Authors note: a very quick chapter, I had a very busy weekend. Hope you enjoy.
'Love, are you listening to me?'
I wasn't. I stood next to Kassandra, who had her arm around my shoulders. I was tired, my eyes hazy, my heart beating very slow. Everything in that moment had confused me, upset me, and more importantly left me feeling like the only person I wished would live forever was going to disappear.
But how did I get here? In this big hospital, with patients groaning all around me?
Because I had a dream earlier that night.
I was sitting at the dinner table, young, maybe fifteen. On my right side sat mater, she looked healthy fresh and well dressed, her head wasn't damaged, no bio fluid evident, just her brown locks of hair. But to my left was pater, his big burly body taking up most of his seat. But something was odd about that moment, I wasn't angry, I was holding both my parents hands, smiling, happy that I was with them.
That's how I knew it was a bad dream.
Pater rose from his seat and leant in to hug me, his cologne fresh, his smile greedy. Whatever moment this was, it was unwanted, I hated him right? I didn't like hugs from him, right? What was going on. He squeezed me, kissed me on the forehead and told me how much he loved me, and by that time I knew I had to wake up. When he leant back, his smile changed, to something sinister, darker. His body morphed into a big black shadow, and he loomed over mater like a monster. She looked up, a big smile on her face, happy to see her husband become something different.
I woke up, wide eyes and all, and spooked Kassandra awake from beside me. She groaned, mumbled something and went to grab me again, but I could feel something was wrong, something was terribly terribly wrong. I took her hands off me and slid myself from my bed, my breath fastening, she took a moment to realise and woke up, asking me if I was alright.
I was alright, but was mater?
'I have to go check.' I kept repeating, rushing out of my room.
'Kyra!' Kassandra called a little, rising up after, I could hear the sheets move. 'Wait!'
I couldn't turn and wait for her, something was awfully not right, and I knew my hunch was correct. I rushed into my maters room and noticed her sleeping soundly, but it was when I realised; she didn't shuffle in her sleep when I stepped in loudly, and when I called her name she didn't answer. I felt the tears hit instantly, my heart did that awful drop, and I sat by her torso.
'Mater!' I called, shaking her body. 'Wake up!'
But she didn't. I panicked and checked her signals, she was still alive; thank the gods, but she wasn't waking up!
'Mater!' I sobbed, the tears didn't stop there. I panicked, grabbed her shoulders and shook, violently. 'Mater!'
I swallowed, she didn't budge. I rose up, sniffing loudly and holding the sides of my head, pacing, not sure what to do, I was in a state.
'Kassandra!' I cried, I didn't notice the scream that left my mouth. How was this happening? After a bad dream coincidently she's gone.
Kassandra came stumbling in, holding the doorframe with wide eyes. She'd found an old pair of track pants and a singlet from my room, obviously she was expecting my mater to meet her. 'What? What is it?!'
I pointed to my mother and sobbed, not sure what to say. But something was leaving my mouth, a mumble of sorts, a high pitched whine.
Kassandra rushed to my side and held my shoulders, trying to figure out what I was saying, but she quickly turned to mater and checked her.
Everything after that was a blur.
Mater wasn't waking up.
Kassandra was doing everything she could to make her open her eyes, but nothing was happening.
The ambulance came.
I was shoved in the back with her, and Kassandra joined too. But all I could remember in that twenty minute ride was sobbing, trying to wake her up, listening to her heart beat. At one point I could feel Kassandra's hands on my waist, she pulled me back, shushed me, told me everything was going to be fine, but I fought her and pushed her away, not meaning to be rude, but my priorities were one thing, and that was my mother.
I didn't want to lose her.
'Love, are you listening to me?'
I swallowed and opened my eyes, glancing into the eyes of a nurse. She was a robot, I could tell by the lines around her facial features.
They were designed to have human emotions, there was a huge rally years ago about giving them equal rights, and it worked, surprisingly. I was all for them being their own person, but older models like this blonde haired woman were used in retail, hospitals and fast food retailers. Id seen the same model 100 times in my day to day life here in Mykonos.
I blinked, breathed in and realised where I was. From beside me, Kassandra stood, still dressed the way she was when she got out of bed, where once we were holding one another.
'I need your ID, to verify that you are a citizen of Neo Mykonos.' The woman robot spoke, nodding her head once my way. 'Please.'
I was hesitant to do such a thing, but I rustled through my jacket to grab my wallet, where most my cards were electronic anyway. I leant closer and mumbled my name to her, and her servers lit up. She blinked, typed away and realised who I was, or well, who was my father.
'Oh my.' She spoke, turning to her robot apprentice. 'Please orginise the best bed for our guests mother here.'
I didn't move, but they began scrambling to and from, talking into their voice communicators and notifying others who my father was. I wasn't keen on public places, or private places, because my family origins would always be dug up and promoted like I was someone famous, someone of worth, someone wanted. I swallowed again, and followed the nurse down the hall, where hopefully my mother was being transported to another room, somewhere only celebrities could go. Finally being knocked to my senses helped me understand the situation, I wonder how long I'd been zoned out for. I turned to Kassandra, and she looked at me, concern written all over her face. I didn't say anything to her, just reached for her hand and squeezed once. But she never let go, she held it until we touched the third floor. We were lead to a door, and as it slid open I saw my mother laying in a grand comfortable bed. She was set up with wires, bio fluid going straight into her system, her brain. The doctor was checking her vitals, and something clicked in me.
