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Feb. 14th, 2016 04:07 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
lang_noriegavosSeb drunkenly stumbled his way down the hospital hallway. He could see Lang’s darkened room at the end. He had no idea what time it was and it never occurred to him that she might be sleeping. One of the nurses at the nurse’s station lifted her head from the chart in front of her and watched him for a moment. When he drew closer, she stepped out from behind the desk and intercepted him.
“Mr. Noriega, you’ll have to come back in the morning; your wife is sleeping,” she said gently.
“No,” Seb said, shaking his head, “I need to see her right now.”
“I’m afraid I can’t let you do that,” the nurse insisted.
She stood barely over five feet tall and Seb towered over her. She probably wasn’t even 30-years-old yet, with chestnut hair and freckles. He easily stepped around her, saying, “I need to make sure she’s okay.”
The young nurse caught up with him again and once more stepped in front of him, trying to make her body look bigger than it actually is. “Mr. Noriega, I can assure you she’s fine. If anything had happened, we would know about it and we would have told you.”
“Just—please. Let me see her,” he said, pushing past her, “I need to tell her I’m sorry.”
The young nurse—Jane, according to the name on her scrubs—caught up with him just outside the doorway to Lang’s room. She quickly motioned to her colleague watching from the desk. “You can tell her in the morning. Right now, she needs her rest,” Jane said, inserting her body between him and the doorway.
Jane’s colleague came over along with a male nurse from some other part of the ward. The male nurse, taller than Seb and about the same age, stood beside Jane and gently put a hand on Seb’s shoulder. “Come on, buddy, you can see your wife tomorrow.”
Seb angrily shrugged off the hand and raised his voice, “No. Stop fucking getting in my way! I have a right to see her!”
“Not in the middle of the night. You can see her tomorrow. Don’t make us call security,” the male nurse said, putting both hands squarely on Seb’s shoulders. The name on his scrubs was Kyle.
“Fuck off!” Seb shouted as Kyle started to push him backwards. The more Seb fought, the more Kyle threw his body into it. “Lang!” Jane’s colleague appeared to help Kyle pull Seb away from the doorway. She was surprisingly tall and even more surprisingly strong. She pulled on Seb’s arm as Kyle put his shoulder into pushing. “Lang!” Seb shouted again.
“Seb, stop,” came a voice from the doorway. Lang stood there in her gray socks with the rubber bottoms and a light blue hospital gown. One hand was wrapped around the pole all her monitors were attached to. The other hung at her side. She looked tired.
Every head snapped in Lang’s direction. Seb untangled himself from the two nurses and scrambled over to her, his boots losing traction on the linoleum floor. He was the first one to get to her, but the nurses weren’t too far behind. Seb pressed up against Lang, taking the sides of her head in both hands. She looked up at him, meeting his eyes, but didn’t say anything. He wove his fingers in her hair and smoothed it back away from her face again and again, desperate to touch her.
“I’m sorry,” he said in a deep whisper. She could see his cheeks were wet.
Jane broke the spell as she gently took Lang’s arm. “You need to be in bed,” she said, trying to guide Lang out of the doorway.
Lang didn’t say anything. Behind her husband and over the nurse’s head, she could see two security guards walking down the hallway. She quickly looked to Jane, “It’s okay; he can stay.”
Jane made a motion to signal everything was under control before helping Lang back into bed. Seb watched helplessly from the doorway. Tubes and wires and monitors were rearranged and blankets were pulled up. Jane put the light out again as she left the room, leaving Seb still in the doorway.
“What was so important that you had to wake the whole hospital?” Lang asked softly.
Seb crossed the room and knelt down on the floor beside her bed. He laid one arm across the mattress while his other hand brushed through her hair again. “I’m so sorry for everything I have put you through,” he answered. She could barely hear him. “I treated you like trash. I expected you to keep me together.”
Her eyes had adjusted to the dark again and she could see he was crying. She could hear it in his voice. She could smell the liquor and the cigarettes.
“I didn’t want to hear what you were saying. I didn’t want to believe anything was hurting you and I buried my head in the sand,” he continued, “and I…am so afraid I am going to lose you. It’s entirely selfish but my life has no meaning without you in it.”
She continued to stay quiet, but brought a hand up to his face and lightly brushed a lock of hair away with a finger.
“Lang…”
“I’m tired,” she finally said.
He took her hand in both of his, threading the fingers of one hand and covering the back with the other. “I wish you would let them help you. Why can’t you? I know you don’t want to keep doing this to yourself. I know you want to be free of it. Don’t you want to stop fighting?”
Now they were both crying. “Yes,” she sobbed, “but I can’t.”
“Why not, Lang?”
“Because my life is a steaming pile of worthless failure,” she said.
He leaned in closer, his face next to hers, and shook his head. “No. It isn’t. You are beautiful-- so, so beautiful and you are so amazing just the way you are.” He knew enough to try to not offer advice. He knew not to bring up the children for the potential of having them taken from her. He sniffled and smiled. “I love you because you’re you.”
She didn’t respond, just pulled their hands in and pressed her face into his as she cried deep, silent tears. The seconds crawled by as she cried, the sobs not easing up. “I don’t want to die,” she said with thick words, “I want someone to take this from me.”
