CATASTROPHE CAREN (Completed) ✔

9: Christmas At The Vet

"Oh my poor Baby! Hang on alright, we're almost at the veterinary hospital." Mrs Howell cried as she held on to Sunshine. "Can't you go any faster, Halle?"

"I'm driving as fast as I can, Grandma. We're almost there."

"Oh Mrs Howell, I'm really, really sorry. I don't know how this happened, I really don't!" Caren cried out.

"Oh you better pray nothing happens to my baby or else you're gonna hear from me!" Mrs Howell replied angrily.

After a few minutes, they arrived at the hospital and Sunshine was rushed to the emergency room immediately.

"Oh my God, my poor baby is in there all alone." Mrs Howell panicked.

"Grandma, please try to calm down. I'm sure everything will be over before you know it." Halle said as she placed her hand on her shoulder.

"Over as in what? Do you want Sunshine to die?" Mrs Howell snapped.

"Of course not Grandma! I mean she'll be better in no time."

"Easy for you to say! This is all your fault!"

"My fault? How is this my fault? Do I look like the one who left the magnet on the table?" Halle shot back.

"Halle please! I didn't leave it there on purpose. I wouldn't have even brought it out if it weren't for your cousin!" Caren sobbed.

"Well it's a little too late to apportion blames isn't it? If Halle hadn't brought you here, maybe Sunshine wouldn't be fighting for her life right now!" Mrs Howell sighed.

"Oh my God!" Caren covered her face with her hands as her tears started to flow uncontrollably. "How could this have happened dear Lord? Just how? Please take this all away please." She shook her head.

"Mrs Howell!" The Vet called out to her as soon as he walked out of the emergency room.

"Doctor! What's going on? Will my baby make it?"

"Yes she will! As a matter of fact, she already did!"

"Oh, thank God!" The 3 women yelled in unison.

"We succeeded in getting out the magnet that was lodged in her throat. Thankfully, no much damage was done. Just minor bruises sustained within the pharynx, so this will most likely cause a loss of appetite as well as the inability to be vocal for a while. She should be back to normal in less than 2 weeks."

"Oh no! My poor baby." She wiped her tears.

"Don't worry, she'll be fine. We'll keep her here under our care for 4 days just to make sure the healing process goes smoothly, after which we'll send her home with some medications."

"Thank you so much Doctor. Can we see her now?" Halle asked.

"She's still under the effects of the anesthesia administered to her on arrival but you can still see her." He smiled.

"Thank you so much, Doctor!" The 3 women said.

They spent a total of 45 minutes with Sunshine before calling it a day and leaving for home.

Everyone was silent the whole drive home. Caren knew that Mrs Howell felt a littlest bit relieved upon hearing that Sunshine was a lot better. Still, she couldn't help but feel like she was the most hated person in the world right now.

When they arrived at home, Celia and her sons were sitting outside on the porch.

"I thought you'd have left by now." Mrs Howell said to her.

We couldn't leave until we knew everything was alright. How's Sunshine doing now? Hope everything went well."

"Yes everything went well. Thankfully we got her to the Veterinary hospital just in time. The doctor was able to get the magnet out but he said she sustained a few bruises and they'd have to keep her there for 4 days to make sure she improves with the medications."

"Oh dear. At least she's on her way to recovery. I'm so happy she's okay. So sorry you had to go through this, and on Christmas day." Celia shook her head.

"I know! But at least my baby will be alright. I think I'll just go in and get some rest now. I'm really, really tired!"

"That's okay Mom! See you later."

"Aunty, I'll be in the house if you need anything." Halle said.

"Not to worry Dear. We're already set to leave.

"So soon?" Halle asked.

"Yes Darling. I have a meeting with some old friends of mine and they said they would like to see the boys too. We'll see you girls tomorrow." Celia replied as she stood up and adjusted her trousers.

"Alright then, have fun." Halle smiled.

"Later!" Both boys nodded.

"Bye guys!" Caren waved to them.

When the girls got inside, they saw Mrs Patterson writing something down on a piece of paper. Halle took a quick peek in, and saw that her mom was making a list of food items.

"What are these food items for Mom?" She asked.

"Do you remember Pamela?"

"Hm... The name doesn't seem to ring a bell." Halle shook her head.

"She used to visit us all the time back when you were still in high school."

"Oh wait a sec! I think I do. She had a very slim figure and long blonde hair right?"

"Yes, that's her!" Mrs Patterson smiled.

"Oh wow! I haven't seen her in ages. What going on with her?"

"Her sister is throwing her a baby shower on Saturday."

"Wow! For her grandchild?" Halle asked.

"No! For her."

"For her? Isn't she like almost 50?" Halle arched her brows.

"So? Is it impossible?"

"No! Just wondering. Anyway, that's really great news. So are you in the cooking committee or what?"

"You said it!"

"Isn't that going to be stressful considering you're here to rest and have a good time?" Halle asked.

"Not really. You know how much your mom loves to cook and I'm more than happy to help her celebrate her big day."

"That's okay. So what's the plan?"

"Uhm, I'll use tomorrow to shop for the things we need, and then on Friday, I'll make sure everything I need for cooking and baking are in place so it will be much easier to work with on Saturday and have everything ready before noon. As you can see, the next couple of days are gonna be pretty busy for me so I'd really appreciate it if you girls can help me out. They're expecting at least, 150 to 200 people there."

"200 people? Whoa! That's too much isn't it?"

"Yes, that's a lot. But honestly, if I waited that long to have a baby and ended up achieving that dream, I'd have a million people come celebrate with me if I could afford it." Mrs Patterson smiled.

"You're right Aunty! I too, would be more than excited. But are you the only one doing the cooking for them?" Caren asked.

"No Dear! There's about 4 of us. Her sister got a little frustrated when she realized the work load was going to be too much for her to handle, so I volunteered to help out. After all, what are friends for?" She smiled.

"Why didn't they just ask a company into catering services to do it for them?" Halle asked.

"They've never been the type to eat out. They grow their own foods at home and when they have parties, they do all the cooking. This time is different because it's a surprise shower for Pamela so she's not there to help out."

"Oh! Makes more sense now." Halle nodded.

"I actually like their style though. You can't really trust these food companies nowadays. Just better to do your own thing I guess." Mrs Patterson shrugged.

"True though. Anyway, I'll assist you in cooking. How about you Caren?" Halle asked as she turned to her friend.

"I definitely will!" She replied.

****************