by Alexis Stone

Created on: April 26, 2009

Designated Driver

I awoke groggy and stiff. My back pain was considerably worse than usual. As I began to look around I realized that everything was unfamiliar. I didn't recognize the room full of patients as any hospital that I had ever been to. The room was large and open with several beds a few feet apart from each other. Only every other bed was occupied. I could see through a large pane of glass that there was a nurses' station on the opposite side. Although my surroundings struck me as strange I was too medicated to seek out answers. I laid my head down and allowed the sedative to take over, satisfied that I was in good hands at some sort of medical facility.

Some time later I awoke with a start. I was hoping that I had been dreaming, but the blips and beeps coming from various monitors throughout the room indicated otherwise. As my eyes focused I noticed a plump woman with a complexion of polished mahogany dispensing pills at a med cart in the center of the room. Two patients who were clearly mentally ill waited in line beside her. One woman had her arms crossed over her chest, hugging herself, rocking and muttering. The woman behind her had scraggly black hair drawn over her face. She was shifting from foot to foot and drooling.

The rotund shiny nurse noticed that I had awakened. She raised one eyebrow and grunted in disgust. My whole body ached more than it ever had in my life. I felt as though I had been beaten from head to toe. I couldn't help but to groan as I rolled out of bed. I approached the med cart as she was locking the small drawers that contained packets of pills. Without looking at me she barked, "It ain't your time!" and turned away, pushing the med cart to a large metal door at the far end of the room. She quickly unlocked the door in a rehearsed fluid motion using a key that was fastened to a bungee wrist band that she wore.

I was left standing there perplexed by the nurses' rude behavior as I heard the heavy clank of a lock on the outside of the door being latched. I must be in some sort of psychiatric center, I thought. I plopped down on the foot of my bed as it was the only thing I could claim, and tried to dig into my most recent memories. Where was I last? What was I doing? What had I done? I began to run my fingers over my face and scalp searching for a clue. There was a large bump that felt like a baseball protruding from the left side of my head. I guess that would explain the headache.

Suddenly panic overcame me as I thought

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