Maggie clasped and unclasped her hands as she sat anxiously beside the hospital bed in Michaels bedroom. Michael lay propped up against a mountain of pillows, his grey t-shirt showing above the crisp white cotton blanket that covered the rest of him. Hed insisted that the bed be placed beside the window and the drapes be left open so he could look out over the city. He drifted off now and again, but he seemed determined to be awake.
It had been a rough night. Maggie and Bobby, along with the overnight nurse, had tag-teamed sitting up with Michael, who had alternated between sleeping fitfully and waking to spells of deep coughing and ragged wheezing.