Chapter 2

When Sam awoke he was in bed in a large white room, with white-dressed people all around him. His arm was slightly sore, and hard objects were pressed against his scalp, which itched. It took him a few seconds to realize that he was in a hospital; there was an IV drip in his arm and sensors stuck to his head and chest.

An older man leaned over and said, "Hello, Sam. How are you feeling?"

Sam thought about that for a moment. He still felt light-headed and weak, and the roaring in his ears was still there, but only very faintly.

"I feel all right, I guess," he said. "What happened?"

"What do you remember?" the doctor (as Sam deduced he was) asked.

"I was at the museum," Sam recalled. "Everything went gray... I guess I must have fainted," he added with chagrin.

Looks were exchanged, and the doctor said, "More than just fainted. You've been unconscious for three days."

"Three days!" Sam said. He added that up. "You mean, today is Friday?"

"That's right," the doctor said, smiling a bit. "So, you can figure out what day it is?"

"Sure," Sam said, confused. Why shouldn't he be able to? "What's wrong with me?"

"Well, we don't exactly know that," the doctor admitted. "Your heart and breathing seemed fine, and your brain activity was... well, not exactly normal, but certainly didn't indicate any damage. X-rays and MRI didn't show any injury. It was just like you were asleep."

"Asleep for three days?" Sam said.

"Yes. If you feel up to it, we'd like you to take some tests," the doctor went on. "Perhaps we can figure out what happened."

"Sure, I feel up to it," Sam said.

"Wonderful!" the doctor beamed. "We'll get them ready. But first you should see your family... they've been very worried about you."

"They're here?" Sam asked.

"They've been here most of the last three days," the doctor said, rising to his feet. "I'll send them in."

Sam's mother Caroline and his sister Joan entered the room quietly, as though expecting to find him at death's door. The two of them looked very similar -- his mother tall, with red hair and green eyes, his sister a bit shorter with auburn hair, but otherwise taking after her mother. Sam had always looked more like his father, James, whom he barely remembered. Sam grinned at his mother and sister as reassuringly as possible, and Caroline threw her arms around him and held him tightly.

"We were so worried about you," she said. Sam could feel that she was crying against him, and Joan's eyes were also bright. He was embarrassed, and guilty that he had worried them so much.

"It's all right, Mom," he said, patting her back clumsily. "I'm fine."

"How do you feel?" Joan asked, taking his hand. This too was an unusual display -- she was only a year older than him, and normally they were careful to maintain their personal space. She often pretended to disdain her younger brother, but her real affection for him was obvious now. Sam felt flattered and gratified.

"I'm all right," he said. "A little weak is all. Sorry to worry you."

His mother looked up, wiping her eyes. "The doctors couldn't figure out what was wrong. You just seemed to be asleep, but you couldn't wake up." Her eyes clouded again at the memory.

"Well, I'm awake now," Sam hastily said. "The doctors want to do some tests, but I feel fine. None the worse for wear."

"Gina was saying you just did it to get out of your algebra test," Joan joked, trying to ease the tension.

Sam smiled. "Well, I imagine Mrs. Gray will just make me make it up." His mother managed a somewhat watery smile.

A nurse poked her head into the room and cleared her throat apologetically. "I'm sorry to interrupt, but we need to start the tests."

"Give us a minute," Sam protested, but Caroline promptly got up and started to leave.

"No, no, they should do whatever they need to. We'll talk later," she said. Joan followed, but paused at the door and looked back.

"See you later, squirt," Joan said with a smile, and tossed her hair as she left.

The nurse started fussing over his IV connection and the different sensors. Sam smiled as he remembered seeing his mother and sister, and how concerned they had been. They were very pretty, he thought idly, listening to the faint rumbling sound in his head. Very sexy. Funny he had never noticed that before.