The Gigolo and the Angel Ch. 03

"Oh god what have done?" he asked himself as the door closed behind her leaving him alone in the hospital room. "I haven't called her Krys in years. Not since before..." his voice faded out as the darkness wrapped around him again.

The monitors surrounding him kept close count of his vitals, but he lay there unmoving and unresponsive once again. Angel stood just out of sight of the windows behind the nurses' station. Her eyes were still full of tears, but there was nothing she could do. There was no way that she would force her way back into his hospital room. She was watching him through the window as the doctor walked back up to her. "Angel?" he asked softly.

"Yes."

"Would you come with me please? There are some things we need to talk about something." His words were soft and his eyes kind; her heart sank to the bottom of her shoes.

"Okay, were do you want to talk?" she asked stepping in behind him as he walked away from where she could see the window.

"I was hoping my office would be good with you. There are some really important things we need to go over." Again his words held a comfort that did anything but comfort her.

"I understand. Can you tell me how he's doing?" she asked as they walked.

Before he could answer her he stopped and pushed open the door to a small office. Motioning her to enter before him he smiled. "Please have a seat and relax."

She sat down in the chair opposite his desk, "What do you need to talk to me about?" she asked reaching up and brushing away what she hoped would be the last of her tears for awhile.

She wasn't to be that lucky; his next words ripped her heart out. "We have done as more tests than we wanted to have to do when he came in, and as his next of kin you have the right to know what is going on. At the moment he is in a drug induced coma. We did this in order to let the majority of his wounds heal. However there will be some permanent damage." He paused to let her settle her mind with that before going on.

She took a deep breath. "What kind of permanent damage?"

The doctor closed the file folder in front of him; he had read it enough times to know it by heart. "James will never walk again. He will in fact be lucky to be able to live on his own for a long time. He will never get the use of his legs back. His back was broken in the accident and until we can let him out of the coma we will not know how high the paralysis goes on his body. We do know that when he came in he was complaining that he couldn't feel anything below his chest."

Angel dropped her head in her hands, "Does he know that he will never walk again?" she mumbled from her hands.

"No. We have not told him. There are a few choices that need to be made while he is in the coma, and I am sorry to say that those choices fall to you."

It took all of her strength to lift her head. "What choices do I have to make?"

"Well, first would be how much of the scaring we are going to deal with before he wakes up."

Angel felt her breath catch. "Scaring?"

The doctor sighed, "Yes there will be a good deal of scaring on his legs and lower torso." He put his hand on the file folder in front of him, "If you want I can show you what damage has been done and you can help us determine the best course of action."

"I don't want to make any of these choices. I still don't understand why I am next of kin. All we are is friends." Her eyes remained misted with the unshed tears.

The doctor pushed back from his desk and stood up. He moved gracefully to the other side of the office and picked up a different file folder from the table in front of the glass wall overlooking the park behind the hospital. "That is simple, at least it was for us. However from the look on your face this paperwork might come as something of a shook to you." He smiled, his first actually friendly smile since they had entered the office, as he handed her the folder.

Angel shook her head at him and looked down at the folder she now held in her lap. Her mind going to a secret she had been keeping for a little while. Taking a breath she pushed those thoughts aside for later and read the words on the folder. James Oliver. She looked back up at the doctor with questioning eyes. "What is this?"

"It's his medical power of attorney. He gave you that power awhile ago. From the look on your face am I to assume you didn't know?"

"No I didn't know anything about this." She was about to say more when there was a knock at the office door.

"One moment Angel, I believe this is important." He told her walking over to the door and pulling it only slightly open. "Yes thank you. I am glad that part has been dealt with I will be sure she gets all of this." He pushed the door shut and turned back toward Angel with a large envelope in his hands. "This is James' personal effects. We think you should have them until he is able to go home again." He said simply as he handed it to her.

She held her breath as she opened the envelope, something told her she really didn't want to know what was in it. A moment later she knew she had been right. His wallet, keys and a small box fell out of it as she turned it upside down over her lap. Without thinking she pocketed the box, and ran her fingers over the leather of the wallet. She knew the keys would be for the most part useless as the car had been totaled. "Do I have to make the choices about the scars now or can I wait a bit?" she asked getting back to the main topic of discussion.

"You have some time. We can't do anything until some of the more serious injuries are healed. Until then you need to sit with him and let him know that there is someone out here that cares about him." There was a strange smile in his eyes as he spoke now. Something that made her think he knew something she didn't.

"He told me to get out. How in the world do you think I should go back in there?" she asked the hurt of James' words still cutting into her heart.

"Again that is simple to answer. I know that you care about him, I can see that from just talking to you. As long as he is out of it what would it hurt for you to be there with him?" he asked reaching out and placing a comforting hand on her shoulder.

"As long as you don't think it will cause him any harm."

The doctor turned away and walked over to the window. "No harm will come from you being in the room with him. Just sit there and talk to him. I know he won't answer you, but at least let there be a friendly voice in the darkness."

Angel stood up and gathered herself together. "I will be there for him, but when you let him come out of the coma, I have to do as he asked and now be there."

"That I can understand, but you may change your mind over the next few weeks. I will be in to check on the two of you when I can."

Angel walked out of the office and back down to James' room. Her hands shook as she pushed the door open scared that he would be awake and send her away again. The tears filled her eyes as soon as she saw him lying there as still as death and she knew there was nothing that would keep her out of the room until the doctor told her they would be taking him off the drugs that were keeping him asleep. She settled into the chair by the bed and simply sat there watching his chest rise and fall with the steady rhythm of the machines.