“Oh my god! Drive David. He’s got a gun,” she shouted frantically. He stepped on the gas, and the car immediately thrusted forward. Gunshots left Selena’s ears ringing in pain. When the gunman was out of sight, the car continued to speed towards the end of the street which seemed to go on forever. When the road diverged ahead and they had to turn, it seemed as if the car was going too fast to make a turn either way. That’s when Selena looked next to her to see David’s head laying limply backwards over the head rest. She lost all sense of consciousness throughout her body. After what seemed like an eternity she reached her foot over to the driers side and slammed on the breaks bringing the car to an abrupt halt. 

“911, hello? I need help. My husbands been shot. We’re on Woodland Dr. I think he’s in shock.” She cried.

“Okay, we have an ambulance on the way. Do you see him breathing?” Asked the operator.

“His chest is raising up and down but his neck is bleeding profusely. Someone help me, I need help!” She Shrieked.

“Maam, I need you to remain calm. We can’t control this situation until the ambulance arrives, but we can prevent it from worsening. I need you to find something to stop the bleeding. Without moving his body, I need you to apply pressure to the trauma.”

Tearing off her t-shirt leaving her dressed in only her bra, she pressed it against her husbands neck. She couldn't understand why this had happened to them. Why now? She realized her hands were shaking. The blood was still pouring out from the gunshot wound, and rolling down the small of her arms. She could feel the warmth of the blood tickling her palms. As the ambulance arrived, Selena felt a bit of relief as there were now professionals there who knew what was going on. 

When the professionals arrived, they acted as if it was their job to ignore questions and focus solely on keeping the victim alive. 

“Is he going to be okay?” Sel asked the team of paramedics. 

“He’s still breathing, and he has a pulse. Both are good signs, however, we need to monitor his pulse closely as it continues to rise and fall,” quickly answered one of the paramedics as he closed the door of the ambulance and told Selena to follow them to Bricksburrow Hospital, about 10 miles away.

David fell in and out of consciousness in the ambulance, fainting each time he looked down to see blood covered bandages smothering his neck. The sirens terminated as the ambulance halted at the hospital entrance. David was immediately removed from the ambulance, and was being rolled towards the emergency room. Sel was trying to keep up but was covered from head to toe in her husband’s blood. At the hospital the doctors were assessing her husband’s state to determine whether to send him immediately to the E.R., or to remove the bullet and stitch up the neck. 

Once again, David was being moved from the hospital room. Sel got up to follow the nurses in the middle of all the chaos.

“I’m sorry maamm, you’ll have to wait here. He needs heart surgery, the bullet grazed his heart,” said a nurse.

Falling weakly onto her knees she covered her face with her bloody palms smudging her makeup to reveal her age. She made her way back to the waiting room, she felt like she was someone else trapped in her own body. Her body was trembling in fear for her husband’s life. An older woman in the waiting room saw how distressed she was, sat down next to her, and put her hand on her shoulder. 

“Are you okay?” She offered empathetically.

“It’s my husband…”she winced, “he was shot and now he’s in surgery.”

“I’m going to tell you something hun,” she said as she walked Selena to a chair next to hers.

“It was about four years ago I was in your current position,” the lady she had just met started. “I was sitting on a hospital bed next to my husband covering my face to hide the overwhelming fear and pain that had taken over my body within seconds of the new of our doctor. I tried to hold it together best I could. I wanted to be the strong one for both of us after all I wasn't the one who’d been summoned to a possible death from cancer after fighting through hell to stay alive. I never lost hope though and when they told me he had a 50/50 chance of surviving, that was the day he told me he couldn't undergo the treatments anymore.”

“I remember him telling me in exactly these words, ““I want you to know how much I love you, I want to be with you until the day I die, but these treatments are taking the life from me faster than the disease itself.”’ Now when he spoke these words to me I know it was selfish of me but for me his death was not an option, if it were up to me he'd fight until he was cancer free and I’d be next to him fighting with him. I researched his cancer type and found out there was one more option we hadn't yet explored. I brought it to his attention and he agreed to at least talk to the doctors about it and stay optimistic.”

