“They’ve been in there with Diane for almost two hours.”
“Two hours?” Mickey asks.
“Yeah. They should be finished dressing Diane up by now. Let me go in there and get them out the room so everybody else can get a chance to come up.”
“You better hurry up Michael, because much more relatives are planning to come up to see Diane too.”
“What! Oh no! Let me get the girls out.” Michael turns around and goes into the room.
Michael walks into the hospital room. He passes the first hospital bed where an elderly white female patient is sleeping with a young white woman sitting on a chair beside her. The young woman looks at Michael as Michael walks to the closed curtain on the other side of the room. Michael hears the girls talking and laughing. He stops and says, “Hello in there! Can I come in now?” Michael hears footsteps approaching the curtain. The curtain opens up with Bernice standing on the other side. “Hi Michael,” Bernice says.
“Hi Bernice,” Michael says as Bernice turns away. Michael steps in behind the curtain. He sees all the girls sitting on the bed completely surrounding a dreary looking Diane D with Diane D wearing a long navy blue bustier and a large navy blue towel wrapped around her waist as she sits up on the bed.
“Hi Michael,” Miranda, Kelly, Nancy and Lonna say.
“Hey,” Michael says. Bernice gets back on the bed on Diane D’s right side. She takes a jar of Mineral Ice and puts some of it on her hands. She hands the jar of Mineral Ice to Lonna as Lonna and Kelly sit on each side of Diane D in the back. Bernice rubs the Mineral Ice all over her palms. She takes Diane D’s right arm and rubs the Mineral Ice all on it. Lonna puts some Mineral Ice on her hands. She rubs the Mineral Ice all over her palms as Kelly lifts up Diane D’s long braid and opens up the back of Diane D’s bustier. Lonna then rubs the Mineral Ice all over Diane D’s back, neck and shoulders. Nancy and Miranda sit directly in front of Diane D with Miranda wiping Diane D’s left fingers with a towel and Nancy holding a fresh tank top, a fresh pair of leggings and unbuttoning a fresh shirt. Charlotte sits on the left side of Diane D, gently holding and rubbing Diane D’s left arm and elbow with another jar of Mineral Ice. She and Miranda then look at the bandage on Diane D’s left arm and pull it back. They see Diane D’s needle mark. “Wow,” Michael says. “I see you girls are putting the whole jar of Mineral Ice on her.”
“Yeah she really needs this for her aches and pains,” Miranda says.
“I know.” Michael looks at Diane D and says to her, “Hey Diane. Boy, I see you’re still in a lot of pain, huh?” Diane D just nods her head a little with eyes red, swollen and half closed. Michael turns back to the Dianettes and says, “Y’all almost finished in here, right?”
“No we’re not almost finished yet Michael,” Lonna says.
“We didn’t finish putting the Mineral Ice on her,” Miranda says.
“And we didn’t finish dressing her yet either,” Nancy says.
“Well hurry up in here,” Michael says. “Everybody else is downstairs waiting to come up. The security says we can’t have too many people up here in the room because of a safety hazard. That’s why you girls have to hurry up and leave the room so everyone else can get a chance to come up.”
“Michael, Aunt Mary told all of us to watch Diane until she and Uncle Barry come back,” Nancy.
“I know what she told us, but other family members want to come up and visit Diane too. They’re not allowed up here in the room until you girls leave.”
“We can’t leave Diane right now Michael, she needs us,” Miranda says. “Don’t you see that the medication they gave her last night has her in a lot of pain?”
“Yes I see that Miranda, but you all still have to leave the room! Nicolas and Mickey are outside in the hallway right now. They can stay here in the room with Diane.”
