Angel of Fire - Requiem of Lost Souls - Book Two

Doctor Drool

Mom slowly crept up to the bed like a spy, humming the theme from Mission Impossible. "I brought you some contraband," she whispered, peering around the room as if afraid to get caught. Pulling a container from beneath a smokey gray coat, she held it up in front of me. "Ta-dah!"

My eyes danced with excitement. Mouth watering expectantly, I plucked the freezing cold pint of Ben & Jerry's from her hand and read the label out loud. "Coffee, Coffee Buzz Buzz Buzz!" It was the best flavor of ice cream in the whole entire world. In my book, anyway.

"Here," she said, handing me my favorite spoon.

"You remembered!" I snatched the utensil from her, greedily ripped off the top, and dug in.

"How could I forget." She smiled smugly before taking off her coat. "If I didn't bring your spoon, I knew you would refuse to eat."

I rolled my eyes at her, mouth stuffed with ice cream. "That only happened when I was little. Can I help it if I prefer to eat with my special spoon?" I held it up like a magic wand. "Besides, it's the perfect shape. Not too big, not too small...just right."

"I curse the day you found it, Chaotic. That spoon is all that remains from silverware your Grandma and Grandpa Killbourne received as a wedding present. Trust me, I've tried a thousand times to find another set like it without any luck."

"I know," I agreed, shaking my head vigorously back and forth before swallowing the last bite. I intended to savor the frozen goodness as long as freakin' possible before it melted and slid down my throat. "That's why it's my favorite. Duh!"

Frowning, she turned up her mom voice. Way up. "Quit talking with your mouth full."

I swallowed and glared back. "When can we blow this pop-sickle stand?"

"The Doctor wants to keep you one more day." Before I could argue, she held up a hand to shush me. "He said he just wants to run a few more tests on you."

"I'm not a lab rat," I grumbled. "And anyway, I feel fine."

She raised an auburn eyebrow. "Do I need to remind you that you've been in a coma for three days?"

If possible, I rolled my eyes harder. "What-ever." I decided to cave, but that didn't mean I had to like it.

"You never said what happened, by the way." When I didn't reply, she stared at me expectantly without saying a word. It didn't last long. I grabbed a pillow in each hand and held them over both ears in hopes of drowning out the sound of her high pitched screechy voice. Too bad it didn't work. "You told me you were spending the night at Carmen's. Her parents called to inform me that she never came home after picking you up. Where did you go? I told you to take it easy after the accident in your room. You promised me, Chaos. How can I ever trust you again?" She stopped to take a breather before launching into yet another round of questions like an atomic strike. "How you wound up in the hospital is a complete and utter mystery to me. What happened? How did you get here? Who did you come with? No one saw who brought you in. It's like you just..." Her voice trailed off as if searching for the right words. "Well, it's like you just popped up out of thin air. Carmen's parents are worried sick. I better get some answers from you, young lady. And they better be good!"

Satisfied that she'd emptied her lungs on me, I took the pillows down gingerly - half expecting my ears to be bleeding. I checked them just in case.

Nope. No blood. Bonus!

I knew she wanted me to explain the reason behind my unexpected departure and subsequent disappearance - not to mention my near fatal drowning - but I couldn't make my mouth form the words. She didn't deserve to be tortured for worrying about me. Sometimes I just couldn't help myself.

I raised my chin defiantly. "I'm guessing your being thankful I'm still alive has worn off."

Before she had a chance to continue her verbal onslaught, there was a knock on the door. We both answered in stereo.

"Come in."

The door opened and in walked the most smoulderingly hot Doctor I'd ever seen. At least, I think he was a Doctor. He had shoulder length light brown hair, a distinctively young looking face with a prominent nose, strong jawline complete with a 5 o'clock shadow, and astonishing pale blue eyes. The color reminded me of a Robin's egg. Suddenly being cooked up here another day didn't seem so bad. Dressed in a long white lab coat, matching white buttoned up shirt with a blue tie to match his eyes, black dress pants and carrying a brown clip-board, he appeared all business like.

"Sorry to interrupt the happy reunion, ladies. My name is Dr. Patrick, but you can call me Adam. I just have a few questions I need to ask Chaos."

When his baby blue eggs...uh, I mean when his eyes landed on mine, I nearly melted under their intensity.

Mom didn't seem impressed. "Where's Dr. Stevens?"

"He plans on signing discharge paperwork with you tomorrow after I have completed my interview with your daughter. You may stay if you like, Mrs. Killbourne."

Two sets of eyes landed on me at once, pulling me in opposite directions like a rag doll caught in a tug-of-war. I got a sense from Adam that he preferred to meet with me privately for some reason, while mom just wanted to stay so she could get answers out of me anyway possible.

One of them was definitely not going to be very happy with my decision.

"Mom, do you mind if I meet with Dr. Patrick, alone?" For a second there I thought steam was going to spurt from her ears. It wasn't until her jaw practically dropped to the ground that I realized how supremely surprised she was by my answer.

She shouldn't be.

I'd had a lifetime of disappointing her. I only just met Doctor Drool.