“Ithurts, Daddy,” Noah called out. He shut his eyes tightly and rocked back and forth, crying while cradling his arm.
A woman pushed forward. “He wasn’t that high up, but he landed hard. I’d say that at a minimum, he’s sprained something. But it might be a break.”
I gentled his hand away from his arm and found a mass of bloody scratches from his wrist to his shoulder, with swelling near his elbow.
Nina crouched beside me to examine his arm. “This isn’t good,” she muttered under her breath. “It’s swelling so fast I can almost see it getting bigger. We need to go to the hospital so they can take X-rays.”
I nodded. It didn’t matter how upset I was with her; in this moment, we were forced to be teammates to take care of Noah.
“Noey, I’m going to pick you up, okay?” I explained.
He nodded, but I braced myself for the cries that were bound to come as soon as I jostled him into my arms. As expected, he let out a heartbreaking yelp as I gathered him up. A few people inthe crowd reached out to pat my back as we walked by with Noah clutched against my chest.
“We’ve got you, don’t worry,” Nina said as she walked alongside us, using her most soothing voice, probably as much for us as Noah. “You’re going to be okay, bud.”
“Nina,” he cried out, like he just remembered she was with us. “Hold my hand.”
She reached for his good hand and held on as we headed for the car, an awkward parade of pain and worry.
“I was so brave,” Noah said through his tears. “I wasn’t afraid to go high.”
“Youarebrave,” Nina agreed. “We’re so proud of you. And you’re going to be okay.”
“Promise?” He sniffled as he asked her.
“Always,” she answered.
“Where are we going?” Noah asked, sounding panicked as we approached where we’d parked.
I opened my mouth to answer, not sure if I should tell the truth about our destination, but before I could speak, Nina beat me to it.
“We’re going to have someone take some pictures of your arm, to make sure it’s okay. Don’t worry, it won’t hurt,” she reassured him.
“But…where do they take the pictures?” Noah asked. “Do we go to school, like school picture day?”
“We’re going to the hospital,” I answered. “It’s fine.”
“Thehospital?” His voice trembled. “No, Daddy!”
I realized too late that I should’ve kept my mouth shut.
“It’s going to be so quick, buddy,” Nina said. “They’re not going to make you stay overnight, I guarantee it. Just a couple of quick pics, and we’ll see what they say.”
“Will you stay with me, Nina?”
He was looking toherfor comfort. I understood it—her maternal vibes were strong, but it still made my heart twist that his reflex was to turn to her, not his own father.
“Of course, sweetheart. We both will.”
I felt Nina shoot a glance at me.
We got to the car and Nina helped me open the door to maneuver Noah in without jostling him more.
“I’ll sit in back with him,” Nina said. She jogged around to the other side of the car to climb in.
Good. I wasn’t in the right frame of mind to have her beside me on the drive to the hospital. And it didn’t matter how angry I was with her; I knew Noah appreciated having her nearby.
But that didn’t mean I’d forgotten our argument. Not by a longshot. The tide was turning, and things were about to change.
