I woke up with a lot of beeping sounds coming from everywhere. My eyes opened slowly, and my entire body hurt. A lot. Relief flooded the people around me's faces. My parents and Cody was there, and Romie, Alex, and Brody. Then some bits of memories came back to me. I fell off my window. Because I was suicidal. Because Brody broke up with me. That thought hit me ten times harder than the ground hit me when I fell out of my window. I was about to close my eyes again so I didn't have to think about it anymore. But sooner or later I was going to have to face everyone. So I asked the most logical question I could think of.
"How long was I out?" My voice was hoarse, like leaves were smushed in my vocal chords. I cleared my throat as I waited for the answer.
"Three days, dear." My mom piped up, her voice soothing, and her soft hands were rubbing my arm.
"woah." I'd been out that long? I've fainted before when I had my period and I wasn't hydrated enough. I was barely out for an hour though. But three days? Gosh, I must've hit my head pretty darn hard. I scratched my head but hit a bandaged place which was kind of soft. I winced, and my mom reached over as soon I touched the place. I gasped, and she bit her lip.
"And you got a nasty wound on your head."
"Yup. A little late for that." You might think I was being a bitch at the moment, but I honestly, I wasn't in my best mood, and I didn't care if I showed it. "Look, can I have some time alone with Romie please?" Everyone nodded, and shuffled outside the room. "And if anybody tries to snoop, I will haunt them forever." I said, just in case.
Romie sat on the seat where mom was sitting. And because she was my best friend, and she understood me, she hugged me gently, and whispered in my ear. "I'm so glad you are alive." She loosened her grasp, and I saw a tear escape her eye. She wiped it off, and smiled. I wanted to feel safe and loved, and she had provided me just that. I had gone through an extreme heart break, and fell off a two-story building. I could get some slack.
"And being the very curious person that I am, can you tell me what happened with you and Brody? If you get it off your chest, it might make you feel better, too." I nodded, and informed her about how I kissed Alex. And how I saw him kiss Claire. And all the other information. I found myself in tears around the end.
"I mean, I know I shouldn't have kissed Alex, but is all of it my fault?" I asked, my voice quivering.
"Aw, come on! You shouldn't have done that, but it's girl instincts! This other pretty cool guy likes you, and you catch your boyfriend kissing another girl? It doesn't allow you to kiss Alex, but I don't think Brody should've reacted like that. I think, more than anything, he's scared he's going to lose you to him, rather than he's upset you kissed Alex." I nodded. Romie always knew what to say.
"And, just between you and me? I asked Brody why he broke up with you, and he didn't answer me. Later on, I heard Alex and Brody fighting. I think Alex overheard me talking to Brody. Alex was saying how Brody was the one who hurt you, and you should've seen Brody's face. He looked so sad, and guilty, and... I can't even describe it. Even Alex stopped talking." She frowned, and I sighed.
"I didn't want to jump off, you know. I mean, I had that one second that I wanted to jump off, because I thought I lost everything already, and I wanted Brody to feel guilty. But then, I snapped out of it. I was coming back into the room. Then I lost my balance...."
"I know. I was there. Remember?" I sighed again, and nodded shortly. "Look, I can't keep you all to myself for all this time. You're gonna have to talk to your parents, and....Brody. You need to. It's not a choice." She said. I breathed in deeply from my nose, and closed my eyes. Then I exhaled sharply, opening my eyes along with it.
"Yeah. I know." I said. She hugged me again, and left the room. Ten minutes later, my parents came in. I was too ashamed to look at them. There was a silence that was extremely awkward, and I was tempted to break it, but I was also scared to start talking to them. My dad was the once to speak up first.
"You don't need to tell us why you were sitting at the window. But from now on, we're going to bar your window so you aren't tempted to jump off." I was about to protest, but I saw dad's smile and knew it was a joke.
"Dad, I'm so sorry." I said, finally looking up to meet his eyes. He smiled, and a tear rolled down his cheek. "And mom, I'm really sorry." She hugged me, and looked into my eyes.
"I'm just so glad you're alright." She let out a shuddered sigh. After we talked a little more, Cody came in.
"Hey, sis." Mom and dad were out of the room already.
"Hey, lil' bro."
"If you tell this to someone, I'll immidiately deny it, but I was really worried when you didn't wake up right away."
"I'm sorry."
"It's k, but don't ever do something like that, ok?"
"Got it. Never will I ever jump off from somewhere really high up except for a safe bungee jump or cliff diving." He smiled.
"When you do that, take me with you. I've always wanted to bungee jump."
"Ok. It's a promise." He smiled and hugged me. I'm sure I'll never get a hug from him ever again. He walked out of the room. A few minutes later, I was lulled to a peaceful sleep.
I dreamed about Brody dumping me. Again and again and again. We'd get in the fight, and he'd dump me. Then it replayed it again. At one point, the dream changed, and Brody was walking away from me, closer to Claire.
"No, Brody. No..." I said, but when he finally turned to me, he glared at me. "Sorry, Jen. We're over." He'd say, and turn around to walk to Claire. He wrapped an arm around her, just like how he always did to me. He rubbed his nose to hers. Their lips were a finger apart when I woke up.
