Page 49 of Mercy
“Liam.”
Then Ivy stirs, so he ignores me, rightfully so.
“Hi!” I say with a fake smile pasted onto my face.
“I don’t like surgery,” she whispers.
I push the hair out of her face, “I know. I don’t like it either.”
“Did I go to the bottom again?”
“No, sweetheart, you did really well.”
“Why does Dr. L look sad?”
He walks to the other side of her bed, “I’m just tired, it’s been a long day.”
“Do Mommy’s come to the hospital when their kids have surgery?”
Liam sighs, “Most of the time, yes.”
“Is she coming back?”
“We don’t know, sweet girl,” Liam says with a clenched jaw.
A tear rolls down her cheek, “I know I’m going to die, it’s okay. I hope you remember me.”
“Ivy, I need you to stay positive. You’re not going to die. Remember, the mind and body are closely connected, positivity is so important. But I can assure you, I could never forget you,” he says.
She looks to me to answer the same question, and I’m fighting back tears so hard, I feel like I might explode.
“Ivy, honey you’re not going to die because you aren’t allowed to. I need you here, okay? For me, will you try to stay positive? And yes, I will never forget you when you get better and go home. I will still think about you every single day.”
We sit with her for a while, but we are both so exhausted.
“We’re going to go because we are so tired. But I’ll be back early tomorrow morning to see you. And Mercy will be in a little later, okay?”
She nods, “I’m tired too.”
“I’m leaving my tablet for you, I trust you’ll stick to Disney,” I say with a serious expression.
“I’ll behave, I promise.”
“Good girl,” I smile at her.
Liam clears his throat. I know exactly where his mind just went.
“See you tomorrow, Ivy.”
I turn on Frozen on the tablet for her as I realize I don’t need to worry about her watching something she shouldn’t be, “You’ve got two bad arms now. So, you ask the nurses to put something on for you if you need it changed, okay?”
On our way out, after we rid ourselves of our PPE gear, Liam tells the nurses to check on her every hour and to help her with the tablet if she needs it.
“Dr. Scanlon, will be in tomorrow. She is sorry that she couldn’t make it today. But she ordered different IV antibiotics after reviewing the chart.”
Liam nods, and we walk away.
Walking out to the car, he says, “I’ll take you home.”
