In My Head

Stitches, Knives, and Jibes ~ Kaden

I come through the doorway beside the admit desk, and I immediately spot Mom standing by the desk looking seriously distraught. She spots me and makes a face while she sighs, visibly relieved. She says something to the lady, who gets on the phone again.

I hear her voice over the speakers. "Cancel Code Purple."

Mom seethes so hot I can practically feel it from over here. I walk up to her, feeling like a dog with my tail between my legs.

"What were you thinking?" Mom barks at me.

I shrug. I wasn't thinking. I just went off with Mirna without even a thought. Without even considering how much she would worry. I'm such an idiot.

"You can't just wander off in a crowded place like this!" Mom crosses her arms, giving me this exasperated look, like she thinks I meant to freak her out. "You went back there?" She gestures behind me beyond the admit desk. "What were you even doing?"

I shrug again.

"What do you have to say for yourself?" She puts her hands on her hips.

"I saw someone from school. She took me back there." I'm mumbling. She can't even hear me.

"Listen." She holds her hand up. "I don't want to hear your excuses. Just stay put until they call for us, alright?"

I put my hands in my pockets and nod at the floor. We stand in uncomfortable silence for a while, and I contemplate whether or not it was worth it to go back there with Mirna. On the one hand, Mom wants to roast me alive. On the other hand, I got to hang out with Mirna again, and with how she was flirting, I know that she likes me now. All in all, it was totally worth it.

"Hastings," a lady calls out. Mom reaches for my shoulder and walks me back toward the doorway beside the admit desk, to where the doctor is standing. It's the same lady who was talking to Mirna earlier, I realize. "I'm Dr. Horton, and this is my high school volunteer," the lady says, gesturing with her chart, and I look over to see Mirna standing by the counter wearing a doctor coat that is two sizes too big for her. She winks at me, and I grin just a little, trying not to bleed again.

"She wants to go to medical school, so I'm letting her observe me at work. Come on back," Dr. Horton says, and she leads us down a hallway into a small room. "Have a seat."

I slump over to the checkup table while she goes around the room, collecting some supplies and setting them on a tray close to the checkup table. I keep my eye on Mirna as she stands in the doorway, giving me fleeting glances. She is totally blushing, and it makes me smirk.

"Alright, I'm going to use this needle to numb your chin," Dr. Horton says. "It'll be three small pricks, and then you won't feel a thing."

She carefully positions the needle and sticks me. I cringe, even though she's trying to be gentle. The second time hurts even more, and by the third jab of the needle, it feels like she hits the bone, and I can't help but inhale with pain.

"Nice job. Now we wait." In the silence, I realize that I could really hurt myself if I go down right now and fall off this checkup table. I almost get up, but I realize there's nowhere else to sit in this room. I shift a little closer to Mom and grab her hand. She frowns at me, but I squeeze her hand.

"That's a deep cut. How'd it happen?" Dr. Horton asks.

"He had a seizure in the bathroom," Mom says.

"Mom!" I hiss, and I automatically look at Mirna in the doorway. She raises her eyebrows at me and then looks away uncomfortably. Great, now she knows that I'm a liar. Fantastic.