Seb got to his feet, untangling one hand from hers so he could pull the chair up against the bed. He sat and leaned in again, resting his temple against her shoulder. His free hand soothingly brushed over her hair. “Okay,” he whispered.
“Mr. Noriega, you’ll have to come back in the morning; your wife is sleeping,” she said gently.
“No,” Seb said, shaking his head, “I need to see her right now.”
“I’m afraid I can’t let you do that,” the nurse insisted.
She stood barely over five feet tall and Seb towered over her. She probably wasn’t even 30-years-old yet, with chestnut hair and freckles. He easily stepped around her, saying, “I need to make sure she’s okay.”
The young nurse caught up with him again and once more stepped in front of him, trying to make her body look bigger than it actually is. “Mr. Noriega, I can assure you she’s fine. If anything had happened, we would know about it and we would have told you.”
“Just—please. Let me see her,” he said, pushing past her, “I need to tell her I’m sorry.”
The young nurse—Jane, according to the name on her scrubs—caught up with him just outside the doorway to Lang’s room. She quickly motioned to her colleague watching from the desk. “You can tell her in the morning. Right now, she needs her rest,” Jane said, inserting her body between him and the doorway.
Jane’s colleague came over along with a male nurse from some other part of the ward. The male nurse, taller than Seb and about the same age, stood beside Jane and gently put a hand on Seb’s shoulder. “Come on, buddy, you can see your wife tomorrow.”
Seb angrily shrugged off the hand and raised his voice, “No. Stop fucking getting in my way! I have a right to see her!”
“Not in the middle of the night. You can see her tomorrow. Don’t make us call security,” the male nurse said, putting both hands squarely on Seb’s shoulders. The name on his scrubs was Kyle.
“Fuck off!” Seb shouted as Kyle started to push him backwards. The more Seb fought, the more Kyle threw his body into it. “Lang!” Jane’s colleague appeared to help Kyle pull Seb away from the doorway. She was surprisingly tall and even more surprisingly strong. She pulled on Seb’s arm as Kyle put his shoulder into pushing. “Lang!” Seb shouted again.
“Seb, stop,” came a voice from the doorway. Lang stood there in her gray socks with the rubber bottoms and a light blue hospital gown. One hand was wrapped around the pole all her monitors were attached to. The other hung at her side. She looked tired.
Every head snapped in Lang’s direction. Seb untangled himself from the two nurses and scrambled over to her, his boots losing traction on the linoleum floor. He was the first one to get to her, but the nurses weren’t too far behind. Seb pressed up against Lang, taking the sides of her head in both hands. She looked up at him, meeting his eyes, but didn’t say anything. He wove his fingers in her hair and smoothed it back away from her face again and again, desperate to touch her.
“I’m sorry,” he said in a deep whisper. She could see his cheeks were wet.
Jane broke the spell as she gently took Lang’s arm. “You need to be in bed,” she said, trying to guide Lang out of the doorway.
Lang didn’t say anything. Behind her husband and over the nurse’s head, she could see two security guards walking down the hallway. She quickly looked to Jane, “It’s okay; he can stay.”
Jane made a motion to signal everything was under control before helping Lang back into bed. Seb watched helplessly from the doorway. Tubes and wires and monitors were rearranged and blankets were pulled up. Jane put the light out again as she left the room, leaving Seb still in the doorway.
“What was so important that you had to wake the whole hospital?” Lang asked softly.
Seb crossed the room and knelt down on the floor beside her bed. He laid one arm across the mattress while his other hand brushed through her hair again. “I’m so sorry for everything I have put you through,” he answered. She could barely hear him. “I treated you like trash. I expected you to keep me together.”
Her eyes had adjusted to the dark again and she could see he was crying. She could hear it in his voice. She could smell the liquor and the cigarettes.
“I didn’t want to hear what you were saying. I didn’t want to believe anything was hurting you and I buried my head in the sand,” he continued, “and I…am so afraid I am going to lose you. It’s entirely selfish but my life has no meaning without you in it.”
She continued to stay quiet, but brought a hand up to his face and lightly brushed a lock of hair away with a finger.
“Lang…”
“I’m tired,” she finally said.
He took her hand in both of his, threading the fingers of one hand and covering the back with the other. “I wish you would let them help you. Why can’t you? I know you don’t want to keep doing this to yourself. I know you want to be free of it. Don’t you want to stop fighting?”
Now they were both crying. “Yes,” she sobbed, “but I can’t.”
“Why not, Lang?”
“Because my life is a steaming pile of worthless failure,” she said.
He leaned in closer, his face next to hers, and shook his head. “No. It isn’t. You are beautiful-- so, so beautiful and you are so amazing just the way you are.” He knew enough to try to not offer advice. He knew not to bring up the children for the potential of having them taken from her. He sniffled and smiled. “I love you because you’re you.”
She didn’t respond, just pulled their hands in and pressed her face into his as she cried deep, silent tears. The seconds crawled by as she cried, the sobs not easing up. “I don’t want to die,” she said with thick words, “I want someone to take this from me.”
Seb got to his feet, untangling one hand from hers so he could pull the chair up against the bed. He sat and leaned in again, resting his temple against her shoulder. His free hand soothingly brushed over her hair. “Okay,” he whispered.
