Chapter 4
After that there was this huge investigation and the police were even called in. Poison control had the hospital pump my stomach when they found out it was lantana poison, I was then put into isolation because I was at risk with my immune system begin weak from the flu and a viral infection. All the nurse had to wear special gown and mask and keep their skin cover, and that suck because I couldn't even talk to them. Not that I could actually talk because I spent most of the time sleeping or throwing up, I didn't even have time to write what was going on. It was the ninth day of being in the isolation room when my favorite nurse Ms. Naomi came to visit me, with my petite dragon in her hand, I couldn't help but laugh at the fact that the nurses had made a smaller version on the medical grown and mask for my stuff animal.
"Hello Fuyuko, you have a special visitor today. The nurses even went out of their way to make sure that he followed the rules just like everyone else. Corny right." Ms. Naomi said sitting down on the chair next to my bed, before holding out Petite dragon to me.
"Thank you, Ms. Naomi, and his bandage is gone. You can't even see the stitches you did to reattached his head." I said looking my stuff animal over being careful to not remove the gown or mask that the other nurses had made for Petite.
"Oh yeah, he's all healed up, but he's been missing you very much. It's almost like he is crying for you every night. But that's not why I brought him here, petite has a message for you under his mask is a note." Ms. Naomi said nugging me to remove the dragon sized mask, and just as she said Petite was holding a small scrolled up note, curious I started to open the note.
"You have been cleared to move out of isolation." I read aloud before looking over at Ms. Naomi eyes wide with surprise. I was sure that one of the doctors would have told me that I was going be allowed out of isolation, I know I can't go back to the mental facility just yet because the doctors are still worried about the viral infection that was making it harder for me to get over this bout of flu.
"Doctor Saito thought it would be best if Petite told you, she had to wait until the other doctors agreed that your numbers were up. If you excuse me for a minute than I will let the nurses on the ward know that you are ready to leave." Ms. Naomi said getting up from her chair while I removed the protective gear from my stuff animal, or that was before Dr. Saito and Ms. Naomi entered the room with a wheel chair and a thick blanket.
"Do I have to ride in the wheel chair? I want to walk." I said looking up at them a pout on my face, which most likely made me look my age for once.
"I'm sorry Fuyuko, but you might be better to get out of isolation but you are not out of the woods just yet." Dr. Saito said getting down so she was at eye level with me, for I had moved out of the bed into the chair that Ms. Naomi had left not that long ago. I know she wasn't lying to me because when I had gotten out of bed my legs had been shaky and it took me ten minutes to just taking six steps had worn me out a great deal. I sighed before nodding my head for Ms. Naomi to bring over the wheel chair, just because I needed to use the damn thing didn't mean I would allow them to carry me, I still had some pride. Once I was settled in the chair with my feet pulled up under me and petite held in my arms.
"You must be feeling better, you're are smiling and that only happens when I bring you soup or something to read." Dr. Saito said shaking her head, at the scene I had put on. Naomi was busy wrapping the thick blanket around my shoulders so that I would stay warm. Right now, I couldn't regulate my body heat, which was a major problem.
"Yes, I'm getting out of isolation…that means I'm getting better. And as for you two not helping me, that was just a pride thing. I might be sick and stuck in a hospital connected to a mental facility, but I still have my pride." I said as Ms. Naomi pushed me out of the room while Dr. Saito carried my bag of important items. They put me in room 350 in the pediatric ward, a PICC line still connected to my heart. After Ms. Naomi and Dr. Saito had gotten me settled in my new room, on the bed close to the window, which allowed me to watch the people outside. I was left alone for about fifteen minutes before a teenage girl with short brown hair and big brown eyes, about two years older than me entered the room carrying a thing of flowers.
"Hello Yusaku…oh sorry I thought this was Yusaku Fujiki's room." The girl said coming closer to me, I sighed before looking around the room there was no one else in here beside me. Sure, the bed kitty corner was messy and looked like it had been slept in but other than that I was alone in this room.
"I think you have the wrong room." I said before turning to look out the window again. I didn't want to talk with anyone at the moment, while expect for Ms. Naomi because to me she actually cared or at least it seems like she cared. I could hear the girl leave before I turned to look at the small green dragon on the bedside table. I could still remember the day I got that little thing, and to most kids getting a stuff animal of this size might be a common occurrence but for me it was something special, this was the gift that my older brother had made for me with the help of the orphanage owner. I was about to pick up the small dragon when the sliding door was slammed open and the girl from before entered the room and she did not look happy, a nurse was right behind her with a straight look on her face.
