It was when Willie was being handed over to Barnet General’s Paediatric Accident and Emergency Department when Jinnie heard the paramedics say, “suspected appendicitis”, which was what she feared. Willie was taken into a cubicle and immediately surrounded by doctors and nurses while Jinnie was asked numerous questions about Willie, and what had happened, for the administration paperwork.
Eventually, Jinnie was allowed to go to a scared Willie, hold his hand and calm him. The lead doctor told Jinnie he was pretty sure it was appendicitis, and a paediatric surgeon had been called. But to be certain they were doing several tests, including blood, and ultrasound. The doctor continued saying that he had ordered intravenous painkillers and antibiotics, explaining that although antibiotics might not be necessary yet, they could be and would certainly be necessary after an operation to stop infection, so it was good to start them now.
When Paolo arrived Millie and Izzy stayed in the waiting room while he was shown to Willie’s cubicle. The intravenous painkiller had kicked in and thankfully Willie was in a lot less pain and asking questions. What was wrong with him, what had he done wrong, when could he go home? Jinnie explained that a little bit of his stomach was inflamed, and that the doctors were going to operate and cut it out. Willie wanted to know if it would hurt and Jinnie explained that they would put him to sleep, and he wouldn’t feel a thing.
Next Willie wanted to know if he would have to stay in hospital and his mother told him yes for a few days, and then he would have to stay off school for a couple of weeks. Willie asked if Millie would be going to school without him and Jinnie said yes. The surgeon arrived and examined Willie. Turning to his parents he said Willie was showing all the classic symptoms of acute appendicitis and that he proposed operating as soon as a theatre and staff were available. He expected that if not treated quite soon there was a good chance that the appendix would burst and that would then be a major emergency.
Paolo gave his permission for the operation and Willie was prepped for the operation. The pre-med made him a little sleepy and not at all with it. His parents walked beside his bed as it was pushed into the anteroom of the theatre and kissed the helpless little lad who didn’t have a care in the world or really know where he was. They watched as the anaesthetist put him under and then withdrew to the relatives’ room to wait, where they were joined by Izzy and a very anxious Millie who was desperate to know what was happening to her brother.
Jinnie explained to Millie that her twin had appendicitis, that a little bit of his stomach, called the appendix, that no one knew what it was there for, had got sore and the doctors were going to cut it off and it wouldn’t be missed. That it was not a problem and once it was gone Willie would soon be better and back home. He would not be able to go to school for a bit, but he would soon be back. Millie asked if she would get appendicitis and Jinnie told her she didn’t think it was very likely, she and daddy had never had it and nor had Auntie Penny and Uncle Dan, but some people got it, and no one knew who in advance or why they got it, and others didn’t. Millie was silent for a while and suddenly said, “But we are twins, we are special.” To which Jinnie laughed and said, “Of course you are special you are my twins.”
A little over an hour later the surgeon, Mr Black, came into the relatives’ room and told them that the operation had gone very well, and Willie was in the recovery room sleeping off the anaesthetic and that Jinnie and Paolo could go and sit with him. Once he had woken up he would be moved to the children’s ward and he would probably be able to go home in a day or two once he was eating, drinking and had a bowel movement. Millie wanted to know what a ‘bowel movement’ was and Izzy told her it was a posh name for a poo and Millie chuckled for the first time since her brother became ill.
Jinnie looked at her watch and realised it was nearly ten o’clock and she was hungry and asked if anyone else was and it seemed that now the panic was over everyone was. Izzy suggested that she and Millie went home and got breakfast and they could feed Larry who would be wondering what was going on. Millie wanted to know when she could visit her brother and Paolo said he expected it would be once Willie was on the ward, but he would ask and phone Izzy as soon as he found out. Izzy said she would phone the school and explain that the twins would not be in today, but Millie would be in tomorrow and Willie as soon as the doctors said it was OK. Talk of phoning the school reminded Jinnie she was expected in Crawley that morning and she quickly phoned Ro to let her know what was happening, while Paolo phoned the embassy.
