The first thing Sang Sorenson realised as she sluggishly came to was the heady scent of disinfectant trailing up her nose. She had no recollection of what had happened and where she currently was. That thought alone should have had her worried and anxious, but she was so sopped up on morphine and other painkillers she couldn't find it in herself to be concerned at this moment in time. She attempted to open her eyes but it was a fruitless endeavour; her eyelids were far too heavy and droopy to open so she decided to simply lie there, her eyes remaining shut. She took a mental inventory of her body, finding it hard to get some control over her numb limbs as she could not move. Her head was pounding for some reason and she suddenly felt a sharp burst of pain in her left shoulder, the feeling travelling all the way down her arm to her fingertips. She tried to cry out, but could not make a sound. Her breathing was deep and laboured. Faintly, she could make out some voices around her, they mainly sounded masculine. She decided she'd have to find out where she was but for the moment had no power over her body so she patiently waited for her anaesthetised limbs to wake up so that she could once again control herself. Despite her body being almost completely numb and unmoving, she was definitely awake and was attempting to decipher the voices around her.
"How long has it been? Hasn't she been there for ages now? Is she in a coma? Why won't she wake up?" asked a desperate voice that Sang had yet to decipher.
"Mr. Coleman, please. Let Dr. Green do his job. She should be awaking soon." Replied a voice, patient and calm. Sang could hear the bustling sound of movement around her and wondered how many people besides the two that had spoken were in the room right now.
"She's doing okay," began a third, tired voice. "To be honest, it's a miracle she's made it this far. She has lost a lot of blood. Who knows what could've happened if the guy had shot her a few inches to the right. She's lucky she got shot where she did." Wait a minute. Had the guy just said that she'd got shot? Sang jerked up, shocked by the information the man had just enclosed. The memories came flooding back to her; the warehouse, the bus, the two men fighting, the man with the gun. She began shaking violently as she replayed the man ducking in front of her and the bullet that had headed straight for her. She had a feeling she had been shot in her left shoulder, as that was where the pain felt the most concentrated and severe. She was definitely awake now, her eyes wide open in shock and horror as tears formed in her eyes from her violent outburst. The tears streamed down her face as she was ever so tenderly pushed back down by a blurry figure wearing what seemed to be a white lab coat.
"There, there. Just lie back down Sang. It's okay. You're safe." Cooed the voice. Remembering from the exchange at the warehouse earlier, she realised it must've Sean, the doctor of the group who was currently tending to her injuries. Why was it that she always found herself being treated by him? This was the second time she'd been in this position and she dearly hoped it would be the last. Sang tried to talk but found her throat as dry as paper and couldn't get past a cough. As her sight returned and the tears dried up, she squinted as her eyes adjusted to the bright light in the room. She was in some sort of hospital room. She made out all the Academy guys around her as she lay on the hospital bed, which was slightly elevated on the upper half. As she scanned the room, she saw expressions of grief and remorse on everyone's faces. Even Owen, who seldom showed emotion, had a sympathetic look on his face. Her face paled as she realised she must've looked like an absolute mess. It was dumb to think of her external appearance now, considering the predicament she was in, but nonetheless she didn't want to be caught in a vulnerable and compromising position. Her mind was swirling with unanswered questions as she wondered how they had got to her and why. She briefly closed her eyes, her expression taut with the aching pain all over her body. When she opened them again, some of the guys had moved closer towards her, their brows furrowed.
"Trouble, you don't know how worried we've been. I was on the phone to you and you were screaming about the bus and suddenly I hear a loud bang and the next thing I know, the line goes dead. We thought you'd-" Gabriel was unable to finish his sentence as his voice choked with emotion and was thick with unshed tears. He grasped her hand, clutching it gently to his chest, his voice desperate. His crystal blue eyes became full of rage when he said, "I swear to God, Sang. Don't you dare ever scare us like that again, you hear? I won't go through that again. I can't just watch you so hurt. I will personally find that motherfu-"
"That's quite enough, Mr. Coleman." Owen interrupted. "I think what Sang needs right now is some rest and some clarity regarding the matter at hand." He said calmly.
"Sure. Sure. Of course she does," nodded Gabriel, reluctantly letting go of her hand and taking a step back.
To her right was Sean, who was taking a look at her vitals and fiddling around with a needle on the back of her hand. He caught her eye, giving her a slight smile.
"You'll be back to normal soon, Sang. Took quite the hit I must say, but you're recovering well so far. We'll have to keep you here for a while however, so that we can do regular check-ups and make sure you recover fully." He reassured. Sang cleared her throat, attempting to talk again.
"What exactly happened? Where am I?" she inquired, her voice croaky from disuse. No one answered immediately and Sang took a note of the uneasiness in the room at her question. There were a few minutes of silence before Owen cleared his throat and spoke up.
"As Mr. Coleman stated, you were on the bus on Walkers Way when he called. You mentioned there was a fight occurring with one man wielding a firearm. You claimed you were unable to exit the bus, and then the call dropped abruptly." Stated Owen, his eyebrows knitted together.
"I-I'm pretty sure that after I got shot, the phone flung out of my hand and it broke. Well, I heard it crack anyway so it's probably broken. I'm sorry." Said Sang quietly.
"Are you shitting me right now? What did I say about the whole apologising thing? You just got shot and now you're just lying here saying sorry for something that was completely out of your control!" Gabriel exclaimed, exasperated as he ran a hand through his hair. Sang smiled at his outburst. Gabriel was so flamboyant and dramatic that it was refreshing.
Her gaze travelled over the rest of the group, first sliding over to Victor who was watching her intently, his eyes locked on hers. He smiled bashfully, his dark eyes lit up as he held her gaze. She looked at North, who was standing next to him. North wasn't smiling, but frowning. She could see the look of distress on his face as he examined her. Sang had yet to look at what the rest of her body looked like but firstly wanted to see the guy's expressions. Luke stood next to Nathan, both of whom wore the same distressed expression as North, similarly sending her sympathetic looks. Silas differed however, as his eyes twinkled with happiness at seeing her finally awake. Sang didn't know if they had all arrived at once or in dribs and drabs. She assumed Sean, Owen and Gabriel were the first ones to be with her and the others probably came after, although Silas looked relived when she'd finally opened her eyes. Kota stood next to Sean, his eyebrows arched in unending curiosity as he looked at her. He blushed slightly as she continued staring at him unabashedly, awkwardly fixing his glasses with his fingers. Sang found it odd that he blushed so easily, especially considering his leadership status and his meticulous behaviour. In a way, he reminded her of herself, as she too blushed frequently. She was extremely shy as a child and now at nineteen was less timid, but there were still times where she'd find herself becoming her old reclusive self, as if that was a part of her that was so ingrained in her very being that it would always show itself no matter how hard she tried to suppress it. Being Sang Sorenson was no walk in the park.
