Forever Enigmatic

Chapter 31

THE POUNDING IN HER head roused her from her unconscious state. There was a bit of shuffling around as she opened her eyes to a bright-lit room. Her arm stung as she moved about. A machine stood right next to her face, showing random numbers and graphs.

What?

"Sierra!" Kyle ran to her side. She gazed into his eyes, brown swirling in tears. "You're awake," he let out in utter relief.

"What?" She croaked out. In her haze, she tried to look around the room, seeing other bodies lined up by her bed. Someone said they would call the nurse and hurried out, but she was still trying to make out who it was.

Sierra stared to the front, wondering why there were so many people crowded into such a small space. When her vision got used to the brightness, she saw all of her friends and her father.

"What happened here?" She asked. That question seemed to alleviate the tension surrounding them. They all breathed out a sigh as they gazed at her.

"Oh, Sie," Scarlet shook her head, "you really scared us."

"Isn't that my specialty?"

"And she's back ladies and gentlemen..." Milo joked.

The nurse came into the room, followed by Gwenn. He went over and introduced himself to Sierra, explaining more or less what happened without any explicit details. After he gave her the recent update on her status, he proceeded to check her vitals. Everything came back in order, and he was off to contact her doctor.

"How did I get into an accident?" She asked Kyle.

"Do you remember anything?" Her father asked. She turned to him slowly, feeling the dizziness the nurse warned her about.

"I...I was at the gym with Kyle."

"That much is a fact," Scarlet said.

"I was doing a workout, but I don't remember what. All I remember is feeling weird." She recalled the sweat, effort, and determination. She was into the workout, whatever it was, but for some reason her mind was elsewhere. Maybe that was how she got into an accident.

"Sierra," Kyle sighed, "if you ever feel weird about anything, physically or mentally, just stop. Rest if needed. Don't force your body." He grabbed her hand. She tried hard not to smile, but she knew that at least the corners of her mouth tipped upwards.

"Yes, sweetheart, listen to the young man. If you know it isn't right, just stop it. Look what happened." Her father motioned to her.

She nodded and looked around the room. Her friends were all there, sitting around, all focused on her. It was a bizarre feeling; to be watched by so many at the same time. However, she noticed one person was missing.

"Where's Mother?" She asked. Her father visibly flinched, and she wished to go back in time and not ask.

"Let's just say that she doesn't want to see me," he said. "Don't worry about her. Let's focus on you getting better."

She said nothing as everyone started speaking amongst themselves. Kyle continued holding her hand, to which her father eyed but made no fuss about. She spoke with her friends and tried real hard to remember what got her into the hospital.

The pain in her head let her know enough that she had gotten hit hard. Regardless of the nurse's explanation, she needed to know more about how she hit her head and why.

"When did this happen?" She asked Kyle, completely cutting Milo off. "The accident," she further explained after receiving a confused frown.

"Yesterday."

"How?"

"Sweetheart, maybe you should rest," her father interrupted. Kyle nodded, but she was adamant.

It couldn't have been that bad. She remembered who she was, who her friends and family were, and how her life was. That meant her brain wasn't too messed up.

"You fainted and hit your head," Kyle said.

"I know that, but why are you keeping the details to yourselves."

"The why you fainted," Scarlet spoke up. She crossed her arms in front of her chest and aimed her infamous dark glare her way. "We're still figuring it out ourselves, but we have a good hunch."

My overthinking.

Sierra bit the inside of her cheek and gazed up at the ceiling. The white glared down at her as she sighed. Maybe it was better to rest instead. If her stress and anxiety led her into the hospital, then it was better not to dwell in it. At least for a while.

"Sie, you can't keep doing this to yourself," Zilla said.

Sierra nodded. She had heard it all before, but it was so damn hard. She knew she needed to rest her body. She knew she had to take care of her mind. She knew she had to take it easy. She knew she had to go at a different pace as everyone so as to not hurt herself.

Somehow, life always got in the way of that.

"I know," she whimpered. "God, I know, but I don't have a choice. After my rent increased, everything has been going to—"

"Your rent increased?" Her father interrupted.

Sierra gazed at his shocked face. "Yeah, I literally called Mother asking for help. I thought you knew."

"How did I ever marry that monster?" He whispered to himself.

"Dad?"

"Don't worry, sweetheart, you got me. I'm going to help you get through this, one step at a time. And we're gonna start with that apartment of yours. If there's one thing I agree with your mother, it's that your apartment is a dump. That's no place a daughter of mine should be living in."

Tears pricked her eyes. She was about to throw her arms around her father, but the doctor walked in. She wiped her eyes with the back of her hand, and listened to everything her doctor said. She understood bits and pieces, but as usual, her mind wandered.

Her father was there for her. He was going to help her get out of that dump and guide her to her success. Although she had a long road to a full recovery, she finally saw the light.

Slowly, the darkness was crumbling around her.

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Alright, so how are feeling about Chapter 31?