Traumatized Love

Episode 7

-Steven’s POV-

“You’re going to be alright,” I said to Beth. I don’t know if she could hear me. And then she lost consciousness.

My leg hurts a lot, I couldn’t ignore the pain but I was more worried about Beth. She lost a lot of blood.

“Where are we going?” I asked the soldier who helped me earlier on.

“We’re taking you to the hospital in Lyra, sir,” he told me.

“No, she lost too much blood. We have to go to a bigger better equipped hospital,” I said.

“Sir, we’re not equipped to transfer you to a bigger hospital,” the pilot said.

“Contact base and inform them to prepare a plane to transport us back home.”

“Home? Where? US?”

“Yes.”

“Alright, sir. I will switch the course to base,” the pilot said.

“Ermm sir, your leg is bleeding. I think you should lie down.”

I lied down on the stretcher hoping that it’s not too late to save Beth. I held her hand, “You have to stay alive, do you hear me. We didn’t come this far for you to give up right now,” I said to her.

We arrived at the HQ base minutes later and an army doctor came to inspect us.

“We need to stabilize the patient before we transport them,” he said.

“Please save her life,” I told the doctor.

“Don’t worry, I’ll do my best.”

It didn’t take long before we were transferred into a plane which would bring us home. Finally, I could lie back and relax. It didn’t take long before I closed my eyes and fell asleep.

I woke up to a white ceiling and white lights above me. It looked like I was in a hospital. I looked around and saw my good friend, Darren asleep on a chair next to my bed. I tried to get up and the creaking of the bed woke Darren up.

“Hey buddy,” he said groggily. “How are you feeling?”

“I feel fine,” I answered. “How long was I asleep?”

“About twelve hours. You were in surgery, they removed a bullet from your leg . You’ll be fine,” Darren said.

“How’s Beth?” I asked.

“She’s stable but still unconscious. She lost a lot of blood but they managed to save her.”

I sighed in relief.

“Can I see her?” I asked.

“Well, I think so but I don’t think you should get out of bed yet,” Darren said.

“I just need to make sure she’s alright,” I told Darren.

“Okay.”

Darren helped me up and got the crutches for me. I limped to Beth’s room and when I entered, I saw her soundly asleep. I sat down next to her bed and held her hand. I’ve never met a woman as strong as Beth. From the moment I met her and got to know her, she has been a very dedicated doctor serving her people in her hometown. It was unfortunate for her to go through all these. But yet, she fought her way to survive. With no family and no home, I wonder what she would do. She would probably be granted refugee status here for her contribution but she probably won’t be able to return to her home country anytime soon. I admired her courage and the sacrifices she made. I just wished I could have protected her better.

“She’ll be fine,” Darren said. “She’s stronger than you think.”

“Yes she is,” I replied.

“She’s gone through so much. I’m worried about her mental status. All these trauma can affect a person mentally and emotionally,” I continued.

“I can see that you care for her a lot,” Darren mentioned.

“Yes I do. I mean we’ve been through a lot together.”

“Okay, well I better make a move. Please get some rest Steven,” Darren said.

“I will. Thanks Darren.”

I sat there with her as long as I could. I didn’t realized I was so tired that I fell asleep on her bed.

It was early morning when I woke up to find Beth looking at me.

“Hey, you’re awake? How are you?” I asked.

She hesitated before answering, “I feel some pain.”

“I’ll get the doctor. I’ll be right back,” I told her.

She grabbed my hand before I could leave.

“Where am I?” she asked.

“You’re in a hospital in Chicago,” I told her.

“Chicago? In US?”

“Yes, you were in a critical condition, we had to transfer you here for treatment.”

She grimaced in pain. I pressed the button to call the nurse. When the nurse arrived, I told her to get the doctor in charge. The doctor came in a few minutes later and told the nurse to give Beth some medication for the pain. In an instant, Beth started to relax again. I just realized the whole time that she was holding my hand and the grip relaxed.

“Good morning Beth. I’m Dr. Delaney. How are you feeling?”

“The pain has lessened but I still feel dizzy,” Beth answered.

“Well, you had two gunshot wounds. One on your shoulder which wasn’t serious and another one below your rib cage on your right. You lost a lot of blood there. We managed to remove the bullet successfully and fortunately there was no damage to any vital organs. We had to put you in an induced sleep for you to recover. Hence, the anesthesia and painkillers we gave you would make you feel drowsy and dizzy for a few hours,” Dr. Delaney explained. “However , overall you’re doing great and you’ll be fine.”

“Thank you,” Beth replied.

“Do you need anything else?”

Beth shook her head.

“Alright, you can call the nurse if you need anything. I’ll come and check on you again later in the afternoon,” Dr. Delaney said.

“Sure.”

“I need to talk to Dr. Delaney but I’ll be right back, okay,” I told Beth.

“Okay.”