DEIRA
The first thing I became aware of was a terrible headache. I kept my eyes tightly closed, the pain thudding in my temples. Where was I? What happened?
Slowly, the memory of the crash came back to me. I'd been turning at a four-way stop when a car had come out of nowhere and slammed into my jeep. Remembering the impact seemed to make my head throb even worse.
I was in a car accident, I said to myself.I must be at the hospital. It didn't feel like I was at the hospital. The bed felt really nice. The pillow was soft. The mattress might have been better than the one I had at home. At home...Makayla.
At the thought of my daughter, I wanted to open my eyes and sit up straight in bed. The best I could manage was to blink, slowly opening my eyes to a harsh fluorescent light. I tried to focus. I hadn't picked up Makayla yet. She hadn't been in the crash with me. She was with Dani. Whatever had happened, Dani would have kept her safe.
I looked around, trying to open my eyes wider. For some reason that hurt. I scrunched my face and that hurt, too. I realized I had something on my face in a few places-bandages, or plasters, perhaps. So, my face hurt because it had been damaged in the crash.
The lighting may have been typical hospital lighting, but I was right that it wasn't a typical hospital room. It was nice, and I was alone. Was this a private suite? That didn't make any sense. There's no way they'd put me in a private room with my insurance.
Insurance that, I realized as the memory of being fired came back to me, I wouldn't have much longer. But I shoved that thought aside. I would deal with that later. I had to get this situation under control. I needed to prioritize. First, find out how badly I was hurt. Next, get a hold of Dani and make sure Makayla was okay. After that... I tried to think, but found my head spinning. What was I going to do after that? Things had been bad enough already. I was working two jobs and barely making ends meet. Getting fired from the restaurant meant I was in danger of getting evicted. And now, on top of that, I was in the hospital!
I closed my eyes, feeling despair flow deep in my bones. It was too much. There was no way I could deal with it all. My life always felt like it was one disaster away from falling apart, and now I'd had two in a row. How was I going to survive?
But I had to, because it wasn't just me. I had a daughter to take care of. I opened my eyes again. Even though the room was nice, it still felt cold and sterile. I blinked in the harsh light.
"You're awake," said a voice beside me. "Please, take it slowly."
I hadn't realized there was anyone with me in the room. I slowly turned my head (that hurt, too) and suddenly my heart rate skyrocketed.
Why was Makayla's father, who I hadn't seen in six years, who for all I knew had fallen off the face of the planet, sitting beside my hospital bed?
"You're okay," he continued. "You were in a car accident. You were banged up pretty badly but no serious injuries."
Seeing him was such a shock that I could barely focus on what he was saying. And I couldn't get my heart to slow down. Worse, I was hooked up to a bunch of monitors that betrayed my panic. One of them started beeping, and the man frowned. I realized he had a bandage on the side of his forehead. Was he in the car accident, too?
He reached toward me, and if I'd been able to move, I'm sure I would have jumped back. As it was, I could only stare as he grabbed a small box attached to a cord that was lying beside me in the bed, and pushed the button on it.
"Don't worry," he said soothingly. "The nurse will be here soon."
I had a sudden flashback of him ordering wine and it showing up immediately. I wasn't sure if I wanted to laugh or cry.
He was right, the nurse did show up quickly. She pushed something on the machine, and it stopped beeping, then she looked me over. I couldn't stop staring at him, and she must have noticed.
"Sir, do you mind giving us some privacy? I just need to check a few things."
"Oh, of course. No problem. I'll go get lunch."