Playing for Rya

39. A Chance Encounter

Song: Chasing Cars by Snow Patrol: Cover by Grace Gaustad

Bev's POV

Everything was a distant rumble. The blare of horns, the rush of footsteps on concrete, the frenetic conversations of people.

Beverly didn't understand why everything had to be so loud and she welcomed the comforting quiet of the darkness as it pulled her under.

She was moving. That much was clear as she came to. But everything was still dark...and noisy.

She struggled to open her eyes, but couldn't, which was odd. Where was she going and why couldn't she see? Why couldn't she open her eyes, or were they open and she was just now blind?

The idea alarmed her and she began to struggle, except she couldn't move which increased her alarm. What was going on? Where was she?

'Bev? Bev. Can you hear me? I'm going to need you to lie still.' A voice said. A voice she recognized.

Was it Derek?

Again she struggled to move, she needed to speak, to tell him that she couldn't see, that she was afraid, that her head ached.

Derek could explain what was going on, he could fix this.

But her mouth felt dry as she opened it and her words came out as little more than a whisper, which frustrated her even more. How could she expect him to hear her when she couldn't even hear herself?

She felt the darkness reach out to her again, but this time she struggled against it. She wanted to stay awake, to understand what was going on.

'Stay with me Bev, you hear me? Stay with me.'

'Derek?' She called out again, using every ounce of energy she had left, 'Derek.'

'She's calling for someone,' she  heard someone else say.' A female voice. 'Who's Derek?'

'I have her purse,' someone else said, ' I found this.'

Bev frowned as a different type of alarm rose within her. Why were they going through her bag? Who were they? Were they the ones moving her? Where to? Why couldn't she see? Was she safe? Why couldn't she move?

She struggled harder as her hysteria rose and the noise continued around her. Seemingly following her as she moved.

'Out of the way...'

'One, two, three...'

'Starting an IV...'

'Checking reflexes...'

'Tell CT we're coming...'

'There's blood in her left upper quadrant...'

'No obvious spinal injuries...'

'Reduced breath sounds on the right...'

'She needs a chest tube...'

'Start a central line...'

A hospital! She was in a hospital. She ceased struggling the moment she realized this.

She was safe. Tired as hell, but safe. She could rest now and deal with everything else later.

Suddenly the darkness seemed a little more enticing, more peaceful. This time she reached out to it when it approached her.

'V Fib...'

'She's crashing...'

'Starting CPR...'

The last thing she registered as she went under was a stern male voice pleading with her, 'Beverly, stay with me. You hear me? Stay with me...'