Chapter 9: Recast

I sneezed. The doctor was cutting the cast laterally using a cast saw. The feeling was unpleasant. When he finished, he pried it open. I saw my leg for the first time since Steven applied the cast. The sight was not a pleasant one. There was a lot of dead skin. Luckily, I am not very hairy. The nurse cautiously lifted my injured leg, and removed the cast. Then she cleaned my leg diligently. She stopped me, as I tried to flex my knee.

The doctor scrutinized the X-rays, frowned and looked again.

"Is there a problem?" I asked.

"No. The bones are knitting well."

They applied the new cast. The nurse who cleaned my leg assisted the doctor. Long leg cast again! Oh, no! It is straight at my knee! How I am going to walk now? When they fitted a rubber pad into the bottom of the cast, I realized that I would be able to put weight on my leg.

I lay on the examining table, waiting for the cast to dry. The door opened. A young woman was wheeled in on a stretcher. No more then 25 ears old. Her face was pale. Her long auburn hair was matted. She looked very frightened. Her long legs were bare. There was a terrible swelling just above her right knee. Dark blue. On her left thigh, an uglier bruising was reaching her hip. Her chin was trembling. She clutched fists and closed her eyes. A barely audible moan escaped her mouth.

"It isn't half so bad. We reduced the fractures. There is no need of surgery," the doctor said mildly.

"It hurts a lot," the girl whispered hoarsely.

"I know, I know. But the worst is over, honey. How old are you?"

"23."

"What is your name?"

"Casey Sanders."

"I am Dr. Campbell. Tell me what happened, Miss Sanders!"

"I was walking along the sidewalk. I heard brakes screeching. The next thing I remember was the paramedic. He said that I was hit by a truck, and that my legs are broken, and I should not move. I was lifted and placed on a stretcher. It hurt like hell. Then I saw my legs... a horrible sight. That's all."

The nurse brought plaster bandages and a pail of water. A red haired nurse came in, pushing a cart before her.

"Let's get down to work!" said Dr. Campbell.

The nurses raised Casey's left leg and slipped stockinet on it. I saw that she was suffering badly. She winced at every movement.

"Easy, easy!" shouted the doctor.

They continued working, but much more slowly and cautiously than before. Soon the stockinet covered her right leg too. Then the nurses moved aside. The doctor smoothed a crease on the white cloth. When he was satisfied he wrapped Casey's legs with wadding. After that he dipped a plaster bandage into the water and squeezed it. The red haired nurse was supporting the girl's leg as the doctor was applying the plaster. Working meticulously, they encased her legs.

"Took off her sweater! Her panties too!" said Dr. Campbell.

As I was wondering, why they are going to take off her panties, the red haired just it. She just cut the panties using a scissors. Then she pulled the remnants out. Casey's private parts were clearly visible. I was shocked by this humiliation. No one paid any attention to me. The girl was looking at the ceiling dizzily. Obviously, she wasn't aware what they were doing. Then, large stockinet was pulled over her shoulders and slipped down. It covered her slim waist. I understood everything.

"I am sorry for embarrassing you, but you have to stay here till your cast dries. We try to keep within the bounds of decorum but in this case... we cure. Decency is not of much importance," the doctor said to me.

"You are right. Moreover, you got used to all this misery," I answered.

The nurses brought a strange looking frame and attached it on the sides of the examining table. They helped Casey sit up and attached a padded sling under her armpits. It girded her chest above the bra. She looked sorrowfully around the room, but I doubted that that she saw me. The sling was connected to the frame with ropes. The doctor pressed a button. I heard a buzz. The ropes strained. Inch by inch Casey's upper body was hoisted. When her bottom was nearly a foot above the table Dr. Campbell pressed the button again, and the buzzing stopped. Casey was hanging helplessly like a puppet. Only her casted heels were resting on the table. Her expression revealed that she is totally bewildered. No one paid attention or gave any explanation. They set to work again. As the doctor was plastering her waist, the nurses spread Casey's legs wide apart with a bar just above her ankles. Applying more plaster on her hips, Dr. Campbell finished the cast, leaving her private parts exposed. The nurses pulled the stockinet up revealing Casey's toes and anchored it with more plaster bandages. That was all. They left to wash themselves. I was mesmerized. Casey was plastered mercilessly from the base of her slender toes to just above her navel. Poor thing!

"Am I disgusting?'' Casey asked, startling me.

"No! You are not."

"Bullshit!"

"Everyone has difficult moments. You will overcome it," I said.

Her eyes welled with tears.

"It could have been worse," I said.

She nodded. We kept silence for a couple of minutes. I looked at the window wondering if my presence was disturbing her. Maybe she wants to be alone.