Cold
By Alyssa
Yellowbrick_1@hotmail.com
Rating: PG13, better be safe
Disclaimer: "I, Alyssa, do solemnly swear…." Turns briefly to look behind her at the man holding a gun to her back. She clears her throat and continues, "That I do not own any of the characters from the hit show 'ER'." Apparently having finished her job she feels the pressure of the barrel leaving her back.
Back again, finally. We got two hours off for snow, so I finished this chapter (my computer was down all weekend). I just wanted to warn, that since I'm only 16 and have no medical knowledge, I pretty much faked most of this chapter. Most of the information I used I got from Encarta, the rest I just tried to reason out. Anyway, enjoy.
(and if any of you were wondering why there is a field in Chicago, or how County could possibly be the closest hospital, I've got your answer: plot convenience. ?)
Cold; extremely cold. But from what? Oh, snow. Where was he? Dark: night. Cold, windy, and dark. How long had he been here? Wait, where was he?
He was able to hear something in the distance. An alarm? No, it didn't sound like an alarm. A busy signal? No, no he wasn't on the phone. His head hurt and he couldn't comprehend anything, but the it finally clicked; Dog: barking. That was it. It was a dog.
Dave tried to raise his hopes, but they were buried too deep in the snow. Then he heard someone gasp, and felt a hand shaking him. He couldn't open his eyes, but he was too tired to care.
"Are you alive?" He heard a frightened female voice ask. Dave tried to respond, but he was barely able to get his blue lips to part.
"You're alive!" The girl screamed loudly. Then Dave heard beeping sounds as the girl typed a phone number into her cell phone. "I've got an emergency!" The girl yelled almost before she stopped dialing. "I was walking my dog; there's this guy in the snow; he's still alive!" She yelled.
Dave remotely felt the dog sniffing him, and he wanted to laugh. He wasn't dead. At least not right now. The girl, the girl that will probably save his life, was calling an ambulance. Before he was able to finish his sluggish thinking, the girl was kneeling besides him.
His eyes were closed and she wasn't sure if he could hear her. He looked so pale, with a bluish hew that it scared her. She hadn't thought that people could actually turn blue. She hoped with all of her might that he would live, even though she didn't know him.
"They're on their way. Just stay with me. Everything is going to be all right." She whispered reassuringly. Dave liked that thought; that everything would be all right. He felt the added weight of another coat finding its way on top of him. Then he felt the weight of the dog on his feet. "Sit." The woman told the dog sternly. Then her voice was back in his ear. "I read about the Donner party once, and how they put dogs on top of them to keep warm. Did you ever learn about the Donner party?" she was trying to get him to talk, or respond, but it wasn't working. At least Dave didn't think it was working until she continued, "Yeah, I learned it in middle school." Then he realized he must have nodded.
He was so tired, and he wished, against better judgment, that the lady would just leave him alone so he could go back to sleep. He realized he couldn't even feel anything anymore. She continued to speak to him, somewhat frantically, but he didn't listen.
She could tell he was giving up, and she couldn't believe it. She tried to talk to him, but could tell that he wasn't hearing her. She just hoped the ambulance would arrive soon
He wasn't sure how long all this was taking, but then he heard a familiar sound in the distance; it was an ambulance.
The two paramedics piled out of the ambulance and followed the frantic waves of a lady out into a snowy field. The girl moved away from the body as they approached and started to explain.
"I was walking Oso, and all of a sudden he was just pulling me in this direction; he must have smelt him." The paramedics nodded and moved to kneel next to the man lying in the snow. One of them checked his pulse, while the other opened the eyelids carefully and peaked inside.
"Sir? Can you hear me? Do you know what happened to you?" The second paramedic asked.
If the girl had been slightly annoying, these paramedics were parasitical. Dave finally realized how aggravating this poking and prodding business could be. Why couldn't anybody leave him alone? Before Dave could accurately process the possible answers of this rhetorical question, he had slipped back into unconsciousness.
"His pulse is thready. He's hypothermic." The first paramedic told the second.
