Another Reason To Live (Watty Awards 2014)

Chapter 19

Chapter 19:

I felt like I was stuck in the elevator, waiting for it to reach the sixth floor.  I wanted to be irritated that it was such a slow moving elevator, considering this was a hospital, but my mind was occupied otherwise by the thought of Gerard being awake.  I could've sworn that the elevator was moving at the same sluggish speed that it was moving at when Mikey and I rushed to the hospital when we first found out about the accident.

My heart was still racing as a result of running as fast as I could back to the hospital and because of my excitement to see Gerard.  My breathing was still somewhat labored, especially since I had to dodge in and out of the way of other people in the main lobby, all with a clunky backpack on my back.  I disregarded their dirty looks and got in the nearest elevator.

The door finally opened and I resumed running down the hallway and towards Room 616.  No matter how fast I put one foot in front of the other, it seemed like it took an extra five minutes to reach the opened door. 

I came to a screeching halt in the doorway as I saw two nurses and a doctor standing around Gerard's bed, with Donna, Donald, Frank, and Mikey standing as closely as they could to get a view to see what they were doing to Gerard.  The white lab coat and light green scrubs seemed to form a curtain around the bed, as if purposely trying to keep me from seeing him.

Luckily, Frank quickly saw me in the doorway and walked over.  "Hey Scar, I'm glad you made it back," he smiled.

I looked up at him, trying to slow my breathing.  "Me too.  Thanks for the call."

He chuckled a little and said, "Woah there, Sweaty, take a breather.  He isn't going anywhere."

I felt the corners of my mouth turn up slightly as I wiped my forehead, which was in fact covered with a thin layer of sweat.  "I know, but I just wanted to be here when he woke up."

"Here, you can come on in.  They're trying to get Gerard to open his eyes so they can check his pupils."

He gently laid a hand on my shoulder and escorted me inside the room.  I could hear the doctor speaking to Gerard as if he were a small child, trying to coax Gerard to open his eyes.

"Gerard, I need you to open your eyes now.  We need to do a few tests so we can make sure that you're waking up properly, okay?" 

I stood on my tip-toes in an attempt to see over their shoulders to get a view of Gerard.  I managed to see a bit of his arm, but it was covered in the same blanket that usually covered his body.  

"Scarlette, honey, come over here.  You'll be able to see him better,"  Donna suggested, gently waving me over with her hand.  

As I walked over to her, she moved a step to the right so there was a small gap for me to stand in.  I positioned myself between her and Frank and drew in a breath as I raised my eyes to see Gerard properly.

An overhead light was illuminating his figure, which seemed to have a somewhat normal complexion now.  His flesh was no longer stone looking, and his face was no longer in the same, vacant expression.  However, his nose was somewhat scrunched and his eyes were partially squinted, as if he were smelling something awful.  He was mumbling something, but a mixture of fatigue and lack of sensory input for a few weeks left his words slurred and jumbled.

"I didn't quite understand that, Gerard.  Can you say that again?"

Gerard turned his head to the side and from under his oxygen mask, I could hear him a little more clearly.

"Light."

The doctor narrowed his eyes at Gerard in concentration.  "Sight?  Did you say 'sight', Gerard?  Can you not see?"