|  Author | Topic: The Path We Choose (Read 304 times) |
MelMac
Jade Warlock
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|  | Re: The Path We Choose
« Reply #10 on Jan 26, 2009, 10:29pm » | |
Outside the sun was shining of the tops off mountains in the distance. A few ducks were flying in a “V” on their way to spend the winter in the south. Everything seemed happy and peaceful, as though everything was perfect. For some however, it was freedom from a gilded - and unfriendly - cage.
Aidan sat in the day room of a adult care facility in Napa Valley, looking out one of the many windows. But she didn't see any of what was going on out that window. She did not really care, as this spot in the day room was just a spot the nurses sat her in when she wasn't in her room restrained to her bed. It was for her protection, they said, because they feared she would do something to harm herself, even though she insisted that she was recovering. She at first fought them, but after being sedated in order to keep from harming herself or others, she finally just stayed passive to the daily ritual.
The young woman sighed slightly, trying to not think about what had happened that put her in the facility, but it came crashing back. When she woke up about an hour after her attack a hospital not far from Bill's house the doctors told her she had a seizure, and after running some tests, scolded her that as a person with epilepsy she should remember to take her medicine. She laughed at first hearing the diagnosis, thinking it was some kind of joke, and said that she didn't have epilepsy - only to have reality of yet another difference hit home when no one else was laughing.
That was too much for her, the final straw that helped snap her fragile hold on what she believed. At first she tried to tell them, anybody who would listen that this was not her reality, it was not were she belonged. No one believed her though, and she couldn't blame them because she didn't know herself what was real any more. Her head said that she was where she belonged, but her heart kept telling her to escape that reality. And in a vain attempt to escape the reality she now found herself she had slowly retreated into herself. She was no longer the Aidan that her parents or anyone knew.
After a while, she started ignoring everyone around her, and the minutes, stretched into hours then into days until she no longer knew they were passing. They just all ran together in that simple hospital room, broken up by visits from her parents or some other relative she couldn't name.
The world went on without her voice in matters as the doctors and her parents discussed what was wrong with her. Everything they had tried didn’t work: therapy sessions she’d fight the doctor when he said she was lying and giving her tranquilizers to sleep and relax only caused her nightmares. Eventually, conversations had started to be filled with words like “mental and physical exhaustion,” and rest and special care were discussed in how to treat Aidan‘s condition.
Snatches of conversation filtered through, with her mom telling Aidan of a place not far from the house in Napa where she could heal from all the stresses that were upon her at the moment. “The best in the country and money can buy” her parents said, as if she cared, or had a choice in the matter, which she did not in either case. Even she knew that the doctors considered her a health risk to herself given she chose to not take her anti-seizure medicine and had her parents get a court order to take charge of her medical treatment.
So, the arrangements were made and Aidan went were she was told and the world still went on, but without her participation. She felt that if she participated beyond the bare minimum it would mean she had to accept her fate. Accept this reality for what it was, to live with the choices she made, but she did not want to.
The worst part, however, Aidan was forgetting more every day why she could not accept this reality for what it was. There was always something niggling at her consciousness, but she couldn’t draw it out of her mind to where she could picture it. Yet she had to hold on to something... anything in order to survive where she was at until she could go home, so she kept trying.
Home, a word that had so many meanings, but none she could understand or made sense where she was. Small glimpses of a memories or feelings that she somehow knew and recognized but could not place would come back to haunt her like a cruel form of phantasmagoria. They would tell her that those memories were home. Aidan felt she knew what or where home was but every time her mind reached out for it, it was gone. That picture of home kept fading as though it were slipping through her fingers like water and the harder she tried to hold on to it the faster it slipped away.
Slowly, she began to doubt those memories, and decided to think again. Maybe this is was her reality, and those other things, people and places were a dream. Faded images of things that could have been but no longer were and no longer would be. Aidan started to realize in her pursuit of these memories or dreams she had lost who she was. And the longer she stayed that way, the harder it’d be to return.
She slowly saw that everyone had paths laid out before him or her, but they had to choose which to follow. No one could make that choice for them, but they were responsible for the decisions they made. Eventually, she knew that she would have to choose to fight and make choices - that if she kept this way she’d lose any realities she knew and would become an empty husk.
As she started to accept her choices, she saw all the possibilities laid out before her. Aidan realized things she never thought possible or even dreamed of were now within reach. Others were simple, no matter where she was, yet other dreams seemed so far away that it could never be a possibility in her life.
On this day, Aidan realized this last thought was never more real to her until a visitor came with her mother that day.
