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Fire
by Ola
The light was too bright. Had I changed the bulb? Or had I fallen asleep on the floor, under the window, and forgotten to draw the shades? Yeah, that was probably it. It would explain the heat too. My face felt hot. Like during a major blush. I stretched, and winced as my muscles answered in a far away pain. Whaaa? I tried to remember what I had been doing the night before to warrant such deadened soreness.
I blinked repeatedly against the light, and finally succeeded in seeing more than plain white. And what I saw only achieved to scare the hell out of me. I was lying in a hospital bed. There were nurses coming and going outside the open door of the little room in which I found myself, and a whole wall of weird machinery stood behind me. Machinery that was connected to my arms by quite a number of tubes. Machinery that suddenly started to beep loudly. The bright green line flying on the screen went crazy. None of what I saw conducted to a nice awakening. An elderly nurse suddenly burst into the room and hovered over the beeping apparatus until it finally calmed down. Thank god. As I looked at what she was doing, to refrain my mind from thinking about anything else just yet, I realized that the green line was synchronized with my heart. I could feel it pulsating in my temples and the points where the needles were inserted into the back of my hands and wrist. Ah yeah. The heart monitor. That wasn't a good sign, if I needed one. What the hell had happened to me? I was trying not to think about it but… I was never one for much patience.
Perhaps I should learn that virtue. It would be undeniably useful in the future. Because as I pushed the world out and delved into my thoughts, my eyes grew round… and the monitor started its shrill beeping again. And it only succeeded in bringing me that much farther over the edge.
The fire, the heat, the pain and the all encompassing distress of losing Bran came rushing back, and I relived that night in the next few seconds. Or at least I think it was last night… the thought that it might not have been was too much to take at the moment. And anyway, I had a much more present question to ask the nurse that was still bustling around me, tucking my blanket into the side of the bed.
“Excuse me…” well, that is what I tried to say anyway. All that came out was a pitiful croak. Oh god. It fucking hurt! And it got her attention anyway. Not that I could actually ask her anything in the state of my throat was in. Not for a few days at least. And I wasn't about to wait that long.
“Water” I tried again, keeping it short.
“I’m glad you’re finally awake honey. I’ll be right back with something to drink for you but try not to talk for a while ok?” she smiled as if everything in the world was all right, while I gritted my teeth in frustration. So I nodded, and she left. Actually drinking whatever the hell it was she gave me was a whole other matter. It burned my throat and I couldn’t even hold the cup by myself without spilling the contents. My hands were wrapped in white bandages from the wrist to somewhere higher up on my arms, lost beneath the hospital gown. I didn’t even want to think about what the rest of me looked like. I coughed and shook my head to let her know I couldn’t drink any more. Then motioned as if writing something down. With another nod and a few words of encouragements, she left again.
I was getting to quite like the lady. Nice and efficient. But… that only brought me closer to my answers… which I wasn't sure I wanted to hear.
Gripping the pen was just as hard as it had been to hold the cup, and my usual scribbling metamorphosed into the almost unreadable scrawl of a two year old. I was trying damn it! After long minutes of painful effort, I finally pushed the piece of paper toward her, my questions listed in a slanted column. And the nurse –I didn’t even know her name- sat down on the edge of the bed and ran her finger down the list.
“You were brought in last evening honey. It’s now early morning, so you have been in the hospital for the entire night. You weren’t too badly hurt, thank god. Just a few burns, mostly on your arms, although by what we could gather from the paramedics, it’s a wonder you got out of there alive. What took you to go running into that fire girl!? But I digress… and forbid you to talk in any case,” she added as I opened my mouth to tell her just exactly why I had been willing to risk my life.
“So, as for your next question… he has been waiting for you all night, pacing down the hallway until he made us all go crazy and we forced him to take a nap in the waiting room. He wouldn’t hear of going anywhere else farther than that. Poor boy. He was beside himself with worry.” I think I stopped listening to her, my mind so wrapped up around the fact that Bran was all right. Thank god. I… I…
“Oh dear! Are you in pain? Should I go get the doctor?” the nurse’s startled exclamation brought me out of my thoughts, unaware why she was so wrought up until I licked my dry lips and felt the salty tears in the corner. I shook my head and gave her a trembling smile for answer, struggling to reach the paper again, now lying forgotten on the blanket. Writing came a bit easier now, but just slightly. Or perhaps I was so set on looking better than I really was. The nurse wasn’t really impressed it seemed, as she frowned and pursed her lips at my irrational demand. But seeing my pleading eyes… and the empty hallway, she helped me out of bed and steered me to the waiting room, supporting me by my elbow. My legs had been left unbandaged, and from what I could now see, were streaked with reddish marks. So I stopped looking. It didn’t really hurt anyway, well, no more so than a bad sunburn, which could be forgotten if I wasn't touching the burned patches. Walking wasn't so bad either, after the initial vertigo when I stood up. In all, a part of my mind kept echoing the nurse’s earlier comment, and wondering how the hell I had made it through. The rest of me was too busy trying to keep my heart from escaping out of my rib cage. There was enough damage as it was, I didn’t need a gaping hole in my chest to add to the list. Damn it. Where was that waiting room? The other side of th…
I stopped walking and brought a finger to my lips to stop the nurse from asking the question obviously on her mind. I nodded and smiled and willed my body to look healthy. You know, maybe she could catch the good vibes or something and let me go. Then I extracted my arm from her hold and made the last few steps toward the row of chairs lined up by the far wall. And the tall figure slumped there, clutching a blanket up to his chin. I couldn’t hold the splitting smile off my face if my life depended on it. Good thing the heart monitor had stayed in the room, or it would have gone up in smoke by now.
He was here. Bran. He was here. Safe and asleep. And looking for all the world like a little boy dead set on staying awake all night waiting for Santa, but finally succumbing to slumber. I watched him sleep for a little while, then couldn’t hold myself much longer and caressed his face, burying my fingers in his short hair.
“Brani.” The whisper came out as a croak. Again. And I winced at the twinge of pain. Then forgot all about it as he opened his eyes.
He blinked, and then just looked at me, as if unable to comprehend what was happening. I didn’t blame him, having went through the same thing a short while back. I grinned and his eyes went round. And I suddenly found myself in his arms, engulfed in a bear hug that literally took my breath away –and scratched quite a bit of sore skin. He let go a bit when he felt me flinch, but didn’t release his hold. And quite frankly, I just burrowed my head back into his shoulder and pulled him closer myself, inhaling the smell that undeniably told my brain: Bran. No matter the state of my unbelieving thoughts, he was here. Safe. Alive. With me.
I guess we were in a very sorry state. Both of us sitting on the linoleum floor, clinging to each other for dear life, while trying to stop the tears and sobs. But this was one of the happiest moment of my life.
After a long while of just enjoying each other’s presence again, Bran’s chest rumbled with a chuckle. “Alex?” I looked up at him in question, preferring not to use my vocal cords if not really necessary.
“I don’t have any place to stay for tonight…” True. I had completely forgotten what had started all of this. But…
“You can stay with me.” I managed to say into his shirt. Then added after a moment, “as long as you let me cook.” His lips caressing mine were his only response. And the only one I needed.
Yeah.
Definitely the happiest moment of my life.
They do come at very impromptu times.