***
Jinnie and Paolo went off to find the recovery room leaving Izzy to take Millie home. It was only when they were nearly at the main entrance that Izzy remembered they had come in Paolo’s car and her car was in Hadley. Obviously, they weren’t the first people to have that problem as there was a board on the wall of the entrance with cards for several taxi companies. Izzy said to Millie they would have to get a taxi home and she could pick the company from the names on the cards. Millie did ‘Eeny, meeny, miny, moe’ and landed on ‘Star Cars’ who Izzy phoned. The operator said the car would be with them in a few minutes and he would message her with the car’s type, colour, registration number and driver’s name shortly before it arrived.
The message said it would be a grey Citroen C5 driven by Mike, and Millie started looking at all the cars coming to the main entrance until she spotted the right one. Mike turned out to be a chatty driver and when Izzy gave him the address said, “That’s the posh road where Sir Nigel Farage lives, the police don’t like us taxi drivers going there.” Izzy explained that the police knew them, and it wouldn’t be a problem as they lived there, and the police knew them. “Do you know Sir Nigel?” asked Mike. “Yes,” said Izzy. Millie added, “Uncle Nigel is my godfather.” Looking at Izzy, Mike said, “Your Mummy must know him well.” An indignant Millie replied, “We all do. He lives next door, doesn’t he Izzy.”
The car pulled up at the pole barrier across the road and a policeman with an automatic rifle approached the driver’s lowered window. The policeman saw Izzy and Millie in the back and said, “Hello Ladies, I guess you are on your way home from the hospital, how is Master Willie?” “He has successfully had his appendix removed, George,” said Izzy. “He is in recovery, with his parents, but the surgeon says the operation went well and he should be home soon.” George said to Millie, “I guess they won’t let you see your brother yet then.” Millie replied, “Daddy said I might be able to see him on the ward.” “That’s good,” said George. Then smiling at Izzy, he said, “Please keep me updated, everyone on the serial loves the twins and has been worried since the ambulance arrived in the middle of the night.” As the barrier was lifted and the taxi moved on, Millie said to Izzy, “I like George, he is nice, but I think he likes you best. Do you like him?” Izzy blushed and said, “He is rather nice isn’t he.”
As the taxi pulled up at the front door, Millie saw Larry at the window. But by the time they got out of the car he had disappeared, and Millie knew he would be waiting for them in the hall. Izzy paid the cab driver and he drove off, then she unlocked the door and Millie rushed in ahead of her and said “Hello” to Larry and said she was sorry not to have told him where everyone was going. But it had been a rush to get Willie to hospital and he had been asleep. Larry appeared to be listening intently and when Izzy said to Millie that she would get their breakfast ready if she fed Larry, he meowed loudly.
Larry had emptied his bowl of Felix and was hanging around to see if Millie wanted to give him any of her breakfast. She had finished her Coco Pops and her favourite boiled egg and soldiers and was drinking her glass of milk when she told him all about Willie having appendicitis and an emergency operation to cut it out. Larry was sure that cats didn’t have an appendix so he would never need to have it cut out, but he felt sorry for Willie as he associated hospital with the dreaded vet.
After her breakfast, Millie was a bit lost without her brother and no school so when Izzy suggested she go and watch some children’s TV she headed for the living room. Thirty minutes later, Izzy looked in on Millie and found her asleep on the sofa with Larry cuddled up against her. Izzy wasn’t surprised Millie was sleeping, she had been woken in the middle of the night by Willie and had had a stressful morning.
***
Millie and Paolo sat either side of the sleeping Willie. The surgeon had explained that he had carried out keyhole surgery so Willie wouldn’t have a big scar and although that sort of operation had a very low chance of a post-operative infection, they would put him on an antibiotic drip ‘just to be sure’ and said they would give him a course of oral antibiotics to take home. Every so often a nurse came over and checked Willie’s vital signs, noted them on a form and then went back to her desk and her PC.
