Dr. Rolle raised his bed.
“Take it easy, don’t try to speak too much. Let’s get you some water.”
“Yes, I’m here. I’m here, Kayden,” she replied, holding onto his hand for dear life.
“That’s my boy,” Maureen added, smoothing his hair, bending, and kissing his forehead.
Sam stood and walked over to the bed behind Lana, his arms folded across his chest. Nurse Thompson entered the room with a pink pitcher of water and a few plastic cups, placing them on the overbed table.
Lana grabbed the pitcher, poured him water, and helped him sip.
“I need to examine him,” Dr. Rolle said, touching Maureen on the shoulder.
She stood and moved out of the way. “Of course,” she replied.
“Kayden, it’s Dr. Rolle. Do you know where you are?” he asked, shining a penlight into his eyes.
“The hospital,” he replied.
“That’s good, yes. Do you remember what year it is?” Dr. Rolle continued.
Kayden answered correctly, but he kept his eyes on Lana’s and squeezed her hand.
“That’s very good,” Dr. Rolle continued.
“He’s lucky,” Sam interjected.
Kayden looked over at him, a frown creasing his face. “Who is that?” he asked.
Lana turned her head to Sam, then back to Kayden. “It’s Sam,” she said finally.
“He was there, I remember...” Kayden started.
“Yeah, he saved your life,” Maureen said.
Kayden locked eyes with Lana’s again.
“Thank you,” he said, then his eyes flicked back to Sam.
“No thanks needed,” he turned to Lana, “I’m going to head out and give you guys some privacy.”
“Yeah, we will too,” Paula added.
Lana nodded, never turning his direction. She kept her eyes on Kayden as Sam walked out, and Paula practically dragged Maureen behind her as well.
“What did I miss?” he smiled weakly.
Lana had so much she had to tell him, but the flurry of thoughts and words got caught in her throat. She wasn’t sure where to start and burst into tears, lowering her head to his chest.
“Shh,” he consoled, “It’s going to be OK.”
She nodded her head as he rubbed her back, then sat up again.
“Well…we’re gonna have a baby,” was all she could get out, and Kayden’s eyes grew two sizes bigger.
“What?” he replied, the smile on his face the biggest Lana had ever seen.
FOLLOWINGA SERIES of examinations by Dr. Rolle and a team of specialists, it became clear that Kayden’s memory of that night was fractured—certain details were missing entirely. Lana spent the next few days figuratively guiding him through the events until he finally started remembering on his own. After the doctors ran their tests, they showed that he didn’t suffer any brain damage but would need time to come to terms with what had happened physically to his body.
