When she next woke up, she still felt a slight sting of pain though she assumed it was from the texture of the blanket she was lying on. It was soft but her senses were still in overdrive, making the blanket feel like knives being run lightly over her skin in many intervals.
Cautiously she opened her eyes to find that she was in a darkened room and was tucked into a bed. There was a soft beeping noise coming from some medical machine. Ophelia instantly shied away from it, trying to shrink into the wall, however she found that a needle in her arm connected her to the instrument.
She quickly ripped the needle from her arm only to cover her ears as the beeping became louder and more quick paced. It seemed like the noise droned on forever before there was a loud crash and her head whipped around to see a man with short dark brown hair and dark eyes in the doorway. She felt like she should know him but every time she tried to pull one of the strings of memory presented to her they would shatter as the noises filtered in again.
The man hurried over and Ophelia recoiled away from him as he picked up the needle she had pulled from her arm. "You need to keep this in, it's to stabilize you."
As he moved closer and reached out to grab her arm, Ophelia curled up against the wall with a quiet cry of fear and protest. "It's not okay."
"I'm not going to hurt you, but if we don't get you stabilized it could be very dangerous for you." He said, again trying to grab her arm. She glared at him for a moment before the expression crumpled and tears started to fall. She turned away from him, pulling her arms to her middle and hugging herself. The man was quiet a moment more before speaking. "Do you even understand what I'm saying?"
A sharp humorless laugh tore from her throat before it morphed into a sob. She did understand but at the same time she didn't. She couldn't comprehend it and the harder she tried the more it slipped away. She needed it to flow, like the currents of a river. River. Why was that familiar? She used to love playing by the river next to her house when she was a kid, but that was a long time ago. So what did the word mean to her now?
She startled when she felt a cold hand gently grasp her arm and she slowly turned to stare at the man. His eyes were kind and reassuring as he positioned the needle over her arm.
"What is the River?" She whispered, letting her head fall against the wall as her eyes closed. The man paused in his movements and she shifted slightly as images flowed to her. River was a girl. From the Academy. Clarity flashed through her and her eyes snapped open. Mei Mei. She was here. Now it made sense. The man and the machine. This was Simon. How could she have forgotten?
Simon resumed his movements and Ophelia's shoulders fell in defeat as he slid the needle back into her arm, causing her to whimper softly in pain. Once done, he turned back to her. "You should lay down and try to get some rest. You're safe here. I promise."
Ophelia let Simon push her back down onto the bed and cover her with a blanket before she spoke. "Never safe, but she is. You keep her safe."
Before she could wait for his response sleep grabbed hold of her again and she surrendered to the darkness.
Simon looked down at the now sleeping girl and again wondered where she had met River. He had the suspicion that she had also been at the academy but Dobson could have just kept her like the psycho he was. Though there was one person who might be able to tell him, he was hesitant to ask her. He wasn't sure how she would react.
With a sigh, he got up and left the room, quietly closing the door behind him before heading to the infirmary where River was now awake. Her gaze quickly found him when he walked in. "Mei Mei, how are you feeling?"
"My head's fuzzy." She murmured, leaning against him as he came to stand beside her.
He rubbed a comforting hand on her back as he hugged her before he pulled away and looked at her. "River, I was wondering if you know about the girl who was in here before. She was asking about you."
River looked around, her eyes distant as she thought. "Lost...confused." She continued to look around a moment more before she settled on looking at Simon. "Don't remember. Should, but doesn't."
River's face became frustrated and it seemed like she might start crying again so Simon quickly brushed her hair out of her face as he spoke. "It's alright. If you don't remember that's fine. I was just curious."
River nodded almost imperceptibly before laying back down, gripping Simon's hand until she drifted to sleep. Simon stared at her sadly for a moment before he stood, going to his room and stretching out on the bed. So he had learned nothing new. River might know her, but until she remembered it could go either way.
(Please review and let me know what you think!)