After about three hours Willie began to stir and the nurse was quickly over to him. Willie wanted to know where he was and what had happened to him. He appeared not to remember too much about being rushed to hospital or his time in A&E, but he wanted to know where his sister was. The nurse asked him if he was in pain, and he said not really his stomach ached a bit and he had a pain in his shoulder. The nurse nodded and said if it got too bad to call her and she would give him a painkilling injection. She then explained to Jinnie and Paolo that the pain in the shoulder was quite common after keyhole surgery. It was caused by some of the inert gas being used to inflate the abdomen to make it easier for the surgeon, remaining and causing an irritation, but it would quickly ease and be gone completely in a day or two as the gas dissipated.
A couple of hours later Willie was much more awake and was wheeled to the paediatric ward where they were greeted by the ward sister who directed them to a side ward, where there was an extra bed for mothers. The sister explained that with young children it was often better if mum was around as being alone in hospital could be very scary. She continued saying that at the moment Willie was making a textbook recovery and that if the ward doctor was happy when he did his round, she doubted Willie would be with them more than a day or two.
Willie asked if he could have a drink and he was given a jug of water and a mug which didn’t please him although he drank some. Paolo said he would go and see if he could find some juice and came back with two cartons of orange Juice which was much more to Willie’s liking. Willie was delighted that he had a TV in his room and soon mastered the remote control and found the cartoons and was watching Paw Patrol when a nurse arrived with a menu to find what he would like to eat for what she called supper. Jinnie helped him look at what was on offer, and he settled for a cheese omelette with bread and butter and ice cream for dessert. They looked at the drinks on offer and decided tea and coffee were not for him and Jinnie suggested he should drink some of his orange juice. But the nurse asked if he liked hot chocolate and when he nodded madly, she said she would make it especially for him in ward kitchen.
As the afternoon went on, Jinnie was delighted to see Willie was looking better, he had more colour in his face and was chattier. He asked his mother if he could walk to the bathroom as he wanted a pee. Jinnie said she didn’t know but would ask a nurse. The nurse said ‘yes’ but he would have to wheel his drip stand with him. She showed him how to release the brake with his foot and off he went. Jinnie watched him make his way across the room and once again she was pleased to see the progress he was making.
Shortly after he was back in bed, Izzy arrived with Millie and the twins were quickly chatting to each other and giggling, switching between Italian, English and French. Izzy whispered to Jinnie, “Gosh he looks so much better than this morning.” Paolo, who heard what was said replied, “It’s amazing how quickly children are up and down.” The nurse was soon back with Willie’s supper which Jinnie had to admit looked quite appetising. As he tucked in, Millie complained she was hungry as she and Izzy hadn’t had their tea!
Paolo said why not have tea in the visitor restaurant near the main entrance, explaining that they sold main meals and snacks. Millie was anxious to try it, so it was agreed that Izzy, Millie and Paolo would go and get something to eat. When they came back Jinnie would go and eat, and Izzy and Paolo would stay with the twins.
Willie had finished his supper and had eaten every scrap. The auxiliary who came to collect the dishes brought his hot chocolate and asked him if he would like a biscuit. Without hesitation he said, “Yes, please,” and the auxiliary popped back to her trolly in the corridor and returned with a Twix. Willie was halfway through the first finger when the rest of the family returned. Millie told him the restaurant had been like getting school dinners, you had to queue up and they put your meal on a tray. She told Willie she had beans on toast, jam sponge and custard and a carton of juice and it had been better than school dinners. Daddy and Izzy had sausage, mash and onion gravy which they said was good.
Jinnie said she was hungry only having had a sandwich and a takeaway tea from the League of Friends shop. She hurried off to get her food and promised to be back soon. Jinnie had only just gone when a doctor arrived. He checked Willie’s wound which involved taking the dressing off, which revealed some bruises on his stomach. The doctor asked Willie if he was in pain and he said no, the bad pain had gone, and he was a bit sore. The doctor nodded sagely and asked if the pain in his shoulder was still there, and Willie said yes but it was much better.
