Silence

Chapter 4: Hospital

Time went slowly. It was like a snail making a journey around the world. I had books and my iPod, but I couldn't focus on anything.

After I found out that I was deaf, I also found out that my legs had been crushed, but thankfully I was not paralyzed. I had doctors streaming in 24/7 poking, prodding, wiggling and sticking things in my ears. I still couldn't hear anything. I was slowly learning to lip read, but I couldn't be certain that they were saying what I thought they were.

Then on the Wednesday after I woke up (Tuesday was when the class collapsed and I slept from then to Sunday), one of my friends visited me. Ruby was about 160cm tall, grey-blue eyes, dirty blond hair flowing down to her hips, a slightly freckled face and a healthy tan, all suiting her athletic body (compared to her I was a fat couch potato). She came in and started talking rapidly, and I knew that because her mouth started moving at 100 km per hour.

"I'm deaf," I stated, not sure whether I was whispering or shouting, as I watched her mouth make a rather large 'O' shape.

She started moving her hands, and a rather confused look crossed my face until I realised what she was doing. Sign language, I thought, of course! All I knew was the alphabet. She was self learning sign language. I set myself to learning it in my free time.

"I don't know sign language yet, Rubes!" I stretched this out so I could feel how I was saying it.

She got out a piece of paper and a pen: "Why are you talking so loudly and slowly? You're the deaf one here!" She wrote. I would expect her to say something like that. Ruby was crazy and sensible, quiet and loud, bookworm and athlete, and completely unpredictable. It all depended on her mood. She was the friend who we had princess parties with. 

I snatched the piece of paper from her, meaning it as a playful gesture, and nearly fell off the bed. I steadied myself and started writing. "What have I missed in school?" I gave it to her and she laughed.

"Nothing."

I looked at her with a look that said no, really.

"Zilch, nil, zero..."

This time she was met with a confused look.

"School has been closed because of the 'classroom collapsing and fatally injuring students'."

Another confused look. She gave me a newspaper that was lying around. The front page headline read: TOP SCHOOL'S CLASSROOM COLLAPSES AND FATALLY INJURES STUDENTS. I read on. Is one of Australia's top schools really that safe? During a storm that should have resulted in students going home, a classroom was hit and collapsed with all the students inside. I scanned to the statistics at the bottom of the page. 10 out of 10 students found. We had a very small class. 2 minor injuries, 7 major injuries, 1 dead.

Dead.

That word stood out like a swan amongst ducks.

Dead.

Who died?

Ruby saw my shocked expression and silent tears streamed down her face.

She said one word which I could decipher.

"Ciara."