"NO!" I said, jerking up, but only to get a sharp pain from my hip and back. I gasped, and put a hand to my back. I winced at the pain.
"Are you ok?" Someone said, and as my eyes adjusted to the light, I saw Brody.
"Brody? What time is it?" I asked, glancing out the window where it was pitch-dark except for some stars.
"Midnight." He said, biting his lip.
"How did you get in?" I knew they didn't let visitors that weren't family after seven or something.
"Ah...let's say I take advantage of my good-looks once in a while." He chuckled, and I clucked my tongue. "It's not the best time, but can we talk?" He asked, sounding really anxious. I nodded, and turned the light on.
"Were you having a nightmare?" He asked, out of nowhere.
"Yeah." I answered, wondering how much he heard.
"I heard you say my name." He said, and I sighed. So I sleep-talked the entire thing. Great.
"What do you want me to say?"
"...Jen, I had three whole days to think about you know, us. And when you didn't wake up, for a second I thought you'd never wake up. Then I knew...I wont be able to live without you. So I want you to take me back."
"Brody. You broke my heart. And even though it's just emotions, it hurt. It hurt real bad, Brody. Real bad."
"I know. The moment I walked through that gate, I couldn't believe what I did. I didn't want to break up with you, and I overreacted."
"Overreacted! Uh, oubviously! Look, you had those three days to think about it. I didn't. And right now, I'm still at that stage when I'm mad at you. And just in case you were thinking this, I didn't jump out of my window because of you. I... needed fresh air. But I slipped. So you don't need to feel guilty."
He nodded slowly, but as my words sank in, his face looked like he was panicking.
"Jen. I'm really sorry. I know you were confused about both Matt and Alex. And you saw me get kissed by Claire. I understand you felt the same way I felt when I heard you kissed Alex. Maybe worse. And I was stupid, and made a really big mistake. But everyone makes mistakes, right? Please Jen, please. Take me back." He was begging me, and I knew his ego was long gone. Honestly I was touched, but I still can't forget how I felt when he dumped me. Like my heart was rapped around a rock and it was dropped down a deep ocean. Like I was drowing and can never get back up.
I looked at him, desperate and sad, begging for forgiveness. But I couldn't just give in.
"Brody. I still remember how it felt when you dumped me. It's still kind of fresh because you know, it feels like barely half a day's passed. It's kind of scary when I think that you can make such an effect on me. I... I think I need time. Maybe date another guy or something. I'm just not ready to jump in and start going out with you again." My voice was slow and edgy, and it hurt me to say the words. But once I got it all out, I knew it was the most mature and the right thing to do. Brody probably knew I was right, so he nodded his head slowly, and sighed.
"Ok. But Jen, can I kiss you one last time?" He bit his lip, like it was the only thing he could hang on to. I nodded, and he leaned towards me. His lips found mine, and he kissed me slowly but passionately. I knew I still loved him, and it would take a miracle to find someone I love as much as Brody. But I needed to let go of him. He let go of my lip, and kissed me on the forehead once more before walking slowly and sadly out the room. The door shut quietly, and I sniffled and covered my face with the covers so noone can hear me cry.
*****
Romie walked in after the doctor checked in with me at eight in the morning. The doctor told me I was very, very lucky to have survived the fall. I hit my hip first, then my back, then my head. I didn't break my spine, but my pelvis cracked. I did hit my head, but my skull was fine. My legs didn't have much effect on it, because my upper-body made a cushion for it. The doctor showed me the X-Ray, and honestly, I would've prefered if I didn't see it. My hip wasn't doing well.
I told Romie about what happened the night before with Brody. That we were completely, officially, broken up. I almost broke down when I was explaining to Romie, but somehow I managed to hold my composure. She looked at me with a pity-ing look, and she hugged me.
"Jenny, I'm so sorry. I got over Matt pretty fast because more than being sad, I was angry. But Brody was such a nice guy, and he was so awesome to you." She sighed. "This wont make you feel better, but it's gonna be hard to get over him." I nodded.
"I'll just concentrate on the musical, and keep myself busy. Maybe I should find a new hobby or something."
"Yeah! You should totally do that!" I forced a smile on my face. She hugged me again, and Romie told me what was up at school.
"Everyone's talking about how you went to the hospital. I had to explain to everyone how you fell out of the window. But don't worry, I told everyone that we were both sitting at the window but you slipped. No one knows that you and Brody broke up yet, though. A lot of people were really worried about you, and wanted to come see you, but I told them you weren't awake yet. They seemed even more worried then. I'll tell them that you're awake now though. Today, I had to beg my mom for me to skip school today. I also skipped school yesterday, but I can't skip tomorrow. We have a test, but I'll come after school. And...I need to bring home work to you." She looked apologetic, but I laughed.
"It's ok, I'm bored as hell anyway." She grinned.
"It's already Tuesday though?" I commented, still disbelieving.
"Well, you were out for three days."
"True." I agreed.
"Anyway, do you know when you can come back to school?"
