One day, I woke up only to see the world in a different light. And it wasn't on the brighter perspective of things. In fact, the world dimmed in my eyes. It's more accurate to say that I started to view it in a different shade- a thousand shades darker and duller.
Beep. Beep. Beep.
"Oh my God! Gumalaw ang daliri niya, Red!"
Those were the sounds I heard before my eyes opened slowly. For a while, I felt blinded by light causing me to squint. There was a pain in my head. Kinapa ko ito gamit ang kamay na walang nakakabit na IV. Naramdaman kong may bendang nakapalibot.
I looked around, trying to make sense of the situation. The smell of alcohol drifted through the air. There were apparatuses around and some medical devices hooked up to me. Nasa ospital ako, obviously.
What happened to me? Pilit kong inaalala kung bakit ako nandito. But, my mind didn't allow me.
"Thank God, you're awake!" I heard someone delightedly said. Napatingin ako dito. Maluha-luha siya't niyakap ako. Hindi masyadong mahigpit. Somehow, it calmed me.
After the warm embrace, she wiped her tears and looked at me. "Ash, what's wrong?" she asked worriedly.
Nangunot ang noo ko. Ash?
"I really think there's something wrong. We should call the doctor to remove the breathing tube so that he can talk." My gaze then turned to the man on a wheelchair.
Nagpapalipat-lipat ang tingin ko sa kanila. The pain in my head still lingered. I was confused. I didn't know what happened that brought me here. I also couldn't recognize myself and even these people. Idagdag pa ang nakikita ko.
Everything should be white, but it wasn't. All I could see is... gray.
What happened to my eyesight? Why does everything look so dull?
I heard them call a doctor using the intercom. Hindi nga nagtagal, bumukas ang pintuan ng hospital room. Pumasok ang doktor kasama ang tatlong nurses. They immediately went to me. After removing the tube, they fed me with pieces of ice. Napaubo pa ako.
"How are you feeling?" tanong agad sa 'kin ng doktor. "Are you feeling fine?"
I didn't respond immediately that I wasn't really feeling okay. Naguguluhan ako. Ano ba ang nangyayari? Luminga-linga ako sa paligid. But, I decided to finally speak. "My head hurts," I rasply said.
"We will talk more about that if you can already. Sa ngayon, I just need to initially assess how you're doing. What's your name?"
My head throbbed forcing to remember but I couldn't. I failed miserably.
"What about them? Do you know who they are?" dagdag na tanong ng doktor at bumaling sa direksyon ng babaeng yumakap sa 'kin at sa lalaking katabi nito.
"I-I don't know," I uttered.
I saw the woman who hugged me earlier gasp. She's on the verge of crying, again.
The man beside her asked, "Doc, what's happening to our son?"
Son? Are they my parents?
YOU ARE READING
When Everything Turns to Gray
Teen FictionERITQUE ARCUS SERIES #1 Ash Grayson Samonte suffers from a disorder called cerebral achromatopsia. He became totally color-blind due to a traumatic brain injury. When colors were drained from his sight, he believes it took everything away. How can h...
