My 'One and Only' : Matthew Espinosa

Chapter 12: ???

DUSTIN'S POV

I miss her even though sometimes she annoys the heck out of me, or gets me in plenty of trouble. When I pick her up, take her to school, or occasionally see her in the halls, I think to myself she's just my sister, nothing special about this. I wish I had taken the time to get to know her more and understand her. To fight less. To be a better brother. Because now, she might be gone for good...and there's nothing I can do to stop it...

THALIA'S DAD'S POV

I enter the drowsy hospital once again, not ready to experience the pain of seeing my little baby near to her death. She's too young. Too brave.

The front desk employee recognizes me automatically as I walk through the stained glass doors. "You know where to go," she says blankly staring at her computer screen, her fingers typing wildly. "Thanks," I mumble under my breath for the fifth time this week as I enter room 205.

Stumbling through the door, I once again take a look at my daughter's condition: pale and skinny, her chest slowly rising and falling to the beep of the heart monitor.

I think to myself this isn't my daughter. My daughter is vivacious, strong; and the person laying in this hospital bed is weak, dead-looking. It's just not her.

THALIA'S POV

Good grief. How long until I can move! I mean like seriously. I'm "dying" here but I feel so alive. So energetic. And yet, so tired. There's just one thing I think I need. Coffee. But there's no where for me to go in this hellhole.

I hear someone enter the room again. Meh probably another nurse coming to give me some injections that I can't feel. That's the only good thing about this- not being able to feel any physical pain. Mental depression, on the other hand, is a whole different story.

The footsteps from the stranger stop yet again near my right side. Then, I hear the squeak of a chair, and the room fills with the sound of wails from my father. "Why God?! Why?" He shouts between sobs.

I hadn't realized how much pain and stress I had been putting on my family until now. I feel terrible. I wish I could do something, anything.

THIRD PERSON POV

A tiny girl and a tear faced father, share a hospital room. He thinks she's gone, never to walk this earth again, until the girl feels some kind of emotion. First, a tear slides down from her right eye, then many more follow, covering her face in a puddle.

The man looks up at his lifeless daughter to see the emotion. "What? How could this be?" He says softly. "Thalia? Thalia?!" He says slightly raising his voice. Instantly, the girl's bloodshot eyes shoot open, and her mouth forms the words, "I will never leave you."

THALIA'S POV

I forced my eyes open and my mouth to speak. The bright lights in the room blinded my sore eyes. My shock-faced father instantly runs up to my side and squeezes my hand. And I felt it.

"I know, Thalia. I know you will never leave. You will never give up. You are a very strong girl, and I am very proud of you." I reply with a slight smile.

Nurses started forming into the room, one by one, unplugging chords, switching off machines. "Good morning, Thalia," a middle-aged nurse greets me with a welcoming smile. "Hi," I quietly respond.

The nurses tell me what had happened to me, and when I can leave. "Tomorrow if you're feeling up to it," she said cheerfully. "Alright thanks." Dad instantly calls Dustin and tells him to come down the the hospital with mom. After about 10 minutes of catching up with dad, they arrive.

Both of them rush up to me and engulf me in giant bear hugs. "Mom! Dustin!" I say with an ear to ear smile. "Thalia! We've missed you so much!" My mom says, with tears brimming her eyes.

We all talked and I told them that I heard them all talking and about Dustin's update. "You really heard me?" He asked shocked. "Yep! Every singing detail," I replied proudly.

They said their goodbyes for the night, and I was yet again left in my dormant hospital room. After about thirty minutes of me watching TV, the nurse walks in with my dinner. "Here you go sweetie, nice and hot," she says placing my meal on a small pull out table.

She begins to walk away until I call her, "excuse me," I start. She turns around, "yes?" "Um do you think there's any way I could leave my room for a minute." I ask pleadingly. "Well...we're usually not supposed to but..." She held open my door and smirked. "Thank you so much! I promise I will be right back!"

I quickly made an attempt to stand, failing miserably, but catching myself on the wall. "Oh! Want crutches?" She asked. "Oh no thanks, I have to learn how to do this soon." I responded.

I walked past the front desk, and since nobody was there, I decided to check the list of rooms. 217.

I slowly hobble down the hallway, leaning on the wall to my left, until I find the room. Inside, he lays asleep. I slowly tiptoe over to a chair and pull it quietly to the side of his bed. Sitting down, I study him. There's tubes coming in and out of his body and he has a big white bandage around his waist.

I reach out and lightly grab his hand. He stirs and his eyes slightly open, and look my direction. "Thalia," he mumbles in a raspy voice, "is that really you?" He says with his eyes fully open and sits up, "yea, it's really me," I whisper and quietly giggle.

"I'm so sorry," he finishes, with tears weighing down his eyes. "Hey, sshhh. I'm okay now, no need to worry, shhhh," he starts lightly sobbing as I reach my hand up to his face and wipe off his tears.

"T?" He asks, looking up at me with his red eyes, "yes?" I smile at him, "I lo-" he starts to say, but is interrupted by his own chokes and gags. "Nash?! Nash!?" I scream. I look up at the heart monitor which is beeping rapidly and the line is slowly falling. "No!!" I scream clutching onto him, "NOO!!"

THIRD PERSON POV

More doctors and nurses enter the scene and try their best to hold on to the dying patient. A girl screams and cries as nurses drag her back to her own room. After the scene, a pang of death fills the room, and the devastated doctors and nurses exit slowly.

A creature appears into the area, by the thoughts of someone in the hospital, and with sharp teeth and transparent eyes, it floats to the side where the dead body lays. With one movement, it sinks it's sharp fangs into the side of the patient's neck, and releases slowly and it chants something while dancing around the room:

As you have believed in me, as you have believed.