'Doctor!' I cried, stepping in and holding his arm tight. 'Is she going to be okay? What happened?'
I was asking so many questions, that he raised his hand and told me to calm down as nicely as he could, but he seemed frustrated. He was a taller man, with greying hair and facial hair, he lifted my hand off him and set it to my side, smiling gently.
'You must be the daughter, Kyra?' he asked.
'Yes.' I responded quietly, my chest tightening up. 'I'm Kyra.'
He nodded and looked at my mater, I looked too, fear sinking deep into my chest. 'Is she…'
'She's fallen into a coma.' He mumbled, clearing his throat. 'She must have overdosed on bio fluid, the brain took too much and she fell into a coma.'
'Gods…' I groaned, I needed to sit back down, a nurse brought me a chair and I fell into it, covering my face with my hands. 'What do we do?'
'We wait, feed her brain and vitals the best bio fluid we have to offer, and watch her progress.'
I couldn't believe this, my heart was wrenching just seeing her the way she was. This was my mater, in bed, not waking up, the woman who raised me. I felt the tears sting my eyelids again, and bit my bottom lip. Was this my fault? Was it all my fault that she was sick and had fallen into a coma? Was I doing something wrong?
'You have no reason to blame yourself, if that's what you're thinking.' The Dr answered my baffling thought. 'You were refilling her bio fluid, yes?'
'Yes.' I simply answered. 'I was.'
'It wasn't your fault, this is just because the chemicals in her brain couldn't handle the amount going directly into her stream, its not common, but it can happen.'
Great, and it had to happen to my mater, a woman who had already gone through so much in her life.
'I assure you Kyra, daughter of Podarkes…'
Ew. I hated hearing that.
'We will make sure she wakes up, you can count on us.' The Dr finished.
I nodded once, and asked if they could leave, so I could be alone with my mater. They listened to me very quickly, left and closed the door behind us, us, yes. I looked at Kassandra, and she blinked, turned to leave and stopped when I asked her to.
'Stay, Kassandra…' I mumbled sadly. 'Please.'
I wanted to be alone, but not without her in my presence. As odd as that sounded coming from me, the thought of being completely isolated from any living awake being made me sick to the stomach. I stood slowly and stepped to my maters side, sitting by her breathing chest. I felt like I'd let her down,
'Maybe if I'd come home earlier, maybe if I'd checked up on her….' I started, my words felt choked. 'Maybe this mess wouldn't have happened.'
Kassandra put one hand on my shoulder, and I buried my face in my hands again. 'Maybe she'd still be awake, Kassandra.'
'Kyra…' she replied, softly. 'You couldn't have helped this.'
She was right. There was no way I was expecting such a thing to happen. I wouldn't have known about the chemical imbalance in maters brain, or what the bio fluid was also doing, I was told the fluid was to help her cope; not cause more issues. I sighed and sniffled loudly, breathing in harshly and containing my tears. I leant down to press a kiss to my maters forehead, keeping my lips there for a solid few seconds before breaking off and leaning back into Kassandra's touch.
This was unexpected, but it was happening. I had to take it with a grain of salt.
'I don't know what to do.' I admitted, my eyes a little wide, nodding once. 'I really don't know what to do.'
'What do you mean?' Kassandra asked, curious.
I looked up at her, then back to my mater, shrugging my shoulders. 'I cant afford to keep her here.'
It was true. I didn't have the money Pater had, no way. And now that she was in hospital, he would definitely be notified, especially when she was put in a ward under his name. I was stressing out, and Kassandra could feel my shoulders tense.
'Hey…' she began rubbing them, and I relaxed a little under her touch. 'It's going to be okay, they'll keep her safe.'
'I know…it's just.' I paused and pursed my lips, sighing again. 'I cant believe this is all happening.'
'I understand.' Kassandra replied.
Did she understand?
No, of course she did. She had a traumatizing experience back in Sparta. And had to leave her parents too. She understood.
I was grateful for her being here. I tried to open my mouth and tell her that, but nothing was coming out, so I simply leant my head against her hand, blinking tiredly.
'Are you alright?' she asked, her thumb gently stroking my cheek. I blushed just the slightest, but my focus was on my mater, my eyes didn't come off her sleeping state. 'You worried me back there.'
Any other moment I would be red faced and giddy knowing Kassandra of Sparta was worried about me, the week had come to an end but here we were in a hospital room together, how did this happen?
Were the fates bringing us together for a reason? Some really fucked up reason that I just couldn't understand? They must have been. Because I could feel myself getting closer and closer to the taller girl with every passing hour, plus she'd seen my emotions go up and down, from happy to now sobbing uncontrollably.
And yet here she was.
Still by my side.
I sat, she stood, in silence we watched my mater breathe, we listened to the machines beep and the sound of fluid dripping, these sounds would haunt me until she awoke.
