With all of the appointments that they had to be at, there was barely anytime for the young Draiman family to keep their head above water. Going to the pediatrician every two weeks with Miri; the orthopedist to have Delilah’s cast taken off; even the eye doctor for Jake to make sure that his prescription was still working. The first two months of little Miriam Rebekah’s were hectic. There was barely a moment for any of them to catch their breath.
Meanwhile, Miri was progressing normally. She may have been small, but she was growing the way she was supposed to. By the time she was two months old she was holding her head up on her own and looking at everyone with her big green eyes. Delilah loved putting little bows and stuff in her hair to make her curls stand out. Her hair was brushed daily… sometime even several times a day.
She’d even had her picture taken on several occasions in her first two months of her life. She was a very photogenic little girl. She’d started smiling every time someone said, “Miri, over here” and told her to look at them. “Look at Auntie”, or “Look at Gramma”, “Look at Grampa, baby girl”… and her little face would light up and she’d look toward whoever was speaking to her. Her favorite was “Look at Daddy”. Miri was certainly a Daddy’s girl.
Finally, the day came that Jake had to go back to work. Delilah was back on her feet and getting used to putting weight on the leg she’s broken. She was actually anxious for her husband to go back to work. Jake was too. He’d been away for too long and some of the research he was doing was time sensitive. He hated the idea of having to start certain things over again, but he knew that it might have to be done and he’d accepted it. He just hoped that his interns weren’t too upset with him. He knew that the three he had left were just as dedicated to finding a treatment for TBI’s as he was.
The day he went back to work, he was greeted with a surprise. The door to his lab was unlocked. He walked in to see his interns inside hard at work. “What the hell is going on here?” he asked.
Dr. Carver began to explain. “Dr. Draiman, I know this may seem surprising, but you DID give us permission to continue while you were on LOA.”
“I did? When?”
“The day after your wife’s car accident. I called you and asked you if we could get in so that we could continue working while you were out.”
“I don’t remember that conversation, Dr. Carver. I remember asking the Chief of Medicine to see that the lab was locked.”
“I think I woke you when I called, so I’m not surprised that you don’t remember the conversation, but Dr. Emerson and Dr. Franklin are my witnesses. You said that we could do what we had to do.”
“Smart man, Dr. Carver. Make sure you have witnesses to back up your story. Ok, so, what’s happened in my absence?”
“Well, we got a delivery from CSMC that Dr. Emerson signed for. It was cryogenically preserved.”
“CSMC? That’s the hospital my daughter was born at. What was in the cryo- tank?”
“We haven’t opened it. We refrigerated it”, Dr. Emerson said.
Jake nodded. “Ok, go get it and let’s find out what’s in there, shall we?”
Dr. Franklin was already moving to the cryo- fridge where the tank was being stored. “Here you are, Dr. Draiman. I’m sure you want to be the one to do the honors.”
“I need the gloves to handle the tank, please, Dr. Franklin.” She took the gloves off and handed them to him. He put in a pair of goggles and carefully opened the tank to pull out what was inside. He couldn’t help but laugh. “Gotta love her, man”, he mumbled under his breath.
“What is it, Doctor?” Dr. Emerson asked.
“My wife’s brilliance in action. She had the forethought to have our daughter’s umbilical cord and placenta preserved and sent her after she was born. We have the needed stem cells to pull this shit off.”
“You’re daughter’s stem cells?” Dr. Franklin asked.
“If not hers, then who’s?”
“Are you sure, Doctor?”
“Start testing it. We have what we need to do just that. Let’s get to it.”
---------------
When he went up to do his rounds, he was stopped by Private Douglas. “Where have you been, Dr. D?” he asked.
“I’ve been on a leave of absence. My wife had a baby two months ago.”
“That’s hardly a reason to take a leave of absence, Dr. Draiman.” The young Private gave his neurologist a hard stare.
“It is when the delivery was facilitated by a car accident and my wife had a broken leg because of it.”
