the weight of darkness

three: shattered fragments

Chapter 3 : shattered fragments

Maddy woke up to the pungent smell of hospital disinfect, invading her nostrils. The room was silent apart from her heavy breathing and the familiar beep beep sound that indicates you're alive in hospitals. As Maddy slowly opened her eyes, squinting in an attempt to sharpen the blurred images before her, her mom noticed she woke up.

"Maddy! You're awake. How are you feeling, honey?" her mom said, but her words sounded muffled. Maddy could barely see who all was in the room because of her concussion.

"Mom? Where am I?" Maddy said, sounding kind of scared.

"The hospital, hon. You tried to hurt yourself yesterday," Maddy's mom said, her voice filled with hurt as if she thought it was all her fault. And just then, everything that happened came back to Maddy. The pain medicine wore off, and she could feel every cut, bruise, and concussion she had. She started seeing a little bit clearer as well. Then she noticed her brother and sister, Claire and Cody, in the room.

Maddy's heart skipped a beat as she saw Claire and Cody by her side. She couldn't help but feel a mix of relief and guilt. Relief because she knew they cared about her, and guilt because she didn't want them to worry or blame themselves for what happened. She reached out to them, her voice trembling, "Claire? Cody?"

"Yes, Maddy, it's Claire," Claire said, her voice filled with emotion as she hugged Maddy, her pregnant belly pressed against her. Maddy could feel the love and concern radiating from her sister. However, Cody stood there, frozen in shock at what Maddy had done to herself. Maddy noticed his reaction and couldn't help but feel guilty and disappointed in herself. She knew that her actions would have an impact on her 10-year-old brother, who looked up to her.

"Cody? Come see," Maddy said, her voice filled with a mix of sadness and remorse. Cody slowly walked towards her, unsure of what to say. "Are you okay, Maddy?" he managed to ask, his voice filled with concern.

"I'm okay. How's baseball been dude?" Maddy's voice trembled with guilt as she tried to shift the focus away from her own struggles. She wanted to remind Cody of the things that brought him joy, hoping to alleviate some of the weight on his young shoulders.

Cody's eyes lit up at the mention of baseball, momentarily forgetting the pain and confusion. "Baseball's been good, Maddy. We won our last game!" he exclaimed, a hint of excitement returning to his voice. A small smile tugged at the corners of Maddy's lips, grateful for the brief moment of normalcy.

After a few minutes of talking to Cody, the nurse walked into the room. "Hi Maddy! How are you feeling, sweetie?" the nurse asked with a warm smile.

Maddy, being truthful, replied, "I'm in a lot of pain. Can I have some stronger pain medicine? Like morphine, fentanyl, or even oxycodone? Something stronger?"

"I'm sorry, love," the nurse responded gently as she changed out Maddy's fluids. "But the strongest thing I can give you is ibuprofen or maybe some light steroids."

Confused, Maddy questioned, "What? Why can't I have something stronger?"

Before the nurse could answer, Maddy's mom sternly interrupted, saying, "I'm pretty sure you know why, Maddy."

The nurse spoke softly, "I'm sorry, love, but the doctor said you had a history of addiction. That's why we can't give you stronger medication."

Maddy felt disappointed but the nurse offered a solution, saying, "But I'm going to give you some Benadryl. It should make you sleepy, and maybe you can sleep the pain off."

Back at the ward, Kayden was desperately pleading with the workers to let him go to the hospital and check on Maddy, or at least give him an update on her condition. "I'm sorry, Kayden. But it's against protocol to share any information about another patient," the front desk lady repeated for the tenth time that day.

Kayden let out a sigh of frustration. "Come on, please. I just want to know if she's okay," he pleaded, hoping for some compassion.

"No, I can't. Now please go back to your room before I have to call security again," she responded rudely, clearly annoyed.

Feeling desperate, Kayden read the front desk lady's name tag and said, "Please, Samantha. Just tell me how she's doing." he said slipping a dollar he found in the game room and sliding it over to her.

But Samantha remained firm. "No, Kayden. Go back to your room," she insisted as she rolled her eyes.

Frustration mounting, Kayden couldn't help but blurt out, "You're a bitch, you know that?" His emotions were getting the best of him as he desperately wanted to know about Maddy's well-being. "Just fucking tell me," he said, his frustration evident.

Samantha's response was unwavering. "Not happening. Security? Please come get him," she called out.

As the guards approached, Kayden muttered under his breath, "Asshole." The guards then escorted him away from the desk, locking him roughly in his room.