"Aidan," M'Lynn softly called out stepping closer to her daughter who seemed lost in thought, not knowing Aidan was finally enjoying the view from the window and the road ahead.
Aidan’s mom smiled softly, glad to see that her daughter had not had a relapse and withdraw into herself again. The past month though had been hard on them especially seeing Aidan in the adult care facility in the sanatorium.
She had always been thankful that she was the one who received Pam’s phone call the day Aidan visited Bill. M’Lynn had a hunch her daughter wouldn’t listen to her father, so, when she got the call that Aidan had a seizure at Bill’s cabin, M’Lynn promised Pam she’s make up a story. When Austin arrived at the hospital, M’Lynn told him about how Aidan was going to a business in Big Bear to look at a possible collection to sell in her store and had the fit there. Fortunately for everyone, Austin believed the story, knowing how much his daughter wanted to have the best for her customers.
However, when they first brought her to the sanatorium, they thought she would never recover. They even resigned themselves to the fact there daughter as they knew her was gone… until one day a week ago, M’Lynn had visited and Aidan seemed to come alive. The light that had been missing for so long inside Aidan was returning.
The woman smiled at the memory of that day when Aidan turned to her and smiled, acknowledging she was there, and it was day she would never forget. Seeing her daughter had not listened to her welcome, M‘Lynn took another step forward. "Aidan," she called again this time placing a hand on her shoulder.
Aidan jumped slightly at the touch then turned away from the window. She blushed slightly as she faced her visitor. "Sorry Mom, I guess I didn't hear you," she apologized as she stood up to give her mom a hug.
"That's OK," M'Lynn smiled as she brushed a stray hair out of Aidan's face then looked out the window. “It is a beautiful view," she said slipping an arm around Aidan's waist guiding her to the other side of the day room and continued before Aidan could say anything. “I have a surprise for you."
Aidan looked at her mom wondering what surprise she could have, seeing how the staff seemed to balk at anything remotely fun. "Let me guess you were able to get me some Kung Po chicken," she said smiling. It was something she had been longing to eat, especially since the hospital food was blander than the white walls in her room.
M'Lynn laughed "No, no such luck but ..." she held up a hand when she saw Aidan mock frown. "But I have something that is a lot better than Kung Po chicken."
Aidan laughed softly. "Now what could possibly be better than ..."
"Your fiancé," a new voice said behind Aidan, which she instantly recognized and spun around.
"Rodney!?"
The young man was exactly as she remembered him, and was carrying a stuffed grey toy cat. Aidan walked over to him and gave him a big hug, which he reciprocated. The two then kissed as he picked her up and spun her around briefly before setting her down. Aidan looked at Rodney and smiled. “Rodney, I… it’s great to see you. Just, what took you so long?” she said.
Rodney looked at Aidan and smiled softly. “I'm sorry Ade, that I wasn't able to see you here sooner. I saw you in the hospital in Big Bear but I don't think you realized I was there,” he said, deciding to not mention that a few of the times he visited Aidan had been sedated or withdrawn into herself. “And your parents thought it was best for me to wait…"
“It's OK Rodney, you're here know,” she said, smiling. Realizing what he had said earlier, however, she looked at him, confused. “Wait a second… did you say fiancé?”
M’Lynn looked at Aidan and frowned, worried. “Yes, sweetheart, remember? He popped the question on your birthday,” she said. “You just don’t have your engagement band on because it‘s being resized and you‘re here.”
Rodney chuckled. “Yeah, but don’t worry, I’ve been faithful like I always have,” he said, showing her his promise ring she had given him earlier that year and handing her the toy. Seeing Aidan give the cat a hug and smile, he continued, offering her his arm. “Now, do you mind if I sit down? I’d like to visit, unless you’re busy.”
The young woman smiled and linked arms. “Nope, not busy… I have all the time in the world,” she said as the two walked over to the table. M‘Lynn looked at the young couple and chuckled. She was happy that Aidan was responding nicely to seeing Rodney, and hoped that between his, hers and Austin‘s visits that before long the young woman would recover and they could be together as a family again.
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MelMac
Jade Warlock
TigreMalabarista
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Joined: Oct 2006
Posts: 371
| | Re: The Path We Choose
« Reply #11 on Jan 26, 2009, 10:30pm » | |
A few days later, Aidan was sitting in the recreation room of the hospital, writing in her diary every thing that she remembered from her dreams and thoughts. Looking at a phrase, noticing a mistake in her memory, she sighed, scratching out the comments and rewriting them correctly. It wasn’t the first mistake she had made in the diary that day - in fact it was one of many, and each time she made a correction, she would doubt if the correction was correct.
