All the Way to Heaven

Chapter 15

I forced myself up to the edge of the bed, easing my leg over the side. It hurt worse today than it had yesterday. How was that even possible?

I leaned forward, grabbed at the arm of my makeshift wheelchair, and drew it toward me with shaky arms. I needed to use the restroom something fierce. My head throbbed an offbeat to the pulse in my ankle, making me slightly nauseous. Outside my window, the sun was high in the sky, and the alarm clock on the nightstand read 1:30 PM. I'd been asleep for nearly fifteen hours.

I managed to make it into the chair without it rolling out from under me, and then scooted slowly across the room to the door. I leaned forward and peered out into the corridor, relieved to find it empty. I eased out, cringing at the sound of the wheels bumping across the tile. In the bathroom, I caught sight of my haggard face in the mirror. Ugh. I performed a perfect one-footed pivot from my chair to the toilet. Several minutes later, a light tap sounded on the door. I was back in my chair, washing my hands, and staring at the black-shadowed eyes of my reflection.

"Ani?" It was Isa.

"Come in. I'm decent."

The door opened slowly and Isa stuck her head around it before stepping inside. "Oh, Ani!" she exclaimed when she saw my fever-reddened cheeks and bleary eyes. She rushed to my side and put her cool hands on my cheeks. "You are so warm, my friend. How can I help you? Do you need medicine? Perhaps hot tea?" She bustled around the small space while she spoke, grabbing towels from a high shelf and setting them on the counter next to the sink. "Here," she said, handing me a washcloth and turning the knobs on the faucet. When the water had reached a temperature that satisfied her, she dropped a little stopper into the drain and the basin began to fill. "I do not think it is safe for you to get in the bathtub yet, but you can wash here for now. I will bring you fresh clothing, yes?"

"What about my bandages?" I asked, holding up my hands.

"Nessun problema. I will change them for you."

Isa moved around me, reaching into a cupboard beside the mirror. From it, she withdrew a small amber bottle with a cork stopper. "It is mente piperita e lavanda. Mint. And lavender oil. It will help you breathe easier. For your coughing." She patted her own chest. "Opens the air."

I nodded again, catching a whiff of the refreshing scent of the essential oils as she sprinkled a few drops into the water and swirled it around with her fingertips. When the sink was full, she dipped the washcloth into the hot water, wrung it out and handed it to me. "Wash," she commanded. With a promise to return shortly, she ducked out, leaving me slouched in my chair, holding the warm cloth to my face, breathing in the scented steam.

Within moments, she was back, a pile of clean clothes I didn't recognize in one hand, my water glass in the other. After refilling it, she handed it and two of my pain pills to me and I swallowed them, wincing at the rawness of my throat.

"I help you undress." She chuckled when I clutched the edges of my sweater together over my chest. "You are shy? I understand. But now is not time to be shy."

"Sorry. I'm just a private person. It's not easy for me."

She made a gentle dismissive noise and reached for the sleeves of my sweater, tugging them down my arms. I slipped out of it, removed my tank top, then stood on one foot and let her help me out of my skirt and underwear.

"Oh Ani. Look at you!" She was standing slightly behind me, supporting me with one hand on my elbow. She ran the fingers of her free hand over my hip.

I craned my head around to peer down my side, clutching the edge of the vanity to keep from toppling over. A swath of wine-colored bruises interspersed with a few raw patches decorated my skin from the crest of my right hipbone down over the curve of my backside to the top of my thigh, the part of me that had taken the brunt of my weight when I fell over.