Chapter One:

            I regained consciousness to a tiny heartbeat in the lower half of my leg.

At first I thought; Hey, that’s interesting, but then the heartbeat turned into a throb and then into a shooting pain, and all I could think was, bloody hell that hurts!

            And that’s when I realized something was terribly, terribly wrong.

            I flung my eyes open, glancing anxiously around the room. I had my suspicions of where I was, considering the amount of pain I was in, and as I inspected my surroundings more deeply I noticed a small, black, square television hanging in the upper left-hand corner of the room, just below the ceiling; two wooden chairs with leather seats placed under the window that displayed the luminous New York skyline; and of coarse, the tacky photo of a landscape from some far off place, that probably came with the picture frame when the hospital bought it.

             Another burst of pain ran through my leg, making me hiss through clenched teeth. “Holy sh—”

            “Ah good, you’re awake!”

            I turned my head towards the voice, and noticed a man wearing a lab coat close the door behind him. It was my doctor: Dr. Joe Kawalibai. Or whom I like to call: Doc.

            I groaned, slamming my head back into my pillow. “What did I do now?”

            He peered down at his clipboard, flipping a couple papers before returning his eyes to me. “Concussion, minor scrapes on the arms and legs, cracked rib, and a fractured tibia.”

            I nodded, taking in the information. I’ve done worse. “So… I’ll be good to go by next week?”

            He shook his head, setting the clipboard on the bedside table. “Julie, you will be out for almost a month.”

            “You got to be kidding me.”

            “Your other wounds will heal rather quickly, it’s your leg we have to monitor.” He takes out a couple X-rays from his file, and puts it up on the film monitor for me to see. The white structure—which I assume was my bone—had what looked like several veins running up from the ankle, but I knew that was not the case. And right at the base of the bone, a large section had snapped off, making me think at first that I had an extra bone in my leg that I never knew about.

 “You fractured your bone in eight places.” Doc points to these areas. “Some minor, some major. Either way, I have no other choice but to have you stay at the hospital for the rest of your recovery.”

            I scoff. “Aw, c’mon Doc, it’s nothing! Just put some drugs through me and I’ll be fine!”

            “That’s not how it works Julie.”

            “Sure it does! Actually, I wouldn’t mind some right now.” I stuck out my arm with the IV drip attached to it. “Hit me with the best you got Doc, my leg’s growing a heart as we speak.”

            He sighs, before taking out his pager. “I’ll send a nurse to help you.”

            “Thank god.” I huff.

            He slowly lowers himself into the chair beside me, placing his hand on top of mine. “Julie, you have to start taking better care of yourself from now on. The next time you come to us, more battered and broken than last time, we might not be able to help you. There’s so much that the body can handle, and with your track record, it’s inevitable.”

            I glanced down at my leg, finding it wrapped securely in a blue cast. He knows I always pick blue.

            I nod. He squeezed my hand, and stands up. “With that said, we will be moving you to a new room.”

            I gave him a bewildered look. “Wait, what?”

            The nurse he had contacted earlier rushes in, unhooking my fluid bag from my bedpost and moving it onto an IV stand. She unlocks the wheels of my bed and pushes me towards the door.

            “I’m sorry Julie, but this is the busiest time of the year, and we’re forced to make as much space for incoming patients as possible. You will be sharing a room with another patient of ours for the time being.”

            The nurse pushes me further down the hall, my doctor picking up the pace so he was right beside me.

            “But… But… I’m your most valuable customer! Shouldn’t I get an upgrade or something? “

            He gave me a pointed look. “Getting hurt doesn’t give you benefits.”

            I sighed, and rolled my eyes. The nurse suddenly stops beside a closed door, with music thumping through the walls.

            Doc has a pained expression on his face as he reaches for the door. “Just… give us a moment to get him well acquainted.”

            “Wait, he doesn’t know?” I paused for a moment, before it dawned upon me. “It’s a him?”

            Doc and the nurse ignored my outburst, and disappeared into the room.

            I groaned, blowing a piece of my blonde hair out of my eye. I tapped a nonchalant rhythm against my bed’s railing, the ring on my finger making a little clang each time it made contact. Staying in a hospital for a couple weeks won’t be that bad: I mean, free food! But sharing a room with a total stranger—that being of the opposite gender—well… puts a damper on things.

