Better Than Me

Chapter 28

"Shut your mouth, Daniel."

"I mean, I'm the patient, but if you want me to not tell the doctors something important that they should know in case I have to stay longer, I guess. I'll finally listen to what you have to say, Dad. I won't do anything but listen to your rambling bullshit all day and stay in bed and get bloody pneumonia."

"You're a coward," his father seethed, "You're too immature to face your real problems like a man so you tried to take the easy way out, fucking wuss."

"Alright, get him out of here," the doctor ordered immediately, and although Dan had begun to cry, he was smiling a little bit. He noticed Dan's smile and waited for his parents to leave before asking, "Did you do that on purpose?"

Dan wiped his cheek and nodded. "'M sorry, I just wanted them out of here. I've got a horrible headache and they're not much help."

"That's alright," the doctor said. "Sorry you have to go home with them, mate."

"I'm trying not to," Dan said, "I'm hoping Meghan can help me call someone today to take me home instead."

"Hopefully. I'd hate to send you home with them, it probably wouldn't help you avoid this happening again, would it?"

Dan shook his head. "I'm afraid not."

"Well, all you need to do today is make sure you eat a little more than yesterday and get up and walk around for ten or fifteen minutes. A nurse can help you with that, so just call or wait for someone to come check on you. It's whenever you feel like it, but it's got to be today, alright?"

Nodding, Dan picked at one of his nails, glancing up at him then away. The doctor approached the hospital bed closer.

"We're on your side, not your parents'. We don't want this happening again, it's not good for you. You're so young and there's so much more to life than this, I can promise that, it just takes a little help, that's all...working with people like Meghan can make it so that your head's a more pleasant place to be. And that's what we want."

"The opposite of what my mum and dad want, basically," Dan sighed, breath shaky and eyes teary again, which was starting to get really fucking embarassing.

"Unfortunately, it seems like it," the doctor finished, wishing him well for the day. He left, turning off the bright lights.

Dan laid in the silence and cried for a little bit. It was blubbery and breathy and he probably looked horrible afterwards, but at least he felt better once his final tears dried. He rubbed his sore eyes and pushed back his messy hair, adjusting his pillow in a way so that he could hold it to his chest, then went back to sleep.

Dreaming as he slept, Dan cuddled the pillow close to his body. His dreams were strange and dreary, but what stuck out about them when he woke up was the feeling of being in the hospital for not just days, but weeks. It was so strange to feel that so much time had passed by when reality it had only been a few hours.

The next time he woke up, nurses were checking his vitals again, asking about his stomach and his throat, and switching his IV.

"I'm okay, just bored and lonely," Dan admitted quietly as a nurse checked his blood pressure.

"The mental health care lady should be coming up in a bit," the nurse informed him, "But I'm not quite sure when. Sorry."

"It's okay."

Once they were finished and on their way out, Dan sighed and stared at the curtain-covered window. He wished he had something from his apartment—a blanket, a pillow, a teddy bear, something to give him hope that this would all be over soon, something to be familiar with besides a tube in his arm.