ANGST

 

"What happened?" Brian managed to croak out. "Where...?"

 

His mother looked at his father. She had been crying, Brian noted vaguely. His father had too.  What was going on?   Brian looked at his father.

 

"Brian. You were in an accident. You've been in surgery."

 

Brian looked around the room, finally noticing the sterile surroundings. He searched his memory, trying to pull out where he had been, what he had been doing.

 

"Brian. A delivery truck went through a stop light. It hit your car. You were hit hard."

 

Brian looked down at his left arm, then towards his right. He stared for a moment, then his eyes moved up to his father. "Dad. What are my injuries? My arm? Was I with......Oh, god. Who else was with me?"

 

"Brian. You need to relax. The doctors want you to...."

 

"Dad? Moms? I can see what's left of my arm. Who else was there?" Brian started to writhe in the bed, tried to push himself up in the bed.

 

Moms turned and looked at her son, tears flowing down. She grabbed her husband's hand as she sat on Brian's left side and held his hand. "Sweetheart. Honey and Trixie were with you. You were going to pick up Jim..." She stopped and put her head into her husband's shoulder, releasing Brian's hand.

 

Memories began to come back. The girls picking him up from his shift at the hospital. Plans for the move back to Sleepyside. He had sat behind his sister, telling her it was okay, he'd take the back and let Honey keep driving. "Dad? Trix? Honey?" He couldn't remember the accident. He was straining but nothing was coming to him.

 

His dad choked up. "Trixie's in a coma. There are complications. You were telling bystanders what to do to help her. Honey's down the hall. She told us..."

 

Brian gasped. "Dad. Did they know she was pregnant?"

 

His dad nodded slowly. "Brian. I'm so sorry. She lost the baby."

 

Moms ran out of the room. The buzzing of equipment was now the only sound besides their breathing.

 

"Dad. Trixie..?"

 

"They are still optimistic. Brian..." His dad moved to the seat his mother had vacated. "I need to tell you about you." Brian closed his eyes.

 

"Dad. I can see my arm is messed up. Probably loads of surgeries in store to get it fixed up." His dad shook his head. "Brian. You lost the arm below the elbow." He gripped Brian's hand harder. "Oh, I wish I could fix this for you." Brian struggled to sit up, but his dad held him down. "Brian, you lost your right leg also."