Chronical Wounds

Chapter 1: Hello to you too.

I was walking back home from work. It was dark outside and a cold breeze caressed my bare face. I was exhausted, because of the 12 hours shift I had just finished. I have been working as an anesthesist for 4 years now. The shift began around 12 in the morning and it ended around 12 at night. It was peaceful, and everything went right. The children and the elders I have worked with were nice. I had a great time with my colleagues and it wasn't as crowded as it usually would be. Little did I know it was the silence before the storm.

Normally I would go home by car, but my car broke down a few days ago and I had to bring it to a mechanic. I didn't live that far from the hospital, so today I chose to walk. I wonder if my life would've been different if I didn't walk home that night.

With one earphone in my ear and the other loose around my neck, I kept walking. Lost in thoughts.

Tomorrow I would be free. I could already imagine jumping directly in bed. The warmth, the space, the blanket. There were so many movies and series I hadn't seen yet, because there simply was no time for it.

But it had just been 3 minutes away from my house when I saw a strange silhouette. It was the silhouette of a man and a chill ran down my spine. I wasn't scared because it was a man, I was scared because he was walking strangely... and towards me. Was he drunk? My phone was ready in my right hand, you know just in case. The man frightened me, but I didn't show it. I kept walking, but the closer I got to this person, the more it made me wary of the situation. I narrowed my eyes to see better. His right arm was hanging by his side and with his left hand, he held his shoulder. Was he wounded? I got closer to him and could now hear him cough. This was definitely not right.

There was a distance between the two us of 3 meters when he stopped walking and lifted his head. I gasped because I could now see all the bruises on his face and the blood dripping off of it. I hurried towards him and just when I was two steps away from him, he fell. I managed to catch him before he would've hit the ground. He was heavy and I couldn't carry his weight, so we both fell on our knees. His breathing was unregular and he kept coughing. "Hé, sir can you hear me? Can you look at me?" the man did as I asked and tried to look up at her. When his green eyes met mine I gasped, "what-". "...help me" he whispered before he fell with his head on her shoulder. "Hey? Hey, you need to stay with me. Open your eyes!" I demanded, but he didn't answer. I put him down on my lap, trying to find a pulse while I called for an ambulance.

Five minutes later the ambulance had arrived, thanks to the fact that they were close by. I decided to not leave his side.

The next morning I yawned as I slowly opened my eyes. When my eyes got used to the light, I sighed deep. I slowly looked up at the bed to see how the stranger was doing. My heart quickly rose when I saw that he was already staring at me. His dark brown hair was covering a part of his face, he had his clothes back on, his arm was wrapped in a mitella and he had stitches just above his left brow. When he noticed I had caught him staring at me, an angry frown appeared on his face. He stood up from the bed, without saying a word.

He marched towards the door. "Wait!" I tried to stop him, but he simply ignored her. I snatched my bag from the chair and ran after him. "Stop!" I demanded, but he kept ignoring me. He walked down the hallway and I followed, like a lost puppy. "I'm talking to you!" I barked while turning him firmly around. He grunted out of pain and I realized that I had pulled him by his shoulder which was dislocated just a few hours ago. "Oh my god, I'm so sorry" I gasped.

He bit on his teeth, trying to suppress his pain. "Get away from me" he snapped, while he made his way out of the hospital. "Wait, what?" I didn't understand his sudden reaction and became furious? He didn't even thank me, or at least greeted me. "Well hello to you too, prick!" I hissed. He stopped right where he was standing and I continued. "So much for a stranger, that by the way just saved your damn life". He turned slowly around and looked me right in the eyes. He looked so extremely mad at me, that it made me feel as if I was the one that did something wrong. "You shouldn't have done that" the man scoffed. His now dark green eyes stared in my light brown ones. "I'll manage it from here" he simply added before he walked away. "What the hell is wrong with you? Have lost your mind?" I was fuming with anger at this point. My hands formed balls and my heart was beating uncontrollably. I hadn't slept for days and this was just too much at this point.

"You unthankful prick. Acting all bold" I scoffed. "People like you disgust me. Do you have so much pride? You're acting all tough. For what? How do you dare to act all interesting?!" and this was when he turned around and looked at me with a deadly gaze and it creeped me out. Did I go too far? "You're a very lucky lady, but I strongly advise you to watch your mouth. It could do more damage to a certain person than you think and I'm not talking about myself". I was taken aback for a moment, but then I smiled slightly. I lifted my head a little and bit my lower lip. "Sir, if that threat is directed to me I can tell you one thing: I can't wait until that day will come" my face now turned in a deadly serious look. We stood there in the entrance of the hospital trowing daggers at each other. I was acting all bold, but in the meantime his facial expression made me doubt even looking at him. I sighed and just walked away without saying another word.

My key slipped through the keyhole and I opened the door to my house. It was now 11 in the morning and I was longing for that chill day I'd planned for. I kicked my shoes off and walked straight to the kitchen. There he was, Jayden. He flinched when he saw me. His lips curled into a smile. "Hey Farah. Where have you been? I thought you said you would work until midnight" he said. I forced a smile on my face "I know, but I had to overwork today. How did you get in though? I thought I shut the door behind me" I frowned. "Aren't I welcome in your house anymore?" he laughed.

I was already irritated by that prick from earlier and now Jay was going to act annoying as well. "I got in with the spare key you gave me, remember?" he explained. I just nodded because actually, she didn't care. Jay is her little brother. He always manages to irritate me. Like now. I never told him to just walk into my house without my permission. Sometimes I just wanted him to give me some space.

This house isn't actually mine. My grandmother and I live together, but right now my grandmother is abroad. I take every opportunity I get to take time alone.

After an hour I finally managed to get Jayden out of my house. I had showered, put on some comfortable clothes and now I'm  finally in bed with some breakfast and a movie. Just how I like.