Nick was anxiously awaiting news of his girlfriend’s condition. The ambulance had arrived soon after he had found Carly lying on her bedroom floor at her house and the EMTs rushed her to the hospital. Thank God Nick had had the presence of mind to call them on the way to her house, he thought. He had followed the ambulance to the hospital in his car and now was pacing the floor of the emergency waiting room. He still had no idea what was wrong with Carly, but he suspected that she knew. He prayed she would be okay.
Suddenly Nick’s cell phone rang. “Hey, Brian.” He recognized the number.
“Nick! How’s Carly doing?” Brian asked, concerned.
“I’m still waiting to hear.” He had left a message for Brian that he wasn’t sure if he would make the flight to Tennessee in the morning; it would all depend on Carly’s prognosis.
“Nick, man, I’m so sorry. We are all praying for her. Call me when you know something, okay?”
“I will. Thanks a lot, bro.” Nick flipped his phone shut, pocketed it and paced again. How long would he have to wait?!
“Nick Carter!” A woman called his name and Nick thought to himself, not so loud! He looked around to see if anyone noticed him. A few people glanced over at him, but to his relief no major recognition appeared on their faces.
“Yes?” He walked up to the counter, anxious for news.
“I will need you to fill out all this paperwork for Ms. Benjamin.” Crap! Nick thought. He was certain he wouldn’t know half of the information they needed him to fill out. He didn’t know her medical history, her family history or even her family! He would have to remedy that situation soon he realized. If they were going to be a couple, they should definitely meet each other’s families.
“Uh, I don’t think I’m going to know all of this information.” Nick said, flipping through the pages.
“Is there a family member present that would know?”
Nick shook his head. He wouldn’t even know how to begin to find her parents or brother. Carly hadn’t mentioned them much in their few weeks of knowing one another; they were just getting to know one another themselves.
“Alright. Well, just do the best you can and we’ll try to get the rest of the information from the patient.” The woman said.
It only took Nick 10 minutes to fill out what he knew and then he turned the forms back into the front desk.
“Thank you. Have a seat and someone will call you shortly.”
Damn, this wait was frustrating! Just tell me what is goddamn wrong with her! He thought, sitting back down in his seat with his head in his hands. It was partially out of frustration and partially because he didn’t want anyone to recognize him.
“Mr. Carter?” Thirty minutes later, a nurse opened a door and called his name.
Finally! Nick thought as he walked through the doorway and followed her down the hall to the nurse’s station.
“I’m Dr. Holloway. I’m treating Miss Benjamin.” A tall, African-American woman who looked to be in her late 40s greeted him at the counter. She extended her hand and Nick shook it.
“Hi. How is she doing?” He asked.
“She’s going to be fine.”
“Really? That’s a relief. What happened?”
“I’m sorry to tell you this, but she lost the baby. The good news is that she should make a full recovery.”
Nick’s face turned ghostly white. Carly was pregnant? Oh my God! He had no idea and maybe she hadn’t known either. But then he remembered what she had said to him when he first arrived at her house and it all made sense now: “Nicky, this isn’t good. I’ve think I lost it… I’m so sorry…” Shit, she had known, but why hadn’t she had told him? Maybe because it wasn’t his; maybe because it was Derek’s baby. The thought of it made him sick.
Dr. Holloway continued, “Carly gave us consent to do a D & C, so we just finished. A D & C stands for dilation and curettage and we had to perform it in order to remove the tissue left in her uterus so she won’t develop an infection. We’ve given her some medication so she may be drowsy. We have also taken some blood for some tests. Carly will need a few days of rest. She may experience some spotting for the next 8 to 10 days, but she can eat and drink normally. No exercise for awhile—it may take her body 6 to 8 weeks to return to normal. And she may seem tired for a few days.”
Wow, Nick thought. That’s a boatload of instructions! He hoped it would be written down somewhere or that Carly would be informed so she could help him remember it all.
