If Red Means No, Invert The Color

Chapter 1

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Muffled voices ran through Kieran's head as he slowly began to wake; opening his eyes he immediately shut them, a bright white light temporarily burned his retinas, causing his head to throb even more. At first he didn't know where he was, but he refused to open his eyes so he decided on relying on his other senses. He could hear voices, two different ones belonging to what sounded like two men, coming from a small distance. He attempted to move his limbs but quickly found that the act in itself was pointless. Then, an antiseptic smell tickled his nostrils and he immediately knew where he was; he was in a hospital. He heard a door open and the voices followed suit, coming closer to him.

"His vitals are much better, but I fear he may be suffering a concussion. He has one broken limbs and he also has road rash on his forearms and knees as well as some pulled muscles. We will keep him overnight for observation." An unfamiliar, male voice speaks these words with a docile tone. He assumed it was probably a doctor.

"Okay. Thank you, Doctor." His mother.

"Ma'am, will you be pressing charges?" Another unfamiliar male voice speaks up suddenly from a further distance of the room. He is assuming this man is a police officer.

His mother sighs. "No. It was an accident. We'll manage the hospital bills just fine. Thank you, officer. "

The beeping of the monitors around Kieran's bed made his head spin, so he simply shut his eyes and prayed for sleep. He heard the door open again, but no words came from his mysterious visitor. He waited patiently. He could hear them moving about the room, pressing buttons on the machines and monitors and then picked up his arm gently. He still remained silent, not making a sound or opening his eyes. He was far from in the mood to be asked questions at the moment. He felt something flowing through his veins, it made him feel cold but the aching in his head slowly was slipping away, as were his thoughts as he slipped back into a deep, medically induced, sleep.

He was walking down a dark hallway, a door was cracked open at the end, light leaking out into the hall. With each step he took, his footsteps echoed off of the walls. He didn't know why he was walking forward towards the ominous creepy door, but his body was drawn to it, he had no control. His hand extended out towards the rusty doorknob; his fingers wrapped themselves around the brass, it was cool beneath his touch. He pushed the door open slowly, the creaking sound of the door hinges moving screamed through Kieran's ears. His eyes loomed forward, the scene before him made his body begin to tremble; he could see his father, passed out drunk on his mattress. The bed stained from years of spilt alcohol. His father was an angry drunk, he feared waking him. But he continued on, he turned a corner, careful with his footsteps. He was at the master bathroom, the door was cracked open as well, light streaming through the cracks. He pushed the door open, white light blinding him temporarily, his hand flying up to shield his eyes until they adjusted to the bright lighting. And when they did adjust, he felt like he was about to vomit.

There lay his sister, sprawled out across the floor, her head lulled to the opposite wall. Blood was seeping from her hair and onto the floor. Her body was bruised and her white and blue sundress was torn. The potent smell of copper tugged at his nose hairs and he was forced to run out of the bathroom. He ran and ran in no particular direction, desperate to get away from the sight and find help. Soon, the floor beneath him shifted, causing him to jump up, landing on the now shag carpeting. He looked up, his father was towering over him.

Kieran's eyes opened abruptly, He looked around, a nurse was tampering with the machines around him. He looked to his right, and a vase of flowers sat on the nightstand next to him. A small bouquet of daisies spray-painted to look like rainbows.  They looked cheap in all honesty but he didn't exactly expect his mother to get him flowers.