The Patient

“Your friend’s going to be okay. They’ve stabilized him, and now he’s on oxygen and bed rest. Do you want to see him? He’s **** right now, but maybe it’ll make you feel better.” Your brother offers, and you nod your head. He takes your hand and gently leads you out of the room into the bustling hospital. The sudden onslaught of noise drowns out your thoughts, and you shrink inward, something your brother notices. Quickly, he takes you to a doctors-only area, a place much quieter than the public hall. As you pad down the endless empty hallways, he speaks, breaking the gloomy silence that hangs around you like a shroud. “I called dad to pick up your stuff from the Pokécenter.”

“Hmm.” You reply noncommittally, not really paying attention. You have to worry about how to speak to Indy. Apologize first, then- No, ask how he is first, then apologize, and then leave.

“They’ll be here soon. Do you know if your friend has any family?”

“You said he was stable.” You say accusingly, “Why does he-”

“Because, with all due respect, you’ve known him for less than a day. If you passed out after severe anaphylaxis and woke up in a strange hospital, would you rather have mom and dad or someone you just met?”

I’d rather have someone who didn’t try to kill me…

“Mom and dad…” You murmur. “Yeah, he said his mom’s in Pallet town. I don’t know about his dad. Her number’s probably in his Pokédex.” You keep walking in silence for a little bit until he opens another door, and you enter the ICU.

“Your friend’s over here. And he’ll be waking up in another 10-15 minutes.” Your brother says, leading you down a smaller hallway with doors on either side. The air smells of disinfectant, and the whole place seems so… sterile. Off-white ceilings, off-white floors, off-white walls, and everything is painted a horrible off-white here. The only splash of color comes from the light blue doors leading to the patient’s rooms. The place is empty save for a few nurses and another doctor, all of whom greet your brother as you walk past. And then you’re there. Your brother motions for you to open the door, but you’re afraid. What would they have done to him? How fragile would he look, **** and plugged into all the machines that keep people alive?

“It’s okay Skye, he looks almost as good as new. Clefable healed him right up.” Your brother says, “He just looks like he’s sleeping.” You can do this. All you have to do is open the door, make sure he’s alive, and then leave before he yells at you. With gritted teeth, you clench the door handle and shove it open.

The scene before you is surprisingly tame. You expected to see half a dozen machines plugged into Indigo and the room filled with their incessant beeping, but he only has an IV in his arm and nothing else. The room is neat and clean, with a curtained window blocking the light from shining on your ex-friend’s face, and that horrible sterile off-white blinds you everywhere you look. But your brother was right, he does just look like he’s sleeping. Well, you’ve confirmed that Indigo is not going to die, time to leave before he wakes up and yells at you. You make a 180 turn and start to leave, but your brother blocks your path.

“Where are you going?” He asks, his lean frame stubbornly blocking your path as you try to push through him.

“He’s alive, so I’m gonna go now. You did say he needs his family, not a stranger he’s known for less than a day. Now move!” You growl, trying unsuccessfully to shove him out of your path. God, you’re going to have to start going to the gym. First not even being able to outrun Rattatas and now you can’t even push your own brother out of the way.

“Skye… That’s not what I meant. And you know that.” He sighs, crossing his arms to keep the doorway blocked. This lummox thinks that just because he’s five years older and a doctor, he can treat you like a child. But you’re a big girl now, and you can get out of this.

“Theo. Get out of my way.” Stubborn, bull-headed dumbass wouldn’t move.

“Not until you tell me what’s gotten you so upset.”

“I’ll tell you once we’re out of here.” You retort. You hope that this ploy works, but he’s far too smart for that.

“You’re feeling guilty aren’t you?”

“Wow, where did you get that idea from?” You say sarcastically, “Of course, I’m feeling guilty! I put him in that bed! Now move.” You try once again to push past your surprisingly strong brother, but he easily grabs your arms and turns you to face Indigo.

“You’re right. You put him in that bed. You made him take the **** and nearly killed him.” He says angrily, and your heart sinks. God, he thinks so too. You’re a horrible, terrible person, and nothing will ever fill the gap in your soul that’s been caused by hurting Indigo. And then your brother continues, his tone soothing as if speaking to a child, and almost the same way your mom did, “Now, what are you going to do to make up for it? Run away? Is that gonna help him?”

“I mean… Maybe?”

“Skye.”

“No…” You mutter in defeat.

“So what are you going to do?” He asks, and annoyance flickers through your mind at his patronizing tone. You aren’t a child, why is he treating you like one? You shrug off his hands and glare at your brother, burning a hole in his forehead with your scathing gaze.

“I’m going to stay here until he wakes up, make sure he’s okay. And then leave him.”

“Good. I’ll be in the hall, so you better talk to him for at least a few minutes before you leave.” Theo lets you go and exits, closing the door behind him with a soft thud, leaving you alone with your **** ex-friend and an awkward silence you don’t know how to fill. Should you sit down? No, that would seem lazy, as if you don’t care about him. Stand over him? No, that would seem overbearing, and you don’t want to smother him. You settle for standing a little bit away and pretend to read his chart, playing with your hands while you wait. It’s all gibberish to you, and the letters dance across the page as your mind focuses on everything but the words.

Every moment that passes fills you with anguish as your sadistic mind comes up with new scenarios in which Indigo yells at you. And in some of the worse nightmares, he doesn’t shout at you. He just asks you to leave, as if you’re a stranger. Or he just looks away from you, as if he doesn’t even want you in his sight.

Maybe you should leave. You’re faster than your brother, and you can definitely make it out before he can catch you. Yes, that’s a great idea. You can bolt before Indigo wakes up, and then you’ll never have to see him get angry at you. It’s a great plan, all you have to do is sneak over to the door, slam it open, and sprint. You start walking towards the door, taking one last look at his face before putting your hand on the doorknob. God, you’re going to miss that face. You close your eyes and take a deep breath, steeling yourself for what you’re about to do. This is the only way. You twist the doorknob and get ready to run, taking a few deep breaths to prepare yourself. It’ll all be fine. You’re going to trade your emotional well-being in exchange for never seeing Indigo again.