“What happened? Why did she lose the baby?” He finally asked.
“I don’t know. The reasons for a patient to experience a miscarriage suddenly the way Carly did are often unknown, but probably a blessing since it’s the body’s way of dealing with a baby that is not growing normally.”
“Can she have another one?” Nick asked.
“As far as I know, yes. All of her internal productive organs appear to be functioning normally. There will most likely be another chance for her, but not for at least three months. She should really let her body mend before she tries to get pregnant again.”
Nick nodded, still in a fog; trying to take all this information in at once. Carly was pregnant, then miscarried, but would still be able to have another baby, but not for another three months and he wasn’t he even aware she had been pregnant in the first place or if she even wanted a baby! He then realized that they needed to do some serious talking soon, but only after she had recovered, of course.
“I told Carly that I’m here for her if she needs me for anything. I also offered her a list of grief counselors if she needs it. I’m here for you as well if you have any further questions. She will be comforted to know you are here.” The doctor said, putting a gentle hand on his shoulder. She was a kind woman, he thought.
Nick smiled. “Thank you.”
“Well, she’s been asking for you and I’m sure you’re anxious to see her, so go on in. Her room is the next one down the hall on the left. Just be aware that she may be drowsy and she will need her rest so please don’t stay too long.”
“How long will she need to stay here?” Nick asked.
“As long as her bleeding subsides and she starts eating and drinking normally, we can release her. I suspect we will be keeping her overnight though.”
Nick nodded and walked down the hall to Carly’s room. He paused at the entrance, took a big breath and then pulled the curtain away from the door’s entrance and stepped into the room, not knowing what to expect. All he really wanted was for her to be alright, but he knew she must be devastated.
She was lying in the hospital bed in a gown, hooked up to an IV, looking so fragile and forlorn. Her hair was a beautiful mess against the pillow and her face was puffy and blotchy red from obvious crying. Nick’s eyes followed the IV tube down to her hand; the needle was inserted into the vein in her right hand. It killed him to see her this way. She was lying on her back, her eyes blinking, looking like she was trying to fight the imminent onset of sleep. She turned at the sound of Nick’s entrance and immediately sat up.
“Nick, thank God, you’re here! I’ve been trying to stay awake until you got here!” Her entire face lit up.
“No, Carly, don’t… I don’t want you to hurt yourself. Sit back.” Nick said and rushed to her side. “Oh, baby, I’m so sorry.” He said, enfolding her in his arms and cradling her to his chest gingerly, trying not to physically hurt her. It felt so good to hold her again and especially to comfort her in her time of need. He was glad he could be there for her. He didn’t want to think about this occurring while he was in Tennessee; it would have crushed him to not be by her side.
“You know, don’t you?” Carly sobbed and Nick nodded, shedding tears of his own. He smoothed down her hair in a gesture of love and affection, holding onto her; never wanting to let her go. This could have been their baby… the thought of it choked him up and he had to mentally calm himself down. This really sucked. After a few minutes, Nick finally found the strength to pull away. He turned his head so he could wipe his tears away without her seeing him. Real men don’t cry do they?
“Sweetie, it’s okay to cry. I should know—I’ve done enough of it for the past few hours to know!” She laughed through her tears.
Nick turned around, smiled at her and then kissed her cheek.
“Baby, how, what… what can I do?” He stumbled over his words. This situation was all very new to him; he didn’t know quite what to do or to say.
Carly wiped her own tears away, touched at his concern. “I’m just glad you are here. I feel so much better now. I felt so alone before…” Her voice broke off, tears threatening to spill over again. God, ever since this happened she felt like she had sprung a leak in her face and she needed a dam to stop the constant overflow of tears.
“Oh, God, Carly. I’m so sorry, baby. About everything! But I’m here now and I want to help you if I can.” Nick felt so helpless.
Carly smiled through her tears. “Just pray for me. I’m having a really rough time of this. I know you must have a ton of questions for me and I will answer them later, but right now, I just need you to hold me and tell me everything is going to be okay.”
