Night shift - Completed

Chapter 44

Poppy's PoV

I stirred and slowly opened my eyes, wondering if I was going to be in hospital, in a police station or in heaven. I didn't know what it was like to die, maybe you did just wake up and feel like yourself still. You'd look through your eyes like you do now except your body is gone and you are just a soul.

"Poppy?" A voice sounded like it was shouting but it was a million miles away.

"Calum?" I mumbled, wondering if he was playing some dumb trick on me like hiding and trying to throw his voice to scare me.

"Poppy? Can you hear me?" The voice was becoming more audible now and I nodded my head. Inside, I knew exactly who this was. I'd worked in this field long enough to know that these were paramedics. I felt hands over my body, checking my pulse, testing my eyes, all the normal things they would do to see how well I am doing. Well let me tell you paramedics, I'm not doing well at all. "Poppy, it's Edward. I recognise you from the ward. Can you tell me what happened?"

"He bit me. I need testing." I said in a raspy voice, the same feeling I'd had from the previous strangling coming straight back into my mind. Only this time, it felt worse.

"Don't worry Poppy, you'll be at the hospital soon. We'll get all of that sorted for you." Edward soothed as he say beside me in the ambulance. I could hear the sirens blaring out and forcing all the traffic out of the way.

"Why am I being blue lighted?" I whispered hoarsely but Edward merely stroked my arm.

"Poppy, it's best you try to relax now. The next few hours could be tough." He warned, but I already knew what was to come. The isolation, the testing in case he had hepatitis or an infection that could spread, rehabilitation if it turned out to be something bad, antibiotics, police turning up daily to ask me questions... I already knew. I nodded peacefully as I shut my eyes again, somehow the noise of the sirens sending me back to sleep.

***

I woke up to a heavily protected nurse taking my bloods. She wore an apron, gloves, shoe protectors, eye protection and a mask. I felt like a monster.

"How are you Poppy?" She asked as I stirred, finally adjusting to my surroundings in the same ward I'd just spent all my shifts nursing Calum on. In fact, I think I might even be in the same room.

"I feel like shit if I'm honest." I shrugged, receiving a hearty laugh that I recognised oh so well. "Mavis?" She nodded happily.

"Glad to see you've still got your wits about you! Now the police want to come in and speak to you. Is there anyone we should call to let them know you're here? Your mum or dad or-"

"Calum." I blurted out, not sure how she would react.

"Poppy, you know it's policy to call the next of kin first to tell them of any incidents." She scolded me, folding her arms as much as she could with the apron restricting her.

"Mavis, I don't talk to any of my family. They probably wouldn't even know where I was living if you asked them. Please, I beg you, call Calum." Tears welled in my eyes as I bit my lips together, my leg twitching as it did when I tried to hold in emotions without doing very well. She looked me up and down and sighed, knowing this would be on her if it all went wrong.

"Fine. But only because it's you." She huffed as she took her blood vials and left the room. The door slammed shut behind me and the silence ensued. One I wasn't used to without it being in the comfort of my own home and then I'd put the tv on. The door opened again just as quickly and pulled me from my thoughts. "You know he won't be able to see you until we've got all the results?" Mavis added, her eyes looking sternly at me as if this was a bad idea. I knew it would be because he would kick up a fuss, but at the same time I needed him to know I was okay.

"I know Mavis. I just really need him to know I'm okay." I smiled sweetly at her and as much as she didn't want to, she smiled back at me before shutting the door once again. I pulled the covers up to my neck and lay in silence, my mind replaying the scene over and over again. What had Kyle meant when he said he wanted fresh meat? Did Amelia really only agree for me to stay so that he got his wish and she got her rent paid? I couldn't think badly of her, not now. She was my best friend, and yeah I didn't agree with what she did but I also didn't actively stop her. I let her live her life and she let me live mine. So why would she suddenly rope me in to a sleazy guy like Kyle? She'd told me she loved him, did she even realise what she was doing?
There were going to be so many questions that were left unanswered because Amelia wasn't here to help me but I just had to accept that. I'd moved on with my life once already, I was definitely going to do it again. I gripped the bedding tightly as I thought about Kyle and how gross he'd been, trying to kiss me and telling me he wanted me. I felt sick. The fact I had to kiss him to save myself was possibly the worst part of it all though. Would he have got the wrong idea? How was I going to tell Calum? Was he going to hate me for it?

Knocks at the door pulled me from my thoughts as two masked up police officers came into the room with a pen and paper.

"Hello Miss Knight, how are you today?" One young police officer greeted me formally as the elder one watched my every move.

"Please, just call me Poppy."  I smiled, hoping to get this over with.

"Thank you, Poppy. If you don't mind, we just need to ask you a few questions about the incident? Is that okay?" The elder one asked, nodding towards his pen and paper. I sighed heavily before I answered.

"No problem. Ask as much as you need."