"OK, let's move him. Bring the stretcher and the blankets."
Soon Dave was wrapped and on the stretcher. The paramedics wheeled him, with great difficulty, towards the road. The lady followed them, pulling her dog reluctantly along.
"What am I supposed to do? Am I going to be questioned or something?" She asked.
"Maybe." The second paramedic responded. "Go home, get warm, then drive to County Hospital. The police will probably meet you there."
The girl slowly turned and walked away, looking back only a couple of times.
Dave woke up again in the ambulance. His body was cold again, and he wished he could go back to not feeling it at all. He was able to open his eyes for the first time in a long time. A paramedic was bustling around, adding an extra blanket and rechecking the IV. Dave mentally went through the sequence of the treatment for hypothermia. Then he almost laughed, as he realized he had diagnosed himself without even knowing it. This whole trip was amusing, but he couldn't reason why. He watched the paramedic until finally their eyes met and the paramedic realized he was awake.
"Sir? Can you tell me your name? Do you know what happened to you?" the paramedic asked. Dave tried to talk, he really did, but his throat was parched and his head was spinning. Dave tried to move his hand, but it felt as if his whole body was light-headed. He was suffering from a head rush 100x stronger than normal. The thought of talking made him nauseous, and he decided to close his eyes and sleep the rest of the way to the hospital.
The paramedic could tell he wasn't even trying, and it made him mad. How was he supposed to help someone who didn't want to be helped?
~~~
"An hour left." Jing-Mei announced as she approached the admit desk.
"And trust me, I'm very happy for you." Carter answered. Jing-Mei smiled and playfully punched him on the arm.
"Don't rain on my parade. I have some quality sleeping hours ahead of me." She smiled as she looked through the charts.
"30 year old male coming in. Hypothermia." Haleh announced as she found the two doctors.
"ETA?" Jing-Mei asked.
"Ten minutes." Haleh responded.
"Bad enough for the two of us?" Carter asked, after looking down at the chart he had picked.
"I think so." Haleh answered.
a/n: I'll try to get more out this weekend. Please Review.
By Alyssa
Yellowbrick_1@hotmail.com
Rating: PG13, better be safe
Disclaimer: "I, Alyssa, do solemnly swear…." Turns briefly to look behind her at the man holding a gun to her back. She clears her throat and continues, "That I do not own any of the characters from the hit show 'ER'." Apparently having finished her job she feels the pressure of the barrel leaving her back.
Back again, finally. We got two hours off for snow, so I finished this chapter (my computer was down all weekend). I just wanted to warn, that since I'm only 16 and have no medical knowledge, I pretty much faked most of this chapter. Most of the information I used I got from Encarta, the rest I just tried to reason out. Anyway, enjoy.
(and if any of you were wondering why there is a field in Chicago, or how County could possibly be the closest hospital, I've got your answer: plot convenience. ?)
Cold; extremely cold. But from what? Oh, snow. Where was he? Dark: night. Cold, windy, and dark. How long had he been here? Wait, where was he?
He was able to hear something in the distance. An alarm? No, it didn't sound like an alarm. A busy signal? No, no he wasn't on the phone. His head hurt and he couldn't comprehend anything, but the it finally clicked; Dog: barking. That was it. It was a dog.
Dave tried to raise his hopes, but they were buried too deep in the snow. Then he heard someone gasp, and felt a hand shaking him. He couldn't open his eyes, but he was too tired to care.
"Are you alive?" He heard a frightened female voice ask. Dave tried to respond, but he was barely able to get his blue lips to part.
"You're alive!" The girl screamed loudly. Then Dave heard beeping sounds as the girl typed a phone number into her cell phone. "I've got an emergency!" The girl yelled almost before she stopped dialing. "I was walking my dog; there's this guy in the snow; he's still alive!" She yelled.
Dave remotely felt the dog sniffing him, and he wanted to laugh. He wasn't dead. At least not right now. The girl, the girl that will probably save his life, was calling an ambulance. Before he was able to finish his sluggish thinking, the girl was kneeling besides him.