While she had not decided at the moment which life she wanted to lead, she knew that time was running out. She was going to have to choose what dreams she wanted to follow. Whichever one she chose, however, she knew that there were many consequences to the choice.
She had just finished entering her story… no memories she thought, but again doubted, when a nurse came in and walked toward her. The young woman flinched, wondering if she was going to be told to take more medicine when the nurse smiled. “Aidan, you have a visitor,” she said.
Aidan was confused, as she wasn’t expecting anyone, but then realized it might be Rodney coming to say hello. He had popped in several times since he first visited her in the adult care facility, and she welcomed seeing him. “OK…“ she said, smiling softly.
The nurse nodded and as she walked back into the hallway to get Aidan’s guest, the young woman ran a hand through her hair to make herself presentable. She looked up and gave a smile… only to feel it fall when she saw it wasn’t Rodney… but someone who had become her bane. “Hi Bill.” she said, her voice slightly cool.
Bill noticed her reaction and grimaced. Though he had managed to convince the nurses to let him in to visit, that he wasn‘t a threat like her parents had claimed, he wasn’t sure how she’d react. He had a feeling she’d be upset with him because he was partially to blame for her seizure, but he also wanted to show that he was sorry and did truly care for her well-being. “Hi honey,” he said, smiling as he walked over to where she was and sat down in a nearby chair. “You look great. Like the pink slippers you’re wearing with your clothes…”
Aidan rolled her eyes, realizing what he was trying to do. He was trying to make her feel less unnerved around him. Not that she wasn‘t surprised, as she blamed him for being part of her seizure, but it was more annoying to her that he had to act this way. “C'mon cut the crap, that‘s not you,” she said, making the agent squirm slightly. “Why are you here? What do you want? “
The man ran a hand across his face, taken aback slightly that she was so direct. “Uh… well, I wanted to see how you were doin’ …”
“Wanted to see how I was? I’m in a damn sanatorium recovering from a seizure you helped bring about and other issues - shouldn’t that explain enough?!“ she said brusquely and loudly. Seeing the other patients and doctors look at her, Aidan softened the volume of her voice, but not the intensity behind it. “Why should you care anyway? You made it very clear where I stand.…”
Bill tried to put a hand on Aidan‘s shoulder, but she brushed it off. He took a deep breath and let it out, remembering that Ralph had said her dad‘s side of the family could be more stubborn than he was. “Because I made a promise to your uncle to protect you and make sure ya were doin‘…”
Hearing now that Bill had failed in keeping a promise, Aidan bristled more. “Why start now? You’ve had all this time to watch and protect me, but look at me now. Bet you’ll say that I’m two fries short of a Happy Meal,” she snarked.
“You‘re not crazy, just confused,” he said gently.
“Yeah, tell that to the doctors and my family - oh wait, you can‘t because they don‘t want you around. And, neither do I,” she said and turned her head away from Bill to look out the window.
Bill, noticing that Aidan was trying to get him to go away, stood up to leave. He took a step, but then stopped, frowning. While he noticed Aidan was stubborn, he wanted to let her know exactly why he was there.
“Aidan, I’m starting to keep my promise now because that’s what he’d want Aidan. I shoulda listened ta him too in spite of your parents, especially since I found out why…” he said, but decided to let the fact he found out she had epilepsy the way he did drop. Seeing Aidan brush her hair back with her hand, he realized she was paying attention and continued. “Anyway, I’m sure he wants me to keep my promise too especially now…”
“Wants?” Her eyes lit up when Bill spoke present tense about Ralph. Aidan realized then there was hope for this reality - that Ralph was alive somewhere.
“Wants what?” said Bill, confused at her reaction.
“Bill… you said ‘wants me to… especially now.’ You believe he’s alive too… you must‘ve found something,” said Aidan, standing. She then got closer to the man so she could whisper. “OK, when are you going to sneak me out…”
The retired agent, realizing his faux pas, shook his head. He didn‘t want to give her false hope, even if she knew about the suit. “Aidan, I'm not getting’ you outta here. I’m lucky your parents aren’t here so I could even see…”
Aidan ignored Bill’s comments and continued. “C’mon Bill, you might need my help getting the suit back to Ralph…”
“Forget the suit Aidan,” he said bluntly, hoping she’d listen. Bill had heard comments from Pam that the doctors would not release Aidan simply because she kept talking about the suit and what it could do, not to mention insisting Ralph was alive. He also learned that while he still remained faithful to the young woman, Rodney was considering changing his mind about marrying Aidan because she wouldn’t even listen to him that Ralph was dead.
