War Torn by Andria Large Read Free Book Online

throat. “Yes, ma’am.”
    She takes my IV stand as I get to my feet. Dennis stands also. He gives me a quick hug and a hopeful smile. I squeeze his hand before following the nurse down the hall to the operating room. I take a few deep breaths to try to calm myself. I swear my heart is trying to pound its way out of my chest. Once in the operating room, the nurse has me lie down on the operating table. Dr. Sterling comes and stands next to me as the anesthesiologist comes over to administer the drugs to put me to sleep. The last thing I see before falling to sleep is Dr. Sterling smile and wink.
    I slowly start to come back to reality. I drag my heavy eyelids open and try to look around. The light is low and I’m not exactly sure where I am. A warm hand lands on my arm and I try to focus on who’s attached to it. I look up into the familiar face of Dr. Sterling.
    “Tucker,” he says softly. “Can you hear me?”
    My eyes widen, because yes! I heard him! I HEARD HIM! It was slightly muffled, but I understood him clearly.
    “Yes! I can hear you,” I say and jerk in surprise when I hear my own voice.
    I haven’t heard my own voice for four long years. Holy fucking shit! I forgot how I sounded.
    “Wonderful!” Dr. Sterling replies happily.
    “Dennis! I need to see Dennis!” I tell him urgently.
    He nods. “I’ll go get him.”
    “Don’t tell him, though.”
    Dr. Sterling smiles. “I won’t.”
    He disappears through the curtains and my nurse from earlier enters to take my vitals. She smiles gleefully.
    “It worked?” she whispers. I guess she heard me talking to the doctor about not letting Dennis know yet.
    “Yes,” I answer with the biggest smile I think has ever crossed my face.
    “How do you feel?” she asks.
    “Incredible.” I sigh.
    She chuckles. “That’s great, but I mean, do you feel nauseous or dizzy, are you in pain? Anything like that?”
    “Oh.” I laugh. “My ears are a bit achy and I’m still sleepy.”
    “I’ll get you some pain medication to take before you leave,” she says. Her voice sounds young and sweet.
    “Okay.”
    She leaves me to go and get the meds. I sit there just taking in the sounds of the recovery area: other voices talking, machines making noise, footsteps walking down the hallway. It’s insane. Utterly insane that the surgery worked; that I am one of the 40% that it worked for. I was so afraid to hope. So afraid to be disappointed.
    “The surgery went really well. I didn’t run into any problems.” I hear Dr. Sterling say just outside of the curtain closing off my little recovery room.
    “So, can he hear or not?” a deep raspy voice, tinged with a hint of a New York accent, asks.
    Dennis.
    Tears immediately blur my vision. That’s Dennis’ voice. I’ve wondered for years what he sounds like and now I know.
    “Why don’t you ask him yourself?” Dr. Sterling replies, his tone amused.
    The curtain whips to the side and Dennis appears, his eyes wide and frantic. “Tuck?” he asks, and it’s like fucking music to my ears.
    I can’t stop the tears from spilling over. I drop my face into my hands and just cry.
    “Tucker, can you hear me?” he asks, knowing that I can’t see him to read his lips.
    I nod. “I can hear you, Dennis,” I cry as the emotions overwhelm me.
    “Oh my god,” he breathes.
    He’s at my side in a second wrapping his arms around me and tucking his face against mine.
    “I can hear,” I sob into my hands.
    “I can’t believe it,” he whispers, his lips brushing against my face.
    I shake my head. “Me neither.”
    “So? Do I sound sexy?” Dennis teases.
    He pulls back as I start to laugh. I wipe the tears away with the back of my hand. “Yeah, you do actually.”
    Dennis grins. “Nice.”
    “Tucker, I’m going to get your discharge papers and after care instructions printed out. I’ll be back,” Dr. Sterling says and leaves Dennis and me alone.
    Dennis cups my face his in large hands and stares into my eyes, all