Jaxx rushed through the cold rain, letting the droplets run down his face. It was dark outside and the air was damp and heavy. The sky was clouded over and lightning cracked across it intermittently. He could hear the thunder rolling in from somewhere far away, but he paid it no attention. His only focus was on getting to the hospital. He could see the flashing light of a police car ahead as he ran by, its siren wailing, and his heart skipped a beat. He had to get there to see his friend.
His eyes were wide with fright as he reached the door of the Emergency Room and shoved open the door without thinking about what would happen if someone saw him.
He stumbled inside, the smell of disinfectant stinging his nostrils and making him dizzy. He pushed past people rushing out of their rooms and found himself at the nurse' station. He looked around wildly for someone else in a white coat, but no one stood at the counter.
She was gone. He didn't know whether to be happy or upset, so he leaned against the counter, waiting for her to come back, hoping she wouldn't leave the keys to her office behind in case anyone came in. He wasn't allowed to go in when someone else was in the room, so he knew he had to wait.
There was only so long a person can stand still. He fidgeted and tapped his foot impatiently. As time went on he began to look for any kind of entertainment in the room, anything that wasn't boring. Finally, he caught sight of a magazine on a shelf just beside the receptionist's desk. He picked it up and tried to concentrate on the story being written in big red letters across the top of the cover. Unfortunately, his mind kept drifting away as he read, and before long he lost interest and tossed the magazine aside again with frustration.
He sat there for over an hour, reading magazines, and flipping pages. Finally, the doctor came out and said he was able to come in.
Jaxx grabbed his bag off the floor where he'd thrown it earlier and followed the man back into the examination room. He watched as they pulled his friend out of the body bags, cleaned up his wounds, and dressed them. The doctor said he was in a coma and needed some rest. But if he woke up soon, there would be tests to confirm what had happened in the accident. Then they'd decide how to proceed. The nurse told them he might wake up and then everything would work out well. He thanked him.
Jaxx left the room, relieved to have finally met his best friend. Now he had to wait, but hopefully, the test would tell him what had happened and then they could figure things out. After all, the worst-case scenario would be a coma. Jaxx smiled reassuringly to himself.
