Chapter 101 Volume III - Chapter 22: Waking Up Hospitalized
"...ill soon wak-"
I heard a faint sound that I couldn't quite understand.
My eyelids slowly opened.
"Ah! He's waking up!"
I was in a very comfortable bed, lying on my back, and the ceiling in front of my eyes was... white, unlike the void in my dream.
As the world slowly became clearer, I saw a silhouette in a white coat looming over me.
"Hey? Can you hear me? You don't have to speak, just nod your head yes or no."
I nodded my head slightly up and down. Then, the silhouette in the white coat continued to ask me questions.
The questions were general checks. Do I remember my name, do I remember what happened, do I know where I am, but my focus was never on him.
I was here, in a hospital, and more importantly, I was alive, and I was not surrounded by soldiers or people ready to attack me at any moment.
I hadn't been caught or done anything bad when I wasn't in control... when the wiera side of me was doing whatever it wanted with my body. Even if I had no idea what was happening, I had made it.
I had survived.
"Good... you don't seem to have any cognitive problems."
I slowly tried to sit up from where I was lying, but then a slight pain spread through my whole body. Suddenly all the strength in my muscles disappeared and I fell back on my bed. The doctor noticed this quickly.
"Your body was in an extremely bad condition. All your internal organs were badly damaged. In total, you had two cardiac arrests and three near-death experiences. So even though you have been treated, it would be better if you don't move for at least two days. After two days you can start walking with the help of a cane, but again you should not move your muscles too much. It will take nine to ten days to fully recover as long as you take the medication we will give you."
Nine to ten days...
I wonder what's happened to my body this much...?
Ah... wait a minute...
My whole body shivered and my eyes widened as I suddenly remembered something. I wasn't the only one injured in this way... there was someone else there.
"Do-"
I swallowed the words for a moment because of the dryness of my throat, the burning sensation in my throat added to the sharp pain in my whole body.
"Ah, water will be here soon. It's better not to talk now."
I frowned involuntarily at the strange feeling of not being able to speak but nodded slightly.
I had time, I could find out what had happened to her at any time, I just had to wait a little.
The doctor smiled like that, then checked the devices connected to me. After a short while, he took care of everything, checked me one last time, and finally left the room.
Just a few seconds later a nurse entered the room.
With the nurse's help, I sat up extremely slowly, so I felt even more awkward.
Is it really necessary to be so careful? I feel like they are exaggerating...
"Have a drink."
I took the glass of water the nurse handed me and downed it, feeling myself relaxing with each sip. Finally, as I sat up, I took a look at my body.
There is a black medical wristband covering my left arm up to my shoulder, almost my whole body is covered with bandages, there is a soft excess under the bandage on my right palm, and a stick-like thing with a fracture at the joint is fixed to my legs in a way that does not prevent me from moving them. Other than that, there doesn't seem to be anything visible.
Well, something really bad seems to have happened to my body.
I quickly turned to the nurse who put a tray of food next to me.
"Excuse me."
"Yes?"
"There was a girl where I was, her name is Celine Potenbea. Do you know what happened to her?"
"Uh..."
The nurse averted her eyes, paused for a moment.
Why is she averting her eyes? Why did she pause...?
Has something happened to Celine?
"Well... her condition was as serious as yours. So she was rushed to intensive care, but her father soon found out what had happened to her and went crazy. He spent millions buying the best potions and pills for her and the doctors used them in a controlled manner. Now she is probably even better than before, but..." n0vElusb.c0M
"But what?"
"She had psychological problems. She didn't want to talk to anyone, couldn't sleep, ate and drank too little, and didn't want to see anyone's face. They said that when she saw someone's face, she was terrified and started screaming. The trauma of the incident affected her so much that even when her father, let alone the doctors, approached her, she would shake with fear."
Her words echoed in my mind, and I clenched my fist even though every word hurt. I didn't care if my hand started to ache.
'Calm down, Aiden.'
