Lady Of The Island

Recovery and Reconnection

Recovery was...long and boring, to say the least. The constant laying down, sleeping, staring at a blank wall...it got a bit samesy, you know?
When Azure and Lavender would drop by, the time flew a bit faster, but they were never allowed to stay overnight.

Nobody was, for that matter.
Nights at Wellsworth Hospital were certainly terrifying, to say the least. It was eerily quiet, the only sounds were the groaning of patients, the scurrying of nurses and the constant ticking of the old clocks.
Every hour, they would let out a big PING. It got annoying.

One night, however, the door opened very slowly - and Nurse Stone popped her head through the open gap.
"Oh, good! You're awake." She shuffled over, closing the door behind her.
"I suppose you have questions, no?"

"A few, yes...Firstly, you're Burnett's daughter? Was Tasha your mother?" I asked, curiously.

"Yes, yes. Though, she died when I was young - so I didn't really know her. Dad was oddly open about it all, and I accepted that normality. The neighbours did their best to help him, but he always seemed rather broken. Raising me seemed like a chore to him, I don't understand why, but that's his personal issue. He restricted himself after a while, only letting family into his workshop. Then, he started making regular trips here when I was around eight, leaving me with other family members. I watched his physical and mental health decline over time, so I decided to learn medicare to try and help him, and I did. Our relationship has repaired over time, we've reconnected, but there's still that ounce of jealousy from me, you know?" Louise paused. "Oh! I'm rambling, I apologise. Any other questions?"

I shrugged. "How is he?"

Nurse Stone smiled. "He's recovering well, he'll be out soon. The bullet somehow avoided anything important in his neck, and we've been able to replace everything that was hit. His voice won't be the same for quite a while, but we're working our best to try and repair it." She giggled.

"Speaking of, when will I be out? I've been here for so long, and I just want to attend to some business..." I trailed off.

"Tomorrow." Louise bluntly replied. "That's why I'm here, to help you pack anything - oh!"

She looked onto my bedside table, where fresh blue flowers sat, with a romantic note.

"Who left those?" She innocently asked, cocking her head. "Your girlfriend?"

I laughed and brushed the air. "Haha, no - my boyfriend did. He brought my favourite ones, blue water lillies, they're an anxiety reliever according to the books in our home library."

"That's...interesting." She paused. "He reads books about plants?"

"It's kind of his job, actually. He's a botanist, the pay is pretty good and it's about something he's passionate about. I could listen to him for hours discussing different kinds of flowers, what flowers I remind him of...oh he's so cute sometimes." I giggled like a giddy schoolboy. "I love him so much."

Her eyes narrowed.
"What about that?"
She pointed at a crocheted stuffed bear.

I held it close to me.
"My daughter made it, obviously with no help from Azure..." I added a jokey hint of sarcasm. "It's cute, isn't it?"

"Cute, yeah." She raised an eyebrow. "You have a daughter? Which one of you-"

I quickly raised my hand.
"Firstly, insensitive question...."

"...sorry"

"Secondly, Lavender is from a previous relationship, her mother and I agreed that it wasn't going to work out and parted ways on good terms, we still talk - actually, she planned to visit but work kept her home." I smiled, slightly lying.