When Edie woke up in a hospital bed, there was a bright light shining in the window of her private room. The orderly that took care of her during the day thought it might make her happy, but all it did was remind her that it was one of the mornings after her own husband tried to murder her.

Edie let her vision blur as she stared out the window into the blinding sun, remembering all that had happened like it was happening that very moment. Waves of shame and embarrassment washed over her as she recalled the moment she'd found out about Dave - the moment she learned his real name, his true past, and his true intentions. Edie's stomach lurched as she remembered their wedding day, the day they'd vowed to love each other for the rest of their days, no matter what. Edie felt his hands around her neck, could see the crazed and desperate look in his eyes as he tried to choke the life out of her.

Edie squeezed her eyes shut, blocking out the sun and trying to block out the memories. But even behind closed eyes they remained, playing over and over in her mind.

They told her he was being held in a high security mental hospital now, as they determined whether he'd be sane enough to stand trial for all that he'd done. The police were still putting together all of the pieces, but the puzzle was beginning to solve itself. The missing doctor, the obsession with taking them all on a camping trip...

Edie felt another wave of revulsion. She'd brought him to Wisteria Lane. She'd subjected all of her former friends and neighbors to his madness. He'd been lying to her the entire time, pretending to be strong and healthy when he was really just an incident away from snapping. He'd manipulated her into buying her old house, smiling that horrible smile of his and making them all trust him, the way she'd trusted him - with everything.

Edie reached for the controls that lifted her bed up and down, and she pressed a button so she could sit up. She wouldn't be getting back to sleep until night fell once again, when they gave her another dose of whatever relaxing miracle drug let her slip into dreamland. She certainly couldn't get there on her own, not after all that had happened.

After Dave had released her throat, after the tiny sliver of humanity he still had left in him told him to stop killing her, she'd run from the house, desperate to warn the ones he intended to harm. She'd been so scared, so shocked, so desperate that she almost ran over one of her neighbors. Damn them for wearing black, but it still would have been her fault. She'd swerved to avoid hitting them, losing control of her car and driving straight into a pole. It was a miracle she hadn't gone through the windshield, since she hadn't bothered fastening her seatbelt. She'd been banged up, and bad, but as if that weren't bad enough, in her shock and confusion Edie decided to get out of the car. She'd stepped into a big puddle, and insult was added to injury as Edie received a real shock, the shock of her life. It had almost been her death.

Edie's spine tingled as she remembered the feeling of being electrocuted. She'd lost control of her body, every nerve coming alive with painful clarity. Collapsing on the street - her street, Wisteria Lane - Edie had stared up at the stars, wondering if it was truly the end. She'd lost track of time, aware that people were rushing to her side but not aware of how long she'd been laying there.

In her hospital bed, Edie glanced down at her fingernails; a few of them had black streaks where the capillaries had died completely. She was still sore, every muscle in her body still recovering. She was still alive, still whole...but she felt broken. She felt used. And worst of all she felt stupid and insecure. The confidence she'd worked years to build up completely had been destroyed in the space of a few terrifying minutes.

The fear was beginning to surface again. Edie was beginning to panic. She reached for the bed's controls again, ready to press the button that would alert the nurse, but she stopped when she heard the door to her room opening.

She wasn't sure she'd receive any visitors. She didn't think she deserved any. And she had to tell herself It's not him! as the heavy door swung open. It was pathetic, and she knew it. But she couldn't help it. It had only been two days since she'd almost died - twice.

Who could it be? she asked herself. Who on earth would be ballsy enough to show their face in her room, and what could they possibly want to see her for? Probably to tell me off, or lament the fact that neither a psychotic killer nor a live wire could finish me off. Oh stop being so dramatic, it's probably just the nurse anyway.

Her first and only visitor poked her head around the door. Once Edie saw who it was, she quickly looked down at her hands again. Karen McClusky. Now that was unexpected.

Karen shuffled into the room, closing the door behind her. Her lips were pressed together, one side of her mouth turned up in a half smile. She put her hands in her pockets as she walked a bit closer, pausing when she reached the large chair next to the bed.

"Hi, Edie." she said lightly.

Edie felt her eyes fill with tears at the sound of Karen saying her name. They hadn't spoken much since Dave had tricked Karen into looking crazy.

Karen hung back. She knew Edie was embarrassed, she'd known it even before walking into her room and seeing her avoid eye contact. She knew Edie's pride had been crushed. No reason to rub it in.

"I said 'Hi, Edie.'" Karen repeated gently, using a joke to prod her into talking.

Edie smiled at Karen's insistence, though it didn't last very long.