With the voice echoing in my head, Sith appeared in front of me.
'I don't know what happened, but calm down, your mana has started to spin inside you. If your mana flow is disrupted in your current state, it won't be pleasant.'
His expression was serious, more serious than ever. Still, I didn't pay much attention to it.
'It's okay, I have Absolute Mind.'
Sith frowned at what he heard.
'What mind?'
'Never mind, I'll tell you everything later.'
"Where is she now?"
"Her father was going to take her somewhere else but they couldn't move her. So she's still in the hospital."
"Is she on the bottom floor?"
"Y- yes? How did you know?"
Because all nobles, especially seriously injured nobles, are moved to the bottom floor for safety, something I know from the game.
"Okay... got it, thanks for the information."
The nurse gave me a strange look for a moment, but when she saw me close my eyes and lean back on the bed, she prepared my food and told me to eat it before it got cold and then left the room.
Ah... I forgot to ask how many days have passed...
I looked around my room for a calendar, but there was nothing.
'November 21st.'
My eyebrows rose at Sith's words, but then I remembered. Spirits were literally a natural living clock.
So... five days had passed.
It feels strange to have slept for five days, but maybe I would have slept for months if the facilities here weren't at this level... I won't complain.
'Are you going to tell me what happened?'
I looked at the hovering Sith and sighed.
I can't move anyway, and there seems to be nothing for me to do in this room...
'Where do I start?'
'Start from the day I started sleeping.'
'Okay...'
I paused for a moment, thinking about what had happened. Finally, I let out a deep sigh and began to mentally tell Sith everything that had happened to me since that day, one by one.
Sith was a good listener. He didn't ask me anything, except for the occasional change of facial expressions. When we finally came to the present, he lowered his head, averted his eyes. He gritted his teeth and said only two words.
'I'm sorry.'
'It's okay.'
Neither of us said anything else, and a deep silence fell between us, though it didn't take long for it to be broken.
~knock! ~knock! ~knock!
"You can come in."
After my approval, I was expecting only one person to come through the door, but I was surprised to find six people in front of me. Then an involuntary smile appeared on my face.
They were my friends.
Adrian, Julian, Sue, Lucia, and even Alysia, although I don't know why. And that wasn't all, there was someone else among them.
Clara was here too.
When I saw her, my mind went back to the dream I was having.
No... it wasn't a dream, it was a memory. I was sure of it, but I quickly restrained myself. After all, one thing at a time, thinking about it was not something I wanted to do right now.
"Uh... hi?"
Clara kept her serious expression even though I spoke in a humorous way, waving slightly.
"You've been hospitalized a total of three times in the last two months..."
This is the first time we are face to face since I made things right with her. I can still feel that she is still avoiding me, she is still distant, but there is nothing I can do because I can understand her.
She needs time, we all need time. And yet I can see the worry in her expression, the sweat running down her forehead, and the fact that she's panting even though she's trying not to show it. That's the reason for the smile on my face.
"Trouble likes me a lot, and when I don't run away from it, it finds me everywhere. There seems to be nothing to do."
I raised my right hand, the only hand I could use, and pursed my lips.
Julian and Sue giggled, Lucia grinned slightly, and Adrian and Alice remained unresponsive.
As I looked at Adrian, I noticed something strange.
He was looking at me like I was someone he didn't know, he was distant and his eyes were scrutinizing me, studying me.
What's wrong with him...?
"So you're saying you're still going to be hospitalized?"
Her worried expression gave way to sweet anger and I smiled again.
"I'll do my best not to."
For a moment her body trembled, she moved closer to me but hesitated. Her gray eyes locked on mine for a while. She opened her mouth but closed it again without saying anything.
Finally, she clicked his tongue, her eyes narrowed. She turned around and walked out of the room, muttering something I couldn't understand as she passed through the crowd.
I can't be angry with her, and I don't need to be. I don't care what happens as long as she is happy, as long as she goes on with her life.