Being The Player's Neighbour

Chapter 18 [Part 1] - Penguin And Gunny Bag

I took a deep breath and asked the doctor, "Uhm, what exactly do you mean when you say complications?"

"He has become paraplegic."

This couldn't be happening.

"How did this happen?"

"His spinal cord is permanently damaged because, most probably, he took the fall directly on his lower back." The doctor explained, showing me some x-rays.

"So what about his head?" I asked uncertainly, since he hadn't brought it up at all.

He gave me a questioning look.
"His head?"

I stared back, wondering if he was dumb or just plain blind.
"Yeah. It was quite a visible gash. Like, visible from about...a hundred kilometers away!"

I knew I shouldn't let my hurt and anger out on the poor doctor, but he was asking for it by acting so thick.

"Hold on, hold on." He held his hands up, probably in an attempt to pacify me. "This guy has barely a few minor cuts and bruises on his head. Luckily, his helmet was almost intact. What are you even talking about?"

But that couldn't possibly be right. I had seen it myself, Aaron's helmet shattering into pieces because of the force with which it hit the ground.
But then as far as I could remember, Aaron had landed directly on his shoulders, tucked into a ball to reduce the impact...

Oh. My. God.

I think the stupid hospital air had razed my analyzing capacity.
How could I not have realized it before?

"You're talking about the other guy in the bike crash!"

The doctor seemed more than taken aback by this response. I was beaming like I'd just discovered a parallel galaxy.

"Does your patient have dark brown hair, chocolate coloured eyes and...never mind."

I was going to say a perennial smirk on his face, but thought better of it.

He shook his head and gave me the best news I could have ever heard.
"No...my patient has jet black hair and grey eyes."

It was James.
The guy in the motorcycle crash that the doctor said had been paralysed was James Reed.
Not Aaron Miller!

I was so relieved and happy that I was almost about to hug the grim-faced doctor and maybe do a quick happy-dance.
But then it dawned on my senses a few seconds later that I still didn't know what condition Aaron was in.

I took directions to the room he had been put in and reached there just as another doctor was coming out. I guessed that this was actually Aaron's doctor.

"How is he?" I asked worriedly.

This one was much nicer. He smiled and said, "The operation went smoothly and he is fine now. Needed a lot of stitches, but those heal in no time. He's a lucky kid."

I thanked him and went inside.
Aaron looked a bit pale but other than that the sight still mesmerized me. His closed-eyed face was the epitome of beauty and looking at his perfect features, another tiny wave of self-consciousness flooded through me.

I settled down on one of the chairs to wait and called my mom, explaining to her that Aaron was in the hospital so I wouldn't be coming home.
We definitely needed to break the 'dating' news to the parents soon cause staying over in hospitals for a whole 48 hours is not something normal friends do.

By the time I finished the call, Kyle, Daniel, Mikayla and Zeb had returned. They'd all gone to grab a bite and had asked me to come too but I was too keyed up to eat. That really surprised me 'cause I almost never skipped a meal.