When It All Falls Apart (Book One) Read Online Free PDF Page B

David asked.
    “Well, we don’t know. It’s hard to say. We’re going to have to run some additional tests.”
    “But it’s because she has the stomach flu?” I pressed.
    “It’s being exasperated by her being sick, but we wouldn’t typically see a bicarbonate level this low because of the stomach flu.”
    “Then, what’s going on?” I asked at the same time David asked, “What’s wrong with her?”
    “Unfortunately, I can’t say. We’re going to have to admit her. We’ve already started her on IV fluids which should help her blood sugar levels come back up and she’s going to have to be monitored closely to see how her bicarbonate level responds. The pediatric doctors are going to be able to answer your questions better than I can. I’ve put in the order for a bed on the pediatric unit and you should be moved up to the fifth floor shortly.”
    I looked at David. He was staring at Rori grinding his jaw back and forth.
    “So, you’re sure it’s not the flu?”
    David shot me an icy stare. “He already said it isn’t the flu. Something is wrong with her.”
    “I’m sorry I don’t have more answers for you, but the emergency room is only the first step. Once she’s been admitted and the results come back from the other tests we’ve taken, we’ll start to have more helpful information. We need to gather more information about what’s going on.” He looked genuinely sorry.
    We thanked him as he left, pulling the curtain back around us. I stared at David waiting for him to say something. I didn’t have to wait long.
    “I knew something was wrong with her,” he said without looking up. His gaze was still fixed on Rori who continued to look like she was taking a nap.
    “He didn’t say it was serious. He just said it wasn’t what they’d expect. We don’t know anything yet. He hasn’t given us any real information. I’m sure she’s going to be fine.”
    David blew everything out of proportion when it came to Rori. When she was learning to walk, he was convinced we needed to get her a helmet because he was afraid she’d hit her head when she fell and get brain damage. Once she accidently ate a vitamin and he went into a frenzied panic because he was convinced she was going to get iron poisoning. It didn’t matter that a representative from poison control assured us one pill was harmless and that most likely the pill had gotten stuck in her teeth before she swallowed it. It had taken me forever to calm him down and talk him out of taking her to the emergency room to get her stomach pumped.
    “Something’s wrong. I can feel it.”
    I shook my head maintaining my stance. “Everything is going to be fine. You’ll see.”
    I wasn’t jumping to any unnecessary conclusions. I refused to get alarmed unless the doctors gave us a reason to be alarmed and so far, nobody had given us a legitimate reason to be overly concerned. Dr. Yang hadn’t acted like it was a life or death situation. He’d seemed more confused than anything else. He probably couldn’t figure it out because he didn’t work with children, but I was sure the pediatric doctors would have answers for us after they examined her.
    I scrolled through my phone browsing countless medical pages looking for an explanation of the bicarbonate level that made sense while we waited for someone to take us up to the pediatric ward. Everything I read referred to something called the anion gap and other medical jargon I didn’t understand. Most of what I found contained chemical formulas. I loved math and I was good it at, but I liked math with actual numbers. When you started throwing in letters, you were no longer doing math and I was no longer able to follow any of it.
    Rori didn’t open her eyes when they transferred her from the emergency room bed into the hospital bed in her room. I’d never been in a pediatric hospital room and was surprised it didn’t look different from other hospital rooms I’d been in. The only noticeable