“Yoohoo!” a woman’s voice calls from behind the curtain. “Hello!” Michael and the girls turn around and look. Michael walk towards the edge of the curtain. He opens the curtain and sees an older black female kitchen staff member approaching the curtain carrying a tray of food. “Is the patient ready to eat?” the kitchen staff member asks. The kitchen staff member passes by the curtain then passes Michael. She looks behind the curtain and sees Diane D sitting up on the bed surrounded by the Dianettes. She says to Diane D, “Are you ready to eat Miss?” Diane D nods her head a little with her eyes still half closed as she looks at the tray of food. The kitchen staff member sets the tray of food down on a table and asks Diane D, “Where do you want this tray?”
“Just leave it there ma’am,” Diane D says.
Bernice gets up off the bed and approaches the table. She picks up the tray of food off the table then turns to the kitchen staff member and says, “We got this ma’am. You can go now.” Bernice turns away with the tray of food and walks back to Diane D with it as Lonna gets up off the bed.
Lonna approaches the end of the curtain where the kitchen staff member is as the kitchen staff member asks, “Does the patient need my help to feed her?”
“No, that’s okay miss,” Lonna says. “We’ll feed her. Bye.” Lonna closes the curtain right pass Michael’s and the kitchen staff member’s faces, forcing Michael and the staff member to quickly back up.
“Well excuuuse me!” the kitchen staff member says as she and Michael look at the curtain, then look at each other. They turn around and head towards the doorway.
As Michael and the kitchen staff member reach the doorway, they suddenly hear the girls burst out laughing. They look back towards the curtain. They look at each other again then turn back around and exit the room.
The kitchen staff member and Michael enter the hallway. The kitchen staff member approaches a cart that has more trays of food on it as Michael approaches Nicolas and Mickey. “Are the girls coming out now?” Nicolas asks.
“No, not yet Nicolas,” Michael says. “They wanna feed Diane her food now.”
“What! You know Michael the rest of the family is gonna be pretty pissed off if they don’t get a chance to come up here and see Diane.”
“That’s right Michael,” Mickey says. “Aunt Christine, Uncle David, Dana and the rest of them flew in from Jamaica this morning.”
“What!” Michael shouts. “You’re kidding!”
“No I’m not! Word got out to all of them that Diane was in the hospital.”
“What! How did they find out about it?”
“Grandma Gracy mentioned it to Uncle David on the phone last night. He got hysterical and told everybody in the family down there that Diane is in the hospital, then they all got hysterical! The entire family hopped on the plane this morning and flew up here! They’re all on their way here to the hospital to see Diane.”
“Oh no!”
“Yeah Michael,” Nicolas says. “Dana was pretty pissed off when she found out that Diane was in the hospital and then became pissed off at us, wanting to know why the hell none of us called her or her family up and told them about it right away.”
“Oh yeah? Did you tell Dana we didn’t want to worry any of them?”
“Yeah we told her that, but she says that’s not the point. She said we still should’ve called her family up and told them all about it as soon as Diane was admitted in here. She’s real angry at all of us right now. When she found out Diane was in the hospital, she called Tony up.”
“She did?”
“Yeah. Then Tony called up Teresa. Then Teresa told Joseph about it. Now Tony, Teresa and Joseph are on their way up here to see Diane too!”
“My God. How many visitors are downstairs waiting to see Diane?”
“The same number like the other day, around fifty.”
“Around fifty?!”
“Yeah. Maybe more.”
“There were only around ten people down there when I first left!”
“Well more visitors showed up! Dana’s family should all be up here at the hospital any minute now too. That’s why you have to get the girls out the room right away. Visiting hours will be over before you know it and no one else will get a chance to come up and see Diane!”
“Alright, let’s get the girls out.” Michael turns to the security and shouts, “Security! Could you call downstairs for me and tell them they can send the next visitors up, please!”
“Send the next visitors up?!” the security guard shouts. “I can’t! You still have visitors in that room, don’t you?”
“Yeah we’re gonna get them out now!”
“Alright, but we can only send four visitors up at a time!”
“Alright, four visitors is cool! Send them up!”
“Okay!”
Michael turns around and goes into the room as Nicolas and Mickey follow behind him.
