Pregnant For The Ceo

Trepidation

They say we have no idea the value of what we have till we lose it. That has proven to be true so many times and in Kathlyn’s case, it was no different. If she was told weeks back or even the day before that she would be running down the hallway of a hospital, looking like a character for Halloween and praying fervently for a man who she was in love with, she would have gasped in shock and disbelief.

Every trace of sleep and sanity disappeared from her mind when she heard the collision. It took time to register but when it did, she screamed. She had no idea of how long she screamed but Jasmine was by her side patting her back, whispering soothing words while trying to know what the matter was. By the time she stopped screaming, her throat burned but that was the least of her concern.

She stared at Jasmine with eyes filled with anguish and rasped, “Adam was in an accident.” Talking was painful but she managed to breathe through it all. Jas had gasped and shook her head in a mix of denial and disbelief.

“How did you know?”

That was the moment Kathlyn pointed to her phone which was on the table. The call was still on and voices which Jas had taken no notice of earlier spoke through the phone. She picked it up and screamed, “Hello?” into the receiver. Kathlyn simply stared blankly into space with tears streaming down her face. She felt lost; utterly and completely lost.

Jas shook her out of her abysmal state and muttered, “city hospital. We have to go.” Those were the last words Kathlyn heard before she flew off the couch, up the stairs and returned five minutes later wearing a crop top and bump, denim short. Her hair flew in different directions as she descended the stairs and bolted out of the house.

“f**k! Kathlyn” Jas called running after her. She managed to catch up with her and pulled her back with wide, fiery eyes. “What the hell are you doing?”

“Adam… Adam… I have to get to Adam” She said shaking her hair and looking around frantically.

“You will. Just calm down, please. Take deep calming breaths” Jas advised gesturing with her hand.

“No. Didn’t you hear? He’s bleeding” She screamed and flailed her hands in protest.

“Let me take you in my car” Jasmine offered in resignation. Kathlyn bit her bottom lip and nodded. Skeptical about leaving her all by herself, Jasmine pleaded with her to follow her inside and wait while she changed into something else. Kathlyn obliged.

The drive to the hospital was filled with panic and silence which was occasionally broken by Kathlyn’s sobs. They reached the hospital in fifteen minutes. Kathlyn pushed the door open as soon as they reached and that was when she began her race into the hospital. She ran past the reception and blindly into the hospital in search of Adam. It took the intervention of Jas and a male nurse to calm her down. She was led back to the reception and offered a glass of water. Jas ran a frustrated hand through her hair and stared at Kathlyn. She was near tears too. She had never seen her friend this broken and it broke her too.

“Kathlyn, please calm down. Adam will certainly not want to see you looking like this” Jas begged holding her down. Her shoulders deflated as the words filtered into her ears. She looked up at Jas, different emotions twirling in her eyes.

“Ma’am, who are you here for?” The nurse who helped restrain Kathlyn asked.

“Adam… Adam Smith” Jas replied. The nurse gave a small nod and walked back to the reception desk. Kathlyn wiped her forehead with the back of her palm and sniffled loudly. She rocked back and forth on the chair as she tried to calm her wrecked nerves.

The nurse returned some minutes later and looked from Jasmine to Kathlyn. “He was in an accident with a truck about an hour ago. He is currently in the theater”.

“How long will it take?” Jas asked again.

“I really cannot say, ma’am. I beg you to be patient though. He will be out soon.”

Jasmine wanted to ask some more questions and so did Kathlyn but the words refused to form. Both ladies felt raw fear which they tried to mask. Despite her raging emotions, Kathlyn’s hand went to her belly and she massaged it softly as if to reassure herself that her baby was still there. The assurance calmed her a bit and helped her regain her composure.

It was one hour or two hours of sitting and moping later before the theater doors opened. It was at the time when the veil of darkness slowly lifted to pave way for light that the doors opened. Kathlyn was almost falling asleep but the sound of the doors opening pulled her back to reality. Without thinking too much, she pushed herself up from the seat and padded her way over to the theater room where a doctor came out from.

“Doctor…” She trailed off when she caught a glimpse of Adam lying on a stretcher with a bandage wrapped around his mid region and his head. She looked at the doctor, at Jasmine who was by her side then, back at Adam. Her attempt to dash into the theater was thwarted by the doctor who gripped her arm lightly to hold her in place.

“I’m sorry, miss but you can’t go in there. Who are you, by the way?” He c****d his head to the side while staring at her suspiciously. Kathlyn shrugged his hand off her and her eyes momentarily fleeted to his face before going back to Adam.

“I am his girlfriend” She declared.

“Oh!” The doctor exclaimed in realization. “Forgive me. Please, come with me. We have to wheel him out and take him to get some rest. This way…” He said pointing in the direction of the reception. She stared blankly at him, back at Adam who was currently being tended to by a nurse before turning back to the doctor. Jasmine’s light, reassuring squeeze on her shoulder caused her to give the doctor a nod of consent.

She wiped her nose with the back of her palm, took one last look at Adam before turning and walking in the direction the doctor pointed in. They were led to an office and offered a seat. Kathlyn did not have the strength to look at the office and take in the environment. Her attention was on the doctor who was adjusting his stethoscope. He dragged one of the seats in his office and settled on it before looking at both of them.

“Will Adam be okay?” Jas asked impatiently. She could tell that Kathlyn did not have the mental capacity to process her thoughts right now so she decided to do that for her.

“There was clotted blood on the right part of his brain which we managed to clear out. His legs were injured too and there is a dislocation on his left leg. That will take longer time go heal. A month or two, perhaps. A shard of glass got into his stomach narrowly escaping his kidney…” His words were punctuated by a gasp from Kathlyn. “He will be fine” The doctor said in a calming tone. Kathlyn quickly wiped the tears from her eyes and nodded sharply.

“How long will he be unconscious for?” It was Kathlyn this time.

“The sedatives should be wearing off about now. We will administer another one in the next two hours. However, we have to keep him under observation.”

“Can we see him?”

“Certainly. As soon as he is wheeled into a room, you can see him.” They muttered their thanks and made to rise when his next words stopped them. “Who is Kathlyn?” He asked looking between both ladies. Jasmine and Kathlyn exchanged worried looks before Kathlyn gave a nod.

“I am.”

“Adam kept insisting on seeing you before passing out completely.”

The walk to Adam’s room was the longest Kathlyn had ever walked in her entire life. Each step made her feel like she was drawing closer to her worst nightmare. Her legs felt like lead and if it weren’t for Jasmine, she would have fallen to the ground. She stopped right in front of his room and stared inside through the small, circle window which was on the door. She chewed the inside of her cheek, contemplating how to go in without falling.

“Do you need me in there with you?” Jas asked. She stared up at her and processed the question.

“No, please. I’ll be fine.” She forced a smile but Jas shook her head and gently pushed her inside.

Grateful for her understanding, Kathlyn took another deep, calming breath and pushed the tears which were gathering back. She was afraid of what she would see inside and a small part of her wanted to ask Jasmine to come in with her but this was a sacred moment for her.