Crashing down

Pain

The pain was just horrific, the worst he had ever felt, engulfing his whole body. Ant knew he was hurt but how or why was beyond him. His left leg was agony and the position it was in felt very unnatural. His right shoulder was painful and but the ache in his chest was becoming unbearable and along with the pain from his head, Ant just wanted the darkness to swallow him whole.

Ant tried to move in reflex to try and escape, but he quickly became aware that he couldn't; he was trapped and in response, he tried to make some sort of noise to receive some sort of help. However, just the sound of his own voice was enough to send another wave of pain through his head.

"Ant, Ant just stay still for me, we will have you out soon." Ant groaned again in discomfort as the sound of the unfamiliar voice spoke to him. He wanted to get out of what he was quickly beginning to realise was rubble on top of him. He couldn't remember where it had come from, his head was a jumbled mess, not allowing him to make much sense of his surroundings, and causing his fear to increase.

Even though it felt like hours, barely minutes later the weight on his chest was moved, causing his breathing to speed up, which led to a flurry of activity around him.

Ant soon had unfamiliar hands placed on either side of his head, people moving in and out of his line of vision, swarming around him. He could see their mouths moving, possibly talking to him, but all sense was lost to Ant and he slipped back into unconsciousness.

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The siren was ear-splitting, and it was the next thing Ant was aware of. He very quickly realised that he was in a moving vehicle. But he couldn't move. The ceiling was barely in focus, moving unnaturally above him. The combination caused him to panic, alerting the paramedic of his return to consciousness.

"Ant? You're ok, your in an ambulance on your way to the hospital, it's ok. Just try and relax yeah. No, just stay still for me, you're ok just keep still." The pain was awful and Ant couldn't comprehend what the paramedic was telling him. The straps holding him down we're making him feel uncomfortable and he just wanted this nightmare to stop. But all he could do was moan slightly into the oxygen mask that was on his face.

Without warning, a sense of warmth seeped through Ants body making him feel almost floaty and that felt good. The pain began to ease, letting Ant relax and he closed his eyes once more.

****

It only felt as though seconds had passed since Ant had last been awake. In reality, it had been just over 6 hours and it was the sound of beeping that indicated to him, that he had returned to the waking world

"Ant daring, you awake? That's it, open your eyes for me. Hey, it's good to see those eyes, welcome back." Ant blinked several types to try and clear his foggy vision and focus on the person speaking to him.

"Anne-Marie?" his voice was hoarse from disuse, and his words came out just as a whisper.

"Yeah it's me, darling, how are you feeling?"

"Sore. I don't understand though, where am I, what happened?" a sense of fear evident in his words.

"You're in the hospital." Anne-Marie saw Ant slightly panic at her words, "it's ok, you're ok, don't panic sweetheart... how much do you remember?"

Ant was quiet for some moments racking his brain for any relevant memories, and it was clear just through his facial features when he had found them.

"The lights and ceiling fell on us didn't it... oh god..." it was at this point, Ant started to vomit into an emesis bowl, which thanks to Anne-Marie's quick reflex skills, had been thrust under his chin. Ant soon reemerged and leant back against the pillows breathing heavily.

"What happened after cos I don't remember, what happened to us?"

"The lights came down on you and it brought some of the ceiling down with it, landing on top of you and how it landed gave the fire crew a really hard job of getting to you. Then they brought you here. You've broken your left leg, right arm and broken about 6 ribs as well as needing 8 stitches for a cut to your head. You're incredibly lucky." Ant stayed silent, processing everything that was being said. It all seemed to make sense, explaining his current physical state and pain yet something didn't seem to quite fit right.

Then the penny dropped.

"Hang on! What happened to Dec? Where is he!"

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To be continued...

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