This is my fifteenth time being in hospital. First, it was just some minor injuries like a twisted ankle or a broken toe; then it got more complicated. I would say that all of my injuries were unintentional, but I’m not a very good liar.

I would also say why, but I’d rather save that for another day.

The music suddenly stops, as the barely audible voice of Doc muffles through the walls. I stopped tapping and tried to listen, but I couldn’t make out what he was saying. So, as any other curious person out there would do, I slowly got up and swung my legs to the side of my bed.

As soon as I tried to put weight on my leg I let out a little yelp. Okay, I get it tibia, we’ll use the coat hanger thingy.

I clutched the IV hanger tightly, and slowly stood up. Still sucks, but better.

I hobbled/walked slowly towards the door, trying to restrain myself from letting out any noise. Once I was close enough I noticed that the door was slightly ajar, so as quietly as I could muster, I peered through the crack.

I could only see the back of Joe Kawalibai and the nurse, who were talking to my new roommate. I could see Doc was slightly frustrated by the way he was gesturing. Usually he was very well composed, barely showing any emotion to his patients unless if it was absolutely necessary. I guess this was one of those times.

“—Please cooperate with us Mr. Flowers.”

“No.”

“All of our other rooms are full—”

“I don’t care, I’m not giving mine up.”

“This isn’t a hotel Mr. Flowers, it’s a hospital.”

“Exactly. However, just like a hotel, you are supposed to make my stay as comfortable as possible—”

“It will only be a couple weeks—”

“There’s no way in hell that I’m sharing a room with some idiot who can’t look after themselves.”

Ouch.

Doc pinched the bridge of his nose, clearly aggravated. “Please, she doesn’t have anywhere else to go.”

The boy paused for a moment, probably not expecting his potential roomie to be a female. “How many times do I have to tell you before it goes through that thick head of yours? The answer is no. And it will always be no. I don’t want to talk to anyone, be with anyone, and least of all live with anyone. So go find someone else.”

By that point I was so fed up and angry, that I lost my footing, and as I was falling foreword I pushed the door open.

I stumbled into the room, my IV hanger falling to the ground with a loud clang and the liquid bag busted like a water balloon. I winced at the pain in my leg, but quickly regained composure as Doc and the nurse quickly turned in my direction, taking a step away from the boy sitting on his bed and finally giving me a proper view of him.

The first thing I noticed was his warm, chocolate brown eyes. Then his slender nose, freckled cheeks, slightly upturned mouth—even though he was frowning. His hair was buzzed short, the color what looked like a golden brown but probably used to be darker before he cut it. Wearing a light blue shirt, dark blue jeans and white Vans, I could tell he was one of those popular boys at school, who thought the world revolved around him. His arms were crossed over his chest, as he stared at me. I could tell he was shocked to see me, but he quickly masked it with a glare.

“Julie!” Joe Kawalibai stammered, fiddling with his glasses. “This is Aiden Flowers, your roommate for the time being.”

Aiden. Definitely one of those annoying popular boys.

 “Charmed, I’m sure.” I said bitterly.

“What are you doing up?” Doc exclaims, picking up my IV hanger and instructing the nurse to clean the spill on the floor. “You shouldn’t be walking around!”

“Sorry Doc, I wished I didn’t.” I glanced at Aiden. “Such a waste of my time to see who this prick was.”

I stared long and hard at Aiden, while Doc was clearing his throat uncomfortably. The nurse tried to laugh it off as if I was telling a joke, but quickly quit when she saw no one was joining in.

Aiden returned my glare, tightening his arms across his chest. “You and I both.”

“I’m glad that we are at an agreement then.” I look to Doc, who returned my IV hanger to my side, which I grasped quickly before I focused my attention back on Aiden. “Well, if you excuse me, I have better places to be than here.” I spun on my heel, and limped silently towards the door.

“It was a pleasure meeting you… Julie.”

I turned around to Aiden, and smiled sweetly. “Oh believe me, the pleasure is all mine.”

And with that, I swiftly walked out and collapsed onto my hospital bed.

Let the games begin... ;)

-Yours Truly.