"I told you Ms. Mr. Fujiki checked himself out a couple of hours ago." The nurse said moving to strip the other bed. The nurse only stopped when she noticed me watching them, and I can bet that if she had water in her mouth, she would be doing a spit take.
"Mr. Fujiki…" The nurse said looking at me in confusion or that was before Ms. Naomi entered the room with a tray of food in her hands.
"Fuyuko, I brought you something to eat…and I know you are going to tell me that you are not hungry but you need to try eating." Ms. Naomi said putting the tray of beef stew in front of me on the little table. The nurse who had come in with the girl actually had the gull to ask Ms. Naomi if I was related to Yusaku Fujiki while I was trying to get down my stew.
"Yes, she is his little sister." Ms. Naomi said before turning to take the seat next to the bed, ready with the bucket just in case. After about half of my stew I had to reach for the bucket, so that I could get sick. I've learned that most of the nurses don't mind cleaning up after a patient get sick but I still felt bad for making the mess in the first place.
"Good job Fuyuko, you ate half of your stew…do you want to try to eat your pudding?" Ms. Naomi said once I handed the bucket back to her, but at the mention of pudding I had to take the bucket back as I was hit with round two of throwing up. I could see Ms. Naomi's sad looking face as she sat there watching me. Ms. Naomi had learned that I did not like to be touched when I was sick because there was more of a risk that people would try to hurt me, that and I just made an easier target. I had just laid back down hands at my side laying limply as I was drained of all energy. That was before someone placed a wet clothe over my forehead, trying to help regulate my body temperature; my head snapped up to see the girl from before sitting in Ms. Naomi's chair.
"Ms. Naomi had to step out, so she could talk to a doctor. Before she left, she asked if I would sit with you for a few minutes…I'm Sky Zaizen and I'm a friend of you brother Yusaku." The girl said smiling at me before dodging the wet clothe that I throw at her. Okay I was a little mad that this girl knows my older brother when I couldn't even get a hold of him to let him know that I was in the hospital again. It didn't help that most of the questions that Dr. Saito asked me I couldn't answer because I frankly didn't know the answers to them.
"I don't care…leave me alone…" I said struggling to get the words out as it was still pretty hard to breathe with the viral infection. I rolled away from her, tear threatening to fall from my eyes. I know I was being rude to the girl who was doing Ms. Naomi a favor but I was scared and just wanted my big brother. I fell asleep clutching the thin hospital blankets to my chest while silently crying into the pillow under my head. I did not get a wink of sleep that night as my brain would not shut down, so by the time morning came around I was tired and about ready to snap at the next person that entered the room, if not for the fact that it was Dr. Saito coming with my breakfast.
"Good morning Fuyuko, how are you feeling today?" Dr. Saito asked coming over to me with the tray of food in her hands, she was wearing her volunteer uniform meaning she was either on the night shift or it was her day off. I looked over at her before looking back out the window at the people below.
"I'll take that as not good…Fuyuko do you want to try eating or is your stomach tied on knots again?" Dr. Saito said setting the tray on the table before sitting down in the chair next to the bed. I looked at her, before shaking my head as I didn't even have the energy to speak, let alone try to eat the stale cereal she had brought.
"I know you are not feeling good Fuyuko, but I need you to talk to me not just shake your head yes or no." Dr. Saito said pushing a bit of my lose hair out of my face. I sighed before pushing myself into a sitting position or I would have if my arms hadn't given out on me. I think that was enough to prove to Dr. Saito that I was in a worse state than to begin with. I don't really remember what happened after that, but after everything calmed down, I was back in isolation with several machines around me, letting the nurses know if something was wrong. From what I had gathered my heart was not beating correctly, and the doctors were trying to see if they needed to put a pace maker in to prevent something from happening. The clock read a little after five when Dr. Saito, still dressed in her volunteer uniform, and Dr. Fujimata entered the room with sad looks on their faces and from how they were standing I could tell they were trying to hide something from me. I sat up a little bit before pushing a bit of my bangs out of my face. I had learned how to read these two after having to be in isolation twice so far.
"I know you two are hiding something, so it would be better to just come out and say it." I said sitting up a little straighter, the pillows in isolation were much better than in the mental facility they were fluffier and much more comfortable. They also gave me better support as I didn't really have the strength to sit up properly on my own.
