In My Head, 2nd story.2

(this is part 2 to the second dream story)

"How are you feeling?" asked the doctor as he looked over Erin's body.

"You tell me." Erin noticed her face felt stiff and scratchy as she tried to speak.

"First, I'd like to ask you a couple questions." The doctor sat on a stool and looked into Erin's eyes.  "What is your name? Tell me what you remember about your accident."

Name? They didn't know who she was. And she had been in a coma for a while. Erin closed her eyes; she didn't want to remember. If they didn't know, she wasn't going to force her brain to remember whatever horrible thing that put her in this condition. 

"Don't worry," the doctor said, "it'll come back in time."

Great.

The doctor asked Erin a few questions she was willing to answer, such as where she was, the year, who the president was, her address and parents names.  From the look on the doctor's face, she got some of the answers wrong. 

"My turn," said Erin.  "What happened?"

"You had an accident."

"Obviously. Care to be specific?"

The doctor sighed, then began the list, "You were in a plane crash. A very unusual plane crash. In short, you broke bones in your hands, arms, face, pelvis, ribs, and feet.  You also had severe damage to your spleen, liver, intestines...."

"Okay, okay, I get it." Erin didn't want to hear anymore.  "What didn't break?"

"Your heart and your spirit to live."

That was a bit reassuring. 

"We have been trying to figure out who you are," the doctor continued.  "Because of your facial injuries we were unable to release a photo.  No one has come forward nor have any missing persons reports been a match."

"Don't the airlines keep records?"

The doctor explained the crash in a little more detail. 

"No way!" exclaimed Erin. "I hate to fly. There is no way I would be in a little plane."

"Well, that's all the police could come up with for an explanation.  Unfortunately, that plane and pilot haven't been located."

"That's weird," Erin was confused and didn't quite believe the doctor's story. 

"The news did a story about you, however, no one identified you.  They've been asking to do a follow up when you are able."

"Why?"

"Well, to find your family."

Erin looked up at the ceiling, unsure of what to do. 

"I don't see the point but I guess I'll do it," she said with a sigh as a tear leaked from her eyes. 

"Before we do, I need to talk to you about your prognosis."

Erin closed her eyes.  She didn't want to hear it.  Whatever he was about to say couldn't be good. 

"It can wait," said the doctor. 

The next morning, Erin was awakened by the nurse fussing about, checking her hardware, cleaning the wounds.    

"Do you have a mirror?" asked Erin. 

The nurse put her hands on her hips and looked at her in a motherly fashion. "Are you sure you want to do that?"

"Yes."

The nurse sighed, left the room, then returned a few minutes later with a large hand mirror.  She stood at the end of the bed, her bust heaved with another heavy sigh, then she slowly lifted the mirror.  

"Take it away!" cried Erin in horror.  She had been warned, but couldn't believe what she saw.  She looked worse than bride of Frankenstein.   Erin's face was completely bandaged except for her eyes and nose.  Tufts of scraggly hair poked out randomly from the bandages.  The rest of her body looked much worse than what she had been able to see without he mirror with metal rods poking through her skin and holding her body together.  "How am I alive?" she asked the nurse. 

"Prayer," she answered.  "A miracle and prayer."

"How much longer will I be like this?"

"You are due for x-rays soon. Tomorrow I think. The doctors will know then."

"Am I paralyzed?"

"No." The nurse touched Erin's toes. "Feel this?"

"Yes.  Will you do that all over?"

The nurse gently tapped her fingers along Erin's feet, legs, fingers and arms. Several places were painful, however, none were without feeling much to Erin's relief.  If she could feel then she would be able to move again, she decided.

Later that morning, Erin was sedated for her x-rays and CT scans.  The doctor said it would be too painful for such a long procedure.  Erin really hadn't been in much pain to this point.  She thought it was perhaps because her body had gotten used to its current condition.  Or, it had healed enough.  In any event, she was not against pain prevention. 

When Erin awoke, she was in a new room, bed tilted with the head raised half way to a sitting position, with an empty bed beside her. A nurse was waiting at her bedside.

"Good afternoon, Miss," said the nurse.   "There are a bunch of reporters waiting to talk to you whenever you are ready."

"Today? Now."

"It's up to you.  Don't you want to find your family?"

"Sure." Erin thought if her family wanted to find her they would have by now. If she had family.  "How do I look?  Are my hair and make-up okay?"

The nurse laughed. "Glad you have your sense of humor intact. Be right back."

Minutes later Erin was wheeled into a large room.  Flash bulbs and bright lights temporarily blinded her.  A man in a suit spoke to the press, then to Erin. "Would you care to make a statement?"

"Um, sure," she began.  "I don't remember much so it won't do any good to ask questions.  I remember faces staring at me from a little window.  They might know what happened.   I'm told I'm not paralyzed.   I hope to get this metal out of me soon.   Maybe when they un-mummify my face you can take a picture.  Maybe, if someone doesn't recognize my voice, they'll recognize my face.  The doctors and nurses here are real nice.  I'll be glad to eat some real food soon, but I think I may be allergic to milk.  Don't know why I said that.   My face is hurting so...."

The man in the suit instructed for me to be taken out. The press started shouting questions, which Erin ignored. 

"How do I feel?" she thought when she heard the question.  "That's a stupid question. How do they think I feel? How would they feel?  I don't know how I feel, other than trapped.  I feel like a prisoner, a lab rat, an experiment gone wrong. Bride of Frankenstein trapped in hell.  I feel like I'm in a foreign body and someone has stolen my mind. I feel abandoned and hopeless and trapped and...and...scared! I feel scared!"

(This dream is a lot longer than I thought, but it's not over yet! Stay tuned.)