Spinning, spinning, spinning... The world just kept spinning like an out of control carousel, while I rode the ride and tried to stay on.. Though I wished I could fly off and not endure the hell my life had turned into over the last day. And the world just kept spinning, like it was supposed to do.
Just like my vision was, only that was a bit more of a teeter than a spin... It felt like I was dramatically swaying left to right, very, very slowly... I got up. Y'know how you aren't supposed to walk on a broken leg? I put my foot down, and I couldn't feel a thing; it caused me to laugh. It sounded like I was underwater..
I walked out into the hallway of the hospital, and it was as though it had been deserted. I walked, slamming into the walls as I went, at some point putting my arms out so that I wasn't falling all over the hallway.. The sensation I was getting just from breathing was weird, tickling my throat like a feather was there. I kept giggling, and at some point I started singing "Ring Around The Rosie"... It felt so surreal. The floor kept surging towards me and then falling back, the walls swayed like waving water, moving in, trapping me, and then parting, turing the hallway into a tunnel.. Each step felt as though I was lighter than air.
To be honest, it was starting to get a little creepy. Maybe a little fucked up. But I didn't care at the time. Abandoned-seeming hospital, I'm the patient? Let's get up and walk around while it moved like a leaf in 50mph winds. Sounds great!
The ground surged up at me again, and this time I jumped. Then, I tripped, and fell into the wall, hitting it with my back and then falling onto my side on the floor, facing the wall... Nothing could stop swaying, and I couldn't get up again. It was frustrating. Through this all, my leg had just finally started to hurt. I felt like a little kid, and I started to get frustrated, trying to get up again and keep going, but the swaying kept me down.
Eventually, a nurse turned the corner and saw me. "Oh, dear. How in the heavens.."
I recognized her as the one who had been coming in to give me painkillers. She must've been able to tell I'd been crying, because she kneeled down on the floor next to me and looked into my eyes, which were staring at her. As she came into view, the world seemed to right itself. This nice, sweet old woman actually seemed to care; knew I was just a human being. She eventually stood up, and, not wanting to leave me alone there, picked me up. There wasn't a single wheelchair in the hallway. I kept focusing on her nametag, trying to read it as she carried me bridal style down the hall, my underweight, 5ft5 form not being too heavy. I wondered if I was tired.
When she got me back to my bed, I realized I'd been crying, because she wiped my cheeks off with a tissue. I felt small.. So damn small. Then, I looked again. Her nametag said Alice.. Alice is good, my brain concluded, and a tiny, dopey smile formed on my face.
I heard her say, "Poor baby. I must have given you too much painkiller last time I was here, sugar. I'm sorry." Alice tucked me into the bed, and fluffed my pillow up. I felt two years old, but maybe, just for now, it was okay to be fussed over. She sat down in the reclining chair next to my bed, after using the intercom to explain how she would be in my room for awhile. She turned on the TV, and it was Supernatural. I smiled- my favorite show. Another good thing in my world of despair.
"I'm gonna stay right here until you fall asleep, and when you wake up, just push the blue button on the table next to you. It will tell the nurses station if you need something, and a nurse will come to you."
I smiled again, happy to know that there was some light in this dark tunnel.
YOU ARE READING
Through the Wringer
Ficțiune adolescențiDalton Versailles' life was going great until the accident. He thought the Lanes foster family could be the worst of it, but it was the exact opposite. The worst was yet to come, even over the tragedy that befell his family.
