Hospital stories.

I was laying in a bed, just staring at the ceiling, in kind of a haze. The ceiling wasn't all that far away, I was on the top level of bunk beds. I had been laying there for quite a while, it was my friend Kathryn's bed, and I was waiting for her to come back. I think Kathryn was in class, one of her late evening classes, biology or something. I did not mind waiting though, she had the most comfortable bed; pillows, comforter, sheets, it was an over all great bed. Had it not been hot pink, I may have tried to commandeer it, like a bed pirate. The Bed Pirate Roberts. I can't really remember what I was waiting for, other than for her to come back. We were probably going to do something that involved driving to that spot, just off the highway, that overlooked one of the neighboring towns, as we did on most nights.

Kathryn's roommate, Stephanie, was on the bed below me. I think she was doing homework, or something of a productive nature. Much more productive then staring deeply into the ceiling. Suddenly Stephanie called my name, "James," then she paused and said it again in a more worried tone, as if my name had been followed by three periods, "James..." She had knocked me out of my staring contest with the ceiling, and caused me to lose, but I wasn't too upset.

I think I said something along the lines of, "What up?" Only, I didn't start saying that until recently, so it was just something like that. I could have said, "Yes?" Or even just mumbled acknowledgment.

What came next was unexpected, "James, I can't feel my legs."

Oh Boy, I thought, This is just like that episode of House! I think I was more excited than I should have been. I crashed off the top bunk, probably, in my excitement, failing to land on my feet. At first I didn't even believe her, these things don't happen in real life, they happen on TV shows called House. After some convincing that she actually could not feel, or move, her legs I did the next logical thing, I started poking her. It seemed like a good idea. Uh-oh, my pokes were doing nothing, what would Hugh Laurie do? Failing to find any tennis balls, or canes in my immediate area, I went and got help. Well, help might be an overstatement. I got the RA on the floor, who came in the room and basically did the same thing I did, only without the poking. This cycle continued, the RA I got, got another RA, who came with the third RA, who eventually got the head RA. Eventually the hospital was called.

This was about the time Kathryn got back, she was in a similar kind of haze as me, and probably would have been happy to just stare at the ceiling with me. Unfortunately, there was a medical drama taking place in here bedroom. Stephanie was moved, not that carefully, onto a gurney by some paramedic type people. After in interesting scene of trying to fit said gurney into the very small elevator, she was loaded into the ambulance and whisked away to the hospital. Some of the RA followed in their cars. After taking a moment, Kathryn and I were in hot pursuit.

It was getting late. We had plans to get into mischief, and were now surrounded by RA's in a hospital. What had happened. There was very little we could do, as our friend was wheeled into a room with doctors, and nurses. Kathryn and I sat in the waiting room for hours, our friend Hope had come along too. Hope was doing what she does best, and freaking out more than enough to make up for me and Kathryn's seeming lack of freaking. We were obviously worried sick, we just were not showing it by pacing, crying, and saying things like, "Oh my gosh," every 15 seconds. I drank some of the worst coffee in existence, a lot of it. Eventually the seats in the waiting room grew uncomfortable, not that they ever were, I longed for my hi-jakced hot pink bed. Kathryn and I made our way into the childrens play room, located in the corner of the waiting room. We shut the door, put on a movie, Mouse Hunt, laid down with some pillows made of coats and toys, and fell asleep.

Our slumber was short lived, waiting room floors are just not made for sleeping. We came back into the waiting room with everyone else, and were finally able to see Stephanie. It turns out I was right, it was like the episode of House. The doctors needed to do a spinal tap, just to make sure. And then stop whatever was wrong with her, before it spread through the rest of Steph's body, and she died. Holy crap! The thing is, Stephanie wasn't 18 at the time, so the doctors needed her parents consent to do the spinal tap. Guess what her parents wouldn't do? They were like a 6 hours drive away, and wouldn't give consent until they got there. I guess that they probably know more than a doctor. Or maybe they just hadn't seen that episode of House.

It was around 4AM, and after some more waiting around in Stephanie's room, the doctors told us to go home. Stephanie would have to be there for a few days. On our drive back to the school, Kathryn and I, and Hope, stopped by our spot just off the highway, as had been the plan all along. (I think it may have actually been Kathryn and her friend Sara's spot. But When I found out about it, I stole it, and claimed it as my own.) We had been waiting all day for it, and we'd almost lost some people along the way, but nothing could keep us from our mischief. Our spot kind of lost it's appeal with Hope sitting the back seat. But it was nice anyway, I guess. We sat there for maybe an hour, gazing out over the steep drop down the town below. The cars shot by us on the highway behind us. Even at 4AM there were cars on the road, none of them paying any attention to the 3 teenagers parked on the side of the road. We eventually made it back to school, met the RA's, who at once knew about our mischief, and we went upstairs. Back in Kathryn's room I climbed to her bed once again, and crawling into Stephanie's bed below, Kathryn asked me to stay. I had successfully commandeered the hot pink bed for myself. I was probably one of the best nights sleep I ever got.

We found out later on that it actually was not like the episode of House, which I suppose it a good thing. Stephanie actually just had really severe anxiety, and it had caused her legs to just not respond. She was basically back to normal as soon and she took some medication for it. She came back to school, and things fell back into the normal swing of things. I continued to lay of the bed during most of my free time, waiting for mischief.