All I want to do is make him feel better.
We exit the elevator and approach another desk, and this time, the nurse is full of information. I stand right next to Eli the entire conversation, wanting to hear what she has to say.
“Your mother is okay.” The woman scans the computer screen in front of her. “Lacerations to her face, most likely caused by the airbag. Ummm…” She taps at the keyboard, squinting at the screen. “Looks like she has bruised ribs and a possible concussion. They’re keeping her overnight for observation.”
“That’s it?” Eli asks hopefully.
The nurse glances up at him. “Injury wise, she came out fairly unscathed, which is normal when it’s a drunk-driving case.”
Eli’s entire body tenses up. “Are you sure she was drunk?”
“Alcohol level noted at .09, almost a .10. Yes, she was legally intoxicated.” The nurse’s expression is not particularly friendly. “Does she drink and drive often?”
“I don’t know. I don’t control her,” Eli retorts.
I place my hand on his arm, trying to calm him. He sends me a questioning look but otherwise doesn’t say anything. “What room is she in?”
“Two-thirty-six.” The nurse points down the hall. “But it’s not currently visiting hours.”
“Don’t really care,” he says, as he pushes away from the counter and heads down the hall toward her room. I send the nurse an apologetic look and follow after him, stopping short when he enters the room, without hesitation, marching right up to the bed she’s lying in.
He’s standing at her bedside when I walk inside the room and pause at the foot of the bed.
“Mom,” he whispers, his voice rough with emotion as he stares at her face. There are bruises already forming, and tiny cuts on her face too. One laceration is so large, she has a giant bandage covering it. “Mom, wake up.”
She doesn’t react at all. I haven’t seen his mother in a while, but she looks really thin. Almost gaunt. She’s lying flat on her back, her arms at her sides, her entire body eerily still.
It’s a little freaky.
Eli settles his hand on top of her head, his touch gentle as he drinks in her beat-up face. I see the pain cross his own face, the way he frowns and swallows hard. He strokes her hair carefully, his voice louder.
“Mom, it’s me. Eli. Wake up. I want to talk to you.”
She makes a noise, like a little groan, turning away from him. He keeps speaking, his tone low and soothing until her eyes finally flutter open and she turns to look at him.
“Eli,” she says, her voice full of wonder. “What are you doing here?”
“I came as soon as I heard,” he says, trying to smile at her, but it comes out looking forced, so he gives up. “You okay?”
“It hurts.” She averts her head, her eyes falling closed. “My whole body.”
“What happened?”
“Swerved to avoid a rabbit that darted out into the road.” She shakes her head, grimacing. “Hit a tree.”
Eli’s silent as he takes in what she said. So am I, feeling helpless. I can’t do anything or say anything. Why did I come?
To be here for Eli. To give him support when he needs it the most. He’s hurting. And probably doesn’t know how to deal with this.
I’ll help him the best that I can.
“I always tell you to just hit those little fuckers,” he says ferociously. “Now look, you got in an accident over them.”
“Eli, language,” she says on a gasp, a soft bit of laughter leaving her. “It’s okay. I’m okay. Not so sure about the car though.”
He sends me a look before he returns his attention to his mom. “Did you talk to the cops?”
“The cops? Yes, the police were there, but…why would I talk to them?” She frowns, a little crease forming between her eyebrows.