Through The Hourglass and Into The Future

Volume Two

Chapter Eight

Valentine’s Day

I blinked my eyes as I awoke, feeling like I had been run over by a bus or something. I tried to lift my arm to shield my eyes from the bright light, but I was so weak that I could not even lift it. I didn’t even have the strength to turn my head and look around, and even moving my eyes wore at me.

“Wha…what happened? Did I make it back?” I asked, my voice barely a whisper. I didn’t think anyone heard me.

I heard a voice, a familiar one. “He’s alive! Jason’s alive!” In my present state, I couldn’t tell who it was. My brain felt like it was working at a slug’s pace, trying to interpret who the voice I had heard had belonged to, but I began to realize who it did not belong: my mom or my two sisters.

That didn’t mean that I hadn’t made it back, but I began to suspect that I was still in the future. It was confirmed a moment later when the dark blue face of Tana came within my vision, looking weary and sad. “He’s alive, but how badly has he been hurt?” she asked.

“He took a tremendous amount of stress on his body, Tana. Being exposed to that kind of energy field would have killed most humans, but somehow he survived. He did sustain a lot of damage, though, so we had no choice but to use the treatment on him to try and build up his body’s strength. We’ve had to use regenerative treatments on his brain due to the injury, but he should be okay. No need to worry, Tana!” another voice said, this one of an unknown male.

My bed began to lift my torso into an upright position, and I could see that I was in a hospital room of some kind. Tana was standing beside me and smiling, but I could tell that she was very tired, and I assumed that she had stayed beside my bed ever since the accident occurred. The doctor was a male, but not a human one. He was a thinner Celandran, with closely trimmed brown hair all over the exposed parts of his body. Celandrans favored the Wookies from Star Wars somewhat, except they were not nearly as hairy and actually could speak English along with their native language.

He ran a scanner over my body, which looked somewhat like a fancy spatula turned upside down and somewhat flattened. He looked up above my head to what I took as a readout. “Good! He’s responding well to the treatment!” He looked at me and asked, “Can you hear me, Jason?”

I somehow managed to eek out “Yes” and the doctor nodded and turned to a male human nurse, who looked like a younger version of Denzel Washington. “Peter, bring some regenerative solution and inject it into his bloodstream.”

Moments later, Peter brought in a cylindrical object that looked like a paint can without the handle. He inserted it into an input and pressed a couple of valves above my head. “Jason, what Peter is doing is inserting what would best be called ‘blood cell boosters’, which will help you regain strength a lot sooner.”

“So you’re doping me up, eh?” I said with a smile that wore me out as I gave it.

The doctor nodded and replied, “In a way, yes. But this is only temporary, so no need to worry about creating a superhuman out of you!”

I looked down at my legs and that’s when I saw what a wonder the treatment had worked on my body. They were thinner, but still seemed to be very strong. As I looked down at my belly, I noticed that the familiar lump of my gut was gone, and, for the first time since I was a little kid, I had a trim stomach.

“My goodness! I never imagined that I would ever have a flat stomach!” I said, realizing that my energy levels were increasing thanks to the regenerative. There was a round of nervous laughter that was more of relief than of humor. Tana smiled broadly, which warmed my heart.

About an hour later, after more examination from other doctors and nurses, they left Tana and I in my room alone so I could rest. I wasn’t quite strong enough to eat solid food yet, but I was able to drink some water with relative ease. I actually drank quite a bit, and when I was done, my throat stopped feeling like worn down sandpaper and more like it would if I was just recovering from a strep throat.

But my voice was gaining strength, and I found the words that Tana needed to hear. “Sorry that I didn’t listen to you, Tana.”

Tana smiled and her eyes became wet with tears, and she suddenly embraced me with a hug on the bed. “It’s alright, Jason! Everything is going to be fine!”

“So you’re no longer mad at me for wanting to go back?” I asked.

Tana nodded and said, “I forgave you when I saw you shoved out of that chair and into the base of the console. I thought that you were dead!”

