Worrying Doorsteps (aka Bike) Part 587 by Angharad

Trish helped me prepare the lunch, calling Simon when I couldn’t reach things from top cupboards and so on. I wore the sling to help support my arm, and wondered how people who really break these bones cope. Mine was only a hairline fracture, which was why I didn’t feel it crack, but it still hurts like mad and I’ve had to bite my tongue once or twice while Trish has been about.

She made a loaf under my supervision and helped me do some soup, actually, to be perfectly honest, she made the soup, I just told her what to do. She was really enjoying herself.

After lunch, we decided Tom would take me to visit Stella, Puddin’ and Henry; while Simon would look after the girls and the dog. I think he was planing to take her for a walk and feed the ducks, which the kids enjoy, although he’ll have to buy a loaf, the stuff I make rarely lasts long enough to go stale.

So it was we tracked Stella down to a ward up on the top floor. The views were very interesting apart from the bars on the windows. Stella was in a side room of her own. She was lying in bed in a darkened room, she seemed very depressed, although the medication can do horrible things to people.

She wasn’t really with it, so we didn’t stay very long. I felt so sad for her and after kissing her, told her I’d come and see her again and we’d get her home as soon as we could. She smiled then drifted back to sleep. I spoke with the ward sister, who suggested from her apparent pattern of highs and lows, she could be suffering from bi-polar disorder, made worse by the pregnancy and subsequent birth.

I told the sister to make sure she let us know what we needed to do to help her recover, and we’d do it. She promised to do just that. I also reminded her that Stella had been expressing milk for her baby, and she shook her head. “I don’t think that’s going to be possible for a few days, not with the drugs she’s taking.”

“So what is the baby going to do?”

“Oh they have a bank of donors who give milk for newborns, don’t worry, she won’t go hungry.”

That made me feel a little better, but I was still concerned for our newest arrival, she was going to be vulnerable for a while yet. We made our way to see the baby, it was Tom’s first visit and he was shocked by all the wires and tubes.

“She’s doing quite well, you know. She’s a bit bigger than she was and she has a bit more colour.”

“Goodness, puir wee soul,” he said, “she looks like a wee chicken, all plucked and ready for the oven.”

“No she doesn’t, she’s beautiful, aren’t you, little Desi?” I touched her through the glove inserts into the incubator, and she smiled and cooed. I stood there for several minutes with her grasping my finger and trying to suckle on it. When I mentioned this to the nurse on duty, she brought a bottle for me to give her. I so enjoyed it, even though she’s a slow feeder, she takes a couple of sucks and goes to sleep, I enjoyed feeding her. She sighed and yawned and I rubbed her little tummy and forehead. She smiled and opened her eyes, looking at me for a few seconds before she drifted off to sleep again.

The nurses were quite pleased with her and to my delight, Dr Rose popped in while I was there. “Hello, Cathy, this is a pleasant surprise. What are you doing here?”

“Came to see Stella’s baby, and have just given her a bottle.”

“Ah, hence the dreamy look?”

“Oh, is it that obvious?”

“Professor,” he said shaking hands with Tom.

“What are you doing here, Sam? I thought your domain was after they left here?”

“Normally yes, but I got asked to have a look at someone. If they get stuck, they bring me in to kill or cure.” He smiled and I knew that he would never harm a fly, let alone a baby. “What have you done to yourself?”

“Tweaked a collar bone.”

“Didn’t fall off your bike did you?”

“Not quite no.”

“It’s a common injury amongst cyclists.”

“So I believe.”

“Well it’s nice seeing you, how are your charges?”

“They were fine when we came out, so I hope the status quo remains. Simon is in charge this afternoon, and they wrap him around their fingers–and he loves it.”

“Well, I don’t think either of them had much contact with male parental figures, so it’s probably good for them.”

“He hadn’t had much contact with children, so it’s good for him too. They all three seem to bond so well together, it’s really good.”

“I’m glad, the girls seem to love you so much, so you must be doing something right. Eh, Professor?”

“Please, call me, Tom. I think I have the best deal. I get to see two adorable grandchildren, read them bedtime stories and Cathy and Simon do all the work.”

“Sounds good to me,” said Sam, giving us a warm smile. “I’d best go and offer my genius to this young ‘un. Nice to see you both.” He went off to the nurse who’d been standing patiently waiting for us to finish, we went off to see Henry, with a lovely warm feeling I get every time I meet Sam. He exudes a sort of loving energy, no wonder his patients love him.

“How is Stella?”

“They think she could be bi-polar?”

“Is that like manic-depression?” he asked.

“I think it’s the same thing,” I answered.

“Hello, Tom, good to see you again.” They shook hands and sat chatting while I changed his pyjamas taking away the dirties and leaving him some clean ones.

“Oh thanks, Cathy, Monica should be doing that, but you seem to be much more efficient than she is.”

“Probably because I comes from peasant class, me lud.” I dropped a curtsy and Tom sniggered.

“What happened to your arm?” he’d just noticed I was only using one and groaning when I moved the other one.

“She’s broken her clavicle,” said Tom.

“Silly girl, that bloody hurts, I’ve done it twice, once in a race in Erith, came off at the bottom of that bloody hill, the one with the bend on it by the pub.”

“I marshalled near there when the TdF started in London, on the Ashford leg, David Millar was leading it.”

“I watched it on telly, you see more,” said Henry.

“Yeah, it was a bit whoosh, there they go, but it was nice being a part of it.”

“Used to go over to France and watch them do the Pyrenees and so on. Sit on the top of a mountain and watch the world go by, including a couple of hundred cyclists and thousands of nutty Frogs who’d come to watch them. They’re completely potty the French, but they do like their cycling.”

“Simon was going to take me last year, but I was ill so maybe when the girls are a bit older we’ll manage it.”

“Now there’s a thought: I could hire a villa or something and we could all go. Monica could watch the girls while we watch the race and the antics of the crowds.”

“Um, maybe,” I said noncommittally.

“If I came too, I could help with the bairns,” offered Tom.

“We’ll see, I can’t go anywhere like this,” I pointed to my arm in a sling, “and besides we need to see how Stella and her baby are, don’t we?”

“I hope by July, she’ll be okay and so will the little ‘un. I see Scotland lost again, Tom.”

“Aye, England were too strong for them, and the Irish were lucky against Wales. First grand-slam in sixty years, they say.”

I left them talking about the recent rugby matches and went in search of some tea. The nurse said the tea trolley would be through soon and it was quite drinkable. I waited with my tongue almost hanging out, listening to the two older men talking about sport–b-o-r-i-n-g. Finally, the tea trolley arrived and I snaffled two cups for myself as well as one each for Tom and Henry. I was so thirsty, and it was like nectar.