The Sweetest Berry

Chapter Eight - Donna

I don't remember much from last night, but I do remember falling into a bush, now that I look back at it, it resembles a lot more like poison ivy than I would've expected or remembered. I was exasperated, my face is red and itchy, and no one could've found me here or would've ever found me here. I wanted to wait to be rescued, but I had to find my way out. I vaguely remembered the path from before, so I started walking. Almost immediately, I ran, well walked, into a problem. There was a fork in the road. I had spent about 25 minutes figuring out which way to go, then I remembered: the side with a mini sandcastle that never fell down. There was sand on the side of the paths, so when Bella and I were little, we would build sandcastles, this one never fell down. So, I went that way. I made my way out of the little trail, just before passing out onto the grass outside the path.

This morning, I woke up and I was utterly confused. I was scared too. I didn't want my family to work too much to find me. I pull out my phone, hoping that there will be some signal that I can pick up. But, my phone died. I continue to act unconscious, hoping someone picks me up and takes me to the hospital. Someone does notice me. A really familiar voice, sweet like candy, a really familiar scent, a fragrance that reminds me of a really rich person. But someone rich wouldn't be in the poor part of Haling Cove. An incredibly familiar voice, now calling my name. A bell rings in my head, it's Bella.

"Oh. You poor child.", Bella apologizes, in a comforting, sisterly tone. I wasn't sure she'd care. But, now I know she's not as shallow as I expected her to be.

She picks me up by my underarms but drops me back to the ground just as soon as she gets a glimpse of my swollen, rashed-up face. Poison ivy at its best.

"Well, oouch.", I say, rubbing my head, emphasizing the "ow" in ouch.

"Sorry.", Bella apologizes, but not a trace of affection drifts in her apology. Same shallow sister, never mind.

She picks me back up and drags me to the nearest bench. She props me down and pulls out her phone, hoping for a signal to reach her. She finally manages to call 911, making little whimpering noises every few seconds. An ambulance comes around 30 minutes later, supposedly because I wasn't the top priority. Bella comes with me to the hospital, because she clearly doesn't trust me to do things alone anymore. They take me to a neat ward and make Bella sit on a wooden chair opposite to the door to the ward I'm in. The doctor comes in and tells me that I'll be okay in 3-4 days, it was just a "mild" poison ivy reaction. I'm pretty sure that was the worst posion ivy case they've seen in years. I hear an indistinct conversation between the doctor and Bella. I can feel Bella instantly feel better. I know she's glad that I'm feeling okay, but now she's not going to leave me alone. I guess it's her responsibility to take care of me.

She gives me some ointment and instructs me to put it on the itchy parts of my body. I immediately feel better and I go back to sleep. I wake up and there's an entire 3-course meal on a fold-out table on my bed. It looks much more appetizing than hard bread and stale cooked vegetables. There was a sandwich, some pasta, and a slice of chocolate cake with vanilla icing on top. I eat all of the food like I haven't eaten for days. Well, I haven't eaten good food for days. To be honest, I haven't had good food in a long time. Except, if you count the amount of alcohol I have every day.

I put some more ointment on my face and I watched some TV. I scroll through some channels and until I see a classic. I've probably been watching for a long time because another nurse comes and puts a fold-out table on the bed. The nurse left saying she was going to get the food. Bella came in and informed me that she was going to leave the hospital and that Mom would be here tomorrow morning. As Bella leaves, the nurse enters with a rolling cart full of food on the top and second row, and dirty dishes on the last row. She places a plate full of soup, a salad, and a bowl filled with 3 scoops of strawberry ice cream. I eat it as soon as it's placed on the table. I haven't gotten food like this for like a really long time. Like probably when Bella and I were just born. I go to sleep, not wanting to wake up to a broken world. I mean broken city.

I woke up the next morning. My skin has cleared up, no spots, no rashes, nada. I sigh, this is the best hospitality I've ever gotten. When I think about that, it's kind of depressing. I don't want to leave, but it would feel sort of nice to go back home. The nurse comes and tells me I can go home after I sign a couple of papers. I leave the bed and the nurse directs me to the front desk. I grab my credit card and swipe. I leave the hospital while searching for my car keys. Wait, an ambulance brought me here. I could drive home, but I can't spend money on an Uber. Great. I'll have to walk home. I walk through all the familiar streets, and I stop at an intersection. I realize how much I hate this crossing. If you walk straight for like a mile, you're at Anchor's Bar. Where Andrew died. I'm going to stop drinking. I hate it now. Bella's always saying I got my addiction from Mom. Constantly going to the bar after work is kind of like my nighttime ritual. I push my thoughts, back into a space in my mind where my memories of Andrew are. I overlook the fact that I'm going to burst into tears if I don't tell anybody. I can't tell anybody the story of how Andrew and I met and how long we'd had our relationship. No one had ever expected me to do that. I'm going to be a traitor to my sister, to my parents, to Andrew. We swore to never tell anybody about what we did at that science olympiad party, and what we'd do when I would tell my parents I'm going to the library. But he's dead. Andrew's. Freaking. Dead.