Choosing The Right Path

35) 🏥Torture...🏥

We arrived at Greenwood Hospital shortly and proceeded to the front desk.

"Can I help you?" The nurse asked me.

"Yes, I'm looking for Nurse Lydia. She called me-"

"Aamirah Omar?"

I nodded.

"Right this way."

I followed the nurse through the hospital with Rubina and Raeesa at my heels. We walked briskly through door after door until we stopped in what seemed to be the ER. Doctors, nurses and those in critical conditions rushed passed in a series of blurs. The loud wailing of a siren could be heard above the beeping of machines and the loud voices of nurses and attendings ordering their colleagues around. My eyes scanned the place for Azlan, fearing the worst. I was too scared to see the strong, invincible bad boy injured and suffering in pain.

"Wait here while I search for Nurse Lydia, alright?" The nurse rushed off and the three of us shuffled out of the way. We waited for two minutes before we were greeted by Nurse Lydia.

"Thank you, Rutheryn," Nurse Lydia said.

We also thanked Nurse Rutheryn and followed Nurse Lydia to where Azlan would have been.

"Which one of you is Aamirah Omar?"

I stepped forward.

"Ma'am, Azlan gave us your number and I'm afraid he is in a very critical state at the moment as he was in a motorcycle accident. He has lost a lot of blood and we're hoping that as a relative, you might be willing to donate? A blood test will be required first, obviously."

Why would Azlan give them my number out of all the numbers he knew? I mean, we weren't that close. He was probably the closest to Rubina than anybody else in the Omar family.

Azlan also got back together with his parents, his family. Why didn't he contact them?

And how did he know my number offhand?

"Okay, I'll do it."

Rubina placed a hand on my shoulder. "You sure about this, Aamirah?"

I nodded.

"Nurse, in case Aamirah isn't a match, I'll get a blood test done too."

I smiled. Rubina really changed. The old Rubina would have never bothered to help anybody out, even if their life was on the line. My cousin was making progress and I could not have been prouder.

"I'll get a blood test done too," Raeesa spoke up and yawned once again.

Nurse Lydia didn't look too impressed. "You're very tired, child. I suggest you stay here and if need be, we'll consider you as a blood donor. For now, juat relax."

"Alright..."

"Stay put Raeesa. Rubina and I will be back soon."

》》》

Our blood tests were done in a room overlooking the sea. It was a few floors above the ER and the number of viles containing blood kept in the wooden cupboard across me was astounding.

"So neither of you know your blood type? Are you sure about that?"

Rubina and I nodded. I watched Nurse Lydia sterilize the needle, then touch Rubina's skin with a disinfectant before pricking her skin above a vein and drawing blood. It was easy for me to watch but Rubina flinched when Nurse Lydia removed the needle. It was my turn next.

We waited for a while before Nurse Lydia returned.

"You're lucky to have gotten these back so quickly. Since this was an emergency case, the lab technicians sped up the process. Normally, it would take weeks before you got your results back. You're both A positive. I'm sorry but neither of you are a match for Azlan. We'll have to contact somebody else. We cannot take blood from your friend in the waiting room. She's too weak."

"Weak? What do you mean?"

"She has an iron deficiency. Do you know any other family members that we could contact?"

We had no contact numbers for Azlan's parents and so Rubina decided to call Uncle Ismail. He was a close friend of Azlan's father. Maybe he could contact them.

That meant that I would be meeting Azlan's parents. I always wondered what kind of people they were. This whole situation was so surreal. How could this be happening? Right when Azlan got his family back and things were starting to look up, his entire life was being tossed around like a tiny ship on violent seas. I was angered and I could feel the tears pricking my eyes. It was mot fair on Azlan. He deserved so much better than this difficult life that he had to lead. Above this difficulties, I knew he was a strong guy.

If meeting his parents in this horrible situation meant saving Azlan's life, so be it. The only thing that I feared was rejection and I could not understand why.

✴ A Z L A N ✴

There was a dull pain in my head that refused to go away and I couldn't feel my toes or fingers. It was as if I was alive with no body and no control. I was alone in an ice-cold room with bright white lights above me and people bustling around me. There was strange music in the background and my mind was scrambled. The pain was too much to bear and just when I thought it couldn't get worse, the feeling in my extremities returned.

"God! What the hell are you doing to me?" I yelled at no one in particular.

"We're trying to help you sir, you've been badly injured. Jonah, you know what to do."

I was not a weak person but I couldn't help it when a sharp scream escaped my lips.

"All done. Your dislocated shoulder has been taken care of. You'll stay here till your stitches are taken care of."

"Wait!" I called to the nurse that spoke to me.

"Who are you... A- And What happened to me?" I stuttered.

I felt so weak, like my bones were made of glass but my head felt as heavy as lead. I could barely lift it to look at the person that I was talking to.

"Sir, I'm Nurse Lydia. You were in a biking accident but you're going to be fine. Your parents are here and you can meet them soon. Once your stitches are done, we'll transfer you to a more calming and visitor-friendly environment." Nurse Lydia smiled at me.

So I was stupid enough to screw everything up on the very day I got my freedom back. I could never seem to keep the peace in my life. I always had to go around causing problems for myself and the people around me, the people I loved. Aamirah popped into my mind again. I hoped that she was okay. She would be so worried and disappointed in be being so careless. My parents were waiting to see me...

Dad would be so angry, so furious with himself for letting me take my bike to the streets. Mom would probably be in tears till she got to see her son happy and healthy again.

Allah was putting me through these trials and tests and I wasn't sure why. Why did my life have to be this way? I only seemed to torture the people around me as I tortured myself.

"Thank you."

Nurse Lydia squeezed my hand that wasn't bandaged and left the small room in which about ten other nurses worked around me and on me.

I slowly lifted my bandaged hand. What had I done to myself? I was so foolish. After eight months, I'd forgotten how to ride a motorcycle? Talk about stupid. That was what I was; plain fucking stupid. The monitors on my bedside began to beep and before I knew it, I was out cold.