Then I remember what she had said before I blacked out, “I remember what you told me before I went under, and I just wanted you to know that I love you as well!”

Tana smiled and kissed me, then leaned in and said, “The doctors say that you’ll be in here for another two weeks, but you should make a full recovery.”

“Why did they use the treatment on me?” I asked curiously.

Tana replied, “Things were very tense for a while, and they didn’t know if you’d survive or not. Your internal organs had been traumatized by what happened. The best way to describe it would be if you had been struck by lightning, only this bolt was much more powerful than any known lightning in history. They had to use the treatment to pretty much rebuild your body. It almost didn’t work, but they managed to keep you alive somehow.”

“I’m glad they did!” I said. Then I yawned for what seemed forever, and whatever energy I had been infused with suddenly left me. “I am so tired! I think I need a nap! What time is it anyway?” I asked.

“It’s early morning, Jason. Just lay back and I’ll let you get some rest!” She pressed a button and I soon was prone on my back again. I turned my head to see Tana pull up a chair to sit beside me, and I managed to use my last bit of energy to put my hand up on the rail. Tana took my hand in hers and kissed it as I fell asleep.

Sometime later, I awoke to see Julius and Sarah in the room as well as Tana. Julius looked at me with mournful eyes and said, “I’m so sorry, Jason!”

“It’s okay, Julius. I knew the risks. You shouldn’t blame yourself.” I said honestly. I knew that what happened to me was my own damn fault. It wasn’t like Tana and the others hadn’t tried to talk me out of trying to go back home.

So I was stuck in the year 2505, five hundred years removed from my own time. When asked if I wanted to try it again, I told the doctor, “Probably not.” I honestly didn’t know at that moment if I wanted to go back or not, but I did realize that the risks were even greater than I had imagined.

After Julius and Sarah left, Tana informed me that it was Valentine’s Day. “So I’ve been out almost two weeks?” I asked, shocked at the length of my coma.

“Almost, but not quite. They had to be careful, Jason, because you were in very bad shape when we got you here.” Tana said in a sober tone.

“So how much do they know about me?” I asked. It was an important question, as I was technically living under a false identity.

“They know all about you, Jason.” Tana said. “The doctors treating you are old friends of Dr. Chronenberg, so they know of your situation. The nurses, on the other hand, do not, so it’s best to not say anything out of place.”

I nodded, adding, “I’ll keep to my identity then. Lord knows the last thing I need in this shape is to have people find out who I really am.”

Tana patted me on the hand. “It’ll be okay, Jason! Just trust the doctor!” She then went into her coat pocket and got something out. “I went down to the gift shop to get this. It isn’t much, but since it’s Valentine’s Day…” Tana said, handing it to me with a hopeful smile.

I took it from her and opened the box. It was a wristwatch. “I know you told me you felt naked without one, and since your old one is too much of an antique, I decided to get you a new one.” Tana said.

I put it on and looked at it. It showed the time and date with a picturesque background on the display panel of the oversized watch. “How much can this thing do?” I said as I pressed the mode button, and a menu of options came up.

“It’s much more powerful than anything in your time. It’s essentially a personal computer with a cell phone and a monitor all in one. Go on and try it! I have to run to the bathroom anyway!” Tana said, kissing me on the cheek as she left to go to the restroom.

Sure enough, I could get video on the not-so-little watch. I watched a news report as well as a sports report, not really paying much attention to things. The watch even had a contact list for Julius, Tana, Sarah, and Alan. I could search the web and did just that, trying to find out if any news of what had happened had made the news.

When Tana came back, I asked her, “Have they said anything about the attempt to send me back? I’m sure that they were able to trace the energy spike like they did last time.”

Tana nodded nervously and added, “The investigation is still ongoing, and attempting to go back did give them more reason to look into things. Dr. Chronenberg is afraid that they may start putting things together and assume that he brought something, or, as we know, someone through.”

“If they do find out that someone was brought through, what do we do then?” I asked.

