Chapter 37 Fate Takes a Hand?
By Chelle and Tess
Nick watched in horror as the driver of the car slammed on his brakes, trying to avoid hitting Chelle…but couldn't stop in time. Chelle’s body hit the hood of the car and flew over it, landing several feet from the car on the side of the road.
“NOOOOOOOOO!!!” Nick screamed as he ran to her side.
Tess screamed as Chelle went flying through the air. She took off after Nick, Kevin just ahead of her. She could hear the others behind her, a shout for 911 to be called echoing in her ears. Tears streamed down her face as she reached Chelle's still form. Nick was kneeling in the rain at her side, his hands reaching for her.
"No!! Nick don't touch her! " Kevin yelled, grabbing him.
Tess turned around and saw the others rushing toward the accident. The driver was standing there shaking his head. "I never saw her. She came out of nowhere. I tried to stop...I did." Brian tried to reassure him but the driver was too upset to hear anything Brian said. In the distance sirens were heard. Tess turned around, looking for the ambulance and found Howie, a blanket in his hands. She took it and although it was already soaked, she draped it over Chelle.
"Where the hell is that ambulance!?" Nick cried, looking over his shoulder for the emergency vehicle. "Where are they?"
Kevin tried to console him. He knew what it was like to wait for the help a loved one needed. The time seemed to drag by so slowly. Kevin looked over Tess’ shoulder and saw the flashing lights headed their way. “There they are, Nick. Just be sure not to move her. Let them do all of that.”
Tess watched her friend laying on the wet ground, scrapes all over her body. She said a silent prayer. “please god let her be alright”
AJ stood behind Nick and Kevin with tears in his eyes. "This wasn't happening. God, how could this happen" AJ asked himself. Howie watched as the ambulance pulled up. Two technicians immediately jumped out, and ran toward where Chelle lay motionless.
“Ok, I need you guys to back up” One of the technicians yelled out. Nick couldn’t move from her side. Chelle was hurt and perhaps even …..he couldn’t even think the words. She had to be alright. He would never forgive himself. The technician again said, “Sir. Please we need you to step back for a minute.” Kevin pulled Nick back to allow the emergency team the room to work. They quickly checked for her pulse. “She’s still got a pulse, but it’s weak. We’re gonna have to move fast.” The guy asked as he looked over at Nick. “what’s her name?”
Unable to find his own voice, Nick just stared at Chelle. Tess spoke up, “Chelle… uh, I mean… Michelle Wilson”
The lead EMT spoke to the assembled group once again. "We are going to transport her to County General. If any of you know her medical history, they are going to need that information at the hospital." The second tech wrapped a neck brace around her neck, then the two of them slid a backboard under her, carefully rolling her onto it. Within a few moments they had her stabilized and on a gurney, carefully lifting her into the back of the ambulance. "Only one can go," the tech said as both Tess and Nick stepped toward the ambulance.
"You go, Nick...she needs you," Tess said, hanging back by Kevin’s side. Nick jumped up into the back of the ambulance and the tech climbed in behind him.
“We’ll be right behind you Nick” Kevin called out as the doors were closed.. Seconds later the vehicle was on it’s way. Kevin then turned back to the others. “we need to follow them to the hospital” he then paused “oh shit. Someone needs to contact Shawn and the girls. I am sure she’ll probably need to contact Chelle’s family for that medical information.”
“I’ve already called Mike. They'll be on their way to the hospital as soon as he talks to them” Tyler advised.
“Thanks man.” Kevin replied “well.. We better get going”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~with Mr. Roark and Tattoo~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Tattoo ran over to Mr. Roark, “Boss. Boss. The weather outside did you see?”
“Yes my friend. It’s raining. And we both know that this can only mean something bad has or will happen.” Mr. Roark said as he looked out at the angry sky.
“Oh Boss please tell me nothing has happened to our guests. This would be awful. Just awful” Tattoo pleaded.
“Tattoo, you and I both know that everything happens for a reason. These are things we can’t sometimes explain or understand. That is why it‘s called fate.” Mr. Roark explained then looked over to Tattoo. “Come Tattoo. We need to be ready. I am sure our services will be needed shortly."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~with the girls~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
“Where is Chelle and Tess?” Carmen groaned as she put the phone back in it’s place.
“It’s not like we have so many places to go when the weather is as bad as it is.”
‘Yeah that is one nasty storm out there. I hope they get back soon. It’s not safe to be out there in this weather” Shawn replied. As she looked out the window of the suite, Shawn felt a chill up her spine. This was the same feeling she always got when something was wrong. But what could be wrong?
"I am sure Chelle is somewhere with Tess buying out a store as we speak. She'll be back soon" Sherry said as she walked up behind Shawn. It was obvious that Shawn was worried about their friend.
