Not another Day at the Beach

Chapter 3: Pain

POV: Cameron
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I smelled something awful, it seemed like a mixture of rubbing alcohol and blood. My eyes fluttered open, only to be greeted by an unfamiliar room. Light streamed through several white-curtained windows on my right, and the walls were a pale blue. I found myself tucked under a thin blanket on a bed high off the ground.

I tried to sit up, but a horrible pain shot up my leg, making me wince. I drew in a shaky breath through gritted teeth, shutting my eyes tightly and swallowing the pain.
Where was I? What happened? Suddenly, it all came back to me. The beach, the brown haired girl, the horrible agony that had dragged me under the water. My confusion and lightheadedness made sense. This must be a hospital room.

"Hello, Cameron. Glad to see you have regained conciousness." I heard a voice say.

I turned my head to face the voice. A tall woman dressed in scrubs stood at the door. She was holding a clipboard, and her hair was pulled back into a neat bun.

"H-hi." I stammered.

"I hope you are doing well." She said, stepping into the room.

"Well uh...I don't know about that. What happened?"

"You were attacked by a shark, most likely a Bull Shark."

"How much damage was done?"

The lady furrowed her brow, looking down at her clipboard.

"Lots of tissue damage, a few broken bones, and muscle damage."

"Shit." I muttered under my breath.

"Lucky your friend was there to save you."

"Who?" I asked, puzzled.

"Your friend, she was with you before the attack."

"Did she have brown hair...a-and freckles?" I asked her.

"Yes." The woman replied.

That snarky girl at the beach...she saved me? I couldn't believe it. She looked only about five feet tall, a tiny girl like that couldn't have fought off a big, powerful shark.

"Um...what would have...what would have happened if she uh, hadn't been there?" I asked, stumbling over my words.

The nurse frowned.

"Well, how do I say this..." She said, thinking. "...you likely would have died of blood loss."

Those words sent my jaw dropping. Me...dead.

"I know that this is a lot to take in. Do you need anything?"

"No. Uh, I'm good."

I paused, looking at my phone on my bedside table.

"Are my parents here?" I asked hopefully.

"We called them. They can't come to visit, but they ordered you a nice flower delivery." She said, pointing to a clear vase of white lillies sitting on a table next to me.

"Of course." I muttered.

"Alright. I'm down the hall of you need me."

"Ok. Thanks."

The nurse walked out, leaving me alone in the room.

I glanced back at the bedside table, examining the flowers. Tied around the neck of the vase was a green ribbon with a card attached to it.
I reached over and carefully untied the ribbon, picking up the card.

Hi Cameron, we're so sorry we can't visit. Stay strong! We'll be back from Paris in a month or so. Feel better!
-Mom & Dad

I sighed, crumpling up the card. I could feel my anger heating up inside of me.
I almost died! And all they did was send me some...greeting card?
I chucked the ball of paper into the trash bin across the room, watching it sail through the air. I sank into my pillow, staring up at the blank ceiling.
My parents are always on business trips, traveling to foreign countries. Europe, Asia, Africa, name the continent, they've probably been there. Where do I go during these trips? Nowhere. I just stay home, on my own. Ever since I was twelve they've left me to my own devices, leaving me with only their credit card. I had to learn how to cook, do my own laundry, and go grocery shopping. Lots of things that a twelve year old shouldn't have to do.
I get it, my parents need to provide for me, but I never see them around, and that's not the easiest thing to deal with.

I suddenly heard a knock at the door.

"Come in." I called.

The door opened, and in stepped the girl, carrying a bag in her hand. She looked very different from when I last saw her. Her light brown hair was neatly pulled back into a sleek ponytail, and she had on lip gloss.
She was dressed in a crisp, white button up shirt, a pair of dark skinny jeans, and flats. She looked somewhat professional, not like the unkempt, messy girl who I met at the beach.

"Hey." She said, casually stepping over the threshold.

"Hi." I replied.

We sat in silence for a few seconds before I awkwardly cleared my throat.

"So uh...thanks for saving my ass back there." I said.

"I would say 'no problem' but then I'd be lying. It's kinda hard to punch a shark underwater."

"You punched it?!"

"Yeah. It had gotten your leg pretty good. I had to keep punching it until it let go of you."

"How did you even get me to shore?!"

The girl rolled her eyes.

"Honestly, do you want a rant?"

"No."

"Well too bad, you're gonna get one. I spent what felt like forever punching the ever-loving shit out of that shark, and when it finally gave up, I had to lug your heavy ass onto my board and paddle you to shore with all of the very little energy that I had left. Then I got covered in blood. I mean I know what it's like to be covered in blood, but I was not prepared for how it feels to be covered in blood all over. It's honestly gross. Also I had to wash it off in the ocean before I went home or my entire family was going to think I just straight up murdered someone. But I still had that gross blood smell on me-"

"Are you done?" I interrupted, annoyed.

"Ok well you didn't have to cut me off short but, yeah."

"Why did you even come here?" I asked her.

"Well, I know you must be feeling like crap right now, so I brought you something."

The girl reached into her bag, pulling out a white box. She carried it over to me, coming close enough to where I could see the nametag pinned onto her shirt. 'Casey'.

"I work at my family's bakery, and we have lots of sugary stuff. I hope you enjoy it." She said, handing the box to me.

"Thanks." I said, smiling.

"I better get back to work, since my shift will start soon. See ya."

She picked her bag back up, and turned to leave.

"Bye Sadie." I said, waving.

The girl turned, raising an eyebrow.

"What?"

"Nametag." I replied.

Sadie looked down.

"Oh."

Without another word, she ducked out of the room, leaving me with a box in my lap. I untied the pink ribbon that held it closed, and took off the lid. Inside were a few red velvet cupcakes. I plucked one out of the box and bit into it.
The sweet, sugary taste hit me, and I smiled with bliss, forgetting the pain in my leg almost immediately.