The world around me was twisting and warping as I succumbed to the irresistible pull of gravity. The wind howled in my ears as I plummeted downward, the world spinning into a blur around me. Fear coiled in my stomach, tightening its grip with each passing moment.
As I hurtled towards the void, time seemed to slow. The frigid embrace of winter's icy grasp wrapped around me, piercing through my clothes and seeping into my bones. The coldness was unrelenting, stealing my breath away as if nature itself conspired against me.
The water below rushed up to meet me, a dark and foreboding abyss. The impact was jarring, sending shockwaves of coldness radiating through my entire being. The chill of the water enveloped me, numbing my limbs and robbing me of control.
Beneath the surface, the world became distorted, my vision obscured by the murky depths. Panic seized my chest, and I thrashed about, desperate for air, my lungs burning with a desperate need for oxygen.
Time lost its meaning as I struggled against the suffocating embrace of the water. The seconds stretched into eternity, each passing moment an agonizing battle for survival. Darkness closed in around me, threatening to consume me entirely.
But then, like a fragile ray of hope, consciousness began to flicker back into existence. Gradually, my senses reawakened, and I became aware of a different reality unfolding before me.
I found myself on a bed and in a room, its sterile white walls suffusing an eerie glow. The sound of a life support machine beeping filled the air, adding to my mounting unease.
Struggling to focus, I forced my eyes open, meeting the concerned gaze of a female doctor leaning over me. Her presence seemed simultaneously reassuring and urgent, dressed in a crisp white lab coat. I detected the faint scent of antiseptic cleansers in the air, mingled with a soothing hint of lavender.
Her voice cut through the fog in my mind. "Mr., can you hear me?" Her words reverberated, stirring a mixture of relief and urgency within me.
"Yes," I managed to croak, my voice strained and feeble. Confusion flooded my senses, and I couldn't shake the nagging question: Where am I?
"You are in a hospital, sir," the doctor replied, her voice calm yet firm.
"Obviously," I grumbled. "Where is this hospital?"
"Townhill County," she replied as if that should mean something but it didn't.
"How did I get here?" I asked.
"You were brought here by a Fisherman who found you in the woods close to the river. You were bleeding with multiple gunshot wounds and water in your lungs. Can you please tell me your name and what happened to you?"
I strained to recall, searching desperately for the answer, but my mind drew a frustrating blank. Frustration and helplessness washed over me, and I instinctively reached for my throbbing head, hoping to find some clue buried within.
A growl of frustration escaped my lips, and an overwhelming urge to escape the confines of the bed seized me. However, my feeble attempt to rise was met with the doctor's alarmed cry for help.
In an instant, two guards burst into the room, their uniforms exuding authority as they rushed to restrain me. But their efforts proved futile against my restless resistance. More men rushed in. Panic surged through my veins, and in my agitated state, I felt a sharp prick on my neck, followed by a wave of weakness that overtook me.
The room blurred, spinning in a disorienting whirlwind. The effects of the drug coursed through my body, and the doctor's urgent voice became distant, fading in and out like a fading echo.
"What is your name, sir?" the doctor repeated, her words drifting farther away.
The fear and frustration within me welled up, and my vulnerable response emerged, laced with both desperation and uncertainty. "I can't remember."
Amidst the chaos enveloping me, I sought solace in the doctor's presence. The scent that emanated from her, a blend of sterile cleanliness and the gentle perfume of lavender, reached me, briefly easing my distress. It wrapped around me, offering a fleeting moment of tranquility amidst the turmoil that consumed my mind. I tried to understand why. Why her scent seemed to calm me and the memory flooded my head, the feel of her gentle touch trailing my skin as she cleaned me up, the warmth of her breath as she leaned over me to trim my hair and facial hair. The blurry scene of her removing her clothes at a corner in the room, changing into a sexy dress. I think I have heard a nurse call her name before. "Dr. Eliza," I whispered and caught her widened gaze before darkness took me.