       “The next visit we went to, he told them he was done with the treatments. He brought up the surgery I told him about and they said that it was a possible procedure for the type of bone cancer he had however, they do not like to operate on people his age due to possible health conditions. I remember when they said this my husband was quick to respond, “”What health conditions, I’m dying.”” The doctor said that they would consider the procedure after checking his vitals, and medical records. When the doctors agreed they explained first. They would make an incision in his arm where the cancers were located and remove some of the bone in his arm before the cancer had a chance to spread. They told us that even after the surgery they could not be positive that the cancer wouldn't spread.My husband said he wanted to go through with it so thats what we did. 

“The day of his surgery I was just like you were today. I was a wreck sitting on the ground not caring who was watching me cry. I was praying for my husband’s life, I promised myself I would never give up. A while after he was released from surgery the surgeons gave us the news that it looked as if the cancer cells had all been removed however, he would have to come back a week later to make sure. My husband kept asking me why we hadn't done the surgery in the first place. The doctors never told us about it because of his age. He has been cancer free for three years and today we are here because he ate some of my cooking and got food poisoning.” She laughed. “I want you to know there is always hope, don't give up trying. Your husband will fight but he needs you to fight with him. Be strong. If you want, you can sleep and I’ll wake you up if a doctor comes in asking for you.” The older lady offered. Selena smiled and whispered, “thank you,” as she leaned her head up against the wall, “for everything.”

Sel opened her eyes screaming, “help me, he’s been shot, help.” The lady who’d told her the story was sitting next to her trying to calm her down. “You’re okay, he’s gotten help honey.” Sel came to the realization that she was no longer in potential danger but was wondering when someone was going to tell her about her husband. He’d been in surgery for about four hours before they came and told her that he was in a room for recovery. The surgeon asked, “would you like to see your husband now?” Without answering she stood up following the surgeon, she quickly turned around and told the old lady thank you realizing that she hadn't needed to stay, her husband sitting next to her. He had probably came back during the time Sel was asleep. 

There he sat five feet away from her. “David I love you,” she whispered with a drop of salt at the crease in her lips. When he didn't answer her Sel looked to the surgeon. He said, “he is still under from the surgery, he will be up in around an hour.” “He’s okay though right?” Asked Selena. “Yes, the surgery went well, however there was spinal damage from the surgery and your husband will no longer have full function of his legs, i’m sorry,” empathized the doctor. 

Sel was lost, confused. She sat there wondering what to make of the situation that was instantly thrown her way.  

No doubt their lives would be different from now on however, Sel decided her feelings for Dave would never change. As life goes on things are bound to change. There is no such thing as long term consistency though many people would like to believe so. Sel heard David shuffle in the sheets of the hospital bed.

        "My legs," he said, "I can't move them."

        Sel looked at her husband unsure how to inform him that he would never move them again. That kind of news could change even the strongest person. It was something that would take time to get used to and all Sel wanted him to know was that he wasn't going to go through any of it alone. 

         The Doc came in and Dave knew something was wrong. Actually he knew something was wrong the moment he couldn't feel his legs. He was trying to convince himself it was still an effect of the drugs in his system. 

         "The surgery was a little rough Dave, you will be alright however, your spinal cord was injured in the process. This means that you will have no movement below your hips. I am so sorry. Im going to give you a moment with your wife." Said the doctor leaving the room ashamed of his work. 

          David began to cry, Sel sat next to him on the bed holding onto his shoulder. "I love you," she whispered. Dave replied, "I'm so sorry." Sel looked at him with tears in her eyes trying to be strong for both of them. What did he have to be sorry for? It could have happened to anyone. It's crazy how dramatically things can change within a matter of seconds, in half a blink of an eye. 

           The shooting was investigated but, there was no evidence left at the crime scene so there was nothing the detectives could use as a lead. The couple didn't get a look at the shooter either as they had a mask covering their face and besides that it was late at night so they couldn't see much anyway. 

          Despite the shooting it made Sel and Dave even closer. Though they weren't able to have children of their own, they adopted two children, two little girls. They taught their childen not to take what you have or time for granted as both are gifts which can be taken quickly away.