Fiona Cummings - Emergency Sleepover

“Oh no! Oh no! What’s happened?” She bent down and looked as though she was going to try to make Rosie sit up or something.

“Don’t move her!” I told her sharply. “I think she’s got her foot caught, and if we try to move her we might cause more damage. We should leave it to the ambulance people.”

I couldn’t believe how calm I sounded. Because inside I was a trembling mess who just wanted to throw up.

“Rosie! My baby!” Mrs Cartwright, Rosie’s mum, pushed her way through. She knelt beside Rosie and started to stroke her hair. “It’s all right my precious, the ambulance is on its way. Everything’s going to be fine.”

I felt terrible. This had all been my fault.

“I’m sorry,” I mumbled.

Rosie’s mum looked up at me. She looked like she was about to ask what had happened, but then she just shook her head.

“The ambulance will be here soon, Kenny. Do you think you could ring your father and ask him to come and pick the rest of you up?”

I nodded and ran into the house. Trembling, I dialled my home number. When Dad answered I just lost it completely. I never ever cry. I think the shock must have got to me.

“Can you come and fetch us from Rosie’s?” I sobbed. “There’s been a terrible accident and Rosie’s going to hospital and it’s all my fault!”

“You just stay there Kenny, I’m on my way,” he told me calmly.

Outside I could hear the screeching of a siren. I ran to the gate and started waving frantically so the ambulance would know where to stop. The paramedics were really calm. They grabbed their bag and asked me what had happened. I explained about Rosie falling and hitting her head.

“Now you just stay calm, she’s going to be fine!” they reassured me as I showed them where Rosie was lying. “There’s always a lot of blood in head injury cases. And they usually look a lot worse than they are.”

Everyone stood right back to let the paramedics through. One of them checked Rosie over and talked to her in a reassuring way, even though she was still unconscious. The other one dealt with her ankle. He had to cut it free. It was all swollen and twisted – gross !

When they were ready they lifted her on to a stretcher and put a mask over her face. It was dead frightening seeing her being wheeled away like that.

Just as they got to the front gate, Dad arrived. He put a comforting arm around Mrs Cartwright’s shoulders.

“She’ll have the best of care at Queen Mary’s Hospital,” he reassured her. “Try not to worry. Is there anything we can do to help? What about Tiff and Adam, will they be all right?”

Mrs Cartwright nodded. “Adam’s round at his father’s anyway, and Tiff’s going to go round there too, aren’t you?” She looked at Tiff, who raised her eyes then nodded sulkily.

“Give me a ring when you’ve got any news of Rosie,” Dad called to her as the ambulance doors closed.

Then the ambulance sped off with its siren blaring.

“Right you lot, look sharp and get your stuff together,” Dad said. “Kenny’s mum has called all your parents, so they’re expecting you back. Hey, come on now, cheer up! I know you’ve all had a shock, but I’m sure Rosie’s going to be fine. She’s going to the right place to be looked after.”

We all went up to Rosie’s bedroom to collect our sleepover stuff. It felt kind of weird being there without her. I guess we were all thinking the same thing because none of us spoke. It was only when we were in the car that Fliss broke the silence.

“I knew that something awful was going to happen!” she sobbed. “I tried to tell you Kenny, but you wouldn’t listen, as usual. Well Rosie’s dead and it’s all your fault !”

I felt just terrible. It didn’t matter how much Dad reassured everybody that Rosie most certainly wasn’t dead and would be just fine. I couldn’t help blaming myself for what had happened. And you could tell that the others blamed me too. They didn’t say anything, they just wouldn’t look at me when they got out of the car. Even Frankie, and she’s my best mate.

“Come on love, I’m sure everything’s going to be fine,” Dad tried to reassure me when we got home.

“But you didn’t see her, Dad!” I protested. “She was all white. And there was so much blood!”

“Well, that’s something you’re going to have to get used to if you’re going to become a doctor,” he said.

“But you don’t understand. It was all my fault! What if I’ve caused her some permanent damage?”

“It’s not like you to get so wound up. You must be very upset,” Dad said gently.

I could feel tears welling up in my eyes again. I wiped them away angrily I hated crying, but somehow I just couldn’t help it. “Look love, there’s no point worrying,” Dad told me. “We’ll just have to wait for Rosie’s mum to ring.”

I swear to you that waiting for that phone to ring was the worst time in my life. I’ll tell you how bad I felt – I couldn’t even kick a football about, and that’s BAD. And it didn’t help that my horrible sister, Molly the Monster, kept winding me up.

“I knew your stupid wild ways would get you into trouble one day,” she said. “I’m just sorry it’s not you in hospital!”

“Why don’t you just shut your mouth before I put my fist down your throat?” I snarled.

“Oooh, temper temper!” she mocked. “I think one injury’s quite enough for one day, even for you!”

I think I would have thumped her anyway if the phone hadn’t rung. I ran to answer it, but Dad had got there first.

“Hello Karen. How’s the patient? Good… Oh, that is good news… Ooh dear, that will be painful… Well, yes, that’s very wise… Oh yes, I’m sure they would. Yes, yes – I’ll tell her. Send our best wishes to Rosie, won’t you? Bye.”

“Well?” I asked anxiously.

“She’s fine,” Dad smiled, “apart from a badly sprained ankle and a bit of a headache. They’re keeping her in hospital for observation because she was unconscious, but she should be back home in a couple of days’ time.”

“Can I…?”

“Yes, you can go and see her. Rosie’s been asking for you all.”

“Right then! What are we waiting for?” I rushed to the door.

“Not so fast, young lady,” Dad pulled me back. “It’s way past visiting time now. You can go tomorrow afternoon. But what you can do now is ring your friends. I’m sure they’re all anxious to know how Rosie is. But make it quick, OK?”

Frankie and Lyndz were both really relieved to hear that Rosie was all right and said that they’d come to the hospital with me the next day. But Fliss just couldn’t resist having a go at me again.

“Well that’s no thanks to you!” she spat when I told her the news. “Mum said that she was lucky not to be paralysed after your antics.”

Fliss’s mum is a real prophet of doom – like mother, like daughter… She didn’t even want Fliss to come to the hospital with the rest of us, in case she picked up some terrible disease! But I shamed Fliss into it by saying she’d look a real misery-guts if she didn’t come.

So three o’clock the next afternoon found us outside the main entrance of Queen Mary’s Hospital.

“I hate the way hospitals smell,” moaned Frankie. “Although I didn’t mind it so much when I went to visit Mum after she’d had Izzy.”

“I hate hospitals, full stop!” Fliss whimpered. “In fact I think I might just wait out here.”

I glared at her, and the others flapped until she agreed to come in with us.

“I’m going to go to the hospital shop to buy Rosie some sweets,” said Lyndz.

“I’ll come with you,” Frankie told her. “I’m going to buy her a magazine to read.”