“A broken leg? Ouch. Sorry to hear that then. Is everything ok now?”
“Yeah, everything’s fine now. The cast is off and my wife is up and moving around wonderfully. She limps a little because she’s not used to putting weight in the leg, but she’s getting used to it.”
“How’s that baby?”
“A little premature, but doing well. She’s developing at the right pace so, we’re really happy.”
“A little girl? She must be your whole world.”
“She is. She’s the reason I get up in the morning, literally. She wakes up for her morning bottle aright about the same time I get up for work. She knows when Daddy’s supposed to be up and ready for work.”
“No more sleeping in. That has to blow.”
“Not really. I’m enjoying fatherhood. And as soon as I can get you fixed you can find that special girl and become a father yourself.” Jake looked the young man up and down. “I see you’re out of the chair now. You’ve been listening to me.”
“Yes, sir, Dr. D. I’m determined to get back on my feet. I’m not going to just LET this being paralyzed get the best of me. If there’s any hope of getting back on my feet, then I’m going to be ready.”
“Good idea, Marine. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I need to go check on a certain Army Corporal who thinks she’s 13 and that I’m quite the catch.”
Private Douglas laughed. “Well, Doc, if I were gay, I’d totally have to agree with her.”
Jake laughed and shook his head. “Get your crazy ass down to PT before I carry you down there.”
“Oh, Doctor, I never knew you felt that way…”
“Not in your wildest dreams. Get moving before I throw you over my shoulder.”
---------------
When he walked into Yvette’s room, he was nearly knocked to the ground by an excited young woman. “Welcome back, Dr. D!” she exclaimed.
He laughed. “Hello to you too, Yvette. Can I breathe now?”
She let him go suddenly and he stumbled backward. “Sorry, but I saw the car you drove the day you ran out of here like a mad man, and I knew you were back.”
“Yeah, I ran out of here like a mad man because my wife had been in a car accident. Remember that nice Volvo I normally drive?”
“Yeah.”
“Some jack ass t- boned her and totaled it. That was my baby, too. A 2025 S60R, forest green.”
“Speaking of babies, did your wife have the baby yet?”
“Yep, a little girl. Miriam Rebekah Draiman is her name.” He pulled his phone out of his pocket and pulled up pictures of his little angel. “Here she is with her Grampa.” Jake flipped to the next picture. “And here she is with me.”
“She’s so precious!” Yvette said sweetly.
“She’s my world.”
“You’re so lucky, Dr. D.”
He smiled. “Thanks, Yvette. Now, how about we check on you and figure out what’s new. Your chart says you’ve been having bouts of memory loss?”
“Yeah, just short term stuff, though.”
“Well, let’s sit down and start talking about this and we’ll see what we can figure out.”
---------------
When he got home that day, he was greeted at the door by his wife and daughter. “She’s been fussing for you all day, Daddy”, Delilah said with a smile.
He set his briefcase down on the floor and took his little girl from her mother. “Hey pretty girl!” he said with a smile. “Did you miss me? Not used to me leaving, are you?” She cooed at her Daddy and wiggled excitedly in his arms. “You’re just happy to have Daddy back, huh?” He leaned in and gave his wife a kiss. “How has she been today?”
“Wonderful other then when she’d start crying because she was wet or wanted Daddy. She’s a Daddy’s girl to the bone”, Delilah giggled. “But, thankfully, Grampa was there to save the day.”
“Leave it to Grampa to save the day”, Jake laughed. “Let’s sit down and get out of the door way”, he said as he bent down to pick up his briefcase. He set his briefcase on the couch when he sat down and held his little girl in the air with both hands. “Hey precious girl! Are you glad to see me?” She giggled for her Daddy. “I’ve missed you and Mama today, pretty girl. But, I had to make money to buy you all kinds of fun stuff.”
“I thought it was Gramma and Grampa’s job to spoil her”, Delilah laughed.
“We can do a little bit of spoiling too. I don’t see the harm in that.”
“As long as you don’t see the harm in it then neither do I.”
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