he suddenly remembered the briefcase he'd set on the entryway seat.

"Here you go." He said as he dropped the bag next to her. "What's in here?" "Just open it." Mike urged.

Deanna popped the locks on the bag. "Seriously?" She squealed. "It's all yours til you're cleared to go back." "Thank you!" Deanna opened her arms to hug her husband. Mike leaned in for a hug. "Don't thank me only, I'm just the messenger. This was all Frank. I told him how sad you were this morning and he worked his magic." Deanna sighed contentedly as she flipped through some of the folders. "Oh, and on that note, Frank was going to send Stephanie over a couple of days this week to work with you if you'd like. Deanna looked up. "Stephanie?" "Yeah, that's what he said." Deanna seemed to slip in to a deeper thought space. Stephanie was a bright new hire, straight off the police academy, Stephanie had determined that being a detective was her calling. After working through a couple of cases, Deanna had personally requested Stephanie on their team. Deanna met Mike's eyes, her face brightening. "That would be great! Thank you honey."