Tanya then spoke up, “you know..I can’t believe how much has happened since we’ve been here. Some not so good. But a lot of good things have happened also. I don’t think any of us will ever forget this trip….ever.”
The girls all gathered in the living room and sat down as Tanya's words sunk in.
"Guys, do you realize Chelle is moving back with Nick. She's not coming home" Shawn said with sadness in her voice.
“Yeah. But you see how happy she is with him. I don’t think I have ever seen her smile so much till she met Nick. And he is so good to her. He’ll take good care her” Carmen said as she remembered her conversation with Chelle.
“yeah he will.” Shawn said in a whisper. She was happy that Chelle met Nick. He was just what she needed to move forward in her life. But sad also. Chelle had left so suddenly after college and was beginning to drift away from the girls. She was glad she has had Tess there with her but was also jealous at the same time.
As the girls continued talking over their friend, a knock was heard at the door.
Sherry stood up "I'll get it." When she opened the door, she saw a sad looking Mike on the other side. "Hey Mike. What's with the long face? Something wrong?"
Mike nodded then said “you girls need to come with me. There has been an accident”
“WHAT?!?!” the girls all said at once.
“WHO?” Shawn asked fearing she knew the answer.
Barely finding a voice of his own, "Chelle. She was hit by a car."
Fear set upon each of the girls. "Oh my god, not Chelle" Shawn cried out.
"How could this happen?" Carmen cried "We have to see her. She's gonna need us."
“They’re gonna need help with medical information if any of you know it. Also, the family needs to be contacted.” Mike explained.
“Shawn knows her medical history. Let’s get to the hospital now. I will call her family once we’re there….” Sherry said as she quickly grabbed her purse. The girls followed Mike out to the van and were quickly on their way to the hospital.
Tanya wasn't able to speak, terrible thoughts running through her mind. Her best friend was hurt. Possibly, oh my god, I can't lose her too. Not Chelle" Tears began to fall down her face.
“Mike? What happened? What do you know?” Carmen asked as she watched Mike drive quickly past the other cars.
“I’m not really sure of the details…only that this happened outside the studio. The guys were all there.” Mike said as kept his eyes on the road.
“Oh thank god. Nick was there.” Shawn gasped.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~at the hospital~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Nick tried to keep it together during the ambulance ride to the hospital. But as he watched the tech insert an IV lead, his guilt was eating him up. "This is my fault. If she dies, it will be my fault."
Before the vehicle had even come to a complete stop, a team of doctors and nurses were ready to rush Chelle into an awaiting ER room. Nick followed, intent on entering the room, but a nurse stopped him. "Sir..I need to ask you some questions." Nick felt the hot tears slide down his cheeks as he realized that he was going to be no help to the woman. He didn't know the information she was asking for. He felt so helpless, the guilt for what happened to Chelle overwhelming. The nurse tried to reassure him as she led him to a waiting room, not far from the room where Chelle was being worked on.
Kevin and the others arrived and were shown to the waiting room, where they found Nick pacing the floor. "Where is she?" Kevin asked as he pulled Nick into a bear hug. He knew what was going on in Nicks head. He knew the kind of guilt that was eating him up inside. He vowed to be there for him, knowing how much he was going to need his friends.
"She's in a room back in the ER. They are working on her now. They won't tell me how bad it is." he mumbled. He looked over at Tess, tears in his eyes. "I don't even know her blood type....I couldn't help ..."
Tess looked at her feet. This was all her fault. If she hadn't listened to Davy and taken Chelle to the studio, none of this would've happened. "I don’t know either Nick. I am sure her friends will know.”
"God..this is all my fault" Nick cried, nearly collapsing.
Kevin held onto him, trying his best to comfort the younger man. "No Nick...it's not your fault. It was an accident. She's in good hands. She will be ok. She's a tough cookie." Kevin soothed. The others listened to him, at a loss for words on how to help Nick.
“Where is she?" Carmen yelled out as she ran in the side door of the waiting room. AJ immediately ran to Carmen to comfort her. Shawn ran past the group and directly to the nurses station.
"Shawn?" Kevin called out. But she didn't hear him.
"Shawn is getting Chelle's medical information to them" Sherry explained.
"What happened?" Carmen asked the guys and Tess.
"yes. What happened" Tanya said as she tried to wipe her tears. Howie held her in his arms as he waited for Kevin to explain what happened. Kevin took a deep breath and began to explain what had happened, leaving out the fact that Davy had tricked Tess into taking Chelle to the studios. She had just been through the wringer with them over the beach incident and he was sure she was beating herself up as badly as Nick was over Chelle's accident. He didn't want the others coming down on her as well. Nick tried desperately not to listen as Kevin explained, but he couldn't help it. He knew this was all his fault. Nothing would change that. He headed for the nurses station, craving information on Chelle's condition.
