XXVIII.
People were calling out to me far away, a cloud drifting in between where I was and the far away light. Air rushed upwards from my back, I couldn’t reach the light no matter how much I tried. I look desperately at my useless arms, trying to grab something to pull me up. They were covered in feathers, and so I started to bat my wings. It was useless, I was falling.
“AUSSIE”
The sky had disappeared. Collen and Lance with their tear stained eyes were what I saw. Lance helplessly held my limp hand, biting his chapped lower lip.
“What happened?”
Words caught and clawed in my throat as I managed to speak.
“Trust me Aussie, you are now known as the person who just came back to life.”
Collen was bathing in a pile of used tissues, rolled up on the rocking chair close by. My eyes were still adjusting to the room; I squinted and batted my eye lids a few times to get a clear view. However, before my eyes were in perfect state, my leg stung.
I was curious; I wanted to peek under my covers to know why my leg had stung so much. I was slowly entangling my fingers from Lance’s tight grip when Dr. Beaker came in.
“Why hello Aussie, it’s quite early for you to be up.”
His aged hands grabbed the side table as he carefully seated himself on the side of the bed.
“I’m feeling a lot better, that’s for sure.”
I intended to give him a huge grin, but my face had gone numb and ancient.
“Don’t worry; your body is just a little oozy from not moving for so long. It’s so used to moving around constantly!”
Dr. Beaker encouragingly rubbed my shoulder in a grandpa-way. Deep wrinkles besides his eyes seemed friendly and welcoming, and his handwritten nametag brought a sudden surge of relaxation.
“So what exactly happened? The last thing I remember is being brought here.”
“Well Aussie. You had pushed yourself a tad bit too far, but not far enough and this old man fixed it. Your cancer had grown at a really fast pace. However, last night’s surgery went well and the primary site was treated. All you have to do now is go on with the chemotherapy.”
The doctor unintentionally rubbed my head, which made me realize my current state up above. My hair had become thinner, just a little bit, but a girl could tell what’s up with her hair. I couldn’t contain a soft whimper as I imagined what I LOOKED like, probably a plucked turkey ready for thanksgiving. Dr. Beaker must have sensed the change in atmosphere; he took my hand in his and rubbed a little warmth into it, patted it a little, and left the room.
Once ole doctor left the room, I realized Lance had silently dozed off into a world of his own. Collen was thoughtful enough to get a light blanket to cover his broad shoulders. I was always grateful that Collen was a really reliable friend, like an owner-friendly parrot, because once he made his way around the hospital bed, he brought up a chair and just talked with me. The conversation wasn’t even about school or cancer, it was just talking.
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