Michael, Nicolas and Mickey enter the hospital room. They pass the first hospital bed where the elderly white female patient is still sleeping with the young white woman still sitting on the chair beside her. The young woman looks at Michael, Nicolas and Mickey as Michael, Nicolas and Mickey walk to the closed curtain on the other side of the room. Michael, Nicolas and Mickey hear the Dianettes talking and laughing as they head towards the curtain.
Michael, Nicolas and Mickey approach the curtain as Michael calls out, “Okay girls, Nicolas, Mickey and I are here! We’re coming in!” Michael, Nicolas and Mickey open the curtain up. They enter behind the curtain and see Diane D sitting up fully dressed now still completely surrounded by the Dianettes as each of the Dianettes hold a food or drink from the tray right up to her mouth. Diane D eats food from a fork Miranda is holding. She then sips on a straw from a small carton of milk Nancy is holding. Charlotte puts a piece of toast up to Diane D’s mouth. Diane D takes a bite out of the toast as Kelly holds a carton of juice and a straw to Diane D’s mouth. Bernice holds a dessert and spoon to Diane D’s mouth as Lonna holds a soda and straw to Diane D’s mouth.
“Hey Diane,” Nicolas says.
“How are you feeling Diane?” Mickey says as he and Nicolas approach near the Dianettes.
“Are you girls ready to leave the room so the rest of the family can come up to see Diane now?” Michael asks. “Nicolas said there’s around fifty or more visitors downstairs waiting to come up to see her.”
“Fifty or more visitors?” Nancy says. “But, we’re not finished feeding her yet Michael.”
“Yeah,” Miranda says. “She didn’t finish her food yet.”
“Nor her drinks yet,” says Lonna.
“Nor her dessert,” says Bernice.
“Alright that’s it, time’s up!” Michael angrily and shouts. “Everybody ….out!”
“What?” the Dianettes say. Michael angrily grabs the food and juice containers out of the girls hand and slams the food down on the tray. He then grabs the tray. “What are you doing Michael?!” Nancy asks.
“Watch me!” Michael says as he brings the tray to the dresser. He goes back to the Dianettes then grabs Lonna and Bernice by the arms. “Let’s go!” Michael says as he pulls Lonna and Bernice up off the bed. Lonna and Bernice scream a little. Michael wraps his arms around their waists as Nicolas pulls Nancy and Miranda off the bed. Nancy and Miranda scream a little. Nicolas wraps his arms around their waists as Mickey pulls Charlotte and Kelly off the bed. Charlotte and Kelly scream a little as Mickey wraps his arms around their waists! The Dianettes scream as Michael, Nicolas and Mickey bring them towards the curtain.
“Stop Michael!” Lonna says. “You can’t do that to us!”
“That’s right!” Kelly says. “Mary told us all to watch Diane until she comes back! She’s not back yet!”
“Look, you girls are being very stubborn right now!” Nicolas shouts as he, Michael and Mickey bring the Dianettes towards the door. “Michael just told you all that Diane has a lot of visitors downstairs waiting to come up and see her! Can’t you understand that?”
“But your mother told us to stay here and watch Diane!” Nancy says.
“Nicolas and I are here now,” Mickey says. “We’ll watch and finish feeding Diane! We’ll explain to Mom that security won’t allow too many visitors in the room all at once and we had to make room for more visitors, that’s all!”
“Yeah, time’s running out! One two three!” Michael shouts as he, Nicolas and Mickey bend down. They bend back up and gently lift all the girls up off the floor and shout, “Uupsy daisy!”
“Aaaahhh!” the Dianettes scream. The fellows bring the girls towards the doorway then through the doorway as the elderly woman’s visitor looks on.
Michael, Nicolas and Mickey put the girls back down in the hallway. Kelly is about to slip as they all catch her. “Be careful Kelly,” Michael says.
Kelly angrily turns to Michael and shouts, “Be careful my foot! I’m going back in there to take care of Diane!”