The doctor looked at the notes on the bottom of Willie’s bed and said, “I see you are eating and drinking and that your temperature is normal. I think we can remove the intravenous drip and put you on oral antibiotics. Turning to Izzy he said, “Right mummy, there is only one thing left on the list before I am happy for William to go home. He needs to open his bowels and he can go after breakfast.” With the twins giggling, Izzy said, “I think you are under a misapprehension; I am the twins’ nanny, their mother has just stepped out to get something to eat but their father and I will tell her as soon as she gets back.”
***
Jinnie raised herself on one elbow and looked across at Willie who was sleeping peacefully. She settled down on the parent’s bed and looked at her watch. It said nine thirty-four, and she yawned. She had not been to bed this early for a long time, but she was tired, it had been a long, tough day. Paolo asked if she minded if he went to work the next day as it was very busy. She said she would be OK. Izzy said that she would take Millie in to school and then drive straight over so she could drive them home if Willie was released.
Jinnie was dreaming about being on the beach in Barbados and Willie was calling her. But when she opened her eyes, she realised she was in Willie’s hospital room, and he really was calling her. “What’s the matter, darling?” she asked. “Are you in pain?” “No,” answered Willie “I need a poo.” “Well go then,” said Jinnie. “Can I?” asked Willie. “Of course,” said Jinnie. “you’re a big boy now and can go on your own.” Walking across the room Willie said, “I didn’t know if I had to get permission like in school.”
Five minutes later Willie was back in bed and Jinnie noted it was nearly six-thirty and the nurse would be in soon with Willie’s antibiotics and then the auxiliary would be round with his breakfast. When he had been asked what he wanted for breakfast before he went to sleep he had said Coco Pops, a boiled egg and soldiers and juice. He had not been very happy when he was told it was a choice of Corn Flakes or Rice Krispies and there were no eggs only bread and butter and marmalade or Jam, but he could have orange, apple, or blackcurrant juice. He had chosen apple.
When the nurse came in with his pills, she also took his temperature, pulse and blood pressure which she noted on his chart. Turning to Jinnie she asked, “Has he opened his bowels?” Jinnie answered, “Yes,” and the nurse said, “What was it like?” “How would I know?” said Jinnie. “He is old enough to look after himself, why don’t you ask him.” The nurse huffed and puffed and went out of the room. She was back shortly with a picture chart which she shoved under Willie’s nose and asked, “What did your poo look like?” Willie studied the pictures and pointed at Type 4. The nurse made a note on the chart and stormed out seconds before Willie and Jinnie collapsed in laughter.
The auxiliary came in with Willie’s Rice Krispies and a big jug of milk which she poured on the cereal and asked Jinnie, “What did you do to upset Nurse Miller, she was having a good old moan out in the ward.” Jinnie chuckled and answered, “I simply told her I didn’t inspect my son’s poo and if she wanted to know what it looked like she should ask him.” The auxiliary said, “Quite right too, that one is far too big for her boots,” and left the room laughing. Jinnie asked Willie if he would be OK for a few minutes as she was starving and wanted to pop out and get a sandwich. She was back in five minutes and found Willie watching ‘Fireman Sam’. Jinnie said, “I didn’t know you liked this.” Willie turned up his nose and said, “It’s not the best but I couldn’t find anything better.”
Jinnie settled down with her breakfast sandwich and cup of coffee. The hard-boiled egg, sausage and bacon sandwich wasn’t wonderful. She quickly concluded that the problem was the bread was heavy and seedy and the whole thing was chilly. The coffee was instant, made in the paper cup by adding hot water and powered milk and under normal circumstances she would have thrown it away. She tucked the information into the back of her mind, it was something she would talk to Brooke about next time she saw her. Was there a possibility of going into the mass catering business, could they make money by supplying decent food to hospitals, factories, sports grounds, schools, etc.
The sandwich was laying heavy on Jinnie’s stomach when Izzy arrived. Looking at Willie she said, “Gosh you are looking better, are we going home?” Willie shrugged and said, “I hope so, I didn’t like breakfast.” Jinnie said, “And neither did I.” Willie asked, “Where’s Millie?” “She’s gone to school,” said Izzy. “Miss Evans said to tell you to get well soon and when you get back to school you can tell the class all about hospital.” “Good,” said Willie, “I can tell them about the poo chart.”
