Juliana & Her Big Surgery 🩰

xi. day two: ilona

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After a quick bathroom break, I step back into the hospital room. Alone. Which is scary when you're treading down a dark hallway, passing through a graveyard of hospital equipment. But when you finally make it back to the bright sanctuary that is your room, it's not so bad.

My parents begrudgingly said goodbye to me four hours ago before trodding to the car. They currently stay at a Holiday Inn across the street. I climb into my hospital bed, feeling the crisp, bleached sheets cool my skin. Sitting next to me are a cluster of flowers, cards, fan-mail, and small, plushie bears. I guess Mommy got the word out quickly. The only thing missing is a present from her.

One thing stood out to me, though. Hidden in the pile is a thin book topped with a blue cover. Fancy, cursive font is scrawled in the middle, and the title name is: The Stars Aligned.

Soon, I hear my phone ring. I drowsily slip it out of my pocket and swipe the screen to answer, not bothering checking the ID.

"Hello?" I greet wearily.

"JULIE! YOU'RE ALIVE!" Lili screams. "See, Luce? I told you she was alive!"

"I knew she was alive. Julie wouldn't give up THAT easily," Lucy echoes in the background.

I spring to my waist. "Oh my god! It's you guys! It feels so good to hear your voices!"

"Girl, what happened to you? We got so scared!" Lili's grainy voice asks.

"I have scoliosis. I'm getting surgery in four days, and they're having me do this dumb pre-surgery spinal camp thing."

"Oh, scoliosis? How long are you gonna be in recovery for?" Lucy buds in.

"Hopefully after I get this surgery over with, I'll be right back with you."

"Oh, Julie. I don't know. That might be a lot of stress on your back," Lucy points out. "Our cousin had scoliosis too and she had to do the spinal fusion thing, and it took her a year to recover."

Unexpectedly, I hear a tiny buzz. Microscopic, but enough impact to tickle my palm. And apparently enough impact to make my two best friends, notorious for yapping, go silent.

"Hey...where'd you guys go?" I cock my head. "Hello?"

"I don't think we should tell her-" Lucy's voice muffles.

Then, Lili's voice pierced through the phone, as if she's trying to cover up what I heard. "How was your day at the hospital, Julie?"

I arch my eyebrow. "What are you not telling me?"

Lucy sighs. "The invitations for the pointe class are coming out soon. We just got an email about it."

"Oh. Well, I'll probably get one soon—"

But, I stop myself. My lips snap shut when I realize the school might not know when I'll get better. They won't know when to send me the invitation. What if it'll be too late and I'm behind the rest of my peers? How will I become a prima ballerina if I'm not on track?

"Who got the solo?" I ask, changing the subject.

"Ashley," Lili answers.

I sigh. Of course.

"Hey, I'm gonna talk to you privately for a sec, Julie," Lucy says.

"Oh. Okay."

I hear background noise scraping against the speakerphone, making me wince.