In Striking Distance

Chapter Ten | Header

Thea glanced back at Orson, she didn't want to leave him alone on her bathroom floor, unconscious and bleeding.

As if reading her thoughts, the operator continued, "If you don't open the door, it will only take longer for the paramedics to help him."

Thea took a deep breath and pushed herself off the floor. Her legs were still shaking, and goosebumps were sprayed across her arms even when it was warm in the apartment. She clung to the wall and made her way to the front door. Just as she opened the door, she saw two paramedics rushing from the elevator.

"In here," she shouted.

They jogged towards her. "He's in the bathroom," she said, hugging herself as she led them to Orson.

They got to work right away, and the rest of the night was a blur. She remembered snippets, but they didn't connect. The paramedics asked if she knew if Orson had taken any other drugs. Thea responded that she wasn't sure. They put Orson on a stretcher. One of the paramedics asked if she had also been hurt. She remembered shaking her head.

She remembered blindly following them to the ambulance on the ground floor of her apartment. The paramedics asking if she was going to accompany them. Her hopping in the back with assistance from one of the paramedics, and then rushing to the hospital with the ambulance sirens keeping them company in the night.

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Thea passed back and forth in the waiting room. She just couldn't sit still. They had taken Orson behind one of the curtains and ushered her to the corner where a few seats were set up. There were a few other people in the waiting room looking at her curiously, but they didn't say anything. Thea saw the worry and anxiety in their eyes for their loved ones, it was something that connected them.

A nurse stopped her midway through her next lap of the room. "Are you okay dear?"

Thea paused, she wasn't sure if the nurse was asking about her physical or mental state. Both were pretty haywire right now, but she nodded. The nurse didn't look satisfied, and she slowly ushered Thea towards one of the chairs, "Have a seat."

Thea did as she was told and the nurse pointed to her clothes, "Is that your blood?"

"What?" Thea reared her head back.

The nurse repeated her question, and Thea looked down at her once cream blouse. It was smeared with blood. That explained a few of the odd looks she had received from people around her.

"Oh, no," she shook her head, "No, its my friends, the paramedics took him behind the curtains."

The nurse nodded understandingly. "Do you want to head to the bathroom and freshen up? It's just around the corner."

Thea hesitated; she didn't want to get up until someone came to her with the news that Orson was okay. The nurse leaned in, "Please wash up, there are a few children who have been frightened by the sight of blood on your shirt."

She nodded absentmindedly and then stood up to go to the bathroom. She winced at the bright fluorescent lights. Glancing around the stalls, Thea's bladder suddenly felt full. She remembered that she had needed to use the washroom before finding Orson on the floor. In the midst of everything she'd forgotten about her own needs, solely focusing on Orson.

Thea finished her business and came up to the sink to wash her hands. Her brown eyes were bloodshot, and her curls had sprung loose from the ponytail. She looked frazzled. Scooping up some water, she washed her face, trying to make herself look more alive. Then, she took off her blouse, running in under the sink and tried scrubbing off the blood.