The Wedding - By Nicholas Sparks Page 0,50
later, Anna and Keith arrived. Anna joined the huddle, while Keith sat next to me. Dressed in black, Anna already looked as though she’d come from a funeral.
Waiting is always the worst part of a crisis like this, and I’ve come to despise hospitals for this very reason. Nothing is happening, yet the mind whirls with ever darkening images, subconsciously preparing for the worst. In the tense silence, I could hear my own heart beating, and my throat was strangely dry.
I noticed that the intake nurse was no longer at her desk, and I hoped she’d gone to check on Noah. From the corner of my eye, I saw Jane approaching. Standing from my seat, I raised my arm, letting her lean into me.
“I hate this,” she said.
“I know you do. I hate it, too.”
Behind us, a young couple with three crying children entered the emergency room. We moved over to make room for them to pass, and when they reached the desk, I saw the nurse emerge from the back. She held up a finger signaling the couple to wait and headed toward us.
“He’s conscious now,” she announced, “but he’s still a little woozy. His vital signs are good. We’ll probably be moving him to a room in an hour or so.”
“So he’s going to be okay?”
“They’re not planning to move him to intensive care, if that’s what you’re asking,” she hedged. “He’ll probably have to stay in the hospital for a few days of observation.”
There was a collective murmur of relief at her words.
“Can we see him now?” Jane pressed.
“We can’t have all of you back there at once. There’s not enough room for everyone, and the doctor thinks it would be best if you let him rest a bit. The doctor said that one of you could go back there now, as long as you don’t visit too long.”
It seemed obvious that either Kate or Jane would go, but before any of us could speak, the nurse continued.
“Which one of you is Wilson Lewis?” she asked.
“I am,” I said.
“Why don’t you come with me? They’re getting ready to hook up an IV, and you should probably see him before he starts getting sleepy.”
I felt my family’s eyes drift to me. I thought I knew why he wanted to see me, but I held up my hands to ward off the possibility.
“I know I’m the one who talked to you, but maybe Jane or Kate should go,” I suggested. “They’re his daughters. Or maybe David or Jeff.”
The nurse shook her head.
“He asked to see you. He made it very clear that you should be the one to see him first.”
Though Jane smiled briefly, I saw in her smile what I felt from the others. Curiosity, of course. And surprise as well. But from Jane, what I suppose I sensed most of all was a sort of subtle betrayal, as if she knew exactly why he’d chosen me.
Noah was lying in bed with two tubes in his arms and hooked up to a machine that broadcast the steady rhythm of his heart. His eyes were half-closed, but he rotated his head on the pillow when the nurse pulled the curtain closed behind us. I heard the nurse’s steps fade away, leaving us alone.
He looked too small for the bed, and his face was paper white. I took a seat in the chair beside him.
“Hello, Noah.”
“Hello, Wilson,” he said shakily. “Thanks for dropping by.”
“You doing okay?”
“Could be better,” he said. He offered a ghost of a smile. “Could be worse, though, too.”
I reached for his hand. “What happened?”
“A root,” he said. “Been by it a thousand times, but it jumped up and grabbed my foot this time.”
“And you hit your head?”
“My head, my body. Everything. Landed like a potato sack, but nothing’s broke, thank goodness. I’m just a little dizzy. The doctor said I should be up and around in a couple of days. I said good, because I’ve got a wedding this weekend I have to go to.”
“Don’t worry about that. You just worry about getting healthy.”
“I’ll be fine. I’ve still got some time left in me. ”
“You better.”
“So how are Kate and Jane? Worried sick, I’ll bet.”
“We’re all worried. Me included.”
“Yeah, but you don’t look at me with those sorrowful eyes and practically cry every time I mumble something.”
“I do that when you’re not looking.”
He smiled. “Not like they do. Odds are one of them will be with me around the clock for the next couple of days,