Entangle by Veronica Larsen

Author:Veronica Larsen [Larsen, Veronica]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Veronica Larsen
Published: 0101-01-01T00:00:00+00:00

XXI

Alexis

Sterile floors, white walls, people in blue scrubs walking past us. My surroundings are a blur as we make our way to Giles. I find him where he told me he would be, sitting along a short set of gray chairs that line a portion of the hallway. His elbows are propped up on his knees and his head is in his hands. When he looks up at me, I notice dark shadows line the skin underneath his eyes as though he hasn’t slept in days. I rush to him and hug him without hesitation like it’s something we’ve done before, although it isn’t.

“God, Giles, are you alright? Do you need anything?”

I ask about him first, because I know he’s the last one anyone else is thinking of at the moment. He looks away from my critiquing gaze toward the nurses’ station, a crescent-shaped desk farther up the hallway.

“I’m fine.” His voice is steady but he rubs his eyes, fighting away fatigue or perhaps something else. “She’s in surgery now.”

I try to find other familiar faces around us, but don’t see any.

“Where is everyone?”

“Julia’s mother and the others are down in the main waiting area. I wanted to be here.” He nods toward a set of double doors that are marked ‘Authorized Personnel Only’ and says, “I want to see the doctors the second they step out to the hall.”

“What happened?” I ask.

Giles looks past me, narrows his eyes in confusion and I remember Leo is standing behind me.

“Oh, sorry, Giles—this is Leo. Leo this is Giles.”

They shake hands and Leo says, “I’m sorry to hear about your wife.”

Giles nods at him distractedly and turns his attention back to me. “She went into preterm labor, which wasn’t a big deal because she was already thirty-seven weeks along. But something went wrong after she delivered, there was massive hemorrhaging. They couldn’t figure out what was causing it so they ended up taking her into surgery. They’ve been in there for an hour. The doctor said they might have to do a hysterectomy.” He clears his throat before continuing, but his voice is just as hoarse. “She won’t be happy. She wanted one more baby. We always said we’d have four.” He pauses and looks down. I should say something. Anything. But I’m not good with words and everything I feel seems to press my lips closed. Giles doesn’t seem to notice and goes on, “She’s lost a lot of blood and there were other complications. The doctor is worried. He doesn’t say it, but I can tell. He can’t bring himself to tell me everything is going to be fine.”

His tone is clinical and almost detached, but his physical reaction tells a different story. Looking at him weighs me down by the gut. In the pain etched into every line on his face, he reveals how much he loves Julia.

I’ve always known that they love each other. But after three kids and seven years of marriage, you forget to see the romance and you start seeing the monotonous machine keeping things going.

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