"The doctor said I can go back the Monday after the coming one. So I have an entire week and a half to kill. But you know what's worse? I need to go to school on a wheelchair. It's not gonna be just annoying, it'd be completely embarrassing!" Romie shrugged.
"I've always wanted to go on a wheelchair." I raised an eye brow at her, but kept an amused smile.
Later that day, I turned on a TV that was located at the end of the room. I flipped the channels, but there was nothing good on. I glanced around the room, looking for something to do. I was in one of those rooms for one person. There was one big bed in the middle with a lot of heart monitors and gadgets like that which personally I think is really annoying. I fidgeted with the cloth of the blanket I was in, because I didn't have anything better to do. I wasn't allowed to get out of bed, not that I'd be able to anyway. My pelvis was so fractured I wouldn't be able to move it. Even if I could, the pain would be unbareable, and I'm not in to masochism.
So using the phone next to the bed, I dialed my mom's number.
"Hi sweety, how are you?" My mom said, probably recognizing the hospital room number.
"Hey mom, whenever you can stop by, can you bring stuff that can kill time? Like movies or books and maybe some food." I said this with the sweetest voice I could manage.
"Ok, but I wont be able to get there until after dinner." I groaned. It was still noon, and Romie had to run for an hour or two because she got a last-minute dentist appointment. So I needed to think of something to do, or I wont be doing anything for nearly seven hours.
"K mom. Thanks, and love you!" I said, and hung up. I drummed my fingers on the table beside me. I got my iPhone out my bag. It still had full battery, but I was not sure it would last for a complete seven hours. I unlocked it, and I was welcomed with an overwhelming amount of texts. Many from people I barely knew. There were many cheerleaders I sat with that texted me with feel better's and are you ok's. I appreciated it, so I texted all of them back saying my thanks and I'm doing fine, thank you's. I'm pretty sure Romie gave all of them my number.
I smiled. I guess the cheerleaders aren't as bad as I thought they were. I think jealousy clouded the goodness of them. I was always jealous of how pretty they were, even though I never admitted it. Of course, there were cheerleaders that were snotty, and thought they were gorgeous, and they were all so vain. I guess I thought all the cheerleaders were like that.
For the next few hours, I texted my closer friends, like Romie, Alex, and a occasional hi with Brody. I also killed time playing Temple Run and Angry Birds and apps like that. I scrolled endlessly in Instagram until at one point I wasn't really looking anything but was liking all the pictures. Some people talked to me on Facebook, so I replied to that. I also kept on watching fail videos on Youtube.
Over all, I was pleasantly surprised with the hospital's Wi-Fi.
It was the longest I've been on my phone without pausing. I usually just checked my texts and see if anyone called. I'm not that type of girl that twirls her hair while texting and giggling with her crush, and stuff like that. When I got this phone from my parents, I wasn't like hopping around being all "Thanks mom! Thanks dad!"
Of course, I thanked them and smiled. I was happy to get it, but wasn't super excited like a lot of teens tend to be.
I turned the TV on again, and saw that they were running a marathon on How I Met Your Mother. I squealed happily. Who doesn't like that show? It's so funny and witty! But I didn't watch till the end yet, so I still didn't know who the mom was. I wonder if they told who the mother is already.
I was so engrossed with the show because I didn't move my head until the nurse came in to bring the disgusting hospital food. But I ate it anyway, partly because I was hungry, and partly because I knew someone had made it for me, and I wasn't going to waste it. I ate the food, cringing a little with every bite. I finished it, and pushed the tray away, and drained the taste away with water.
Ten minutes after I finished my food, my mom came in with a large stack of movies, TV shows, and books. There must have been ten of each. I raised my eye brows at my mom, and she chuckled.
"Too much?" She asked.
"No, it's good. I wont be bored anymore." I laughed.
"Tell me when you finish." I grinned at that, but her face looked serious.
"Wait...you're expecting me to finish all this?" She nodded, looking at me like I was being silly. "Ok, then." I said, looking over at the pile of stuff to kill time. I had to crane my neck to see the top. Yeah, that's how high it went.
I went through the pile of stuff and caught something in my eye. The time traveler's wife. I remember watching the movie, but I didin't remember the story too much. I know it was a sad ending, but I've always wanted to read it. So I picked the book up, and flipped to the first page.
"I'll leave you in peace with you book." My mom said, and pecked my cheek before leaving the room. My mom could sometimes be a serious book worm. If she was into a good book, she wouldn't hear me even if I screamed in her ear. I also enjoy books, but I read maybe two books a month for pleasure. My mom reads like an entire decent-paged book in three days or something. I still have no idea where she fits the time if she's so busy.
I read a few chapters when a nurse came in to do a daily check. She glanced at the stack of time killers. She raised an eyebrow.
"You seem to be ready for your hospitalization." She commented sarcastically.
I rolled my eyes playfully. "Yeah." She laughed, signed something on a clipboard, and waved to me before leaving the room.
The good thing was, the head nurse that was in charge of me had a good humor.
Thanks for reading this chapter!! The end is closing in!! I think, stab in the dark, there'll be maybe three more chapters! I hope you enjoy this story so far, and thanks to everyone who's voted, commented, fanned, followed, etc.
Until next time! :)