We Make Them Go Ooh-Rah

Chapter 44: It Hurts Trust Me

I was sitting Laughing at a drunken Kirsty. Megs, Amber, and Miranda came on a flight from Wisconsin for the party. I invited Alex to come too and it was a blast. The five of them were drunk and giggling. I could not help but laugh at them. They were singing at each other and laughing as Kirsty fell down.

“Kirsty maybe you had enough to drink.” I said standing up taking the beer away from her.

“You’re probably right.” She hiccupped. I watched shaking my head as she stumbled into her and Jesse’s room. I looked at the others and burst out laughing. Megs was looking at her hands in awe as Amber was fighting to stay awake, as Mir just pasted out on the table. Alex was giggling like a mad man as Megs hit her elbow on the table.

“Okay the rest of you go to bed.” I waved them off laughing as the stumbled to get to the rooms. I sat down on a chair in the kitchen and looked at a passed out Mir. She was snoring on the table drooling. I looked at me then at the picture on the table. It was of me and Grandpa when I was little. In the background you could see Dad with…..her. They were hugging. I felt the tears start to roll down my face as I looked at that. I felt my fingers curl in fist around the glass making it crack and shatter. I couldn’t feel the pain, not at all. I felt the tears dry up till all that was left was anger. My fist clenched tighter till I felt hands prying them apart.

“Grace stop your hurting you self.” Grammy yelled prying my hands from the wooden frame. I couldn’t get it off my mind to listen. She looked so happy. Happy as could be. If I only knew that she would leave us soon after I would have….. I don’t know what I would have done. My hands were white, well other that the blood that was soaking into the picture and the frame. “Grace please, tomorrow is your wedding, please stop hurting yourself.” Grammy begged. I shook my head not able to answer till the front door opened and Poppy came in.

“Grace Roberts, you let go of that picture right now or I swear.” He threatened trying to unhook my painfully tight grip. He sighed and picked me up right out of the chair and started to carry me.  He was only is late fifties and was still built like a marine. He was a recruiter now; Connor went to him when we enlisted. When he stepped out of the house the cold air hit me, knocking me out of my trance. I dropped the frame making it brake in two.

“Poppy?” I asked in a shaky voice. He looked at me with sadness in his eyes.

“Hey you’re back to this world.” He smiled kissing my head. I looked at the red frame then back at him.

“My hands hurt.” I said in a weak voice laying my head on his shoulder.

“Well then you shouldn’t have done that Baby. Let me see them.”  He said sitting me on the back of his pickup truck. He pulled my bloody hands and turned them over to show the pieces of glass stuck in them as the blood dripped on to my jeans. “Baby what have you done?” He groaned looking at them before wrapping them in two bandanas. He picked me back up and sat me in the car.

“Where we going Poppy?” I asked as we started to drive to town. He looked over at me.

“I’m taking you to the hospital. You’re going to need stitches for those.” He said pulling into the small E.R. I stayed quiet as Poppy picked me up. He brought me in as a doctor was walking by the empty waiting room. “Doc?” He asked causing the man to turn and look at him.

“Thomas?” He asked walking over to him and laying a gentle hand on my back.

“Can you look at her hands? They’re pretty cut up.”

“Sure bring her to a room choose any.” He said grabbing the registration papers. Poppy sat me on the bed and slowly un-wrapped my hands as not to put too much pain on me. The cloth slipped causing one of the bigger pieces to come out and start to bleed dripping down to the floor.

“Okay let me see sweetheart.” He said. He looked to be in his late forties, early fifties. He sat on the rolling chair and rolled over. He moved my hands with my wrist as to not touch the gashes that were still bleeding. “Okay let me get what I need while the nurse gives you something to numb the pain, okay sweetie?” 

“Okay.” I said swallowing a sob from the pain. Poppy sat next to my and rubbed my thigh in comfort.

“It’s okay Baby.” He kissed my head. I nodded.

“I know.” I smiled weakly leaning into him as a nurse came in with a bottle of medication and a shot. The doctor walked back in with one of those rolling medal tables with everything he needed on it.  I already had the shots so the pain wasn’t too bad, but it still hurt a little.

“Okay let’s get this started.”  He sat down and slowly started to pick out all the little pieces of the now red glass. It was getting pretty late by the time he got the last piece out. “Now that is a lot of glass.” He said looking at the tin full of pieces from both hands.

“It hurts trust me.” I said watching as he started to look at the small gashes. “You know this sucks. I’m getting married,” I looked at Poppy’s watch, “in about 9 hours and now my hands need stitches.” I groaned.

“That sounds it. Now I don’t see anything that would need surgery so I’m going to stick these up, put some antibiotic cream on it and wrap you so you can go home.” He said as he called the nurse back. He got a new needle and shot me with more numbing meds.

“Will she have to do anything special since she got hurt?” He asked. The doc shook his head as he worked.

“No not really, all she really has to do is change the bandages and not pull any stitches out. Don’t lift heavy things. That’s about it.” He said wrapping my hands up. I was fighting to stay awake. “You can go now. But take this and take them twice a day so you don’t get sick with something. Just to be safe.” Poppy nodded taking the prescription for antibiotics. We walked out of the room to the exit when I heard it.

“Grace?” The painfully familiar voice called. I turned to look at where it came from.

“Mother.”