God worked fast.
We stood and my knees wobbled. I leaned into Jazzy for support.
“How is she?” Jazmin’s voice trembled.
Dr. Mendez gave a wide smile. Any other time I would’ve zoned in on his stegosaurus-sized teeth, but today it was all about Big.
“Miss Thompson is a fighter,” the doctor said. “She had a heart event because both arteries had serious blockage. But, I was able to clear the blockage and insert a pacemaker.”
Heart event? I touched my chest and frowned. That sounded like a fancy way of saying heart attack, but I didn’t want to confirm if my thoughts were true. My insides were already trembling something fierce at the words, “heart event”.
“So she’s going to be all right?” Jazzy asked, in a tremulous tone. We joined hands again.
Dr. Mendez nodded. “We’re going to monitor her for a couple days, because I’m concerned about some blood clots in her legs. I don’t want to risk a pulmonary embolism so I’ve put compression socks on both her legs.”
“A pulmo what?” Jazzy asked.
“Pulmonary embolism,” I supplied, my heart beating fast in my chest. I had never heard those words before and they sounded scary.
“Yes, that’s correct,” he repeated, nodding his head. “A pulmonary embolism, in simple terms, is when a blood clots form, usually in your legs, and travel to your lungs.”
“Is that serious?” Jazzy asked.
His brown eyes held compassion. “It can cause a stroke or a heart attack,” he answered in a gentle tone.
My sister and I looked at each other and gasped.
“But, she’s okay for now,” he said before looking at his watch.
I read that as his exit cue. Dr. Mendez was ready to move on to another patient or go home. “Thank you, doctor, for saving our grandmother’s life,” I said, though my chin wobbled.
He gave a brief nod. “Thank God. At the end of the day, it’s all about Him,” he said, pointing upward. “I’m just His hands.”
Wow. For some reason, I didn’t expect the doctor to believe in God. His words and humility impressed me.
“Can we go see her?” Jazzy asked, obviously not as moved as I was by Dr. Mendez’s proclamation.
“Yes, you’ll be able to see her once she’s out of recovery and has been assigned a room in the Cardiac center. I’ll make sure a nurse comes to get you when she’s settled. But don’t stay too long. She needs her rest.”
As soon as he left, Jazmin lifted her chin. “I don’t know about you but I’m not leaving Big. I’m staying right in the room with her until morning.”
Jazzy was talking like she was the only one who cared about Big. I hated when she made it sound as if she was the only one willing to go the distance when it came to our grandmother.
“I’ll be right there next to you,” I said, steel in my voice.
“You don’t have to stay,” she replied. “I can call you if something happens. I know you’re exhausted.”
There she goes trying to spare me because she is a few minutes older.Jazzy seemed to think being born first made her the boss over my actions. Normally, I would have been glad for the respite she offered, but the night had been full of new beginnings. It was time I helped out more.
I squared my shoulders ready to stand my ground. This wasn’t about Jazmin trying to get credit for taking care of Big, it was about me almost losing one of the few people dearest to me on earth.
“I’m staying,” I said with even more resolve than before. “You’re just as exhausted as me. If you can make the sacrifice, so can I.”
“This isn’t a competition,” she pointed out. “I’m doing this because I love Big.”
“I love Big, too,” I said, emphasizing each word. “And, I’m not competing. I’m helping.”
Jazzy relaxed and kissed my cheek. “Okay, we will stay together.”
