On Our Own

Chapter 28

This time when I opened my eyes, I was in bed. As my eyes adjusted to the light, I realized I was in a hospital.

I looked down at my arm, which had an IV drip in it. There was a pulse oximeter on my finger too. I relaxed into the pillow and looked around, the clock said it was almost six in the morning, I must have been out for awhile. Suddenly a sea of doctors burst in.

They all began working on me and helping me sit up.

"Go tell the family that she's awake," a nurse instructed someone.

They began to ask me questions and I tried to answer but I was overwhelmed and nervous. They quickly sensed this and one of the doctors ordered everyone to back off once I was stable. When it was just the doctor and me, he offered a small smile.

"Hello Leah, I'm Dr. Martin," he said in greeting. "You know my son Kyle has told me so much about you, and Ethan's like a son to me, I've heard so much," he said warmly.

"Hopefully good things," I said awkwardly.

"Oh yes," he said.

Except judging by the way he said it, I could tell he definitely had heard the worst of my past actions.

"I wish we would have met under better circumstances, but I'm glad to have finally met you," he said.

"Likewise."

"How do you feel?" he asked.

"Tired, but I'm fine," I said with a small shrug.

He studied my expression for a moment. "Okay then, actually before we talk can you do me a favor?"

I nodded weakly.

"Is this the best idea?" The nurse asked but he waved her off.

"I want you to walk towards me," he instructed.

"Why?" I asked.

"Can you do it? Then I'll explain."

I nodded and got up. I walked across the room but halfway to the other side my ankle gave out and I almost fell over. The nurse caught me and helped me back into bed.

Suddenly, I remembered all that had happened. I twisted my ankle during soccer and hit my head. Ms. Partinoff had died and I passed out.

"Look Leah, I'm going to be completely honest with you. It is extremely concerning that you didn't feel anything when you walked over on a twisted ankle," he said as he wrote a few things down.

I grew nervous.

Did you know you came in here with a fever of one hundred? Were you wearing a jacket?" he asked.

"No, I didn't think it was that cold, I was in a rush," I explained.

Dr. Martin frowned.

"What does that mean?" I asked.

The nurse and Dr. Martin exchanged a look, and the nurse smiled sympathetically at me. Doctor Martin finally finished his notes and looked over at me.

"I'm going to confirm with a few tests in a bit but you appear to have a rare hereditary disease: congenital insensitivity to pain and anhidrosis or CIPA for short. Normally, it gets diagnosed as a child because both of your parents would have had to have the genetic markers for it. Obviously we had no way of knowing."

"Because I've been in the foster system since I was a baby. Yeah, yeah," I said, cutting him off. "Is it curable?"

He put his folder down and took a deep breath. "It is manageable," he said carefully. "Right now. I am more concerned that it never got diagnosed earlier."