Nick laid down beside her on the bed, cradled her in his arms and held her until she drifted off to sleep. He found himself falling off into dreamland as well…
A couple of hours later, a nurse woke the sleeping couple so she could take Carly’s blood pressure. Nick stood up to use the restroom and splash water on his face. He looked at his reflection in the mirror. Damn, he looked like trash. The emotional situation had taken a toll on his face and entire body it seemed. He wiped the excess water from his face down with a towel and then walked back into the room. He then went to the sink and got a glass of water. Downing the water, he glanced at his watch. Shit, it was 11 o’clock already. He had to call Brian back.
Once the nurse left, Nick said to Carly, “How are you feeling?”
“A little better, thanks.”
“Do you think you want to stay overnight?”
Carly nodded. “Yeah. I think I need to. I don’t have the strength to go home.”
“Well, I’m going to call Brian and tell him that I won’t be able to make the flight in the morning. I’ll try to fly out later tomorrow or something.”
Just as he pulled his phone out of his pocket, Carly said, “No, Nick, you need to go. This is important; this is your career. I can call my mom and she can come over. You really need to go home and get some sleep so you can make your flight.”
Nick looked at her, surprised. There was no way he was going to leave her. He shook his head.
“Carly, no. I’m staying with you.”
“No, you’re not. I’m better; I’ll be fine. All I’m going to do tonight is sleep and then I’m checking out in the morning. I’ll call my mom, she can come pick me up and I’ll stay with her. Please, don’t miss your recording session. I would feel horrible if you did.”
Nick put down his phone. What a wonderful, selfless act on her part. He knew he loved her before, but he was looking at her with new eyes; eyes that made his heart fill up with more love than he could have ever imagined he would feel for this woman. She was putting his needs above her own; he was sure that deep down she wanted him there and he wanted to be there with her, but he was torn because he had also been excited to go to Nashville with the guys to work with Dan. It would put them behind schedule if he weren’t there tomorrow, but he also knew they would all understand and the schedule could be rearranged to accommodate his absence.
Nick walked over to Carly’s bed and sat down next to her. He brushed her hair away from her face and smiled down at her with eyes of love.
“I love you very much, do you know that?”
Carly managed to smile. “You better.”
Nick laughed at her attempt at humor.
“I love you, too. More than you know.” She said, thinking of his baby she had just lost. Their lips met in a tender kiss; it wasn’t their most passionate one, but it was their sweetest one.
“Now, go. I’m going back to sleep anyway. These drugs are awesome.” She pushed at his arm.
Nick hesitated. What was the right thing to do? He was still torn.
“Well, at least let me call Brian and see what’s going on.” He said and grabbed his phone. Nick walked towards the front of the room so as to not disturb Carly and dialed Brian’s number.
“Hey, Bri. Sorry it took me so long to call you back.”
“No problem. What’s the word?”
“She’s going to okay.”
“Thank God. What happened?”
Nick hesitated and then said softly, “She had a miscarriage.”
Brian was quiet for a minute. No doubt taking it all in, wondering who the father really was, Nick thought.
“I’m sorry, man. Please tell her she’s in our prayers.”
“I will. Hey, Bri, she wants me to get on the flight tomorrow morning and go to Nashville, but I feel like I need to stay with her. I don’t know what to do, man. What do you think?”
“Nicky, just follow your heart, brother. Me, AJ and Howie will understand whatever you decide. No pressure whatsoever. You do what you and Carly need to do. We love you guys and we’re here for you. Just call me back either way.”
“I will. Thanks!” What a great friend he was. What great friends they all were; including Kevin.
Nick hung up his phone and walked back towards Carly’s bed. She was sleeping peacefully. He watched her chest move up and down as she breathed in and out and marveled at how beautiful she looked. And then suddenly there was no more confusion as to what he should do; he knew what he had to do.
Chapter 13