His eyes were closed and she wasn't sure if he could hear her. He looked so pale, with a bluish hew that it scared her. She hadn't thought that people could actually turn blue. She hoped with all of her might that he would live, even though she didn't know him.
"They're on their way. Just stay with me. Everything is going to be all right." She whispered reassuringly. Dave liked that thought; that everything would be all right. He felt the added weight of another coat finding its way on top of him. Then he felt the weight of the dog on his feet. "Sit." The woman told the dog sternly. Then her voice was back in his ear. "I read about the Donner party once, and how they put dogs on top of them to keep warm. Did you ever learn about the Donner party?" she was trying to get him to talk, or respond, but it wasn't working. At least Dave didn't think it was working until she continued, "Yeah, I learned it in middle school." Then he realized he must have nodded.
He was so tired, and he wished, against better judgment, that the lady would just leave him alone so he could go back to sleep. He realized he couldn't even feel anything anymore. She continued to speak to him, somewhat frantically, but he didn't listen.
She could tell he was giving up, and she couldn't believe it. She tried to talk to him, but could tell that he wasn't hearing her. She just hoped the ambulance would arrive soon
He wasn't sure how long all this was taking, but then he heard a familiar sound in the distance; it was an ambulance.
The two paramedics piled out of the ambulance and followed the frantic waves of a lady out into a snowy field. The girl moved away from the body as they approached and started to explain.
"I was walking Oso, and all of a sudden he was just pulling me in this direction; he must have smelt him." The paramedics nodded and moved to kneel next to the man lying in the snow. One of them checked his pulse, while the other opened the eyelids carefully and peaked inside.
"Sir? Can you hear me? Do you know what happened to you?" The second paramedic asked.
If the girl had been slightly annoying, these paramedics were parasitical. Dave finally realized how aggravating this poking and prodding business could be. Why couldn't anybody leave him alone? Before Dave could accurately process the possible answers of this rhetorical question, he had slipped back into unconsciousness.
"His pulse is thready. He's hypothermic." The first paramedic told the second.
"OK, let's move him. Bring the stretcher and the blankets."
Soon Dave was wrapped and on the stretcher. The paramedics wheeled him, with great difficulty, towards the road. The lady followed them, pulling her dog reluctantly along.
"What am I supposed to do? Am I going to be questioned or something?" She asked.
"Maybe." The second paramedic responded. "Go home, get warm, then drive to County Hospital. The police will probably meet you there."
The girl slowly turned and walked away, looking back only a couple of times.
Dave woke up again in the ambulance. His body was cold again, and he wished he could go back to not feeling it at all. He was able to open his eyes for the first time in a long time. A paramedic was bustling around, adding an extra blanket and rechecking the IV. Dave mentally went through the sequence of the treatment for hypothermia. Then he almost laughed, as he realized he had diagnosed himself without even knowing it. This whole trip was amusing, but he couldn't reason why. He watched the paramedic until finally their eyes met and the paramedic realized he was awake.
"Sir? Can you tell me your name? Do you know what happened to you?" the paramedic asked. Dave tried to talk, he really did, but his throat was parched and his head was spinning. Dave tried to move his hand, but it felt as if his whole body was light-headed. He was suffering from a head rush 100x stronger than normal. The thought of talking made him nauseous, and he decided to close his eyes and sleep the rest of the way to the hospital.
The paramedic could tell he wasn't even trying, and it made him mad. How was he supposed to help someone who didn't want to be helped?
~~~
"An hour left." Jing-Mei announced as she approached the admit desk.
"And trust me, I'm very happy for you." Carter answered. Jing-Mei smiled and playfully punched him on the arm.
"Don't rain on my parade. I have some quality sleeping hours ahead of me." She smiled as she looked through the charts.
"30 year old male coming in. Hypothermia." Haleh announced as she found the two doctors.
"ETA?" Jing-Mei asked.
"Ten minutes." Haleh responded.
"Bad enough for the two of us?" Carter asked, after looking down at the chart he had picked.
"I think so." Haleh answered.
a/n: I'll try to get more out this weekend. Please Review.