Willie was bored, he wanted to go home, he didn’t feel ill anymore, yes, his tummy was tender, but it didn’t hurt like before. The TV here didn’t have as many children’s channels as the one at home. But the thing he really didn’t like was the food, last night’s omelette and ice cream hadn’t been bad, but the omelette had not been very warm and vanilla Ice cream wasn’t the best, that was chocolate. But no Coco Pops and no boiled eggs were the limit. He just wanted to get home and have beans on toast for lunch and see Larry.
Shortly after Izzy arrived, the ward doctor put his head around the door and said, “I’m happy for William to go home as soon as the pharmacy delivers his antibiotics and his painkillers. I want him to stay off school until Monday week. Then not to do PE, swimming or anything strenuous for three weeks while everything heals fully. Now do you need transport home?” Izzy said she had her car in the car park, so the doctor shook hands with them and wished them well. Willie was getting fed up waiting when the ward sister arrived with the drugs and a porter with a wheelchair to take Willie to the main entrance where Izzy was to pick him up. Willie didn’t like the idea of being pushed by a porter, but the sister said it was hospital policy and he had no choice!
***
Izzy pulled up at the bar across their road and was a little disappointed that the armed officer who recognised her car and waved them through wasn’t George, she guessed he wasn’t on shift that morning. Stopping on the drive, Izzy first saw Mrs Walsh’s car and then
Larry at his post in the front window. She said to Willie, “Granny is here and Larry is waiting to greet you.” “That’s good,” said Willie. “I hope Granny doesn’t hug me as my tummy bruises are getting worse!” Jinnie said, “I’ll tell her to give you a big sloppy kiss instead.” Willie said, “Yuk.”
As always, Larry was waiting behind the front door and Willie dropped down on his knees to greet the cat who was clearly delighted to see him. Jinnie shouted out, “We’re home mum.” Mrs Walsh replied, “I’m in the kitchen,” and came hurrying out with floury hands. Willie thought, ‘Great she can’t hug me,’ but it didn’t stop her kissing him on his forehead and saying, “I’m making fairy cakes for tea, what colour icing do you want?” “Chocolate,” was the instant reply.
Jinnie got Willie settled down in the front room with a glass of milk, a chocolate biscuit and his iPad and went to talk to her mother. Soon she was telling her all about Willie’s adventure. In return Granny Walsh told Jinnie about her father’s first few days as an MP and how he had found it very much like the first week at a new school where he had to find out where to go and what to do. One or two of the old hands had taken him under their wings and guided him through the voting lobby. He had been advised not to rush his maiden speech but to be sure he thoroughly researched whatever he said and didn’t forget to praise his predecessor in his Finchley and Golders Green seat.
***
Izzy went to collect Millie from reception and on the short car ride home Millie told her about her day at school. It being Friday it had been swimming which Millie loved but she said it wasn’t the same without Willie as only she and Miss Evans were strong swimmers. Some of the others in the class were getting better and two had done away with floats but a disdainful Millie said they struggled to swim a width while she and Willie could easily swim three lengths without a rest. In the afternoon Miss Evans had been getting them to read out loud to the class, taking it in turns to read a paragraph from a storybook. Millie said two or three of the class (including her) had read their paragraphs without help. But Millie said it was an easy book, one she and Willie had read ages ago in Italian!
Izzy was delighted to see the shift had changed, it was George who came out to them at the roadblock and asked about Willie. Izzy explained he had come home that morning and was going to be off school next week. Millie said, “You didn’t tell me tha,t” and Izzy replied, “You didn’t give me a chance, you’ve been talking all the way home!” Izzy looked up to see George laughing. As they drove to the house Millie said, “You know George really likes you, why don’t you ask him on a date?” Izzy replied, “Girls don’t ask boys on a date, it should be the other way round.” Millie said, “You are so old-fashioned.” Izzy thought ‘I’m being advised by someone who isn’t five yet!’
In Chapter 13 – SuperBurger get in touch
© WorthingGooner 2024
