Tears began streaming down my cheeks as I pulled out my cell phone. “Did he say what hospital she was taken to? Oh God, she can’t be dead. She can’t. She can’t…”

Edith said, “It was probably Hinckley Memorial. That’s where the ambulances usually go.” She stood there looking worriedly at me.

I dialed 411 and asked for the hospital’s number. I then waited a few seconds while it connected me.

“Thank you for calling Hinckley Memorial Health System. How may I direct your call?” asked a tired sounding voice on the phone.

I gulped some air trying to regain some composure and asked, “Do you have an Ashley Norris there?”

The tired voice droned, “Just a moment. I’ll check.” Several agonizing seconds before the operator returned saying, “Yes. She’s in the E.D.”

“Is she okay? Is she alive?” I asked in near panic.

“That’s all the information I have, sir,” replied the operator.

Sir? The stress must have knocked my voice back. I let it go and said, “Thank you.”

Brad asked, “Well? What did they say?”

I slid my phone back into my purse, my eyes unfocused, said, “She’s there. They wouldn’t say much else.”

Skip said, “She must not be in a room yet. They would have given you the room number.”

Still not focusing on anything in particular, I said, “I have to go there.” I turned to face Brad and said, “Can you take me?”

Brad nodded and said, “Sure babe, let’s go.”

As I stood up, Edith took hand and hugged me. She said, “She will be in our prayers.”

“She’s in recovery, miss. You can’t see her until she’s been moved to a room,” said the triage nurse in the emergency room. “Are you family?”

I hesitated a second, then lied, “I’m her sister.”

The nurse nodded and said, “The doctor will want to visit with you for a few minutes. No other family is here?”

I shook my head and answered, “No.” I honestly had no idea where Ashley’s parents might be. She never really talked about them other than to say she doesn’t remember her dad and hasn’t seen her mother in a long time.

The nurse said, “Please follow me to the family consultation room.”

We entered the emergency room through a large swinging door. She led us down a corridor past several smaller rooms with a single gurney type bed, monitors and other equipment that I couldn’t identify. Some were empty and none had the curtains closed far enough. In one there was an old man moaning and fidgeting. In another, lay a little girl unconscious with her mother next to her crying. The nurse finally opened what looked like an office door and directed Brad and I inside and then left.

Brad looked at me funny and asked, “Why did you lie about being her sister?”

“Because I wanted to find out what is going on,” I said.

We sat in silence for several minutes.

A doctor walked in unannounced while looking at a sheaf of papers in his hands. He looked up and said, “Hello. I’m Dr. Mathis, Ashley’s surgeon. I’m not sure if you know the details. Ashley suffered from ballistic trauma from a single .22 caliber gun shot to her chest. Ashley is a very lucky young woman. She was lucky the bullet was small caliber. The bullet did not strike any bones, passing through her right lung and lodging a few inches from her spine. Right now she’s in very serious condition, but unless complications arise, I expect her to make a full recovery.”

“Thank you so much, Doctor,” I said through tears.

Dr. Mathis nodded and started to turn towards the door. He said, “She’s still in recovery for now, but when she’s taken to a room, you’ll be able to visit her.” Without another word, he left the room.

I double-checked the card on the wall next to the open door to make sure it was Ash’s room. I expected her to be in an ICU ward, with respirators and other machines attached to her. But the nurse said she was breathing on her own. She didn’t have a collapsed lung or anything like that. I told Brad to go back home and be with his family, that I’d be okay. I told him I’d call him when I was ready to leave.

I took a deep breath and not even trying to fight back the tears, I walked slowly into her room, afraid of what I’d see.

There was Ashley, lying on her back, attached to a bag of glucose and an infuser pumping God knows what into the hep-lock on her hand. Her hair stuck up comically. I’m sure she’d hate the hospital gown she was wearing. Her eyes were closed as I approached.

“Oh, Ash!” I sighed, letting myself cry. “I hate seeing you like this.”

“Meh…you should try feeling me like this,” whispered Ashley, her voice sounding dry.

“Oh my God, Ashley!” I yelped. “You’re awake. How do you feel?”

Ashley opened one eye slightly to look at me as she said, “Like I’ve been shot.”

“I’d hug you, but I don’t want to get all tangled in your hoses and stuff,” I said.

Ashley opened both eyes slightly and looked around the room. I’m not sure if she was actually focusing on anything. She said, “Yeah. Reminds me of a party I went to once…” Her voice drifted off and I think she fell asleep. I just stood there and watched her for a few minutes, afraid something might happen.