"Oh my god.....and Chelle overheard that? She didn't give you a chance to explain did she?" Carmen asked.
Kevin shook his head sadly. "We didn't get a chance. She ran off."
“I better go call her family.' Sherry said.”
Brian handed Sherry his cell." Here...use this."
"Thanks," she said quietly, dialing the numbers. She walked to the far end of the room so she could talk without any interruptions. The room was so quiet, a pin drop would've been heard. They tried not to listen in on the conversation between Sherry and Chelle's dad, but it was nearly impossible. Sherry's voice cracked several times as she explained what she knew about the accident. And she nearly broke down into tears as she told him that there was no news on her condition. "I will call you when I know anything," she said, then disconnected the call. She turned and went into Brian's arms. That had been hard. "He wants to come down.....he's gonna catch the next flight out."
The door opened and they all turned to look. Veronica walked in, her heels clicking on the linoleum. "Kevin...guys. We want you to know that whatever Ms Wilson needs...will be taken care of. Mr. James sends his regards....and you are to take the rest of the week off.."
Howie reached out his hand and she took it, with a warm smile. "Thank you Ms. Anderson.”
Shawn entered the waiting room in tears and headed straight for Kevin. Tess looked on, a surge of jealousy coursing through her, when he took her in his arms. "What did they say? Anything?" Kevin asked.
"She has internal bleeding. They are prepping her for surgery. They are afraid the accident might have damaged her spleen..." she said.
"Oh God..." nick cried as he re-entered the room, catching the last of Shawn's sentence. He slid down the wall and sat on the floor his head on his knees, crying. Tess slid down the wall and sat beside him, wrapping her arms around his shoulders. He laid his head on her shoulder and cried, his whole body shaking.
"They are gonna need a lot of blood." Shawn said
AJ jumped to his feet. "Where do we have to go?" he asked.
"The front desk nurse will show you where to go," Shawn said. AJ headed out the door, most of the others following.. They all wanted to help in anyway they could. Giving blood was one way they could do that. As they moved out the door of the waiting area, they saw Chelle being rushed by on a gurney. Nick tried to stop them, tried to get close to her, but Tess and Kevin held him back. A doctor ran by, his white lab coat flapping in the air. Kevin grabbed a nurse and asked her for any information on Chelle's condition.
“She's being taken to the OR. You can go up and wait in the waiting room upstairs.” the nurse explained.
“We want to donate blood as well," Tess said quietly.
"Ok...two or three at a time head for the lab. Down the hall third door on the left." she said, knowing the group was doing their best to remain positive. “now please excuse me. I need to help with your friend”.
Nick watched as Chelle disappeared through a set of double doors, tears slipping silently down his face. "Why did I say that? What does it matter who I date? I love chelle beyond words. I can't loose her. Not now.....not when we have just begun."
Tess watched Nick, knowing what he was thinking. He was blaming himself for the accident. But it wasn't his fault. It was hers. and hers alone. And that was going to be something she would have to live with for a long time. Especially if Chelle..no..she couldn’t think it. Chelle would not die. Those that weren't giving blood headed upstairs to the OR waiting room. Tess followed Nick, Kevin and Shawn behind her. Tanya and Brian brought up the rear. As Tanya walked beside Brian she silently lifted up a prayer to God. The six of them entered the waiting room and prepared to sit out the night. As the others were finished donating blood, they slowly trickled into the room.
“Shawn? Did they say how long the surgery would take?” Carmen asked with a raspy voice. The others looked on eager to know the answer.
Shawn said with a sad voice, "No. But I do know if she goes beyond three hours....it's not a good sign. Means there's a lot of complications."
As the room grew silent, a loud announcement was heard over the intercom. "CODE BLUE OR-3 STAT" followed by several nurses running down the hall, one of them pushing a crash cart.
Nick jumped out of his chair, his face ashen. "Oh my god...that's the operating room they took Chelle into."
Tess reached for Nick as his knees threatened to give out. She sat beside him on the chairs, holding him as his tears fell harder. She looked around the room, her gaze finally resting on Brian. "Brian.....we could use a prayer right now," she said softly.
He nodded silently, bowing his head. He reached for Sherry’s hand, who in turn reached for Howie's, until they all were joined in an unbroken circle. "Dear Heavenly Father.....we come to you tonight with sorrow on our hearts. Our friend Chelle is in desperate need of you, Lord. Watch over her, Lord.....Keep her safe and bring her back to us. In Your Name we pray...Amen" A quiet echo of Amens was heard round the room...as silent tears joined their prayers.
