Pathways of the mind - Nano 2016

Epilogue

Sten slowly woke and found he was looking at the ceiling in some room he didn't recognize. The ceiling tiles were pocked with tiny holes. It took him a bit of time to realize they were acoustic tiles. When he started to look around he realized it was a hospital room. The bed was comfortable and warm and he had covers up to his neck, "What? Why am I here? Did we wreck?" His voice was scratchy as he tried to speak.

His mom leaned over, "Sten, welcome back. You were in an accident with Risty and it has taken time for you to wake." She leaned over the bed and gave him a good hug, "Love you and glad you are back." They had been told not to give either teen to much information currently.

He tried to clear his throat but was forced to take several drinks from a container his father held out to him. Whatever it was it did help sooth his throat, "Risty? Is she okay?" He cleared his throat after taking another drink of the fluid, "What happened? What accident? Don't remember that." Sten felt tired and was close to falling asleep again.

"There was an accident when a maintenance vehicle ended up in your lane and ran you into a wall. It was messy and you have been out of it for a while. We will tell you more later Sten. Go to sleep and Risty is doing fine. Love you son." His mom gave him another hug and sat there while he fell asleep. The shirt which had been ordered for him had made her laugh. What Muttley's Mob meant she wasn't sure but it was amusing.

In the bed, next to Sten's, Risty finally woke though it was after he had fallen asleep. She tried to speak before she was given a drink of the same liquid, "Mom? Dad? How... What... Why are we here? How did we arrive? We were in a race but..." God, she was so confused waking in a hospital room. Something was missing and she didn't understand.

Her father leaned over and gave her forehead a peck, "You and Sten were in an accident. You were badly hurt but with a new treatment it looks like you are mostly healed. More about that later. Love you punkin."

Her mom was on the other side of the bed, "We were so worried about you and Sten when the accident happened. Someone ran into you and both of you were hurt. Have something for you." She pulled the shirt out and held it out, "We have one for Sten as well. Not sure why they were made but they are amusing."

Risty stared at it and started a rough laughter since it was just like the one in her dreams, "That is so funny." She had to cough before getting another sip of the fluid, "Leave it on the dresser. I will put it on when I can." She had to take several slow breaths before she kept talking, "That was a wild dream we had. Racing, fans, Muttley..." How much of that had been real? She wasn't sure but it had seemed so real to her. She carefully rolled on her side and quickly fell asleep.

Once their parents were out of the room Sten tried to sit up. It took several minutes since he felt so weak and wobbly. Once he was able to, he stood while holding onto a railing on the bed. After letting his dizziness fade he moved over to Risty's bed, lifted the covers and slipped in behind her. Once he had curled around her he was quickly asleep. Now he knew she was alive and doing okay he could sleep comfortably.

~~~

The staff had been briefed on what they might be expecting with the two. When they came in the next morning they had to stare. This wasn't something they had expected. The two were in the same bed but they were both asleep. Chances were nothing had happened but they would need to report it. One of the staff came over and gently shook both, "Need to wake up and get ready for breakfast. Do you need help to the bathrooms?"

Sten twitched awake and looked around. His eyes were blurry with sleep before he sat up and stretched, "Huh? Wha?" He was so dam tired even with having slept most of the night, "Sure, bathroom." He tried to stand and was helped up. As he was able to start to walk better they moved to the bathroom. Once he came out, "Shower? Feel nasty and need one." He was still thinking about the showers in the other world they were in, "Want warm water, lots of soap, and shampoo."