Creep

Blissfully Unaware

The corridors were swarmed with boisterous students, making seemingly no attempt to move to their next scheduled lesson. Of course, among these characterless figures and silhouettes, there had to be one individual that would be making a rather dreadful attempt to push past these lifeless people in order to learn.

That person was James Carpenter.

Many things led James to believe he was the only soul in this school who was there for the education. It could be the fact that his fellow classmates wouldn't comply with the rules, or maybe the fact he was the only one taking the highest level of mathematics. If James felt left out in these lessons, it would soon be replaced with a feeling of concentration and motivation. He would be the one taking down pointless notes, in hope that it would help him become more understanding of the subject. Of course, James was the smart and brainy boy of the school, so understanding came naturally to his mind.

Behind this mask of genius and knowledge, there was a rather disappointing mediocre future ahead for James. His uncle had already made reservations for him to work at his factory, manufacturing car parts. While James hated the idea of not perusing his hoped career as a mathematician, his uncle had already made the necessary reservations . James, despite how much he was angered by the sudden decision, he knew his uncle had the best intentions for James, so the younger male couldn't complain.

After four hours of Advanced Maths, he was preparing to go home. He unzipped his rather common looking backpack, and placed his books with various notes and sketches into the padded bag. Casting his gaze up to Mr Sullivan, the elderly man dismissed James with the nod of his head, which exposed his growing bald patch ever so slightly.

With a smile, James walked out of the room and cruised down the corridor, trying his best not to knock into any people. Soon, he was out of the crowded claustrophobic area that was the school ground, and was out breathing free into the fresh summer air. He found himself captivated by the sunshine. It amazed him that something so bright, so pure, existed in this godforsaken world of war and political arguments balanced out by controversial opinions.

Shaking his head, a small smile graced his freckled features as he jogged down the street to his house. However, being the kindhearted man he is, he couldn't help but hear the distressed calls of a cat.

Seeing a small, black and white cat peeking out of a drain, James knew he would feel a strong wave of guilt inside his heart if he didn't come to the small animal's aid.

"Hey there.. You a lil' stuck?" He asked in his natural, soothing voice, crouching down on the road and stroking the cat. To it's mewls of pain, James felt a sorrowful tang in his heart. "I'll get 'cha out of here, don't worry."

Everything next happened so fast. Hell, James didn't even have a faint idea of what happened. Next thing he knew, he was on the ground, and he couldn't move. People screamed, as a car screeched to a stop. The streets were filled with screams of terror and fear, but to James, they seemed very inaudible.

"Mate, can you hear me?!" A rather large man crouched down, as James simply tilted his head and gained a sharp, sudden pulsating feeling in his neck and he yelped out in the unsuspecting agony. "Woah, stay still. An ambulance is on it's way, just hang in there!"

What happened next was, also, a speedy blur. He saw everything, heard everything... Yet, he didn't react. It felt like he was in a weird trance, he just felt.. Helpless.

"Hi James." The sound of a door closing threw James out of the confined space of his mind, as he looked towards the door. "Good, you're reacting. I'm Dr Morris, and I will be checking all your vitals."

James didn't want to speak. He couldn't explain it - even being the genius he was. "From what the doctors have relayed back to me, you're legs have both been broken - the ligament is torn and.. You won't be... You'll need years of physio. I'm afraid... We believe you've lost all movement in your legs."

He just stared. His sweaty palms was against his jeans - no, his medical gown. His gaze dropped slightly. What was she saying? He wouldn't be ever to move his legs? Ever?

"Can you hear me, James?" Now, Dr. Morris was sitting in front of James, as he looked up ever so slightly. He tried to nod, but felt a stiffness surrounding his neck. Did he have a neck brace on? Not managing to nod, he simply did a shaky thumbs up on his left hand.

"Good, you can move your fingers. That's a good start, James. We're gonna place you in the ward for a while, until you become more stable on your feet. You haven't spoken in all the five hours you've been here, which is a worrying sign." Five hours? It felt like a simple minute had passed since he was on the ground, not the unbelievable time of five hours. Maybe he was asleep.. Maybe this was a dream!

He hoped it was a dream...

"From what I've seen, you reactions are very slow and you seem dazed. We'll put you into Hazel Ward, where you'll be seen by a councilor and a physio daily."

What? Daily? How long did they expect him to stay here?

"Do you know what happened...?" Dr. Morris whispered, as Jerome wagged his hand left to right, almost indicating a no. "..You got hit by a truck, Jerome. You hit your head on the curb, and you were bleeding from your ears. Do you know how serious that is?"

Bleeding... From his ears? This was too much - this had to be a joke! A sick, discourteous joke!

"Your uncle... Does he have a drinking problem?" James' lips parted slightly ,struggling to form words. "Don't speak, James. You're clearly in shock, you'll need time to recover. We believe your uncle, Samuel Carpenter... He was driving the truck. I'm sorry Jerome..." She's sorry? For what? What is there to be sorry about? "...He's dead."