Reiner - Consciousness

It’s so hot…

My eyes are burning…

I can’t breathe…

Somebody please…help me!

R! Reiner…

“R!”

What just happened? It’s so dark, I can’t see anything…

…

Reiner got up from where he was seated close to her bed immediately when he heard his name being called. His eyes widened in shock as he stared down at Natalia who was stirring as if waking from a deep slumber. Not making a sound to announce his presence, Reiner reached for the button close to her bed and pressed it to call the nurse.

Natalia continued to stir and mumble his name softly as if she was desperately calling for him.

However, Reiner has decided against revealing his presence to her so that she could focus on her recovery. It had been almost two full days since he had been watching over Natalia in the hospital. He was overjoyed that she had finally regained consciousness.

The door opened and a nurse quickly came into the room and gestured for him to quickly step aside.

Reiner did as he was instructed. He stepped away from the bed to give the nurse some room; however, his eyes continued to watch over Natalia.

Soon after a doctor and a small group of nurses entered the room. Reiner watched as the doctor and the nurses gathered around Natalia’s bed to check on her condition. The doctors barked out some urgent orders and the nurses followed professionally and swiftly.

…

“Miss? Miss Natalia…can you hear me? Miss Natalia. Please respond. Say something if you can hear me,” a woman’s voice said to me.

I heard a woman’s voice. She seemed desperate to get my attention. I couldn’t figure out who she was from her voice and that was probably because I didn’t know her.

What is happening to me? I’m sure that I have my eyes opened but it’s all dark, I cannot see anything.

My whole body felt weak, and it took so much effort for me to lift my right hand and arm.

“Miss Natalia, can you hear me?” the woman kept on saying.

“…yes…” I replied.

Was that hoarse sounding voice, my voice? My whole throat felt dry, like I haven’t drunk any water for days. My voice sounded nothing like my own.

I heard the sound of rapid movements close to me and then the sound of something moving.

“Call the doctor immediately. Miss Natalia has regained consciousness,” the woman spoke to someone else.

‘Regained consciousness’ she had said. She was referring to me, right? Does that mean…that I’ve been unconscious? Why? For how long?

“Where…am I?” I asked, my voice still sounding hoarse and broken.

“You’re in a hospital, Miss. There is no need to worry, the doctor will be here to see you very soon,” the woman said reassuringly.

I see, so I’m in the hospital. Why am I here? How come, I cannot see anything?

“Excuse me. I can’t see anything. Is there…something wrong with my…eyes?” I asked hesitantly, fearing for the worst.

“The doctor will tell you all about that. Do not worry yourself, miss,” the woman, who I now presume must be a nurse, said calmly.

I heard the sound of the door opening and the sound of many footsteps entering the room. I guess the doctor and other nurses are here to see me.

I felt and heard the presence of many people move close to the bed that I was sleeping on, but I had no idea what they were doing. It didn’t help that I couldn’t see anything.

“Miss Natalia. My name is Thomas, and I am the doctor responsible for your case,” a deep manly voice said very close to me.

I couldn’t see him, but I was thankful that he was here with me. I just nodded in response to his words.

“How are you feeling? Any headache, pain, nausea? Anything at all?” the doctor asked as I felt hands on my arms.

My arms were being lifted slightly and I guess that they were performing some checks on me. I felt pretty much normal except for the fact that my body felt like it didn’t have much strength and that I couldn’t see.

“Doctor…am I blind?” I asked, bluntly.

There was moment of silence, and I was beginning to think of the worst.

“No, Miss. I assure you that you are definitely not blind. You can’t see anything right now because we’ve placed eyepatches on your eyes,” the doctor said followed by a small chuckle.

“Oh…I see. That’s a real relief,” I replied before letting out the breath that I had been holding.

“When you were in the…incident…dust and smoke got into your eye. It caused some damage and infection, so I’ve decided to keep your eyes closed for now. You should be able to remove the eyepatches after a week or so…” the doctor explained.

I see…

My mind felt blurry, like I had forgotten something important, but I couldn’t figure out what it was.

However, I felt like it would slowly come back to me. The doctor mentioned an incident. Was it something about that incident that I had forgotten?

“Ow…” I let out a painful cry as I felt my head hurting.

“Are you ok?” the doctor quickly asked.

“Yeah…I just had a headache when I tried to recall the incident…” I told the doctor honestly.

“It’s best for you to just rest and avoid thinking. You were unconscious for many days and although your body has rested up well, your mind is likely still adjusting,” the doctor explained in a very calm voice.

I nodded my head slightly at his words. It was reassuring to hear; however, it made me feel uncomfortable that I didn’t remember every single detail. I’ve had enough of selective memory loss.

“Where is everyone else?” I asked, referring to Lucien, Edward and Zak.

“I’ve already informed your guardians that you have regained consciousness. They will likely come over very very soon. Please continue to rest well until then,” the doctor explained.

“Thank you very much, doctor,” I said as I breathed a sigh of relief.

--To be continued…