I jumped awake, trying to brush the bees off of me. There was one on my left side I couldn’t get to stop stinging, no matter what. To make it worse, something had my left arm pinned across my chest so I couldn’t use it.
“Shhhhh, darling,” Nikki took my right hand.
“The bees, you will get stung.”
“There aren’t any bees. It’s ok, I’m here. Breathe.”
I tried to take a deep breath, but my chest hurt to move it. “No.”
“Ok, that was a bad idea. I should have paid more attention in anatomy.”
I finally calmed down enough to look around. I remembered. The hospital, the surgery. “I was thinking about bees . . .” I tried to explain.
“I figured that out. Hey, maybe your next album could be all bee sides.”
I started to laugh but it hurt too much. My left arm was bandaged and pinned to my chest with a sling. I looked down at my right arm. It really did look and feel like I had been stung by bees.
“You had an allergic reaction to the antibiotic they gave you. They were able to get it under control, and finish the surgery, but the doctor said you will have hives for a few days. Here, the nurse left some cream for me to put on in case they started itching.”
“I didn’t realize I was allergic to anything.”
“Well, you are now. He said that allergies sometimes develop as a result of a stressful situation. And that was the same antibiotic they used when you had your emergency surgery.” Her cool hands felt good on my arm. She would have been a good nurse.
“Well, that was stressful.”
“You’re telling me. But it’s all over now. Dr. Grimsley said you should be in the clear. All you have to do now is rest.”
“Rest sounds like a good idea, actually,” I said, closing my eyes and sinking into the pillow.
Bees, wasps, gnats. Every time I closed my eyes I dreamed about buzzing, stinging things. The sounds of the machines and the nurses that wouldn’t stop poking me all blended into my dreams as I faded in and out of sleep the rest of the day. “Antibiotic, Benadryl, fever reducer,” I heard the words, but nothing registered. I remembered throwing blankets off, then struggling to pull them back up when I got cold.
“Ok, take off the bandages, I want to see the incision site. He shouldn’t have a fever 24 hours post,” I heard Dr. Grimsley. I fought to open my eyes, this seemed important. I wanted to know what is going on.
“What’s wrong?” I managed. My mouth was cotton and my voice was hoarse.
“You have a fever and it isn’t responding to antibiotics. I want to make sure that you haven’t developed an infection. We can give you a sedative, I’m going to have to do a lot of poking around the surgery site and it won’t feel good.”
If getting a needle jammed into your muscle was a “little pinch” in doctor speak, I wondered what level “won’t feel good” was.
“No,” I said. “I’m just now starting to get a clear head.”
“Alright. But if you change your mind, let us know. The pain medicine should help some, anyway.”
I nodded. I looked around for Nikki, but I didn’t see her.
“Sheryl, my head nurse, convinced your wife to go to the hotel room and get some sleep about an hour ago. But until then, she hasn’t left your side.”
“Thank you,” I said. “She needs it.”
“Ok, we are going to start now. Try to lie very still.”
I felt my skin pull when they took off the bandage, and I could see the red scar from the corner of my eye.
I wanted to ask questions, but I couldn’t get my breath when he started pressing on the area.
He stopped at a place on the far left side of my chest and pressed down. My back arched with the pain. I didn’t mean to; I was trying to cooperate.
“Ok, I’m stopping,” he said. “I’m sorry that hurt. You have some fluid pooling here. That’s probably what’s causing your fever. Your body is trying to fight it, but there isn’t anywhere for the fluid to naturally drain. 16 gauge and lidocaine, Sheryl.”
16 gauge what?
“I’m going to offer you that sedative one more time,” he said. He held up a huge syringe. “This is about to go very deep into your side. The same place I just pressed. Nobody will think less of you for sleeping through it.
“I’m already in pain. I don’t want to sleep another day away.”
“And there is no reason for you to be in more,” Nikki said.
“I thought you were resting.”
“I had a feeling you needed me. Looks like I was right,” she scanned all the activity in the room, then took my hand. “You are burning up. I bet your temperature is 102.”
“101.7. Women have built in thermometers, I believe,” the doctor said.
“We also have built in common sense,” she looked at me.
I sighed, “If it will make you happy,” I said.
“I think that’s a good answer,” he nodded at Sheryl, and she immediately pushed something through my IV.
Nikki pulled a chair over by the bed and took my hand. “How bad is it?” She asked the doctor.
“I think it will be ok after I pull out the fluid, but we will check his temp every half hour and make sure. I’m trying to avoid a drain since you have to travel back to Tulsa, but I may have to.”
“And he won’t feel anything?”
“Between the sedative, and the pain medicine, I’d be surprised if he does. He may be in come pain when he comes to. It’s a very mild sedative, so it should only be about an hour. I’m going to numb the local area just to be sure.” I felt him rub something cold on my side.
I could feel my body trying to fight the sedative. I wasn’t doing it on purpose, but I guess my brain always had the tendency to want to stay aware.
“I need to you try to relax,” he told me. “Can you feel this?”
“Feel what?”
“Good. Sheryl,” he held out his hand.
I never went completely to sleep. I saw everything he was doing, but I didn’t feel anything.
Ok. I didn’t feel much.
Ok. It hurt like hell when he stuck the needle in. And the four times after that.
“Ah, there is is,” he said.
“What is?” Nikki asked.
“The root of the infection”
He pressed on my side, and stopped about the time I almost couldn’t hold back the scream anymore.
“I’ve got it all, but just to be sure, we are going to push an antibiotic right here. With the broad spectrum antibiotics we have him on, I expect the fever to break in about four hours.”
Go to sleep, I tried to tell myself when I saw them getting the injection ready. If stressful situations cause allergies, I was going to develop an allergy to needles after this.
I looked at Nikki, hoping she didn’t think I was weak. I was trying so hard to be strong.
She bent down and whispered “Go to sleep now, I’ll be here when you wake up.”
It was like my brain was waiting on her permission to turn off. This time there were no bees, only my beautiful, perfect wife.