“So will I,” Miranda says.
“Me too!” Lonna says.
“That’s right,” Nancy says. “Aunt Mary told us all to keep an eye on Diane and it seems like y’all are over riding her!”
“We’re not over riding Mom Nancy,” Nicolas says. “But do you all have to be in the room with Diane?”
“Yes Nicolas,” Charlotte says. “That’s the way your mother wants it!”
“That’s right,” Bernice says. “She wants all of us in there with Diane!”
“Girls please!” Nicolas says. “We promise you’ll get back in the room to take care of Diane, okay! We promise! We just want to let the rest of the family come up and see Diane, okay? Let’s not be selfish, okay?” The Dianettes calm down. “Good. That’s what I wanna see. I’ll be right back.” Nicolas turns to Michael and says, “Michael, Mickey and I are gonna head back in the room and check on Diane.”
“Okay Nicolas,” Michael says. Nicolas and Mickey turn and head back into the room. Michael turns to the girls and says, “Why don’t you girls wait downstairs with everybody else.”
“We’re not leaving Michael,” Lonna says.
“That’s right,” Bernice says. “Mary told us to stay here and that’s what we’re gonna do.”
“But, I don’t think the hospital security want too many people standing in the hallway,” Michael says.
“Too bad Michael,” Miranda says. “If we can’t be in the room with Diane, then we’re gonna stay right out here, that’s all.”
Michael looks at the girls. He then says, “Okay, I guess you all can stay out here. But please stay cool until everybody gets a chance to come up and see Diane, please? It’s only fair.” Michael and the girls hear noises coming down the other end of the hallway. They turn to look. They see Diane D’s paternal grandparents Gracy and Grandpa Mike, Aunt Marilyn and Uncle Tonio rush down the hallway towards them. Diane D’s family approach the girls and hug them. They then hug Michael.
“Well it’s about time we got up here!” Tonio says.
“That’s right Michael!” Gracy says. “Everybody in the lobby is starting to get restless and uptight, wondering when you were gonna call up for the next visitors!”
“Yeah Michael,” Grandpa Mike says. “What took you so long?”
Michael looks at the Dianettes. The Dianettes look back at him as Lonna has her arms folded. Michael looks back at Grandpa Mike and says, “Nothing. We just had to wait for the room to be available.”
“Yeah?” Marilyn says. “Well I think you better get downstairs and explain to everybody what’s going on up here. I think they’re about to get into another argument and fight down there just like the other day!”
“Oh no! I better go stop it! Let me tell Nicolas and Mickey I have to get downstairs.” Michael turns and steps into the room.
Three seconds later, Michael comes back out the room with Nicolas following right behind him. Nicolas approaches his grandparents and relatives and gives them a hug. He tells them, “I’m gonna go downstairs to the lobby with Michael to break up the argument down there.”
“Okay Nicolas,” Gracy says. “Be careful! They’re all edgy down there.”
“Okay Grandma.” Nicolas turns to Michael and says, “Come on Michael let’s shoot!” Nicolas and Michael turn and hurry down the end of the hall as Diane D’s relatives and The Dianettes look on.
Inside the hospital Lobby, the elevator door opens. Nicolas and Michael come out of the elevator. They look in the lobby and are stunned to see around a hundred people there, fussing with several security guards. “My God, look at all these people,” Michael says. “All these people are waiting to visit Diane?”
“Yep,” says Nicolas.
“It looks like around a hundred people here. I thought you said it was around fifty visitors waiting to see Diane when you left down here!”
“Well obviously more visitors showed up! You know my mom’s side of the family is large and my father’s side of the family is large. Obviously a lot of them are here. Plus word got out among all the communities that Diane is in the hospital. I think a lot of her fans and admirers are here too.”
