Chapter 19

I woke to the sounds of beeping machines and the astringent smell of a hospital. When I asked, my mother told me it was Sunday. I’d been there for over twenty-four hours. My mother had been awake and starting breakfast when she heard me fall to the floor. When no one responded to her calling up the stairs, she came up to see what was going on. When she entered my room, she found me unconscious and bleeding from my mouth, nose, and eyes. She immediately called 911, and they dispatched an ambulance. At the hospital, they brought me to the ER, did an initial workup on me, including X-rays and later a CAT Scan. The X-rays showed no broken bones and the CAT scan looked normal, too. At that point, I had been admitted to the hospital. Mom went home with dad to get some rest with the assurance that the staff would call if anything changed. She returned shortly before I regained consciousness and was happy to see me wake up.

One of the devices monitoring me must have notified the nurses’ station because I soon had one come into my room to check on me. She asked me a bunch of questions, many of which were to determine if I had a concussion that they hadn’t been able to diagnose from the X-ray and CAT Scan. The questions were still coming when the physician entered the room. He stood back and let the nurse finish with her inquiry before he talked to me. Even then, he first got an update from the nurse to have a full understanding of my case, now that I was awake.

They wanted to know what I was doing when I fell down, but all I could tell them was that I had just woken up from a crazy dream, was getting out of bed, and suddenly was falling and the crack of my head, then nothing. Nothing I could tell them gave them cause to think there was anything more serious when combined with the images they had taken already.

Doctor Skinner, no relation to the behavioral psychologist, told mom that she would clear me to go home, but to keep an eye on me. Not long after that, I was dressed in some sweats my mom brought for me and being wheeled out to mom’s car. Dad had been there but couldn’t stay due to work. I understood and knew I would see him and hear about his worries about my injury and fall when he got home. Hopefully, I would be able to assure him that I was fine and there was nothing to trouble himself about.

The trip home was uneventful, though mom did go on about how distraught she had been over finding me laid out and bleeding. Eventually, I’d had enough and kindly asked her to stop.

“Mom, I’m fine. They couldn’t find anything wrong. Why else would they let me go so easily?”

“I don’t know honey. I’m your mother. I worry about you. You do realize that, right?”

“Yes, I do,” I told her. “But, I feel fine. Can we talk about something else? Please?”

And, so, the conversation, mostly one-sided, careened off in a new direction: we talked about getting me a car. We’re not talking a Mercedes Benz, BMW, or Jaguar. Not that I couldn’t afford it, considering my wish to cover purchases and all. No, what we discussed was a nice solid, reliable vehicle that would last a long time and had a good track record. In other words, a Toyota or a Subaru. I knew we would be talking about purchasing a car for me in the near future, since I would be turning 16 in under four months. We’d even talked about the idea of me getting a car and what types. So, I had already done my research, and my eyes were set on a 1996 (or newer) Subaru Legacy.

When we arrived home, mom set out to put together lunch for us. Dad would be back soon. He didn’t often work Sundays, but he did get called in on the rare occasion. He didn’t mind those Sunday work calls, because he was getting paid a hefty amount for, what was to him, a small amount of work. Henry was in the Rec Room playing one of his games when I found him. He was glad to see me and hear that I was well. He had worried but figured he couldn’t do anything so waited to learn of any news concerning my health. By some small miracle, dad returned in time to plant his rear end at the table as mom served lunch, which was homemade tomato soup with grilled cheese and ham sandwiches, a garden salad, and a veggie plate with carrot sticks, celery, broccoli, and cauliflower. As we ate, we chatted about various things but avoided talk of my stay at the hospital. Mom brought up possibly buying a car for me this summer and mentioned my desire for a 1996 or newer Subaru Legacy Outback. We discussed the merits of the vehicle and possible drawbacks. By the end of the discussion, he approved of my choice thanks to my research.

After lunch, I went to my room and laid down for a rest. While I felt fine, I was tired. More tired than usual, but I had just returned from a trip to the hospital due to a fall that gave me a minor concussion and bleeding. I considered grabbing my book and picking up where I had left off, but laid down instead and was soon asleep.