Apocalypse

Chapter 23

I step into the doors of the hospital and get hit with the heat and the stench of the place, they're are makeshift beds and nurses bustling around tending to patients or frantically trying to find more beds, I already feel more like a hindrance than a patient.

A tallish blonde nurse jogs up to us whilst tying up her hair,
"Hi!" She sounds breathless, "Can I take your name, contact details and reason for admittance please?" She fumbles in her pocket and brings out a notebook, she starts flipping through the pages, pulling up a chair for me to sit on, "feel free to sit whilst I try and find my page." She laughs and looks me up and down.

"Name?"

I open my mouth to speak but Uriah speaks for me "Hazel."

"Just Hazel?"

"Just Hazel." My brother looks stern.

"Oh um Contact Details?"

"If you need anything please contact Uriah, next of kin, you should have my details."

"Sir I don't think I'll be able to access your details without a sur-"

"I'm sure you can manage, just mention Uriah to a doctor and they'll recognise me."

"Urm ok." She raises her eyebrows and starts muttering "reason for admittance, pregnancy" under her breath.

"Anything else?" Uriah asks.

"Yeah, one more thing, can I ask around how far on in the pregnancy are you?" She asks looking directly at me and not Uriah.

"Uh around 8 and 1/2 months,"

"Your practically fit to burst!" She laughs

"Yeah." I smile, partly forced, partly genuine.

"Well that's it, come with me and I'll get you over to the maternity ward."

She helps me into a wheelchair and motions for Uriah to push me into the ward, it's a cosy ward with cartoon animals around the walls in a ribbon, much like the children's ward I used to be so familiar with. As we were talking she mentioned her name was Callie? I think it was? I didn't take in a lot of what she was saying as I presume I won't be seeing her much.

As 'Callie' is helping out of the wheelchair, I see Uriah's eyes light up, he starts walking toward a tall figure across the room,

"Is that?" I hear him mutter to himself

"URIAH!" The person shouts as he sees him, and they high five as they meet.

"How are you?"

"Ugh don't even go there." He laughs "my step sister is working here and since mum is off on holiday I have to help out here." He looks up and points at Callie when he says Step-sister.

"Who's your friend Uriah?" I ask when I've finally got into the hospital bed.

"This is Drew."

"Hah, Drew? That's a strange name."

"It used to be quite popular in like 2010, I can't remember the year, learned it in history."

"Right ok." I laugh.

"Is that your girlfriend?" Drew asks Uriah grinning "cos if it is congrats."

"Uh no that's my sister.." Uriah raises one eyebrow and laughs at my expression, it is a mix of laughter and disgust.

"Oooh..." Drew says laughing and sits in the seat next to my bed fiddling with a pen knife. "So Uriah's sister, who's the lucky man?

"I don't wanna talk about it." I snap holding back the tears.

I see Uriah mouth "difficult subject" and then act out being what he thinks what it would look like if you were in a coma, he looks so stupid I can't help but smile.

I suddenly cry out with pain and look down to see water all over the bed,
"Uh got here just in time huh..." I laugh and then cry out again.

Callie rushes the boys out of the room, shuts the curtains and calls for a midwife,
"I'll be here the whole time don't worry, Uriah is just outside ok?"
I hold her hand and feel another contraction coming on, I scream and bite my knuckles almost drawing blood, no going back now...