“They are here,” Michael says. “I see some people wearing her name on their T-shirts.” Michael and Nicolas see some visitors wearing T-shirts that read ‘DIANE D’ on them. They see other visitors wearing T-shirts that read ‘DIANE D AND THE DIANETTES’ on them. They see five teenage girls standing in a circle, wearing different color sweatshirts with different color letters that read ‘DIANE D AND THE DIANETTES’ on them.
One of the teenage girls says to the other, “I like your shirt. That’s a nice design and color.”
“Yours is nice too,” a second girl says.
“Boy I hope we get to visit Diane D!” a third girl says. “I want her to see me wearing this shirt. I want her to know that I’m her and The Dianettes’ biggest fan!”
“No I want her to see me wearing this shirt,” a fourth girl says, “so she can know I’m her and The Dianettes’ biggest fan.”
“She’s gonna see me in my shirt first,” says a fifth girl. The teenage girls start to laugh, holding and admiring their shirts. They then sing Diane D and The Dianettes’ song ‘Where’s The Flyyy Girl’. The teenage girls giggle.
“My gosh,” Michael says. “It’s so many people down here. I didn’t realize that Diane was so popular.”
“Me neither,” Nicolas says as he and Michael look at the crowd. They then approach the crowd. The teenage girls turn and see Michael and Nicolas. They become excited as one of them shout, “Hey! There goes Diane D’s husband! And Diane D’s brother!” The teenage girls become excited! They start to scream and wave their hands towards Michael and Nicolas. The rest of the crowd sees Michael and Nicolas and start to cheer, calling out, “Hey Michael! Hey Nicolas!”
Michael and Nicolas see Dana’s parents David and Christine and the rest of Dana’s family in the crowd. “Aunt Christine, Uncle David!” Michael says as he and Nicolas give Aunt Christine and Uncle David a hug and kiss. They then hug Dana’s siblings. “When did you all get here?” Michael asks.
“We just got here,” Christine says. “So what’s going on here Michael? How’s Diane doing?”
“She’s still in a lot of pain from that medication the doctors gave her last night.”
“Oh yeah?” says Uncle David. “Well we wanna see her right away.”
“We can only let four visitors see Diane at a time Uncle David. Your parents are up there with Diane now.”
“They are?”
“Yeah. Where’s Dana?”
“She’s on her way,” Christine says. “She’s coming here with Tony, Teresa and Joseph. They should all be here any minute now.”
“Is she still upset with us for not telling you all about Diane right away?” Nicolas asks.
“Yeah she’s still pissed off at you all,” Uncle David says.
“Yeah that’s what we were afraid of.”
“Let me explain to everybody,” Michael says as he turns around and steps up on a stool. Nicolas steps up on another stool. They both turn and face the crowd. The crowd cheers for them.
Four young women from the back of the crowd call out, “Oh Nicholaaaas!” Nicolas looks towards the back of the crowd at the young women as they hide their faces and giggle. Michael begins to speak to the crowd and says, “Hello everybody!”
“Hey Michael, Nicolas!” a male fan says. “When are we gonna get a chance to go up and visit Diane? We’ve been waiting down here forever!”
“I know and I’m sorry, but everybody cannot go and visit Diane!” Michael shouts. “Look! There are entirely too many visitors here! I’m afraid a lot of you won’t get a chance to visit Diane at all! Everybody in her family will get a chance to go up and see her, I’ll make sure of that, but we can only allow four people to visit at a time!”
“Hey what about us?” a man in the crowd wearing a Diane D sweatshirt shouts. “We love Diane D too you know! Can we get a chance to visit her too?”
“If you’re not her family sir, you won’t be able to visit her! I’m sorry, but visitation is strictly for family and close friends only!”
“Aaaahhhh,” the crowd says.
“I’m sorry people!”
Nicolas looks towards the back of the crowd and says, “Michael, there’s Tony and Joseph now.” Michael looks towards the back of the crowd. He and Nicolas see Tony and Joseph standing behind everybody, watching everybody. Nicolas looks towards the hospital entrance way behind the crowd and says, “Oh oh, Michael. Ther