Neighbors

T W E N T Y - E I G H T

PIPER

Time flew by and with only a few rehearsals left, we were running rehearsals as if we were performing for an audience. For the two weeks prior to opening night, we were having dress rehearsals every day after school, making sure everything was perfect.

Since the week leading up to this, I had been feeling extremely exhausted. Between schoolwork and rehearsals, my stress levels increased. Zach and I finished our project and presented it on Friday, leaving me with one less thing to be worried about over the weekend. But things had been the opposite. Since then, I had felt more tired than usual. I wasn't sure what it was but I hadn't been feeling all that great but I powered through it.

It seemed like as the week progressed, my health declined. I started out with cold-like symptoms but had recently developed a pretty high fever.

For the past two days, I had stayed home from school so I could rest until it was time to go to rehearsal. When I got there today, however, I was feeling the worst I had all week.

"What are you doing here?" Beckett asked me, looking at my sickly condition as I entered the dressing area.

"I'm here to rehearse," I shrugged, attempting to slide past him to get into my costume but he blocked me.

He gripped my elbow, "you should really be at home. You look even worse than you did when I brought you your work yesterday."

"Wow, thanks," I said sarcastically.

"You know what I mean," he huffed, trying to reason with me. "I'm just worried about you."

"Beckett, I'll be okay. I feel fine."

He raised his eyebrow and folded his arms across his chest. "You look like you're about to pass out."

"I'm fine," I insisted once more. But I wasn't. Far from it actually. Right after the sentence left my lips, the room began to spin and my vision blurred. Next thing I knew, my knees went weak and I was headed towards the ground. I was waiting for my limp body to hit the linoleum floors but it never happened. And just like that, everything went black.

***

I woke up to an irritating beeping. I pried my eyes open, but immediately squinted at the brightness in the room before closing them again. I attempted to lift my hand to my eyes but found myself far too weak. I heard muffled chatter that caused pain to shoot through my skull. I wanted to yelp in agony but couldn't form anything louder than a whimper. Slowly, my eyes fluttered open and I squinted as they adjusted to my surroundings.

"Oh good, you're awake," an unfamiliar voice spoke gleefully. I squinted and saw a woman in her mid-forties jotting something down on her clipboard. "I'm Dr. Vance, how are you feeling? Does anything hurt?"

I opened my mouth to tell her that my head hurt but no words came out. Exasperatedly, I lifted my stiff hand and put it to my head and made a pained expression. Dr. Vance nodded her head in understanding. I then gestured to my throat and she nodded again.

"I'll have a nurse bring you some medication for that, along with some food and water." She smiled sweetly at me before turning and exiting the room.

I took this time to look around my surroundings. I laid in a pristine white room. There were gifts strewn about the room. Balloons, bouquets, and other gifts situated on a table across the room. My eyes stopped when I saw a slumped figure curled up in one of the plastic hospital chairs that was sitting against the wall. It didn't take me long to recognize who it was.

Before I could attempt to wake Beckett, a nurse came in with a tray, carrying food, a glass of water, and some medication.

She instructed me to eat a little bit before having me choke down the pills. I followed the tablets with the cup of water before returning it to its place on the tray. Just as she was about to leave, I had managed to find my voice and quietly asked her to wake Beckett. She obliged and gently shook his shoulder, pointing in my direction once he was awake. The nurse retrieved her tray and exited my room, leaving the two of us alone.

"Hey," I croaked. I didn't know if it was the fact that he had just woken up or what but his face lit up when he saw me.

"Hey," he flashed me a tired smile. "How ya feelin?" He straightened up in his seat and ran his hand through his disheveled hair.

I shrugged my shoulders. I didn't know how to answer his question. I still don't know what was wrong, the last thing I remembered being our conversation in the costume shop before I fainted. "What happened? How long have I been out?"

"You fainted before rehearsal yesterday so we called an ambulance. I rode with you just to make sure you were okay and answer some of the paramedics' questions. Mrs. Raylen called your parents and they met me here." He took a deep breath as if to collect himself. "They said you have mono, Piper. They don't know if you'll fully recover before the show."

"Beckett, I can do it. I'll just rest for a few more days and be ready for the show."

He scooted his chair closer to my bed, "that's just the thing, Piper. You might not. You could get worse or lose your voice completely."

I could tell by his somber expression that this was far more serious than I had originally thought. "Oh, so who's my understudy?" I reluctantly asked.

"Gabrielle. She was the only one willing to take on the stress of the role," he explained.

Now I felt absolutely terrible. "Beckett, I'm sorry." I couldn't imagine what the past few rehearsals have been like with her as the lead.

"It's not your fault. I'm just glad you're okay. Sadie was worried about you too. She made you a card to help you feel better," he said pulling a folding piece of pink construction paper from his backpack on the chair next to him. He handed it over to me for me to read it.

As I read the homemade card, a smile found its way onto my lips. "I love it. Tell her thank you for me, please."

"Of course. She wanted to come and visit you but we weren't sure when you were gonna wake up."

"Well I'd love to see her," I smiled at the boy in front of me.

I couldn't pinpoint my emotions but for the first time in a while, I felt content. I was thankful for many things in my life, and Beckett was definitely at the top of the list.

***

Later that day, Beckett went home but came back with Sadie.

"Pipie!" she squealed in excitement. I waved at the small girl with a smile on my face. "Can we have another party?"

"I'm sorry Sadie, we can't right now," Beckett told his sister.

A frown made its way onto her face. "Why not?" she sniffled.

"Piper has to save her voice so she'll be better in time for the show," he explained. "So that means she can't talk for a few days."

Although she was still a little confused, Sadie smiled up at me. "That's okay, I'd rather have Pipie not talk now then not be a mermaid." Her comment brought a smile to my face. I lifted my hands and formed a heart to show my love and appreciation for her. With a little help from her brother, Sadie copied my gesture with a large grin.

Throughout the afternoon, Sadie and Beckett kept me company. Sadie told me stories of things she did at school and talked about all the tea parties we need to have in the future. I was definitely grateful to have both of them in my life.