April stirred awake to the shrill ringing of her cell phone. Her hand fumbled on the bedside table, grabbing the phone, and her eyes flew wide open when she saw the name on the screen: Dr. Carter.
The sleep vanished from her eyes in an instant. Sitting upright, she swiped to answer the call. “Dr. Carter? Hello! Is everything okay?” she asked, her voice a mix of nervousness and anticipation.
“Good morning, Mrs. Dowell,” Dr. Carter said in his usual calm tone. “I hope I didn’t wake you.”
“Oh no, not at all,” April said quickly. “I—I should have called you sooner, but things have been… complicated.” She sighed. “How’s my mother? Is she okay? Did the surgery go well?”
“I was calling to inform you that the surgery was successful,” Dr. Carter replied. “Your mother woke up this morning, and s