"Hi, Karen."

Karen rocked back and forth on her heels and the balls of her feet. "How ya doin'?" she asked.

Edie swallowed, and wet her dry lips. She finally looked up at Karen, and smiled a brave smile.

"Not so good, Karen." said Edie. It may have been an understatement. Edie turned her head, and looked out the window. "Not so good."

"That's understandable." said Karen, sounding innocent. She glanced at the chair beside her, and saw a crack in the polyvinyl covering. She took a hand out of her pocket, picking at the blemish. "The doctor told me you might be able to go home soon."

"I guess they need the bed." said Edie, trying to be flippant. Both the hospital and her insurance company were trying to push her out as soon as ethically possible. A single tear rolled down Edie's cheek. She swiped at it, angry that she let it go.

"Well, that and...you're okay now." Karen reminded her. "Aren'tcha?"

Edie sniffled, and kept staring down at her hands. After a while of sitting in silence, she shrugged.

"Am I?" she asked her good friend. Though, she wasn't so sure she deserved friends anymore. This was the woman that had been taken from her home for accusing Dave of being the crazy man he turned out to be. Edie had been so mad at her, at everyone, during that time, she'd never even checked to make sure Karen was alright.

"You look okay to me." said Karen. "You know, aside from the bruises on your neck and that awful shade of nail polish."

Edie couldn't help it; she laughed. Karen could be so brash - who else would make a joke like that at a time like this? - and she'd always loved that about her. But Edie's laughter quickly dissolved into tears. Her shoulders shook, and she put a hand over her eyes, trying in vain once again to block it all out. It still hurt to swallow because of what he'd done to her, and the blackness under her fingernails was only one small symptom of the pain she'd endured.

"Oh," Karen cooed. "Come here." She walked around the chair and sat next to Edie on the bed. Edie let Karen wrap an arm around her, and Edie rested her head on her old friend's shoulder as she cried it out.

She never cried, never in the presence of another person. But she couldn't hold it in any longer. Karen didn't patronize her either. She just held her, and told her she was alright as she gently rubbed her shoulders. A few minutes later, a nurse came to the door to check on Edie, but Karen waved her away.

A few minutes after that, Edie took a deep breath, and stopped crying.

"There." said Karen, using the back of her fingers to wipe the last few gallons of tears from Edie's cheek. "Feel better?"

"No." Edie said petulantly, sitting up on her own and grabbing three tissues from the box on the bedside table.

"Well, you're gonna." Karen told her. No room for arguments. "You know how I know?"

Edie finished blowing her nose. "Please," she said sarcastically. "Enlighten me."

"I know you're gonna be alright," said Karen. "Because you're a survivor. You're the toughest, meanest bitch in town and you're not gonna let a little thing like near-death take you down."

Edie looked at Karen, asking with her eyes if she really meant it. She used to feel that way. She used to feel like the boss, in complete control of her life. Now she felt like a lost little girl, beaten and stepped on by everyone she ever put her trust in.

"You're going home tomorrow," Karen told her. "That's what the doctor told me anyway."

Edie slouched, trying to shrink into the bed. She looked at the window again, letting the light burn her eyes until they started to water again.

"I can't go home." said Edie. "I can't go back to that house, not yet."

"Then stay with me." said Karen. "You know how desperate us old biddies get for company. You'll be doing me a favor."

"I've lived with an old biddy before. It didn't work out."

Karen was happy to see a little smirk on Edie's face. There she is. thought Karen. The fighter.

"You're really gonna compare me to Martha Huber? I'm insulted." Karen put a leg up on the bed, waiting patiently for Edie to take the hint and move over. Edie shook her head, and smiled a little, scooting over so Karen could lie down next to her.

"Hm." said Karen, testing the fluffiness of the pillow. "Not so bad."

"No?" said Edie, amused. "I'm glad you think so. An old biddy like you should get used to sleeping in a hospital bed."

"Ouch." said Karen dryly. "I was just wondering what you thought of it, since you're so used to being on your back..."

"I will shove you out of this bed." Edie warned her. She looked at Karen, who smiled back at her.

Before Karen came to visit, Edie wasn't sure how she was going to face another day. Now she knew. As long as she had a friend like this at her side to help her, she would survive. She'd survive the emotional side of her latest personal tragedy just as she'd survived the physical. And maybe, given enough time, she would get her confidence back.

She rested her head on Karen's shoulder and pulled the blankets tighter. She may not feel she deserved a visitor, but she was sure glad she had this one.

"Thanks for stopping by." Edie said softly.

Karen rested her head on Edie's.

"No problem, kiddo."

The end.