Gum on the Sidewalk

Chapter Ten: The Hospital

The next morning when I woke, I thought I would be filled with joy and laughter.  Instead, I was filled with pain and nausea.  Who would think that dancing would give someone so much pain?  Especially after that kiss, how could that be?  I looked around me, though it was difficult with blurry vision.  I was greeted of my unnaturally pale white body clad in the ugliet dress I had ever seen.  It was a strange bluish grey color and it was split and tied in the back.  Realization washed over me, I was in the hospital and this dress was a hospital gown.  I heard some voices out in the hall and strained to hear them.  I couldn't quite understand the words.  I slowly and cautiously got up out of bed and walked out into the hallway to listen.

"She's hallucinating, dreaming, she only thinks it's real," the doctor said.

"Are you sure?" asked a familiar voice.  Daniel?  But the doctor just said I had only dreamed about him.

"Daniel, Elise is very sick, she hit her head when they crashed on the bus.  Look, she was there, but then again, not really.  She was in a sort of daze," the doctor explained.

Hearing his voice, I stepped further into the hall to see them.  It took them a few minutes to realize that I was standing there, but when they did, Daniel came to me and put his arms around me.

"I'm just glad about your friend," he said.

"What do you mean?" I asked, confused.

"Your friend Samantha," he replied.

"What about her?" I asked, getting impatient.

"She got into a horrible crash the other day in the tractor, she was driving and somehow it got tipped over.  She is very lucky to be alive," he informed me.

That was such an emotional blow to me, I soon found that I could hardly stand up.  I felt terrible.  I should have been there to keep it from happening.  No, I had to have been there, I couldn't believe the lies that the doctor was telling.  I remembered being with Samantha on the tractor.  It had been the day after the bus crash.  I was so confused.  But wait, I was there, but not really.  She wouldn't have gotten hurt if I was there.  Was I a bad friend, a bad person?  I just rested my head on Daniel's shoulder.  I cried and cried for what seemed like hours.  Then I lifted my head and looked at him.  He seemed just as sad as I was.  She was my best friend, my only friend before Daniel.  I felt so awful.  The doctor walked me toward the bathroom and handed me my clothes.  He told me to put them on and return the gown, then I could leave.  That was good; I didn't want to wear the stupid ugly thing any longer and I couldn't wait to get out of there.

When I came back out, Daniel grabbed my arm and led me down the hall to a different room.  I looked inside and smiled.  Samantha was lying limply on the bed and, even though she didn't look quite herself, it was better than dead.  Daniel closed the door slowly and quietly, I knew what he was thinking; I was thinking the same thing.  But I knew how much trouble we would be in if we got caught.  He wanted to steal her out of the hospital and I had been in too much trouble the last few days as it was.  He smiled and winked at me as he set me down in the chair beside her bed.  We couldn't take her, she could die for Pete's sake!  Then again, she'd have a nice time trying with me around to keep her alive.

I smiled and winked back at him as he went to the corner to get her clothes.  He lifted her cautiously upright and I slid the hospital gown over her head.  I nimbly stuck her shirt on and he laid her back down.  I got the pants out of the stack of clothes and put them on her as he lifted her legs one at a time.  We smiled at each other agin, took the blanket from the bed carefully, trying not to drop her.  We then wrapped her in it like a baby and he carried her out.

We pretended that we were her family and smiled as we passed the nurses and nurses' aids.  This was a fun game, we should play it more often.  Who knew that stealing people could be so fun?  I laughed at that thought, and wondered what she'd say if she were awake.

"What are you laughing at?" he asked.

"I'm just thinking about what she'd say if she was awake when we did this.  'What do you two think you're doing?'" I mimicked her, sounding more like an angry old lady.  I laughed again.

"Yeah she would, to think about it," he agreed.

We took her out to his old Thunderbird and placed her carefully in the backseat.  I then jumped quickly into the front seat as Daniel got in and started the engine.

"Sounds good, doesn't it?" he asked knowingly.

I nodded my agreement and smiled lovingly at him.  I looked absentmindedly at my hair and almost jumped when I saw that it was blue.  He could read me like a book.  He didn't even have to ask and he already knew the answer.  I told him this, he winked at me and we drove away in silence.