The Swords of Memory: Second Chances

Chapter 5

Zara woke up in a bed. The room was white as she opened her eyes. She was in a hospital room. She had been to one once before when she had gotten bit by a dog when she was six. It was exactly like she remembered. She tried to move but she was still really soar and stopped after her initial effort. Her slight movement aroused the people sitting next to the bed. There was a woman in a long black dress with curled hair and a man in a shirt and tie. It was Zara's parents. She remembered that they had been going to a fancy dinner when she had left with the car. That could only have been a few hours ago if they were still in their dress cloths. Zara's mother had dry tears on her face but her eyes lit up when she saw that Zara was awake.

"Zara, my baby. I'm so glad you're awake. We got the call from the hospital that there had been an accident. We were so worried." Zara's dad was right beside her mom and smiled down at her.

"I'm so glad you are okay. We never would have forgiven ourselves if something had happened to you."

"When can I leave?" Zara asked. Here mom laughed and bent down to hug her. Zara had never been a fan of hugs but decided to let her mom have this one. She was to soar to actually resist it, but she wouldn't have even if she could.

"You are supposed to spend the night here so that the doctors can observe you for safety's sake but in the morning, we should be able to check you out and take you home."

"What happened?" Zara asked. She remembered the oncoming car but everything after that was a mystery to her. The only thing she had any recollection of was waking up in the ambulance and then in this room.

"The police officer said that you got into a car accident. A textbook case T-bone collision. You were lucky that the other car came from your right instead of your left. You managed to come out of it with little more than some bruising, even with you not wearing your seatbelt. The nurse did say that you will likely have a concussion though. We are supposed to have her administer some tests when you woke up. I'll go get her." Zara's father said. Zara, for the first time in a while, felt loved. Her mind always told her that her parents loved her, but knowing and feeling are not the same thing. Zara truly felt it now. But there were other things on her mind. She wasn't going to talk about that place, the portal game, that would make them think she was crazy, but she did have questions about the accident.

"Mom, who hit me? Is the car going to be okay?"

"The insurance will cover the car. Don't worry about that. You just need to rest."

"Who was in the other car mom? Are they alive?"

"Yes. It was some local boy about your age. Your father talked to his parents and we have already come to agreements regarding insurance. We both recognize that the accident was technically your fault but have managed to convince them to write it off as mutual involvement for insurance purposes. The boy isn't doing well though. The parents didn't want to talk about it but from what we can gather he is stable but hasn't woken up since the accident. Where you hit your head on the headrest he hit his on the windshield. You being unbuckled might have actually reduced the amount of head trauma you experienced." Zara felt terrible. She had never wanted to take someone's life. That had never been her intention.

"I hope he wakes up soon." Zara said. Before her mother could respond the nurse entered the room. She administered some standard procedure tests involving concussions. She said that Zara had gotten a level three concussion, with the primary symptom being loss of consciousness. Zara was able to answer all of the memory questions easily and the nurse said that if all went well she would be released in the morning.

"You should try and get some rest." The nurse said as she left the room. Zara did feel drained and was looking forward to finding out if she went back to the portal game when she slept instead of losing consciousness. Her parents were eager to talk to her but after twenty minutes decided that the should let her sleep. It was three in the morning. They left Zara alone in the room, promising to return at eight to pick her up. Zara tried to sleep but it would not come. With sleep evading her, she decided to find out more about her car accident. She climbed out of the bed and stood. She was a little off balanced at first but then got her feet and was able to walk.

Zara didn't even make it down the hall before a nurse stopped her. "Honey, you are supposed to be resting."

"I couldn't sleep. I was hoping I could see that boy who was in the crash with me, see how he was doing."

"You really should sleep. I'll get a you something to help you sleep." Zara was guided back to her room and laid in bed. The nurse left and returned a minute later with a clear glass of water. She put a tablet in the glass and it fizzed. Zara recognized the packaging as a sleep aid her mom sometimes used after a long day at work. Zara, under the nurse's insistence, drank the glass and then lad down, ready to shoot for sleep one more time. The nurse left and turned off the light. Zara thought she would be laying there for hours before sleep came but the medicine took effect quickly and she was soon drifting into sleep.