Endearment ▶️ Pietro Maximoff

Three

There was nothing but darkness around me, consuming me entirely. A flicker of light above me but it was so far away, like looking at a tiny star. And I began to float away from it—something sinister pulling me into the darkness. I couldn't feel anything except for the coldness, I was floating. The light suddenly started to come closer instead, I was propelling forward—towards the light. Strange noises echoed around me faintly and the darkness was becoming increasingly difficult to hold back from. I just wanted to let go, let it take me. But I wouldn't let go. I couldn't, not when I had so many responsibilities on my shoulders. No. I wasn't going to die, not today. I pushed for more light, getting closer and closer, they say the light is the door to death—

I woke with a sudden gasp, life rushing back into me as the warmth seeped into my bones with the familiar soaring pain. I was alive. Vision still consumed by the darkness, I could only see the bright light through my closed eyelids. It was there, as was I. A beeping sound rang in my ears like an alarm clock, painfully loud. My head rested on something soft with my arms on either side of my body, unmoving. Where was I? Was I in a hospital? I tried to tug at my arms to move but failed, I ached everywhere. I groaned, maybe I should have stayed in the darkness.

"And she's awake." I heard a voice nearby. I tried to open my eyes but it was as if they'd been glued shut—I realised then that my entire body was incapable of moving at all. I could also hear a faint buzzing noise, like a laser or something near me and panic settled in the pit of my stomach. That's not something you hear in a hospital, what the hell was happening?

"Don't worry Charlie, you're absolutely safe." The same voice called out to me again, reassuring me, suddenly I felt relieved. I guess I was alive which meant something at least. I took a couple of deep breaths and attempted to pry my eyes open once again, slowly pushing through the cracks. It was so bright at first but my eyes began adjusting to the light slowly. It was a very bright room, obviously, and the walls along with the ceiling were completely covered in white with the exception of light panels located overhead. Those were some bright little suckers. Scratch that, the entire room was too bright. My gaze wandered over to look at my body and I saw something resting on top of my abdomen, it was just hovering there with a neon light swiping left to right. What the..

I looked around slowly, taking in my surroundings and my eyes landed on a woman standing a few feet away from me. She smiled at me warmly, twirling the pen in her hand as she did but I could tell she was in pain— the purple bruises littered on her porcelain skin and the hurt that flashed in her eyes when she made any movement. I wonder what happened to her. She was absolutely stunning, regardless.

"I'm Doctor Helen Cho. How do you feel?" Her voice was laced with genuine concern, I found myself feeling at ease. She was nice. I tried to speak, voice out what I felt but my mouth was dry and it hurt to even open it. I swallowed hard and tried to reply back, voice croaky and barely recognisable. "Like...I'm dying." I whimpered honestly, voice hoarse. She smiled at me, sadness in those eyes. "Well, you're not wrong with that. All of us were." She chuckled, eyes wandering around the machine above my abdomen as did mine. "It is a..foreign concept at first, but I assure you, it is healing you as we speak." She answered before I could even ask. It was indeed..foreign. The laser mimicked something like a copier, scanning my body continuously. it wasn't uncomfortable, in fact, I couldn't feel whatever it was doing. But it did creep me out nonetheless.

"Where...are my sisters?" I asked her instead, looking away and grunting at the sudden sharp pain near my ribcage. Ow..holy crap.

"I'm sorry, you weren't waking up so I told them to take a break and offered to stay here myself. They weren't exactly thrilled about it but it had been too long for them. They're doing well, resting last I checked." Dr. Cho said.