"I'm not sure you are going to like it, Fuyuko…but here goes nothing. The other doctors are saying that you are faking everything so that you don't have to go back to the facility…the only way we can prove that you are not faking it is to do a lot of tests. And before you say anything, I know you don't like that idea." Dr. Saito said moving to sit on the foot of the hospital bed, while Dr. Fujimata sat in the chair a bit away from the hospital bed. I sighed before nodding my head, this was going to be a pain in the back side, but it was necessary pain.
"Good, the first one is just a simple blood draw which we can do from you PICC line. The other test are going to be done over the next few days, and they are just to rule out anything that might be harmful to your health. Now is there anything you can remember about your medical history?" Dr. Saito said smiling at me as I leaned back on the pillow so the nurse that was coming into the room could get to my arm. I was tired and from the sounds of these test I would not be getting much sleep any time soon.
"So, what are some of these tests that need to be done?" I asked looking between the two doctors, the look they gave me where clearly a sign that they were not expecting my question. Did they really not read my file; I know it's thick but that is some important information.
"CT scans, MRIs, X-rays, stress tests…those kind of test, nothing invasive all perfectly safe." Dr. Fujimata explained when Dr. Saito looked unsure about telling me, Dr. Fujimata had probably gotten an earful from Ms. Naomi about my love for information, because Dr. Fujimata pulled a packet of papers from his lab coat pocket. I settled down on the bed reading the papers about all the test they wanted to run on me while the nurse drew blood through the PICC line. I was than hooked up the an IV so that I would get the nutrients I needed. The next morning the same nurse from the night before came and got me for the first few tests even though I was tired from another night of no sleep. I did everything the doctors and nurse told me to do and by the end of the day the doctors that had said I was faking changed their tone at the sight of me alone. I was thin, and paste white, almost as if death had warmed over, dark bags were heavy under my eyes and I could barely move around on my own without help. When the nurse from this morning put me back into the isolation room, I was surprised to find Petite dragon sitting on the bed in his little hospital get up with a note under him. And to my surprise it wasn't a note from Dr. Saito or Ms. Naomi but from my older brother. He was trying to explain why he did what he done, but it was already too late. He sent me away without so much as a good bye. Was I going to throw the note away? No; was I mad at my brother? Yes. I wish just be free of all this hassle. That was the first time in two days that I got some actually sleep, was it restful, no because I kept having to get sick from the medicine the doctors gave me. I was tired the next morning when Ms. Naomi came into the room with a tray food in hand. I could tell from the smell that it was miso soup and some toast. I looked over at Ms. Naomi trying my hardest not to get sick from the smell alone. Luckily, she took one look at me before moving the tray to just outside of the door, before taking a seat in the chair near to the bed, I couldn't really see her face because half of it was covered by the mask required to enter the isolation rooms.
"I heard that your brother came yesterday to clear some misunderstandings up…did you know that when you were only two, you had an open-heart surgery to clear blockage. The test they ran yesterday told the doctors…" Ms. Naomi said before I had to reach for the bucket that was on the floor next to the left side of the bed. I had tried to hold in the need to get sick until the very last second. I couldn't stop and the taste of iron that invaded my mouth was too much for me to take anymore, I just broke down crying. I was tired of all the throwing up, and sleepless nights.
"Fuyuko what's the matter?" Ms. Naomi asked taking my hand into hers as I cried into my knees.
"My mouth hurts, from all the throwing up…it's gotten to the point that I can taste blood. Make it stop…" I said crying for the first time in weeks. It took Ms. Naomi close to fifteen minutes to get me to calm down, I was almost asleep when one of the other nurses that were on this ward came into the room with a bowl of frozen yogurt and some medicine.
"Hello Fuyuko, Ms. Naomi asked us to bring you something to sooth your throat and help you get some sleep." The nurse said putting the frozen yogurt on the table in front of me before handing the needle with the medicine to Ms. Naomi. I was surprised when I could get the frozen treat down and keep it down without much effort.
"Does that feel better on your throat Fuyuko?" Ms. Naomi asked leaning forward so her elbows were leaning on her knees. I was so into eating my treat that I could only nodded my head as I know it was rude to speak with my mouth full. I don't know why but for some reason Ms. Naomi started laughing at me, I later found out it was because I was finally eating something without the need for someone to be at my side waiting with the bucket in case it all to come back up. Once I was finished with my frozen yogurt, my throat felt much better than it had in the 12 days since I first woke up.
"Okay now I'm going to give you some medicine that should help you get some sleep, Fuyuko. Just count down from ten and when you wake up you will feel so much better." Ms. Naomi said petting my loose hair out of my face before putting the needle into the port in my arm, slowly I started counting down from ten in my head, letting my eyes become heavy and close.