Pheromone follies: Hospital drive.

I got finished dressing pretty quickly.

In clean clothes naturally, while Rachel didn’t appear to be angry with me, the shock of our mom being in the hospital had killed the insane sexual energy between us. When I returned to the hallway 15 minutes later Rachel had redressed, her body now clad in a skinny jeans and tank top combo that made her look slightly older but no less gorgeous, she was showing quite a bit of cleavage and grinned a little at my wandering eyes before getting serious.

“Lets go Mike,” she remarked her lip trembling a little as she joined me.

We took an Uber, it was all we could do, I had no idea where the car was, if we even had a car, if I hadn’t been so distracted I’d realise have that Officer Hunt had probably left us her card to fill us in there, Damn today just kept on getting worse.

We arrived at the hospital, my sister trembling slightly as we entered the emergency room.

We were quite unsure of ourselves. A couple of clueless kids to any outside observer fortunately I do know my way around the hospital.

With Rachel following me like a nervous terrier I quickly got directions from the hospital receptionist and both of us half ran to the ward that we had been sent to. We were ushered into a small room with a one-way window into what appeared to be a preparation area for surgery.

It was a small room with a few beds sparsely placed around the room. In the far bed my mother lay sleeping. she looked like a wreck, my mom is not a weak person to see her trussed up like this, one leg suspended, her face covered in bruises her lips swollen and her jaw wired shut. Around her head and tightly wound set of ribbonlike bandages seem to be tightly wound around the thin latex skullcap.

A diminutive woman in a lab coat scribbling furiously on a clipboard as we entered looking up to stare at us with large inquisitive eyes.

I let out a gasp of surprise, Rachel put her tiny hands to her face and began to cry in earnest, her face buried in my chest.

Without even thinking I wrapped my arms around her, trying to give her comfort as we came closer to the window the small white clad figure turning around to regard us with more interest.

“Ah, the missing offspring!” She exclaimed in a slow and deliberate voice, eyes briefly wandering to meet mine, tilting her head like a confused animal.

She was tiny and were it not for the stray hints of grey in her hair and a faint crowsfeet around her eyes, I could’ve sworn she was no older than Rachel.

“You have good timing we were just about to go back into surgery for her.”

“What happened to my mom?” I asked all hope of normal conversation abolished by the sheer shock of seeing my mother in such a terrible state.

“Serious concussive injury caused by an almost head on collision with a large courier truck,” said the doctor, making no effort to introduce herself, forcing me to read her medical tag “Graham” huh.

I gripped my hands tighter cradling my little sister as she sobbed unsure how to react, I almost felt like I should be angry at this Doctor, but I couldn’t afford to break down.

“Will she be okay? She looks so weak,”

“Honestly I am amazed she is alive, her tenacity and will to live is extremely surprising,” she remarked sounded like she was commenting on something she’d had for dinner rather than the condition of my mother.

Rach gripped me all the more as I caressed her back, swallowing hard as I tried to listen to the doctor.

The doctor glanced at a thin strapped wristwatch and looked a little conflicted.

“I’m sorry, but you really shouldn’t be in here, while she is stable for the moment your mother still has to undergo a further three surgeries. Bleeding in the brain is a very serious thing and we need to everything in our power to avoid it,” she said firmly crossing her arms over her childlike form.

I nodded, half in a zombie-like state as the small doctor led us out of the room.

It was her turn to hand us something, a long piece of notepaper with the hospital logo stenciled on it. I dumbly took it putting it in my pocket as she walked us back to the hospital entrance.

“You’re free to wait here for the time being,” she said “I will send someone to contact you when we finish,” she remarked awkwardly placing a hand on mine making me tighten my hold on Rachel. I felt like I was going to break down myself, as the two of us collapsed into a pair of waiting chairs, the emotions and the magnitude of the issue promptly exhausting us.

It was a long operation, for six hours my sister and I sat in silence the hustle and bustle of the hospital surrounding and swallowing us, all around us other dramas unfurled, but we were lost in our own little world.

“This is all my fault,” said Rachel staring down at her feet, “if I hadn’t been such a stupid bitch and got myself smashed, mom wouldn’t be like this,” she sobbed softly.

My hand never left her shoulders and that this admission my lips slowly moved in to kiss her on top of her head.

“Don’t talk like that,” I said firmly swallowing hard as we sat there “you couldn’t of known. Anyway, I’m the one who got so distracted and didn’t check his phone,” I replied not sure how to place what happened between us in polite conversation.

“How fucked up is it, that the best thing that happened to me today was starting an incestuous relationship with my brother?” Replied Rachel her face now a mess of tears swollen red eyes.

I didn’t reply, was this a relationship? If so how do I get out of it? Did I want to get out of it? I love Rachel with all my heart, but there’s no way this Axe fuelled sexual rampage could ever result in a healthy relationship.

I shook my head, this was something that I was going to have to sort out later, Rachel needed me as a support right now, regardless of what that meant.

It was about two hours later when the doctor finally returned to us, now dressed in surgical scrubs but with a slight smile on her face.

“I’m happy to report that the operation was a complete success, regardless of what happens next your mother will survive.” She said in a very tired voice.

“Can we go and see her?” I asked apprehensively

“I don’t think that would be a very good idea right now, she’s stable but not conscious and if I’m honest with you,” she took my hand in hers my large warm hands in enveloping her small cold ones “both of you are emotionally fatigued and would not benefits from the experience, go home and rest your mother will be fine.”

I blushed a little bit, not at the content, the relief of hearing that my mother was not going to die released so much attention I wasn’t aware I was carrying,

Here this tiny little doctor with her grouchy owl-like features was giving me orders like a fussy parent and my body was reacting without question I knew that to disobey her would not be a good idea.

The trip home was conducted in silence, it was already four in the morning so there was no chance either of us was doing anything normal tomorrow morning.

Leaving the taxi the hospital and called for us, and wandering back inside our apartment building I guided Rachel back inside our own sanctuary.

Finally alone, I felt my sister move against me and before I knew it my lips were caressing again.

“Please,” she whispered. “Hold me,”

Far too tired to resist her, both of us kissed again and moved towards the couch.