Take My Hand | Peter Parker

Chapter 13

"It's just a miracle she's in this condition. A coma for her would've lasted at least a year," 

The receptionist explains. She hands Mr. Harrington some paperwork, while I stand beside him. I feel bad for having him sign, as he was the only adult with us. Aunt Rebecca was very busy, and couldn't travel here to pick me up.

At least I had Nora. She was the closest I would get to family here.

"I'm just glad you're still in one piece," Nora prods my shoulder, giving a playful laugh.

I roll my eyes. "You should be glad I didn't give you the death glare for that."

Now it's her turn to roll her eyes at me, in a teasing way. Honestly, that made me more angry at her, in a funny way. We loved to make fun of each other, and try to see who would give in first.

Usually, that person was me.

As we were about to board the bus, Liz blocked my way.

"Hey, are you okay? I didn't get to see you earlier."

I hesitate, trying to pick my words thoughtfully. "Yeah, just a little tired from the hospital."

I yawn, giving her a quick nod, then boarding the bus along with the others. All I needed know was peace and quiet. My ears were ringing a little from earlier, making it difficult to listen to my playlist. Ignoring the pain of it becoming stronger, I turn the volume up a bit.

When we got back, closer to night, we noticed all our parents were concerned with the incident at the Washington Memorial.

Accident or not, I could've been an accident born from that snap.

I shuddered from hearing my own words. A heartless shiver creep down my spine, from hearing that word, SNAP. 

Aunt Rebecca rushed up to both us, embracing me more than she did before. As a nurse, it was her job to look after people, so I should've expected as much when she did start examining me for injuries. 

She knew I was tired, so we went home right away.

I was hoping to see where Peter was. Nora mentioned that he did return after the accident, but I barely took notice of him on the bus.

"So, what happened anyway? I've never seen my Mom freak out like that,"

Ellie asks, while settling on the couch with her large bowl of popcorn.

"My neck snapped. I guess she knew how serious it was. Ellie, I could've died."

Her eyes widened with great fear. "Died?" She turned around to look at me.

I shook my head, smiling. How could I explain to her that this was not normal at all? 

Even it was a lot to take in, still. The more time that went by, the more I realized how lucky I was to be standing here, at my house, with no long-term affects of any type. 

"I don't know." 

She shrugs her shoulders, then returns to her TV show. 

I understood that we weren't really close. Or at least, that's how she felt. Maybe I was getting used to having an actual sister. My shoulders tensed.

"Sweetie, you should probably get some rest." Aunt Rebecca suggested, helping me up.

"Yeah. I guess I feel more tired." She rubbed my back gently.

As a benefit of being a nurse, she was able to monitor my condition. The doctor in Washington recommended we hire a nurse to monitor me, because they believed I could develop some problems in the future.

However, it was quite expensive to hire someone like that, coming to our house everyday, after I got home from school, to take my blood pressure, weight, and other non-important things.

Aunt Rebecca didn't believe the nonsense they were throwing at her. She knew I would be fine. The only trauma I suffered was to my neck. There is still a nasty bruise on the spot where the trauma happened. I traced the outline, wincing when a flash of pain shot out from the area. It was a few different colours, where a light brown was fazed over the middle, some green, and a dark blue tinging around the sides.

I froze, cold with fear.

Dark blue?

That was a new colour, especially for a bruise.

I double checked the area again in the light, to make certain I wasn't hallucinating, or imagining what I saw. That happened many times. 

I'd imagine something was there, and when I looked, it wasn't. This was different. Yes, I was tired, and maybe that was contributing to my blurry vision, probably. I chuckled. It was just another one of these silly times, where I'd mistaken one thing for another.

There was no sound as I flicked the light on in the spare bathroom.

Towels that I'd recently used before the trip were longer in their places. Instead, new, fresh ones replaced their spots. Nothing else seemed to be out of place, except those towels. Aunt Rebecca probably replaced them.

I hopped up on the counter. The sink was just right beside my knees. If I turned more, my shin would hit the metal.

I examined the dark spot in the mirror, brushing my fingertips over the spot where the pain was most prominent. A tingling sensation arouse from the back of my neck. I turned to the mirror, staring my back. My suspicions were confirmed. It was blue.

While trying not to panic, I close and lock the door.

I tried my hardest to cover it up with concealer, not wanting for it to be visible at school. Unfortunately, it was in a visible spot.

No shirts of mine could cover it up. After becoming desperate, I prayed that it would just blend in with my skin tone. I guess my prayers were answered, when the area suddenly turned my skin tone. If that wasn't bad enough, I almost screamed in horror.

"What the..." I rub the area again, and flinch when it returns the original colours of the bruise.

The bump was still evident. However, my confidence was nowhere to be found.