Efímero | His Legacy | Formula 1

13. A New Beginning

I open my eyes and feel the pain all around my body immediately afterward. My head hurts so much that I need to close my eyes. When the pain in my head minimizes, I open my eyes again. I do not recognize where I am. The room's lights are so bright that they hurt my eyes until I adapt to them. I blink multiple times to make my vision less blurry. I realize I am in a hospital room; it has been a long time since I was in one. The last time was when I attempted to kill myself last year. This place doesn't bring good memories. I shake those thoughts off and try to remember how I got here. I remember what happened in the Reverend Mother's office; that makes chills run through my whole body. I barely remember anything else afterward. My memory is fuzzy. I remember a lot of pain, my attempt to escape, and hearing Charles' voice. I suppose he saw my state and decided to take me to the hospital. While my mind tries to fill the gaps in my memories, the door opens, and I see Charles entering the room with a cup of coffee. He looks tired and doesn't realize that I am awake. He sits on the chair next to the bed I am on, takes a sip of coffee, and then looks up at me. He takes a moment to realize my eyes are no longer closed. His eyes open up in surprise.

"You are awake," he recalls the obvious. "How are you feeling?"

"Like absolute shit," I say and laugh a little. Even laughing hurts. He glares at me.

"No bad words," he says, and I smile. I even missed him glaring at me when I curse.

"Did you bring me here?" he nods. "How did you do it? How did you communicate with the people in the hospital?"

I am curious, most people in Mexico do not speak English, and Charles does not speak Spanish. So, I want to know how he was able to talk to the doctors and nurses in the hospital.

"It was quite difficult, I gotta admit, but I managed it," he pauses, and I look at him just waiting for him to continue. "Before arriving at the hospital I knew I was going to have trouble finding someone who knew English, so I called one of the only people I know that speak Spanish: my teammate Carlos Sainz. I told him that I had an emergency, was in Mexico, and needed someone to translate for me. He agreed to do it. I told him to tell the nurse in Emergency your name, age, and what was my relationship to you was, and explain the situation. Afterward, they took you to the emergency room and brought someone who knew English, so he could translate for me.

"Now, Carlos is just asking me a lot of questions about you and the situation which I will answer later when all of this is over. And there is an investigation around the orphanage and the abuse the kids suffered inside that place for the past years. This makes me remember that when any of the staff of the hospital finds out you are awake, a psychologist and a police officer will come in to interview you about the orphanage. I know you are scared, but I want you to tell the truth, and I promise no one will hurt you from now on. But for that to happen I need you to tell them all you have suffered inside that place. I know it will be very difficult for you, but I know you are strong enough and will be able to do it. Okay?"

"Okay." I take a deep breath and try to process what Charles just told me. "So, what injuries do I have? Because I know I'm not okay. Especially since my head hasn't stopped hurting since I woke up, and everything feels foggy, plus every single part of my body hurts."

I change of topic because I feel uncomfortable talking about the new investigation.

"Well, you have a bruised rib, have cuts everywhere from glass penetrating your skin, and some irritation in your throat. All this won't give you much problem and you will be fine after a few weeks."

It sounds like he has more to say, but doesn't want to, so I encourage him to say it. "But...."

He sighs, "you got quite a severe concussion. Right now you will probably have a lot of headaches, dizziness, mood swings, sensorily issues with light and noise, poor concentration, insomnia, and overall constant feeling down or off, but this will only last for a few months and then they will all go away. But concussion also causes. long-lasting effects. Some of them are loss of most depth perception, spatial disorientation, and difficulties with balance. But all can be treated, and make you return to practically normal by the end of next year."