Chasing White

Chapter Three:

Hazel felt a sharp sting on her fingertip. She peeled open her eyes and looked down. A woman in a purple pair of scrubs held her hand as she pricked Hazel's finger. Hazel opened her mouth to speak, but only garbled sounds came out.

The woman glanced up at Hazel, and a warm smile spread across her face.

"You're awake! I was wondering when I would finally get to meet you, Hazel." She continued in a chirpy voice. "I'm Dr. Hall. You've got another neuroscopy scheduled for today." She frowned. "Hopefully this one will go smoother."

Furrowing her brows, she left the room. Hazel stared at the ceiling. The next thing she knew, she was being wheeled off down a long hallway filled with bright, fluorescent bulbs and busy nurses. A heavy wooden door was opened, and she was pushed into a dimly lit room.

The contrast in lighting made it hard to see, and Hazel had to wait a few moments for her eyes to adjust to the dark room. She looked around the walls. They were covered in charts, photos, and strange machines.

A door opened, and more doctors and nurses in purple and blue scrubs flooded into the room.

Snapping on gloves and scrub caps, the doctors approached Hazel with ease. One of them flicked a switch and a bright light appeared, seemingly hovering over Hazel.

As Hazel was surrounded by whispering practitioners, she began to panic.

For what seemed like the millionth time in only a few minutes, Hazel had the complete sensation of cluelessness. The more Hazel tried to remember where she was, or what was happening, the foggier the details of the last moments became.

Suddenly, Hazel felt something mask-like cover her face. She looked down to see a nurse holding an anesthetic mask over her nose and mouth.

As her eyelids became heavy, Hazel recalled a memory.

A man in a white coat towered over her. Framed in harsh light, he bent over to caress Hazel's face. However, before he could reach her, his hands turned to talons, his body into the black feathered crest of a bird, and his head into a black beaked face. Beady eyes stares into Hazel's soul, and she felt fear.

A sharp pain arced through Hazel's chest, and she saw the bird's silver talons buried in her stomach.

Hazel felt her life drifting in front of her, suspended like a pendulum swinging on a chain. She watched it with interest, waiting, hoping for it to come to a rest.

Then, I'm the blink of an eye, the monster was gone. It was over.

Her vision was replaced by a quick, escalating beep. She heard the clatter of many voices, shouting about a severed stem. The beep turned into a hum, and Hazel felt a shock to her chest.

Once again, Hazel felt her life splayed before her. This time, she watched it slow. As the pendulum came to a halt, and the ongoing hum of the machines overwhelmed Hazel, she began to lose consciousness.

A sudden silence was the last thing Hazel heard before she fell into a deep sleep.