"Do you really expect me to believe you've been here for the past forty-eight hours by the side of this vegetable! Tell me, Eliza, what's your obsession with this man that you have to be the only one attending to him? You kept me waiting at home when you knew we had dinner at your parents'. You know how important it is to me to have your father fund my project, and you blew it up because your patient woke up?! What the hell is wrong with you, Eliza?" a male voice echoed through the room, filled with anger and frustration.
"Justin, please stop. You are hurting me," Dr. Eliza's voice resounded, filled with a mix of fear and pain.
As I opened my eyes, I saw a man with his back turned to me, trapping Dr. Eliza against the side wall beside the door. Her hand was on the doorknob, and the other was trapped at her side as the man pinned her, yelling at her with his face just inches away. The look of fear and anguish on her face kindled a burning anger within me. And my anger escalated when I saw him start to put his hand under her dress while continuing to yell at her.
Without even realizing what I was doing, I found myself behind the man, towering over him as I instinctively pulled him away from her, gripping his shoulder tightly and forcing him to face me. With swift and precise movements, I landed three punches on his face, feeling his nose crack under my knuckle. I heard the doctor gasp in astonishment. As blood splattered over his face, I delivered another punch to his gut, causing him to double over. I then opened the door and threw him out, watching as he hit the side wall and crumbled to the floor, yelling for help and cursing me.
Closing the door, I took a steady breath and turned to Dr. Eliza, meeting her widened gaze filled with disbelief.
"Are you okay?" I asked, concerned about her well-being. She nodded gingerly, still processing the sudden turn of events.
My legs suddenly gave out, and I found myself on the ground, feeling weak and out of breath.
"Oh, my God," Dr. Eliza exclaimed, rushing to my side. "You haven't used your legs for months. I don't even know how you did that. You'll need therapy to regain control over your body."
"Hmm..." I grunted, trying not to put all my weight on her as she helped me back to the bed.
A uniformed man, peered into the room with concern, his hand resting on the baton strapped to his waist.
"Is everything okay in here, Dr. Eliza?" he asked, scanning the scene.
"It's fine, Adam," Dr. Eliza replied, but concern lingered on Adam's face.
Meanwhile, the man who had been manhandling Dr. Eliza continued yelling and threatening to sue the hospital, attempting to force himself back into the room.
"You two-timing, lying bitch! You allowed your lover to break my nose! You're going to pay dearly for this, Eliza!" he shouted in anger.
"Adam, please have someone check his nose and then escort him out. Mr. Godino, you really should be more careful and not run into walls," Dr. Eliza calmly responded, surprising both the man and Adam.
The man was taken aback by her response, his face turning red with anger and disbelief. He sputtered in rage, unable to comprehend her defiance, “You…”
"Quit making an ass of yourself and have a little self-respect," Dr. Eliza snapped, her tone firm and unyielding.
"How dare you use that tone with me?!" the man shouted, his anger escalating.
"Please get him out of here," Dr. Eliza said, maintaining her composure despite the escalating situation.
As the security personnel attempted to escort the man away, he tried to rush back into the room but was apprehended. Dr. Eliza flinched at the sight, her fear evident.
"Eliza, baby, I'm sorry. You know I love you. You know… you know how I get when I am jealous. You lied about this man being in a vegetable state!" the man's tone shifted, attempting to regain control over the situation. However, Dr. Eliza remained stoic, refusing to engage.
"You bitch! You will get out of here and come home to meet me. You can hide here all you want, but you will have to come home eventually, Eliza! I will be waiting for you, you bitch! And you! You... imbecile! You have no idea who you’re messing with," he yelled as the security dragged him away. But then the ranting suddenly stopped and Dr. Eliza ran to the corridor to see what happened, covering her mouth with her hands in an attempt to stifle her laughter.
"Don't worry, doctor. I will handle this," a female voice said from the corridor.
"Thank you, Dr. Ivy," Dr. Eliza replied, returning to my side and examining my knuckles. "You didn't have to do that, but thank you," she whispered, avoiding my gaze as she cleaned and bandaged my hand, I could see her hand visibly shaking.