In the Dark

~ p r o l o g u e ~

It was quiet, except for the sound of water crashing upon the shore and people gathering around the bay with their children of all colors. I always found it to be beautiful, how West Nell Bay didn't really have just one ethnicity. I mean yeah, most people here were caucasian,  but it was more than that. Listening to all the chatter from all their conversations was a bit overwhelming, but fascinating too.

There were so many different languages being spoken at the same time, but it sounded all the same to me. Actually, I don't understand any of them, that is, except for the conversations in English. Living in a place with all this culture always made me want to become multilingual.  Alas, my school didn't start teaching us Spanish until sixth grade, plus I wasn't very good at it. 

The silence felt awkward between the person standing next to me. We seemed to be the only people not having a conversation. "Mom, where are we going? I mean, I know that we are going to the hospital, but why?" I asked. I don't know why, but a strange feeling leaped into my gut and my stomach churned around, making me feel sick. 

I didn't understand why I was so nervous. Our hospital was one of the most beautiful hospitals in the state, or at least I thought so. It was right next to the bay, so patients could visit the shore for comfort. The hospital itself was a gleaming white, sparkling in the sun. There were tropical flowers surrounding it, of all shapes and colors.  

"Oh Bea, don't you remember? Lisa had a little incident, so we are going to visit her. You might want to pacify Callisto, she's gotten all railed up chasing butterflies in the park and dragonflies at the pond."

I looked down at the dog at the end of my leash, who was pulling us forward excitedly. But my mood didn't match the Papillon tugging me closer to what felt like doom.  The sun seemed to shine brighter, making the pavement hotter. I felt the cement starting to burn through the soles of my sandals. My mom's grasp on my hand started to feel sweatier and tighter, not normal to her considerate aura. 

Lisa...Lisa... who's Lisa? I repeated the name over and over again in my head, but nothing came to mind. I mean nothing. I tried to remember people's faces who might have the name Lisa, but my mind was blank. I started to feel dizzy. My head started hurting, making me nauseous. My vision became slightly blurry as I came to a halt. I bent down, putting my head between my knees.

"Bea, are you okay?" My mother asked. When I didn't reply, she continued. "Let me see your face."  I didn't look at her right away, so she seemed to grab my face in her hand. "You look fine. Come on now, we don't want to be late."

She pulled me forward and I had no choice but to come with her. This didn't seem right. This isn't normal for my mom. No, she's kind, caring, and the exact opposite of whatever this was. 

I looked around us, as we seemed to be alone. All the people who were here minutes ago had disappeared. I looked over at the bay. The water wasn't a glorious blue, but a deep gray, matching the sky.  There were no flowers against the hospital's walls, which were no longer a bright white. I looked past the hospital, where an eerie playground had formed.  Playing on the see-saw were two little girls.

One looked familiar, with dark brown hair. Her skin was quite light compared to the girl next to her, who had tan skin. Her hair was light, almost blonde. The two of them looked happy together as if the world around them wasn't gloomy.  I soon recognized the blonde girl. That was ... Lisa?  No... it was a young Lisa, but the only she was Lisa that came to my mind. Then who was the other girl?

"Oh look at how cute you two are," my mom said randomly. You two... her words rang in my ear. What did she mean by you two?  Wait... was the other girl... me? 

I came to stop, feeling nauseous again. "What is wrong with you?!" Mother yelled. She pulled me forward and I stumbled as the world spun. "Jesus Christ, Beatrice! Stop being so dramatic. We need to be there for Lisa! The world isn't all about you! You little brat!" 

What the hell?  This wasn't like her. I considered yelling back, but I couldn't find the words. I realized that Callisto's leash was no longer in my hand and so I looked around frantically. Our dog was nowhere in sight, and neither were the two girls. I was truly alone with this... witch. 

"Stop fooling around you little- Hello!" my mom exclaimed. I looked around, only to find that we were in the hospital. My eyes started to hurt from the blinding white of the cleanliness. The strong fume of hand sanitizer hit me instantly, making me dizzy once again.  

"Bea, are you feeling okay?" my mom asked. I stepped back from her. "What's wrong?" She was completely different from before, mere seconds ago. 

"I'm fine," I snapped. I quickly walked to the front desk, my mom quickly following behind. 

"We are here for Lisa," Mom told the lady behind the counter.

"Ah, right this way," she replied. Wouldn't she need a last name?  Something didn't feel right.  The lady briskly walked over to a set of doors, my mom quick behind her.

We emerged into a hallway. It was dimly lit, with an eerie feeling about it. The doors swung shut loudly, causing me to jump. This definitely didn't feel right. These rooms all looked like patients' rooms, shouldn't these be somewhere else? Not so close to the entrance? "Here we are," the lady leading us said. With that, she hurried away.

My mother pushed me into the room. The blinds on the windows were shut, but light still shone through, causing weird shadows to form throughout the place. There were plastic chairs in the corner, with a table beside them. The table was empty. Stickers were scattered on the walls, trying to make the scene more... friendly. It was silent, except for the beeping of machines. 

I looked over to where the noise was coming from and stopped. There was a bulky hospital bed, with all sorts of machines hooked up to it. On the bed were hospital garments and bandages in a heap on the bed. It started moving, and a girl's face popped out. She was pale, sickly pale. Her skin looked eerie against the blood-stained bandages that covered her head and eyes. Her nose was crooked and blood dripped from around it. Her lip was cut with dried blood seeping around it. She moaned and my dizziness intensified. The world went black.

~ Beatrice Kellet-Greer

Outgoing introvert, blind, comfy but chic, Cancer

Hey! So if you've made it this far, thank you! I hope you enjoyed the prologue of In The Dark. I'm really excited about this story and encourage you to keep reading it! In my opinion, the first few chapters are pretty cringe-y compared to what I have in store. Please don't give up on this story just yet, and bear with me. Thank you for listening/ reading my ted talk. 

-Ripley