Chapter 5

"Melody Evans?" I hear Carol's voice ask calmly. I groan disapprovingly at being awoken, but I slowly open my eyes. They feel heavy and dry, so I close them again.

"I'm tired," I whine, pulling the thin blanket over my head.

"I know, sweetie," she says comfortingly. "But your parents are going to be here in half an hour. I thought I should check on you beforehand." She moves my bed up so I'm in a sitting position. She adjusts the tubes and helps me move all my hair away from my face.

"When do I get these tubes out?" I complain. "I can eat and drink without their help."

Carol laughs, "Of course you can. Dr. Havishire asked me to remove them after your parents leave.”

"Do you think you could do it now?" I beg.

She sighs playfully, but begins to do so. "The skin around them is all red," Carol notices. "You may have been messing with them in your sleep."

"Yeah, probably," I agree, immediately accepting her excuse.

"They're all bandaged up now," she assures me after a minute. "And I heard from Dr. Havishire that you're moving rooms this afternoon. I thought you'd want to know."

"Thank you," I tell her. "Do you know why?"

"You don't need critical care anymore."

I nod. "Well, that's good."

She laughs. "Call me if you need anything. Your parents will be here soon," she tells me as she leaves the room.

I haven't been conscious of my presence here for very long, but I already know that I really want to go home. Wherever that is.

I soon find myself daydreaming about what I'll soon discover. My house, my school, the rest of my family... It all sounds terrifying, yet amazing. The time goes by quickly and I soon see my mother looking into my room.

"How are you feeling today, Mel?" my father asks and my mother rushes to my side.

"Tired," I answer. "I didn't sleep well."

"I'm sorry," my mother says, "Are you hungry?"

“I'm fine, thanks.”

“They took away the tubes,” my father notices. I nod.

My parents exchange a look of concern. I'm not quite sure why, perhaps I just look really sick. My mother reaches for my hair and begins to braid it.

“It's all tangled, I'm just trying to keep it out of your way,” she explains and I smile.

“Am I an only child?” I ask after a few seconds of silence.

“You have two younger sisters,” my father tells me. “They've been staying at your grandparents' place for a while.”

“What are their names?” I ask, glad we finally found something to talk about.

“Callie and Eleanor,” my father answers.

My mother continues, "They're twelve and eight years old right now."

“Ah,” I reply. I want to talk to them; really, I do. But as it turns out, I'm not that great at holding a conversation. I wonder if the old me was this uncomfortable around people. I doubt it, I'm pretty sure this is a new Melody problem.

“You have an older brother, too,” my father says. “He's nineteen. Going to the community college now.”

“You two used to be really good friends,” my mother says and I hear in her voice that she's beginning to cry.

I sigh. I really don't understand all these emotions right now. They seem generally pointless, seeing as most of them somehow include sadness. I'm glad I don't have to deal with very many extreme emotions of my own yet. It's one of the very few perks of forgetting my entire past.

“I'm not dying, there’s no need to get upset,” I snap at her and she wipes her eyes. My father puts a hand on his wife's shoulder. He looks like he's going to say something to me but then thought better of it.

“We should get going,” he whispers to my mother and she nods. Louder, he continues, “We'll see you tomorrow, Mel!”

“Have a nice day,” I mumble as they exit my room.

Reviews

[Craig2591]

It would be difficult for your parents to be strangers. And to not know your own siblings.

Well written. I don't see any errors.