Wish Upon A Sunset

A Walk In The Dark

Emma

"Your mom is lucky to be alive," Dr Fengal said as she finished checking my mother's vitals.

Nodding numbly in return, I could only stare at my mom as she lay upon the hospital bed. I had arrived at the hospital not too long after the EMTs had unloaded her from the ambulance and into the emergency room. Dad had let me borrow the car while he stayed behind with my sister.

Thankfully, Michelle had stayed asleep throughout the whole thing and he hadn't wanted to wake her to bring her to the hospital in the middle of the night. I didn't blame him. She didn't need to deal with this at her age. She was only sixteen.

Molly had followed me here and had stayed for a couple of hours, but she had needed to get home. She had been exhausted and being pregnant hadn't helped. She had left before my mom was allowed visitors, though, and I wished she was here right now to offer me strength. I hated hospitals. Or at least, this one anyway. Too many unpleasant experiences had left me traumatized.

The beeping of my mom's heart monitor echoed in my ears as I continued to stare down at her sleeping form.

"Ms. Carter?" Dr. Fengal called from the other side of the bed.

Pulling my eyes from my mom, I turned and looked at her. "Hmmm?"

The doctor straightened and put her hands in the pockets of her white coat. "I want you to understand how serious this is. Your mother almost died tonight. Her heart literally stopped several times while in the ambulance and the EMTs were lucky that they were able to get her here on time."

My heart thumped hard at her words. A chill moved over my body and I hugged my arms around my waist. "I understand," I said, but the words were raspy as they left my lips.

Dr. Fengal nodded and sighed. "We'll need to keep her for observation. It's mandatory in a situation like this."

Confused, I asked, "Situation like what?"

"Attempted suicide."

I tensed at that, and ice shards erupted beneath my skin. Suicide? Had she been trying to kill herself? I thought she had just been trying to get high and forgot how many pills she had taken, but had she actually been trying to off herself? "You think it was attempted suicide?"

She shook her head. "I can't be certain, but it's very well possible. Which is why the hospital has a mandatory hold for that reason. She needs to be watched and evaluated before we can let her go home."

That was understandable. I didn't like the idea of her going home and being left unattended. That was an enormous responsibility for my dad and sister. What if she tried it again?

I nodded at the doctor. "Yes, I think that's a really good idea. How long will you be keeping her for?"

"Well, it depends on what we find. It can be anywhere from a few days to a few weeks."

Relief swept through me at that. I didn't necessarily want them to find anything, but I wanted my mom to heal. Whatever it took.

I told the doctor that I understood, and she left me to say goodnight to my mom. I could hear her speaking quietly with the nurse that was on staff as I bent over and kissed my mom's forehead. My heart ached at how small and vulnerable she looked, gently snoring in the giant hospital bed, and I blinked back tears. I was still angry at what she had done, but I was more angry at myself for my part in it. Ultimately, I was responsible for everything that had led up to this moment.

I leaned forward, my fingers gently brushing a stray lock of hair from my mother's forehead. Trying to steady myself, I took a deep breath. I glanced around, making sure we were alone, and then whispered, my voice wavering. "Mom," I began softly, "I don't know if you can hear me, but I need to talk to you. I love you so much. More than anything in this world. But I'm also so angry with you." My voice caught, and I paused to steady myself.