Charlotte's Battle - Jason's Recovery

Chapter 19

Charlotte was in the circular machine, feeling like she could handle the MRI this time. She decided to do that instead since it would be a bit more comfortable and she could wear earplugs. She brought her blue earplugs and put them in her ears as she waited for the testing to begin. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath before hearing a voice through the speaker. "Hey Charlotte. You're doing good so far. We're going to get started in a few minutes so try to keep your body as still as possible." She responded with a 'yes'. She slowly opened her eyes and looked up at the inside of the
tube, which the whole machine cover was white.

She was silent as she waited for the cue. It didn't take long before they began the procedure. The constant noises, almost like pounding or banging noises could be heard. She could feel her body shaking slightly as she laid there. It wasn't the best type of bed, but it was comfortable. She had to get through two parts of the tests. The first was without the contrast dye. The second one with, but they would pull her out and inject her with the contrast, which doesn't hurt. It's to make the parts of her brain like glow up so they could see better.

The noises changed at each session in which they stopped when the first session was over. They turned the microphone on, the technician speaking to her through the intercom to make sure she was doing okay. Charlotte replied with a yes. "Alright, session two will be four minutes long. Try your best to stay still." She heard, then nodded. "Okay."

She let her body relax as she closed her eyes and heard the noises beginning to start, shifting through different frequencies of sound. Each one sounded different and it was surprising to her how everything worked. She didn't focus on that since she was mostly focused on the sounds. She enjoyed counting each time the rhythm played, especially when it calmed her down some.

The next session started off after they asked how she was doing. Once the first part was finished, they slowly pulled her out of the machine. "Alright. You know how this works, right?" The technician asked her. Charlotte nodded, then watched as the technician got the saline and contrast ready, slowly hooking it up to her central line, then gently and slowly pushing the syringe down until it was empty.

"There will be a total of four sessions, each time one is finished, I'll ask how you're doing. If for some reason you need to come out, let me know." Charlotte nodded at the technicians words. The technician went back to the door after handing her the button. She closed the door and went back to the other side with the computer that produced the images. The tech was Taylor, who she's had before. Charlotte was thankful for that.

Charlotte closed her eyes as the MRI slowly pulled her back into the circular tube. She took a deep breath as the technician explained what would happen once again, then the noises started again. She closed her eyes and focused on her breathing as well as counting the amount of times the rhythms played.

~~~

A soft groan escaped her lips as her head throbbed, not remembering what happened. She had no idea what happened. Her vision was blurry but she could hear movement and the gurney rolling on the tiles. Everything felt slow and blurry. She blinked a few times, gasping for air before realizing she had a tube down her throat. Her breathing seemed to be controlled somehow.
What the heck happened to me? Why is there a tube down my throat? Did I stop breathing? What happened to me?!

Charlotte couldn't speak due to the tube in her throat but she couldn't move. It's like she had no control of her body. 'Did I have another seizure?' She froze slightly as she looked around, not understanding why she couldn't speak. Then she heard a voice and looked at the person with blurry vision. The person spoke. "We're going to remove the tube now, so relax. Don't try to move or anything. Just relax." The voice said.

As they removed the intubation tube, she coughed and gagged, as they pulled it out. She closed her eyes, feeling a cloth wiping her face. She couldn't speak. Her throat hurt so much, but she opened her eyes and realized she was back in her room. She glanced to her left and saw Jason asleep. She sighed and laid her head back, staring at the ceiling. She was exhausted and her throat hurt so much. She didn't know how to react. She didn't know what happened. She was just in shock.

~~~

When Jason woke up, he could hear voices near him. He had a cast on his arm and he turned to face the voices. "Yeah, she had another seizure and this time she stopped breathing before the medicine could work." He sat upright wuickly and turned, a panicked expression on his face. His eyes were opened wide as he looked at his sister. "WHAT?!" He said in panic. "Charlotte- she stopped breathing??"

His mother was standing by the door, noticing his panic and expression on his face. "J-Jason. She's okay, she's asleep. Yes, she did stop breathing but they intubated her." His mother sighed and sat down on the bed on his left side. "Just breathe." His mother noticed he was having a panic attack and began to soothe him, placing an oxygen mask over his mouth. Sara sighed softly as she rubbed his shoulder gently, helping him calm down some. "There you go." She murmured as she soothes him. "She's okay."

Jason's breathing began to calm down, focusing on the present. He used his free hand to run his fingers through his hair. He had no words, unsure of what to say. He just nodded and held his breath slightly.

Charlotte glanced over at her brother as she saw his panicked state, but she didn't say anything. Her throat was too sore to even speak or anything. She just saw her mother calming him down and she just laid there. She sort of just gave up from how weak she felt.

Jason eventually calmed down, staring up at the ceiling in silence until he heard footsteps. He looked over and saw a doctor. The doctor spoke. "Hello, So Jason. Your arm is basically shattered so we need to do surgery..." Jason's eyes opened wide and he shook his head. He didn't want to die, even though he knew it was an exaggeration. He panicked, his breaths hitching up. He looked around frantically and curled up in fear. He didn't want surgery. He looked down at the cast and gulped. He then realized he shouldn't be so scared. Especially if his sister could go through several surgeries and everything she goes through every day. He rubbed his forehead as he was thinking. He glanced at his sister before wiping the tears off his cheeks. "I have to be strong... for Charlotte." With that, he was taken out of the room and towards the operating room.

~~~

Charlotte was asleep when they took Jason to the operating room. She was too exhausted to move really, but she decided to pull out her journal and used a pen to start writing out the things she wants to do before she did die. Obviously, she hoped she wouldn't die, but she had to think about it. She began to write a list.

"My bucket list
Go to Disneyland.
Go to sea world
Go skydiving
Eat pancakes
Go to Paris, France
Go to Egypt ——

When Charlotte was finished writing the list, she closed the journal and set the pen down, sudden pain running throughout her body. She cried out, reaching for the remote and pressing the nurse button. She tensed up in pain, waiting for the nurse to come to her. She arched her back as the pain ran down her spine. "H-help!" She cried out, suddenly the nurse comes running in, asking what was wrong. "My whole- body hurts so b-bad!" She said in between cries. It hurt so bad that she couldn't help but cry. The pain was so much.  She couldn't even describe how painful it was. The next thing she knew, she was being transferred to the ICU. She was in critical condition so suddenly but they had no idea why. Her temperature was rising and her breathing was laboured. She suddenly couldn't feel her legs at all. Her nerves were going haywire and she was struggling a lot to stay lucid. Her eyes closed as she was sucked into darkness.