Perfectly Imperfect

Chapter 12

    David woke up to a bright flashlight being shined directly in his eyes. He grimaced, lifting his hand to shield it out. The light extinguished without warning, leaving little dots floating in front of him, and he could vaguely make out the faces of the school nurse, Iris and Joshua behind them.

    "Is he alright?" Joshua asked urgently.

    The nurse, with the patience of a saint, soothed his high strung friend, "Shhh. I believe he has a concussion. It's best not to be too loud or get too excited now that he's coming to."

    "Is it okay if we stay with him until his mother comes?" Iris canted her head, looking back toward David.

    "As long as it isn't interfering with your classes," the nurse responded kindly before turning back to David as she noticed him regaining consciousness. "Hello, Mr. Moss. How are you feeling?"

    David frowned, trying to remember what happened and coming up blank. It was like the past few seconds, minutes, and hours had vanished into nothing and there was only a throbbing headache left in its place. He sat up a little too quickly, grimacing as a searing pain lanced through him before withering back against the uncomfortable cot, "Where's Ian?"

    "Mr. Moss, please calm down and answer my questions..."

    He looked past her, ignoring her plea so his eyes could level on Joshua, "Where's Ian?"

    Joshua opened his mouth to respond, but Iris stepped in, "He was sent to the principal's office after he punched Jesse in class. He kept yelling that he hit you on purpose and how he was going to mess him up. I never seen him go so crazy before..."

    David was surprised and somewhat touched. Ian had done that for him? Ian had stepped in to his defense? He supposed he couldn't question whether or not Ian cared about him. Wait -- Jesse hit him? With what? The way his head was pounding, it felt like a baseball bat. He closed his eyes to shield out his dizziness, resting his hand atop his head, "What happened?"

    "You were struck by a volleyball and then fell and hit your head on the floor," the nurse explained, taking his hand away from the bump and placing an ice pack in it before returning it to its spot. "Are you feeling any confusion, disorientation, dizziness or nausea?"

    "D. All of the above....or would that be E because you listed four things?" David attempted to keep things light-hearted in spite of how crappy he felt. Joshua and Iris looked far too concerned and in need of some reassurance he was fine, even if he wasn't. He wasn't used to having people care about his well-being like this. What was the proper way to react? "You said my Mom's coming?"

    "She will be here soon. We notified her as soon as you were brought in. But from what you're saying, it might be a wise idea for her to bring you to the Emergency Room."

    "Injured during volleyball. That's a good message to send to the children. Sports are dangerous. That's why I don't tend to do them. Down with phys ed," David laughed, and then stopped short when it jostled his head a little too much. He closed his eyes briefly, shielding out the painful light. This ice was becoming too much of a burden to hold, so he dropped it without a care.

    He heard footsteps approach his bed and someone was stooping down to pick it up. The soft hand swiped over his brow while the ice was returned to the bump -- this time being held by someone else. David opened his eyes and was greeted by the sight of Iris who offered him a faint smile. He returned it, appreciating her care and concern. The nurse was pulled away to take care of a student who appeared to be gushing blood from his nose so Joshua, who had been kept at bay until now, took the chance to step forward, his eyes full of concern and voice full of remorse.