Chapter 3: Trying To Wake Up

Don's POV

I woke up on Thursday morning to my cell phone ringing. I answered the phone without even looking at the caller i.d. "Eppes."

"Don, it's Dad."

I was wide awake. Had something happened to Charlie? Megan? "What's up Dad? Is everything okay?"

"Everything is fine. I was just calling to see if you were coming down to the hospital to check on Megan."

Of course. Wait. "Why? Is there any change?"

There was a pause at the other end of the line.

"Dad?"

"Her vital signs have changed."

I could tell he was holding something back. Good or bad, I wondered. "In a good way or a bad way?"

"Just get down here Donnie." He disconnected. When my father used my childhood nickname, I knew something was up. I jumped out of bed, thought briefly about a shower, decided against it and dressed. In the same clothes I had worn the previous day. All well. They'd do for now until I saw what was up with Megan. I grabbed my keys off the nightstand by my bed and ran out the door. I pulled into the UCLA parking lot ten minutes later.

As I walked up the sidewalk, counting the steps it took to get to the front doors from my Suburban, I saw Charlie walking toward me. He looked like he was trying to hide a smile and lost the fight. I looked at my brother curiously. "What's so funny?"

"Nothing's funny. Something's good, though."

I changed my look of curiosity to a look of doubt.

Charlie's POV

Dad told me to go meet Don when he came in. When I saw him walking up the sidewalk, I couldn't wait to tell him the good news about Megan. I walked out to greet him, trying to hide my smile and losing. Don looked at me curiously. "What's so funny?" he asked.

"Nothing's funny. Something's good, though."

Now Don looked at me doubtfully. I took hold of his arm and lead him inside. He let me lead him without protest. This surprised me. He most likely thought something had changed for the worse in Megan's condition. Man, he was going to hate me and Dad for not telling him from the start. He'd be glad at the same time.

Megan

She heard someone saying her name. She couldn't make out who it was but she could tell it was male. She thought someone was holding her hand. She heard them telling her to squeeze their hand if she could hear them. She heard them telling her to, but she couldn't. Not yet. Next they were trying to get her to open her eyes. She decided to try harder with squeezing the person's hand. It took three tries before she had enough strength to squeeze. She could tell from the voice that they were happy. Whoever it was. She thought it sounded familiar. If only she could tell who it was, it might be worth waking up. Soon, she would try to open her eyes, but she had used all the energy she had.

Don's POV

Charlie and I walked into Megan's room and when I looked at the sleeping form on the bed, I already noticed a change for the better in Megan. Thank God. Dad looked at me and smiled. I hate it when you do that. "Don't ever scare me like that ever again. I mean it." I tried to sound authorities but I was too happy right then to care that my father and brother had tricked me. I walked over to the side of the bed and took hold of Megan's hand. I looked at her face and could tell she was close to waking up. I don't know how long I stayed kneeling but I realized that Dad and Charlie were gone from the room. I remembered someone telling me that if a person was in a coma or wouldn't wake up, talking to them would help bring them back. It would keep the person in the 'world of the living.' I decided to put the theory to work. What do you say to person who's in a partial coma? I wondered. I quickly pushed away any statements about the case. I didn't know what to say when I just thought of something else that the person told me. 'If they look like they're almost out of the coma, try asking them to squeeze your hand, open their eyes. Just get them to respond to your voice.'

"Megan? It's Don. Um… if you can hear me, please squeeze my hand." Nothing. Okay, Plan B. "Try to open your eyes." Still nothing. Maybe all of this was in vain. Then I felt pressure on my hand. I looked up and saw that Megan was squeezing my hand. I was so happy. Finally, something good had happened this week. Megan was trying to wake up. She had responded to my voice. Now the only thing is, Megan, is for you to really wake up. And not from a nightmare.