Illuminate // An Original Story

One

Current Time: 23:04
Current Date: September 5th, 2025
Current Forecast: Thunderstorm
Current Location: Maximillia's Home in Seattle, Washington
Current Temperature: 34 Degrees Fahrenheit

Glass.

Shattered glass litters the floor of my home. The bits of glass are stained with blood, and the sound of a gunshot echoes in my ears. The glass shards sink into my knees, but I don't feel pain. I stare at the horrifying sight of my father and stepmother, bullet holes in their heads, empty eyes, and blood seeping from their wounds.

Everything is a blurry haze. I don't remember how I got here. I try to look away, but I'm frozen. I can't even hear myself scream. My breath becomes uneven, and I start to hyperventilate. Gunshots, shattering glass, and blood are all I see as I try to remember the events that transpired. I dig through the corners of my mind for a single clue as to what happened, but to no avail.

I lift my hands up in surrender at the sound of a gun cocking.

"Maximillia... its been a while, my precious flower." I've never heard this voice before in my life, yet it sounds so familiar.

I stop breathing as I stupidly look over my shoulder. All I see are a pair of dark eyes that are staring back into my soon-to-be cold, dead eyes. The person shows no sign of movement as their gun strikes me in the temple.

As my vision fades and my ears start ringing, I can barely hear the sound of a door opening and muted gunshots. All I see is the faint outline of another person kneeling before me before everything fades to black.

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Current Time: 02:37
Current Date: September 6th, 2025
Current Forecast: Overcast
Current Location: Northwest Hospital and Medical Centre, Seattle, Washington
Current Temperature: 36 Degrees Fahrenheit

"I'm telling you, I don't think it's going to wake up, Arden. It looked dead since the minute it got here."

"Still, considering their injuries, they have a chance at recovery. We need to make sure that they're actually brain dead before declaring them."

"Whatever. I'm going to go find a case that's worth my time. I'm not sitting here waiting for another hour just so that the vegetable can officially be declared a vegetable. We can't even do an organ harvest. Boring."

"They're not brain dead. Not yet."

"Your loss. You should learn to ditch the hopeless cases and get on a fun surgery sometimes. Actually practice medicine and get rewards."

"People aren't defined by how fun their surgeries are, or how likely they are to get you some big reward. They have souls. They are people. Once you realize that the seemingly hopeless cases are some of the most important ones you'll encounter, maybe you'll actually become a good doctor. Not some robot."

"Yeah, yeah. Listen, I'm going to find a case that's worth my time, and you can practice being a nurse."

"You're not even worthy of being called a doctor, Reese. Get out of my sight. This is my case now."

"Fine. I'll see you later when you're feeding the babies, Nurse Arden."

I hear the door slide shut with anger. I hear footsteps coming closer to me, and a hand brushes across my face delicately, like my mother used to do. I stay still, just in case something happens.

"You're someone with a life worth living. Reese is a prick. He only takes what he considers to be big cases. He treats people who don't have what he considers a big case like trash or objects. Don't listen to him. You have a life worth living." Dr. Arden pauses for a moment.