Both doctors signed the release papers before they left, and she lay awake in her bed, totally lucid for the first time in three days. The days after the surgery had just slipped by her. The room was quiet and the nurses had been attentive. There was nothing much for them to do except check that she hadn’t pulled off any of her bandages, but she hadn’t moved.
A nurse helped her dress at four o’clock, and a nurse’s aide wheeled her downstairs, and the doorman helped her from the wheelchair into the car her doctors had sent. Everything was covered in snow, and the city looked beautiful as they drove the short distance to the apartment. The nurse was waiting for her in the lobby and helped her upstairs, settled her in the big comfortable bed, and asked if she wanted the TV turned on, but she didn’t. She had completely missed Christmas, and she was glad she had. She lay in the bed thinking about her mother, and the beautiful Christmases they had shared. She hadn’t put up a tree since she was leaving, and couldn’t have borne the thought of decorating one without her.
The nurse was very quiet, and sat in the living room. She came to check on Véronique every half hour or so. She had a light meal sent in of chicken, rice, and chicken soup, but Véronique ate very little. She was asleep by nine o’clock, and as she drifted off, she was glad that she had missed Christmas without her mother. It had been the perfect way to get through it, under heavy sedation. The nurse turned off the light, and Véronique didn’t stir until morning.
When she woke up the day after Christmas, she said she didn’t need any pain medication. The nurse helped her sponge off around the bandages, and then helped her dress. She put on jeans and a gray sweatshirt and fuzzy slippers. She turned on the TV, and the nurse served her the scrambled eggs she’d ordered. She left at six o’clock, and Véronique was on her own, four days post-op, with nurses who would come twice a day to check her bandages. Dr. Talbot called before dinnertime to see how she was feeling.
“Fine, except I feel like I’ve been on a two-week drunk,” she said, slightly embarrassed. Once she was out of the coma, they hadn’t sedated her as heavily in Brussels, except for her more serious surgeries.
“It’s only been four days,” he corrected her, “and that’s the best way to do it. You didn’t miss anything, except a big snowstorm.”
“Can I go out?” It looked so pretty she wanted to go out and make a snowball.
“Better not to. You don’t want to fall and bump anything. In a few days the snow will be gone. You can go out then. Dick will be upset if you mess up any of his handiwork. I’ll come and see you tomorrow, but the nurses have been reporting that you’re doing well. No pain?”
“None. My face tingles a little, but it doesn’t hurt.”
“That’s perfect. Just take it easy and watch movies.”
She felt very lazy, but she was tired, and she was still sleeping a lot. She couldn’t wait to get all the drugs out of her system. It was a sensation she didn’t like, and reminded her of all her surgeries in Belgium.
She called her father that afternoon, and this time he was awake, and well enough to talk to her. He coughed a lot on the phone, but he seemed in good spirits.
“How did the surgery go?” he asked her immediately. “I’ve been worried about you.”
“Okay, I think. I’ve just been sleeping for the past four days. I don’t even know what happened, except that I look like a mummy again. I’m all bandaged up.”
“Just rest. The city has been shut down anyway, with all the snow.”
“I wanted to go out and make snowballs, but the doctor won’t let me.” She sounded like a little girl and he laughed.
“They won’t let me go out and make snowballs either. You’ll have to come for another visit when we’re both feeling better. I’ve got this damn cough. I don’t know how I got it. Were you all right on Christmas?” He had been concerned about her, on her first Christmas without her mother.
“I slept through it.”
“Maybe that’s for the best,” he said wistfully. She thought so too.
They talked for a few more minutes, and then he started coughing more heavily, so they hung up, and before they did, she said, “Merry Christmas, Papa,” and he laughed and sounded pleased.
“I’ve waited a long time to hear that. Thank you. Merry Christmas to you too, darling girl. I hope you have a wonderful year ahead, much better than the last one.”