Page 26 of Deprived No More

It’s an odd analogy, but I appreciate the reminder, nonetheless. “Hey, you’re on the way to an important evening. Please, don’t be late because of me. I’ll be okay. I only have a few hours left, and I’m headed home to Nick and the kids. I’ll be okay.”

“Are you sure? I’ll cancel my plans and take care of him myself if you need me to?”

“What? Oh, god, no. Please, you’ve stayed here long enough. Go. I’ll be fine. I’ve handled harder things than this.”

“Yes. Yes, you have. And I’m proud of you. Don’t give this any more of your energy, Kat. Focus on your other patients, and hopefully, you’ll get him discharged back to wherever he came from without having to spend more time with him.”

“Thanks. Have fun tonight.”

He gives me a sweet smile before bending to grab his bag and heading for the exit doors.Blessed, remember?As with Olivia’s conversation earlier, I need to focus on how blessed I am to have such amazing people in my life. And simply pray for the rest.

* * *

The drive home is tumultuous. There doesn’t appear to be another car on the road, but unwanted images cloud the journey. Pictures of a time I thought I’d recovered from. It seems I’ve only succeeded in burying the past.

Mark was discharged back to the rehab facility with antibiotics as there was no evidence of a blood clot on his ultrasound. I reviewed his results and quickly left the room, unable to handle any additional conversation tonight. The nurse assigned to Mark’s care explained that he’s been in and out of that same rehab facility for years.

Mark had suffered an incomplete injury to his spinal cord, which has caused permanent paralysis in his lower extremities. From what he shared, he’s healed a lot from his original injury. Mark had broken bones in his neck and back at the time of his accident. He wore a halo to stabilize his neck as it healed and eventually recovered much of the use of his arms.

I didn’t want to know much about his living situation, as I knew it would haunt me. However, the little knowledge I’ve gained tonight is playing with my head after all these years.

Why am I so bothered by this? He did this to himself. Was it the intense way he was looking at me? It almost felt as if he was pleading with me for something. But what?

* * *

Pulling into the driveway of our bungalow, I try to shake off the unease. This week has been tough enough without adding Mark to the mix. I need to just handle this on my own. As I normally do. With a good cry in the shower.

“Mommy!” Olivia squeals, running at full speed into me.

“Well, you certainly look like you feel better,” I tell her as I lift her into my arms.

“I think the magic tummy medicine Daddy gave me fixed me.”

“He’s a good doctor, isn’t he?” I add as I carefully tickle her ribs. I notice the boys sitting on the couch with a new handheld gaming system in their hands. “Whatcha got there?”

“Daddy got it for us. Isn’t it awesome?”

“It is. Dad was a superhero today.”

“Yeah!” they shout, eyes never leaving their gaming console.

“Where’s Grace and your dad?”

“Grace went to lie down. She said she felt hot and tired,” Logan says without eye contact.

Oh no. I’m afraid to ask about Nick. Boy, this virus tore through the Barnes family. “And how’s your dad?”

“He was on the phone with Unca Bas,” Olivia blurts.

“So, he’s not sick?”

“No. He’s Super daddy.”

Suddenly, I hear footsteps and look up to see him standing in the kitchen. His cold demeanor shows that this won’t be my customary welcome home. Has the day been that hard on him?

“Hi,” I greet, wondering why he’s so standoffish. This isn’t like him at all.

“I thought you were going to call when you were on the way to see about dinner.”

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