She watched as her father goes to grab a wheel chair. He helps her in it why connecting the IV line to the pole connecting the chair
"Ready?" He asks
She nods a small smile on her lips
"Alright let's go"
He pushes her out of her ward careful to avoid the coners of the door because of her bandaged legs. He pushed her out to a long corridor then makes a left. The waiting room was just there. It was packed full with people. She never thought a hospital would be so busy . They were lots of people by the reception counter making appointments or yelling at the nurses to hurry up with their business. There were also people sitting, sleeping and walking around. Also the phones from the nurses behind the reception kept going off. it was chaotic. There was a young woman who looked to be in her early twenties who was standing at the end of the waiting room. She looked extremely troubled and kept biting her nails, looking at the counter. She wondered what she was looking at. She got her answer right away when two boys who seem to be around thesame age as her pick up a piece of paper from the tray the nurse pass them and walk towards her. From their interaction, looks like they were all friends and were there for moral support. Speaking of friends, where are Dio and Rob? She hadn't seen them since she woke up. She unconsciously looks around the room hoping to spot them. It seemed like her father knew her thoughts as he followed her gaze
"You'll see them later in the evening" he said to her
"Hmm"
"Dont worry your friends, I sent them home. They wouldn't leave your side and slept at the hospital. All three of them. But you were not awake so I asked them to get some rest so they can come back and take proper care of you"
She chews her inner cheeks embarrassed at the visual image of her father chasing them out of the hospital. He sees this and lips curl into a naughty smile. He stops pushing, puts in the brakes and squats just beside her
"Let me tell you a secret. Your friends are very stubborn. It took me sweet talking to threatening and then finally begging them to go leave before they budged. Even at that they insisted on one person staying back, just for their piece of mind. Darling, you've got some real hard-core friends you love you and are willing to do anything for you
(He takes her small hands in his)
I am satisfied to know you have these kind of people around you. Meaning I don't need to worry too much about you being lonely and anti-social"
She squeezes his hands gently managing a small smile. He smiles back, gets up to his feet, removes the brake and continues pushing the chair. Soon they arrived at the psychiatry department. As they make their way to the wards, she kept clenching her hands together on her laps. She felt so guilty it was weighing heavily on her heart. Before she knew it, they were standing in front of a door. Her dad must have sensed her discomfort because he put a comforting hand on her shoulder before opening the door and pushing her through.
Inside, the room was quite spacious but empty except a bed . The walls, ceiling and ground was made of the softest foam. On the bed, was her mother from how she looked, she was heavily sedated. Her father pushed her to the side of the bed and applied brakes on the wheel chair as she moved the blanket to hold her mothers hand. Her wrist which she had cut was neatly bandaged but she was tied to the bed. She moved the blanket further away. Not just her hands, but her legs were tied to the bed too. When she saw this, she froze tears falling down
"mom, (she calls softly, she turns sharply, looking at her father clear anger in her eyes) what's going on? Why is she being strapped like a crazy person to the bed"
Her father places his hands on hers which were on her mothers leg. There was hurt in his eyes and the veins stood out on his neck as he spoke. He tried to compose himself but the tears ended up coming out anyway
"I told you your mom is very sick. After she woke up, she was out of her mind so much that she hurt herself and the staffs. She also threatened to kill herself if we tried to make her stay. So they had to sedate her and move her here where she can't harm herself or anyone else. I am sorry dear, but they had no choice than to do this"
He stroked her head as she cried by her mothers side and then excuses himself. She looked at how pale and sick her mother looked. She looks way older than her age and there were lots of bruises on her body. The sight was awful and looking at it felt like a knife was repeatedly rammed through and pulled from her heart.
"Mom, i am so sorry. I shouldn't have left the way I did. Maybe if I had just stayed put, none of these would have happened. This is all my fault, I am to blame. I was just being unnecessarily ungrateful and selfish"
The tears just kept falling and she held her heart the pain was just too much as she squeezes her eyes shut crying while muttering the words
"I am sorry mom, I am so sorry"
It was all she could say over and over again. She stayed with her mother for another hour against her fathers advice because she was stressing her own body. Eventually, her body caved in. the psychological stress she had undergone seeing her mother in that state, the energy from crying so much and the fact that her body was not fully recovered she started running a fever without realising it and her father had come in and taken her back to her ward.
That evening, her friends came in to cheer her up. Rob apologised for the incident that caused her to pass out but she held no grudges. She was just glad that her best friends had come through for her and where by her side. That was all she could ever ask for. They made plans of what to do, places to visit and parties to host and attend as soon as she got better. Having them around, made her feel less awful about her mother. After they had left her father had come in
"How are you feeling now?"
"Better dad" she answered weakly as she tried to seat up
"Never mind, don't stress yourself lie back down" she does as she is told
He smiles
"I forgot to tell you, my wife and the kids came to visit you when you were sleeping. They brought those flowers" she blinks an 'I am touched' expression on her face she's about to start crying
"I think when God made you, he also made about three extra tear bags for each of your eyes. You never seem to run out of tears"
This brought a huge smile to her face. Seeing his success, he smiles back happy
"Uhmm, the kids, my wife and I would love for you to become part of our family (he chose his words carefully) i think with us all together, we can take care of your mom so she will get better in time. I won't interfer with your life i promise (he quickly adds) your friends can come over to the house as much as they want and you can go to them as well. Just please I want us to be a family again please, I want to take care of you"
She laughs weakly. She sees how nervous he was
"Okay"
He certainly wasn't expecting that because he flew up a shocked expression on his face
"You didn't hear wrong. I'll come live with you. If I hadrefused, you'd never let me be. So I have no choice."
He sighs relieved kissing her forehead
"I'll go tell them the good news"
He hopped out as excited as a child on Christmas day.
A week later, she was discharged and she went to live with her dad. Everyone was nice to her and made her feel super comfortable and genuinely loved her. Her father enrolled her in thesame school as her friends and everyday after school, she always visited her mother at the hospital. They had stopped giving her sedatives but now she neither spoke or moved. The doctor said it was locked in syndrome and it was treatable. That had made her feel better.
She always told her mother about her new life, friends, family and other things she's experienced. she tells her to get better so that they could experience this new journey together. Because the GREY VOID in her heart, has been completely replaced with warmth and beautiful memories. One that she wanted to share with her in order to erase the terrible ones she had. She couldn't wait to introduce her mother to everyone so they could all be a happy family ONCE AGAIN!
THE END
YOU ARE READING
Default Title - Grey Void
Short StoryMimi, grew up a lonely child with a mother who is overly religious, strict and still not over her husband leaving her. Of course living that way was not a choice but something imposed on her by her excessively devout mother who needs a deep humili...
