Part 283

"You don’t gotta leave…but we gotta go!" said Howie and he looked around for Sarah as he headed off stage.

Fatima met Howie at the bottom of the steps. "What was THAT all about….’get her off the damn stage…NOW’?"

"Sarah was about to drop on the damn stage," snapped Howie.

"You worried for nothing. Sarah did fine."

"That’s what YOU think…she missed steps, almost fell three times, and she’s as white as a ghost! Where is she?"

Fatima turned to point to where Sarah was standing in time to see her crumple in a heap.

"Condenado!" swore Howie as he rushed to her. He knelt beside her taking her head in his lap as the others surrounded him. "Angel, please," begged Howie brushing her hair back.

Weakly, Sarah answered, "It hurts, Howie."

"Where, baby?" asked Kevin kneeling beside her.

Sarah put her hand on her stomach. "Contractions," she whimpered as tears escaped from her bloodshot eyes. Looking at Howie, she pleaded, "Make it stop!"

Putting his hand on Howie’s shoulder, Brian said, "There’s a doctor here. Let Billy take her to the dressing room where he can examine her while we do the encore."

Out of no where, Billy appeared. Gently, he said, "Go on, Howie. I’ve got her."

Howie kissed Sarah on the forehead, "Angel, Billy’s gonna take you to the dressing room. I promise…one more song and I’ll be right there."

"Jesse?" whispered Sarah.

"Shhh…Raoul took her to the bus before we went on. She should be asleep by now."

"Go make the girls happy then," rasped Sarah.

Howie smiled, "Only one girl I care to make happy."

They all stepped back as Billy easily picked Sarah up and carried her through the ‘underworld’ to the dressing rooms.

Lisa took Howie’s hand and said, "I’ll go with her, Howie. She’ll be okay."

"Thanks, Lisa," answered Howie numbly. Then seeing Fatima standing off to the side, anger took over and he spun on her. Through clenched teeth, Howie growled, "GET A DAMN REPLACEMENT. Sarah will NOT dance again!"

************

 

Tense silence permeated the dressing room as the doctor examined Sarah. Lisa sat on the arm of the couch stroking Sarah’s hair and holding her hand while Fatima waited anxiously by the door.

As the doctor finished, Howie and the guys burst through the door. Sarah looked up and the tears began anew. He moved to her quickly, wiping the tears away.

"Shhh…it’s okay. I’m here now."

"Mr. Dorough, I’d like to talk to you outside."

Sarah begged, "Don’t leave me."

"I’ll be right back, Angel….I promise."

Nick moved behind Howie, "Hey, beautiful! What ‘cha doing…hogging ALL the attention?"

Sarah smiled through the tears, "No!"

With Nick to distract Sarah, Howie slipped out and AJ followed leaving the others with Sarah.

"Tell me what’s been going on with your wife."

Howie explained the events of the last four or five days to the doctor leaving nothing out; the planes, Danny, Becca, Claudia, her father, the shows, and the lack of sleep.

"That’s what I suspected. Is this her first pregnancy?"

"No, she’s got a four-year old."

"Okay, so she should realize these are simply false labor pains."

"Braxton-Hicks? Isn’t it too early for those?" asked Howie.

"Not given she’s having twins. Some women experience them throughout their second and third trimester. Your wife is exhausted and her body is reacting to get her to slow down. I want to admit her overnight for observation and give her a sedative, nothing strong."

"She’s going to fight you on that. Sarah very seldom takes ANY form of medication," said AJ. "She’s a recovering addict."

Howie spoke up, "I talked to her doctor back in Orlando earlier. He recommended something for her but I know my wife…AJ’s right. She’s NOT going to take it and forget shots. She’s TERRIFIED of needles."

"When are you suppose to leave for your next show?"

"We were suppose to leave straight from here but I’m not gonna leave if Sarah needs to stay."

"I’d feel better if I could keep an eye on her overnight."

AJ said, "I’ll stay with you, D."

The doctor looked at Howie now, the range of emotions that he was feeling evident in his face. "I’ll make the necessary arrangements to have her transported and admitted."

The question weighing heavily on Howie’s mind finally came out as tears formed in his eyes. "Is she gonna lose the babies?"

"I don’t think so but that’s why I want to keep her overnight. I don’t want you to get out on the road and have something happen. Your wife is exhausted with a lot of guilt and depression over the tragic events that have occurred. I think rest and A LOT of support will get her through this and from the looks of it, she’s got quite a bit of support."

AJ smiled, "And love. Thanks, Doc."

Fatima exited the dressing room and bumped into Howie who was headed back to Sarah.

"Sorry," mumbled Howie but he saw Fatima’s tears.

"Howie, I’m TRULY sorry. I didn’t realize just how bad it was."

"Fatima, I shouldn’t have snapped at you. It’s just that…."

"Don’t explain. Sarah is your wife. Go take care of her and we’ll talk later."

AJ followed Howie in and found the other three trying to keep Sarah distracted. When she saw Howie though, she ignored them.

Howie put on his best smile and took Nick’s place, "Hey, Angel."

"What did the doctor say?"

"He wants to admit you for observation overnight and AJ said he’d stay with us."

Brian spoke up, "We’ll all stay, Howie."

"Am I losing the babies?"

"No, and you aren’t going to either," said AJ. "Those little ones are fighters, just like their mother."

"That’s right," agreed Kevin.

Howie leaned over to her and whispered, "My little slugger."

Sarah smiled, "What about Jesse?"

"I’ll tell Billy what’s going on and he can tell Raoul. No sense waking her."

"Howie, I’m scared," whispered Sarah.

"I know, Angel…so am I."

Medical attendants arrived and Sarah was loaded onto the stretchers as the others watched.

Lisa took Howie’s hand. "I’ll go out and stay with Jesse. Don’t worry about her."

"Thanks, Lisa."

Kevin spoke, "We’ll follow you to the hospital, Howie."

"Hey, beautiful, take it easy on the doctors until we can get there," teased AJ. "AND NO BOUNCING!"

Sarah tried to laugh but broke out crying instead. Nick whapped him on the back of the head, "Now look what you’ve done!"

"Oww….DAYUM, Kaos!" said AJ rubbing his head. "Whad ya go and do THAT for?"

"You made her cry!"

"Guys, stop," said Sarah taking Nick’s hand. "I’m just scared."

"We need to go, ma’am."

Each one leaned over to give Sarah a kiss and then watched as Howie followed the attendants with Billy and Tommy in tow.

Kevin spoke softly, "Let’s get our showers and go. It’s gonna be a long night for those two."

Silently, all four men headed to their dressing rooms to get showered and changed. Another night in a hospital…hopefully, this would be the last time until February.

Part 284        The Dance Index(3)