Hell's Love

Chapter 3

I walked into the hospital after school that day in a pair of blue scrubs. The air was cold and the lights flickered in several hallways. Sadness washed over me as I turned a corner. The last time I was here, the place felt safer. The nurses were out, helping the patients feel comfortable. Now, the nurses were quiet and hesitant with their work. There were whispers among the staff and gestures I didn't understand. The director of nursing greeted me and led me down one of the halls.
  "The procedures are still the same as they were before. First, I'll have you deliver the gift sent to some of the patients." She guided me to a cart full of flowers and teddy bears. "The names and room numbers are written on the cards."
  "I'll get started then."
  "Thank you, Ava."She said. I smiled at her and began dropping off the gifts. The first patient was a middle-aged man with a broken leg. He accepted the gift with a small nod and turned back to his TV program. The second one was a little boy, who had his tonsils removed. He sat with bright eyes and stared at a large bowl of ice cream in front of him. Each patient was happy to receive their gifts. The bears were mostly for the children and the fuzzy friends seemed to make their nights a little easier. After I cleared off the cart, it caught my attention that a younger woman was outside her room. She stared up at the ceiling and looked almost frightened. I asked a nurse if she was okay and she shook her head.

   "They found her in a forest a few miles from her house. She had cuts and bruises all over her body. The police officer that brought her in thought she might have been attacked, but there were no signs of anyone else being in the forest. When she arrived at the hospital, she would screech at patients and other nurses, terrifying some into leaving. They want to send her to an institution, but they're trying to find her family first."
   "That's awful. The poor woman." I looked over at her. She was still staring at the ceiling. Her lips moved as if she was talking to someone. The nurse trotted off and I put the cart away. As I returned to the hall, the woman was gone and her room was empty. I hurried to the find a nurse when I felt a cold hand grab my arm. I pulled back and came face to face with the woman.

   "I can't live with this anymore." She whispered and leaned closer to me.
   "I'm going to get a nurse," I told her, but she grabbed my other arm and pulled me towards her.
  "Get him out!" She shouted and squeezed my arms harder until her fingers were white.
  "Who?" I asked.

  "Get him out! Get him out!" She wailed and caught my face in her hands. Our faces were inches apart when my eyes locked on hers. Suddenly, the whole place seemed to stand still. The beeping of the call lights stopped and so did the voices in the halls. All I could see was the dark, haunted eyes of the tormented woman in front of me. Then, all at once something smacked into my chest. It felt like a brick wall crashed into me. I felt the air being ripped from my lungs and my heart froze. What's happening to me?  I thought. I urged my body to get away from the woman, but my legs wouldn't move. Help! Help me! I screamed, but it was only in my head. I felt the icy air travel across my skin and it was even harder to breathe then. I was suffocating. Then, I felt something tear its way out of me and oxygen finally returned to my lungs. I scrambled away from the woman and rushed towards the exit.
   "Ava?" I heard someone call my name, but I kept going.  As I turned down the hall, my legs gave out and I fell. I collapsed on the white tiled floor with whispers growing around the hall. Someone gasped behind me.
   "Ava, what's wrong?" Someone asked. Gathering myself, I stood and turned to the director of nursing.
  "I need to get out of here." I breathed. I spun around and hurried towards the exit, without looking back. When I got there, I pushed through the glass doors and tears started pouring down my face. My heart was racing as I slowed my speed. The woman's eyes were branded in my mind and her screech echoed in my ears. I collapsed against the cement and tried to calm myself. The sunlight beamed down on me, as my skin warmed up again.  A couple minutes later, I heard footsteps coming from beside me.
"Are you okay?" A voice asked. I looked up and saw Declan staring down at me. His eyes widened when he saw my tear soaked face. I bolted to my feet and into his arms. "What happened?"
"I don't know," I replied and realized I was still shaking. 
"Did someone hurt you?" The panic in his voice shook me almost as much as the woman's scream.
"No." I didn't know what to tell him. I hardly knew what happened myself. All I knew was that it was the scariest thing I'd ever seen and it still may not be over.