Rocker ledher onto the hospital’s porch. Sledge immediately embraced her for the second time since meeting them. “It’s good to see you, Sassy P,” he whispered in her ear. She detected the sound of relief in his voice.
He let go of her and led her forward. “Doc, Kassie, meet Scarlett Peterson. Sassy P, Doc’s standing directly in front of you, and Kassie’s to his left.”
Doc grabbed her hand and firmly shook it. “It’s nice to meet you, Scarlett. Sledge has talked nonstop about you.”
She snorted. “Don’t believe anything he tells you.”
A smaller set of hands took hers. “Hello, Scarlett. I’m Kassie. Shall I give you a tour of the hospital and show you to your room?”
Scarlett frowned. “There’s no use in giving me a tour, I can’t find my way out of a paper bag. We can skip it and go right to my holding cell.”
Kassie laughed. “You sound like Patch. Since you’ve flown halfway around the country, I’ll let you rest for the day. I assure you, today will be the only one. Starting at 0800, you’ll meet with Lisa and Allie. Doc will see you at 0930with an associate of his, and Dr. Meyers will see you after lunch. At 1500, we’ll convene and discuss your health plan with us.”
“What? Didn’t you get my medical records? I’ll condense them for you. I’m blind, and my two battle buddies seem to think you can cure me.”
Kassie looped her arm around Scarlett’s and started down the hall. “We don’t promise you a cure, but we’ll provide you with the best care to get you back on your feet. You’re in room 422 on your right. It’s a quiet wing. We want you to focus on your surroundings and feel safer and more confident as you explore.”
“You think exploring a bubble will teach me about the real world?” she asked sarcastically, already dreading staying here.
“No. But sitting in your room for months won’t help you either. We don’t coddle our patients, but we give them a solid ground on which to start. You’ll find your bed two feet in front of you. To the left, you have a private bathroom. You’ll find your closet to hang up your clothes on your right. If you move farther to your left, you’ll discover the TV and beyond it are windows,” Kassie informed her. “Beside your bed on the left, you have a comfortable recliner. I’m acquainted with your chart and know you suffer from frequent migraines. I ordered a miniature refrigerator to keep ice packs ready for you. My friend, Samantha, owns a spa in town and provided you with two cold eye masks, one peppermint and one lavender.”
“Oh,” Scarlett breathed in the scent of the room. It didn’t smell of disinfectant or blood like other places. It smelled…calming.
“Sledge offered to bring you down for meals and show you where to sign up for activities. Welcome to Serenity Mountain, Scarlett. If you need anything, please let any ofour staff know. I’ll leave you to get settled,” she said, leaving her in the middle of the room.
“Rude,” she muttered under her breath. “Okay, not exactly rude. She did tell me where to find everything. Stop acting like a big baby. Visualize it, Scarlett,” she chastised herself.
Holding her hand in front of her, she approached the bed and set her bag down. Rocker took the other. Scarlett started with her toiletries. Placing the items on the bed, she sorted them into two categories: what needed to go into the closet and the rest to the bathroom. She gathered everything in her arms and shirt and turned left, to where Kassie described. As she entered, Scarlett heard Sledge and Rocker enter her room.
“Whoa, Rocker. Who knew underneath all those smart ass comments, Sassy Pants wore cute lacy underthings?” Sledge said, loud enough for her to hear. Two seconds later, she heard him mutter, “Owww. I’m an injured soldier, Rocker. Why did you hit me?”
“Don’t talk about her panties. She only arrived here fifteen minutes ago, and you’re discussing her underwear. Have some class,” Rocker ordered.
“If I didn’t give her shit, she’d think something was wrong with me,” Sledge argued. “She lost her sight, man, not her sense of humor.”
“All right, boys,” she called. “Do I need to separate you?”
“Scarlett already knows you’re missing some screws up there. Sledge is playing with your panties. He’s either mightily envious of them or you need to make a call to his wife. I haven’t made up my mind,” Rocker called back.
“Hey, man. Don’t get me in trouble with Kim. She’s still really sensitive about her weight. I tell her she’s beautiful and I like her new curves, but she’s not happy about it. I’m only giving you crap, Scarlett. I don’t mean anything by it,” Sledgeapologized.
“Don’t sweat it, Sledge. I’ll buy you a pair for your birthday. Kim will love them on you,” she teased. “I know you have pictures of the baby. Don’t hold out on me.”
Sledge sat on the bed’s edge. “Andrea has the biggest blue eyes and already has curls in her hair. She’s the cutest baby ever,” he gushed. “Kim dressed her in a frilly pink dress and added a bow bigger than her head. I asked her if the kid could suffer from neck injuries holding that thing on her head. She gave me the finger and said if I ever want to make another baby, I shouldn’t ask stupid questions.”
Scarlett chuckled. “Will they be coming to visit you? I want to meet them. I feel like I know Kim already after all of our internet conversations. Of course, I want to hold Andrea, too.”
“They came last weekend. It’ll probably be a few weeks before she comes again. It’s a long drive for her and the baby alone, and I don’t like her on the highways by herself. It’s expensive to fly, and I’m not sure what to do after I get discharged here.”
“Didn’t you plan on running the shop with your dad?” Rocker asked.
“Yeah. I can’t be a mechanic, turning wrenches and such. I thought about returning to school. There’s an accounting program I’m interested in,” Sledge informed.
“Then, do it. You’re good at numbers,” Scarlett said, entering her bedroom. “Where did you two clowns sit before I stumble over you?”
“I’m on the edge of your bed,” Sledge answered. “Rocker’s leaning against the wall by your closet. Do you want us to help you put your things away? They have some great walking trails. There’s a van that takes us to town. We can catch it to grab lunch. I can show you the cafeteria later.”
“Lunch sounds good,” Rocker agreed. “What can we help you with, Sassy P? I’m starving.”