One eye opened again and looked at me. Ash whispers, “You’re still here?”

I smiled at her and said, “I just want to make sure you’re okay. Do you remember what happened?”

She closed her eyes and winced and with her eyes still closed she said, “Yeah. Sorta.” She looked back at me and frowned. “Stupid convenience store.”

I sucked in my breath and she said, “No, you goof-ball. I wasn’t robbing it. We ran out of beer at the party I was at, so I went to get some more. Good timing, huh? I walked in as they were being robbed. The robber recognized me, panicked and shot me and ran away without making sure I was dead.” Telling the events seemed to tire her out as she drifted back off to sleep.

A few minutes later she woke up, but didn’t say anything more about her adventure. I asked, “He recognized you? Who was he?”

Not opening her eyes, she said, “No one you know. A guy I dated in high school.”

“Really?” I asked sounding more shocked than I should have.

She glared at me with one eye and said, “Yes. Just like you, Alex, I tried to live up to someone else’s expectations.”

She just laid there, her breathing sounding labored. Something caught her attention as she looked past me towards the door. She tried to roll over, but couldn’t. With a croaking voice, she said, “Mom?”

I turned to see a tallish woman, with long disheveled dark brown hair with gray streaks, wearing a tank top and very obviously no bra and tight jeans with holes at the knees. Her arms were covered in tattoos and she had a nose and eyebrow piercing. She rushed past me as if I wasn’t standing there.

“My baby!” she cried as she stepped beside Ashley. “Oh my God, Ashley! I got here as fast as I could. Are you hurt bad, honey?”

Ashley nodded and smiled at her mother. She said, “It’s not too bad, Mom. I mean, it’s not like it’s the first time I’ve been shot.”

“It’s never a good thing,” said Ash’s mom matter-of-factly. “It’s been so long since I’ve seen you, baby. And now to see you like this…” Her tears cut off her words.

“It’s okay, Mom,” said Ashley. “I’ll be okay, I promise. I’m just happy to see you!” Ash then coughed, then howled in pain.

Both Ash’s mom and I said, “Take it easy!”

Two nurses came rushing into the room and said, “Would you mind waiting back out in the lobby? We’ll call you when she’s stabilized.”

We both started to leave when Ashley said, “Oh…Mom, meet Alex. Alex mee….aahhhh!”

One nurse spoke into a device attached to her lapel that I had thought was a pager and said, “We need Dr. Mathis in room 710A, stat!”

After we entered the lobby, I stood by the window and looked down at the ground seven floors below. It was night time now and the view of the city’s lights was spectacular. Well, as spectacular as anything gets in this town.

Ashley’s mom leaned against the wall next to me and said, “Alex is it?”

I said, “Yes. Alex Hughes.” I held out a wimpy girlish handshake, but her mom gripped my hand firmly.

“Margaret Norris. How do you know Ashley?”

“She’s my roommate,” I said. I saw her raise an eyebrow and quickly added, “At the university’s dorm.”

She smiled at me and said, “Well, you must be a good friend or you wouldn’t be here.”

“She is my BFF,” I said.

“I’m glad she has a good friend like you,” said Ash’s mother.

I smiled weakly and said, “Well, she has lots of friends. She was with some this afternoon.”

Margaret smiled at me again and said, “I don’t see any of them here.”

Margaret came out of Ashley’s room and said, “They just gave her something to make her sleep. But she wants to see you before she falls asleep.”

A nurse leaves the room, and then I walk in slowly. I really hated seeing her in that hospital bed. It was so unlike her. She’s so full of life. I walked beside her bed and said, “Hey, Ash.”

She looked up at me with sleepy eyes. “Hey girlie-girl. Thanks for coming here to check on me.”

“I’m just glad you weren’t hurt worse. And, thanks for waiting until after dinner to get shot,” I said with a smirk.

“Oww. Don’t make me laugh. Seriously.”

“I’m sorry!” I said, suddenly alarmed.

She winced again slightly and said, “It’s okay.” She closed her eyes, the medication taking effect.

“Good night, Ash,” I said in a hushed tone. “Just get better, okay?”

Her eyes still closed, she smiled slightly. I started to turn away, and she said in almost a whisper, “Alex?”

I leaned in close to hear her, saying, “Yes?”

Very softly, she breathed, “I love you…” and fell asleep.