Affinity (RDJ) - 1st person

Chapter 19 - Hope

Friday night is a cold one and I can't seem to get comfortable, my feet like blocks of ice under my too thin comforter. It's coming up to the second week in December and I think I should probably start unpacking some of my winter clothes from my boxes.

I can't sleep.

My eyes sting and my head pounds; I've been lying in bed for the last few hours tossing and turning but to no avail. Sleep has definitely been better lately and my hand has been a lot less numb than it had been, but I still can't remember what it was like to just sleep, worry free. The dreams haven't been half as intense but whenever I'm not thinking about school or Robert, the thoughts of the accident come creeping back in and I end up flicking on my lamp, scared of seeing her in the darkness again.

I sigh, sitting up. I can't sleep so I might as well do something productive. I go over to my boxes and root through them for a sweater and some thick socks. Winter tests are coming up, so I should really get some study time in now to make up for the time I've lost when I'm with Robert after school.

I grab my laptop and head down to the living room. The lights are off and the glow from the street lights outside illuminate the room just enough for me to see my way around.

There's only a week of school left before Christmas break and I'm trying not to think about those two weeks. Would he want to see me? How would it even work? He can't call; we haven't even thought to swap numbers. Would he even want to see me outside of the bubble of school?

I shake my head and try to ignore the twisting of my stomach at the thoughts. Sitting down on the couch, I open up my laptop, beginning to read over my notes from class.

The next time I look at the clock, it's 8.30 and I've been studying for 3 hours. My neck and back are stiff from sitting in the same position for so long and I stretch, groaning as I get to my feet. Wondering if Rex is joining me at the hospital today, I knock on his door softly, not wanting to wake him from any precious sleep he might be managing. I hear a shuffle and he opens the door, looking remarkably awake.

'Hey, you're up early.' He yawns, scratching at his head.

'Yeah, can't sleep. You?'

He shakes his head. 'Nah. Me neither.'

'I was just wondering if you're coming to see mom today? It's cool if not, I can just hop on the bus,' I say.

'Nah, I'll come. Gives me a chance to get out of this house for a bit anyway.'

'Okay, well I'm just gonna get dressed and we'll head off then!' I reply, pleased that he's making more effort nowadays. I quickly get dressed and the pair of us head out towards the hospital.

Dr Shepherd is in my mom's room when we arrive. He smiles when he sees us both. 'Ah, you're here! Come in, come in.' He waves us inside and we walk over to my mom's bed. She looks so small under the blankets. I'm still not used to seeing her like this. My dad is stood next to him looking like he's about to burst.

'Is everything... okay?' I ask.

'Yes, yes, everything is fine. I was just telling Jim here that we're seeing some really promising signs in your mom's most recent brain scans.' My dad grins at this, gesturing for Dr Shepherd to continue. 'We've been monitoring the neurone pathways in her frontal lobe since she arrived here, and in yesterday's scan we saw that a few neurones that hadn't been active before treatment have started firing again. If this continues, and there's no reason why it wouldn't, well... it could be a really promising outcome.'

I let out a sigh of relief, my dad hugging me. 'That's great to hear,' I say, flashing a thankful smile in Dr Shepherd's direction.

'Well I'll leave you all be. If you need anything, shout up,' he says as he walks towards the door.