“I wish I knew, Jason. I think the doctor may have us take a trip somewhere and hope that things blow over. Where that trip will be remains to be seen, but I think the doctor may be looking into things.”

“Why do you say that, Tana?”

“Because he’s been working a lot lately, and not just on his usual stuff. Alan and I talked about it the other night when he came by to visit. He thinks that Julius will want to send you and I off world for a while. Maybe take a tour of the solar system until the storm blows over. Either that or go around the world and try to lay low while doing it.”

I lay back on my bed and thought about it for a while, then said, “When I get out of here…wait a second! Where is here? I don’t know which hospital I’m in!” I laughed when I said that, and that drew one from Tana as well.

“You’re in Rutherford Hospital, but not the one you knew back in your time, of course. This one is where the old Rutherfordton Golf Course used to be.”

I nodded and chuckled, “I think I may have set the record for the longest time between hospital stays. 1978 to 2505! I just hope the food’s better than it was last time!” I would be able to taste it soon, I knew, but the doctors wanted to be sure I didn’t choke on it first, as they wanted to check my throat muscles first before giving the go-ahead.

A black skinned human doctor came in a minute later to check on me. After nodding to Tana, he went through an assortment of scans of me with what looked like a thick crystal magic wand. “I’m Doctor Terrell Albion, Jason. Sorry I didn’t make the introduction before, but I just wanted to stop by and check on you before I went home for the day. Are you feeling stronger?”

“Somewhat, doctor. I’m still not near one hundred percent, but I am feeling a lot better than I was when I woke up this morning.” I replied.

Albion ran a scanner over the front of my neck, and then checked the readings on the monitor above. “I think you’re ready for solid food. I’ll be sure to tell the nurses to put you on it for the dinner cycle. I’m sure that you’d tire of soups and such rather quickly.”

I shrugged. “You’re probably right. But I’m famished, so I’ll be glad to eat something solid for a change.” He finished up and said, “I’ll be by tomorrow to check up on you. With luck, you may be out of here a day or two sooner, but it’ll be at least a week and a half before we can release you.”

“I understand. Thank you, doctor.” Albion nodded and left, leaving Tana and I alone. I was happy to have the chance to eat solid food, but I was not looking forward to the long hospital stay.

“Looks like I’ll be wearing this thing out.” I said, pointing to the wristwatch. “Unless you happen to have a computer terminal handy so I can keep occupied while you’re away.”

Tana smiled and went over to the desk by the wall and brought me what is the modern version of a laptop computer. Thankfully, I was already accustomed to it, so I had no problem booting it up. She then replied, “I don’t have anywhere to go, Jason.”

“Tana, you’re tired, and you need some sleep. I’ll be all right here, so you can go back to your place and get some rest. I have the feeling you’ve been here a lot more than there as of late.”

Tana nodded and said, “Okay, Jason. But I will be by here in the morning to check on you before I have to go to the college.” She kneeled down to kiss me on the lips, then quietly slipped out the door.

I spent about an hour online, reading up on news and other items of interest. Dinner came and it was much better than it had been when I was in first grade. Chicken Parmesan with spaghetti certainly did hit the spot, and I also put paid to the garlic bread and chef’s salad that came with it. Any doubts of me being able to handle solid foods were put to rest.

I did need help getting to the bathroom, but the female attendant was perfectly helpful in assisting me to rid myself of liquid waste. I could feel that my legs had some strength in them, but I wasn’t confident enough to try them just yet.

It was weird having a thinner body now. I looked down at my now flat stomach and laughed. I wondered how much weight I had lost. Before this happened, I was almost three hundred and fifty pounds. Now, I felt like I was barely around two hundred. What I would make of that when I got back to my place remained to be seen.

I stayed online until the nurse came by at 11pm to check on me. She told me that I would be able to do some assisted walking tomorrow, and that made me feel better. I asked her to put the computer back on the desk, and she did that with a smile. It wasn’t long after she tucked me in that I found myself asleep.