Cutie and The Beast

Episode Seven: The Demise of Zia McKinnon

I was awoken by a beeping monitor at my side. I opened my eyes and it was still all white. I felt a stabbing pain in the back of my neck, I touched it and almost cried out as I saw blood on my fingertips, but I howled instead. Was that me?I had hundreds of tubes going in and out of my body, one filled with blood, one filled with cannula fluid and the rest hooked up to my face. I read the sign on my bed, and saw '...attacked viciously by feral dogs...', I was attacked? That explains my neck.I heard a doctor and Graysen conversing, I heard Helen worrying and Paul was watching the footy on the hospital televisions. The doctor and the Hunts walked into my hospital room and the old man, across from me, lifted his spirits in hope it was for him.Graysen ran to my bedside and tried to check over me. He found the blood patch on my neck and backed away, holding in a worried gasp. "Zia, I am so sorry, why did I ever bring you to the forest?" Graysen spoke to me, "Mother, father, can we be alone for a bit please?"I saw Helen nod and push Paul out of the hospital room."What's happened to me?" It was so difficult to speak with the dry blood oozing out of my neck, "Where am I? Why am I in the hospital?" I panicked, I saw the sign on the door, 'Sick Ward - Room 13,' the same room my mother was kept in whilst she was ill."Hey Zia, I was going to tell you last night but..." Graysen started as he stared into my eyes. He stroked his finger against my cheek and said, "Remember reading about those attacks on Wolfhaven, monsters, our senses being more...sensitive, the whole 'I feel no pain;' here's the deal, those monsters are wolf-shifters."I cocked my head, "What are t-they?""Wolf-shifters are people who have the sensitivity of wolves, and most nights, those people are wolves...Zia, I'm a wolf-shifter, which explains the disappearing, sensing you were from the country and the brown fur, I hope you still don't hate me..." Graysen looked down, not moving his fingers from my pink cheeks.I held his hand against my face and kissed it, "I could n-never h-h-hate you Graysen...I l-love you."I started crying from the pain in my neck, the nurse came in and instructed Graysen to stand by whilst I was given my pain killers. The doctor came in shortly after Graysen got his parents back in the room. "Mr. and Mrs. Hunt, I'm sorry to inform you that we don't know what is wrong with her," Helen bowed her head and accepted the truth that they didn't know what was wrong with me. But Graysen and I did.Paul piped up, "Why can't we run tests? Or put her up for adoption? You know, so she's not our problem." I lay there, wide gaped.Helen wasn't happy, "Thank you Andrew. We'd like to run more tests if that's okay?"The doctor replied, "Please refrain from calling me Andrew, Helen, I know you're one of my best nurses, but you're off duty. Call me Dr. Kahlan." She nodded and backed away, "We could run some blood tests, but I don't think that would reveal anything we don't already know."Paul coughed, "What do you know about Zia's condition?" Helen wasn't very impressed with Paul.The doctor got frustrated, "We don't, we just know that many teenagers come in with the same symptoms. Some parents are worried, but most aren't and think it's just hormones." Helen came and sat next to Graysen, who sat by me, not letting go of my hand. The doctor put the clipboard back at the end of my bed, "But, apart from her neck, she's fine and can be discharged." Helen jumped up, thanking Dr. Kahlan, Paul huffed and Graysen kissed my head. Wait, he kissed my head? The doctor got the discharge papers and gave them to the nurse and Helen to sign