Model Of Love

Where's My Wife?

Brantley slowly came to, his eyes felt so heavy and he smelled disinfectant. A burst of memory  gave him adrenaline enough to break through the haze. He sat straight up, grabbing his head at the pain but he stayed upright. He seemed to have scared the nurse next to him near to death. He tried to get up, he had to find Lila Jane.

He then realized they had cuffed him to the bed. His anger level went sky high. "What the fuck is this? Where is my wife?! Someone unlock me from these fucking things!" He yelled seeming to shake the walls. "PJ! Where is she?" He yelled.

His head of security came through the door. "PJ! Get these things off me! Get me to Lila!" He begged his friend. "Boss! Boss, you gotta calm down." He said in near tears at the state of him. His words seemed to finally register in Brantley's mind.  He sat up as much as the cuffs would let him. "PJ, where is she? Is she ok?" He asked slightly calmer.

"They won't tell me anything because I'm not family." "Well they're damn sure gonna tell me." He growled. The nurse he had scared off must of gotten a doctor because one quickly walked into his room. "Mr. Gilbert? The woman that came in from the fair grounds, that's you're wife Lila Jane Gilbert, correct?" "You know something about my wife?! Where is she? Is she ok?!" He asked panicked.

"Mr. Gilbert, you're wife is in stable but critical condition. Her blood sugar when they brought her in was near 400." "What the hell does that mean?!" He asked trying to understand. "Well, normal for someone her age would be around 100 - 120. We've been able to bring it under the danger level of 240, but we're having trouble getting it lower." Brantley badly wanted to break, but he had to be strong for her.

He couldn't help but think this was his penance for what he had put them through when he wrecked his bike drunk as hell. But Lila Jane was an angel, he knew she must have a special place in Gods heart. He had to believe that with all his heart and know that she was in his safe hands. "Can you unlock me?" He said calmer still.

"Of course, you swung on a doctor in your distress so this was policy. I think we can make an exception considering the circumstances." He waved in a security guard that was outside the door and dismissed them after he was free. "So what now, doc? Can I see her?" He asked tuning a hand down his face in stress.

"Mr. Gilbert, there's something I want to speak to you about before we take you to your wife." He looked towards PJ. "May I speak freely?" He asked. "PJ is family, he's the one that got her here safely. He stays." "Ok, we've diagnosed you're wife with Adult-onset Type 1 diabetes." Brantley was glad he was sitting down because his legs felt weak.

"What does that mean?" He said. He knew the words, but what did that mean for his baby girl. "It means her pancreas has almost completely stopped producing insulin. Insulin is what breaks down sugar and allows our bodies to process it." "So, so this isn't fixable?" He asked his mind going a million ways at once.

"Not as such no, we don't have a cure for this. But we do have amazing options to keep it under control." He explained. "Have you told her yet?" He asked quietly. "No, she's only just woken up and we thought it best to have you there." He nodded grateful for their thoughtfulness.

Brantley looked at the doctor. "What is it you aren't telling me?" He asked in a serious tone. The doctor sighed. "Mr. Gilbert, I was going to wait, but there is a treatment that I would normally recommend in cases like this." "Well? What is it? Money is no problem! Whatever is the best is what she'll get." "It isn't the money,sir. I'm talking about an insulin pump. It would be much easier for her to keep track of her insulin on the road and she wouldn't have to give herself shots daily."

"She doesn't like shots." Brantley said numbly. The doctor must have sensed his overwhelming thoughts. "Well I have a patient that I know is waiting impatiently for you. Follow me, Mr. Gilbert." Brantley quickly stood and followed the doctor. "Call my mom and brother. Make sure Caroline knows first so she can help the others. I'll deal with the tour shit." He said to PJ before he walked with the doctor to the elevator.

He was nervous to see his wife as the elevator stopped on the 4th floor. It was much quieter on ICU, the doors were glass and he could see nurses monitoring all the vitals on the floor. He wondered which set were his wife's. The doctor stopped outside a room and knocked. "I have a visitor for you, Mrs. Gilbert." "I don't want any fucking visitors! I want my husband! He's a big son of a bitch you shouldn't have trouble finding him!"

A weight lifted off his chest. That was his baby girl. Giving everyone hell even from a hospital bed. "I'm gonna tell momma what you said, Lila Jane. Gonna get your mouth washed out." He said pushing past the doctor and going to his wife. "Brantley!" She cries seeing her husband for the first time in this horrible place.

"What did you get yourself into this time, Lila Jane?" He asked kissing her rings and pushing her hair back from her face. "I don't know. I just woke up, you weren't here and no one would answer me." She cried. "I'm sorry, baby girl. I would have been here sooner, but I kind of swung on a doctor. They handcuffed me to a bed."

The small smile that gave her made it worth the trouble. "What's wrong with me, Brantley?" She asked quietly. He didn't wait for the doctor, they could go over the details later. This was something he needed to tell her himself. "Babe, you know how you've been so tired, and you're head has been hurting?" She nodded not seeing where this was going.

"Babe, I want you to remember that we're a team. That what happens over the next few days we will go through together. Now, I don't have all the facts but they're saying it's diabetes." He said laying it out. She was silent for a few moments looking him in the eyes.

She sniffled and seemed to make a decision. "Ok, what do we do next?"