In Between

Chatper VIII:

A pulsating whirr echoed off the white walls in the hospital room.  Pulsating through Josh's right pinna crossing over to his auditory canal, where it danced around for seconds.  His Green  eyes shot open.  To his surprise this room was perfectly lit.  His body lied atop a cushioned bed, .  Whispering voices tickled his ears.  He quickly sat up pushing off the white sheet that covered his body.   He observed as every doctor stared at him in shock.  Josh had zero knowledge that he just had been declared dead seconds ago.  During the horrifying chase he experienced with the three-headed Rottweiler.  The doctors had been trying to revive him.   As he jumped off the bed, the cold floor gently carressed his feet driving goosebumps up each leg.  This wasn't just any other day for the doctors.  The usual norma was that when they declared someone dead they didn't just decide to get up and go for a midnight stroll.  Zipping by the crowd of white coats, There heads turned in disbelief.  Once hitting the corner Joshcame to a full stop.  There stood  Matt and Joey trying to console Lilith, whom liked against the white shiny tiles of hallway floor, balled up shouting at the top of her lungs.  Screaming at the top of her lungs as tears raced down her face. Interupted by the sound of footsteps, she looked up and paused for a second. "Josh?" Lilith gasped, as she gazed in confusion.  Matt stared with the same frustration and shock as the doctors before him, for a man of logic none of this made any sense,  Joey stood paralyzed.  Lilith stood to her feet her hands shook as her body trembled.  Josh wasn't able to get more than two steps in before she blacked out.  He quickly slid underneath her to keep her back from crashing against the floor.  His eyes gazed at her face while holding her in his arms.  Unable to control his emotions, tears burst out of each eye.  Tentacles of confusion  wrapped tightly around his brain, as if his head were covered in a impenetrable fog that clogged his concentration blocking off every thought that occured.  Not one bit of clarity of what happened, whether it was real or not.  The dark narrow hallways, the three headed dog, the stranger back at the bar. So many questions yet no clear answers.  How did he go from being in such a dark creepy place to your every day hospital?  

After being evaluated for the third time, the doctors were still willing to look for a fourth opinion.  It just didn't make sense. Seconds ago they all witnessed a young man's heart cave in, they heard it give it's last beat. His skin was pale, every inch of his body had accepted the fact that he was dying. The doctors stared at one another while Josh sat on the bed, tired, hungry, and upset. The process just kept extending.  Josh felt more like a lab rat than a human being.  Matt extended a friendly smile as he made his way over.   He could tell everyone was happy to see him back on his feet. "Don't worry, Josh, you'll be out soon,"Matt assured.  Josh gently nodded.

Lily finally woke to see Josh sitting on the bed.  She quickly rushed over and wrapped both arms around him.  As their eyes connected just for a brief second every single bit of pain that crawled around inside his overcrowded brain disappeared.  Like a gentle light in the raging dark sea guiding him to the calm.  Josh embraced such a warm feeling of relief even if just for a few seconds.  He cleared his head, no more thoughts of dark hellish corridors or mutilated dogs.  He pushed aside all of the mysteries, giving way for Liliths warm charming amber eyes to occupate that space. 

The doctors had finally exhaused all of their resources to no avail, at this point They had completed every test and everything deemed worthless.  Josh was finally released and the pack of four were released to make there way home.   After hours of talking, joking around and doing the best to move past the hottest topic of the day,  it was evident that Josh needed rest. He wasn't ready to talk about such a weird and delicate experience, especially if he could barely believe it happened, how would they.  So it was best to momentarily  play it close to the chest. Lilith walked over to Josh's bed and placed a gentle kiss on his lips; her eyes filled with tears.  She kept them from getting out, but Josh could see them.