The young woman, however, remained defiant. “No… not until I have some closure here. You know something about Ralph, but you won‘t say. Why will you not tell me?”
“Because I can’t… I don’t want to hurt you anymore than I already have,” he said, wincing as he remembered the events the day she collapsed and had her seizure.
“Some friend you’ve been to Ralph. He would tell you to tell me because not telling me is hurting me worse,“ she said with a growl. Seeing the agent turn away, she just threw her hands up in frustration. “Fine, turn away and leave. I don’t care anymore, since no one else does, but if you’re going to be that way just stay away from all of us… including Pam.”
Though they were just words of an empty threat, Bill felt as though he had been punched in the gut. He so wanted to tell Aidan the truth, but he knew that if he did, Aidan could have another seizure - or worse. That was something he knew that her parents, Pam and Ralph wouldn’t want.
He fought back tears as he turned away. “Listen I know you and I ...even your parents and me don't get along…maybe they have good reason, and maybe you do too. I mean if I never met your uncle he probably wouldn't be dead, but I can't change that. No matter how much I want to I can't. He's dead, I came to accept that no matter my role in it and you have to also or you‘ll lose everything,” he said, clearing his throat to hide his emotions. “He's gone Artie and there is no bringing him back. Just accept it, I can't change and neither can you.”
Hearing what she thought was an awful nickname clicked in Aidan’s head. During her time in this reality, Bill had never called her Artie until then. If he called her that, she mused, he must believe her story to some point. Aidan knew then she couldn’t give up or accept the fact that she should just give up. “Bill… you called me Artie,” she said, and smiled when he turned around in response.
“Artie? … Musta misheard me Aidan,” dismissed Bill.
Aidan was unfazed at the man‘s bluff. “No, I distinctly heard Artie. If you called me that, there’s hope. Ralph’s alive… I know it and you know it.”
The agent flinched inwardly at the young woman’s earnest belief in what he knew could never be. He couldn’t bear to hurt Ralph‘s goddaughter anymore than he already had and decided the only way she was going to heal was for him to walk away and never talk to her again. “No honey, Ralph’s dead. That’s all there is to it Aidan… ya can’t change it anymore than I can,” said Bill as he walked away.
“Bill…” said Aidan angrily at the man‘s response, starting to walk toward the man. She stopped when two orderlies blocked her way. “Where do you think you’re going Miss Onyxsard,” said one of them with a polite, but insincere smile.
“I’m going to speak with Mr. Maxwell and find Ralph,” she said, trying to walk by them.
The two men grabbed her and pushed her back to where she was. “You’re not leaving here.”
“I don‘t have time for this, I’m fine,” said Aidan, only to find the orderlies grab her and start walking to her room. She started to struggle. “Let me go… I’ve got to get Bill to listen to reason and help me find Ralph… he’s not dead, and I know it.”
The orderlies only kept dragging her to the room, but Aidan still resisted, making it hard for them to keep a hold on her. One of the men tried to grab her legs to pick her up, but she succeeded in kneeing him in the groin. The reaction and surprise from the two men was enough to free herself from both of their grasps and she made a dash down the hallway to the window. “Ow, damn it the bitch just hurt me,” said the orderly as she fled, deciding that release from the pain was worth the reprimand for insulting a patient. “Go get a doctor George.”
“Right Mike,“ said George as the other orderly dashed down the hallway to catch the runaway patient. Aidan, however, ran to the window and looked outside. Seeing Bill walking to his car, she started banging on the window. “Bill, get me out of here. We need to find Ralph…” she screamed, upsetting the staff and patients. Though Bill saw the commotion, he just shook his head and entered his car, driving off.
“Damn it… let me out of here…” said Aidan, who decided to go for the emergency door. She almost reached it when she felt several hands grab her and nearly tackle her. “Let me go you sons of a bitch…”
“Aidan calm down. You’re going to have another seizure if you keep this up,” said the doctor soothingly as he arrived to where the orderlies and others were trying to restrain Aidan.
The woman glared as she fought to get free. “I’m fine… I need to find Ralph! Something‘s not right.”
“Aidan, he’s gone. You can’t live your life in the past,” said the doctor as he filled a syringe. “Just relax now. You’ll feel better soon.”
Seeing the doctor‘s movements and realizing what they were going to do, Aidan and only struggled harder, even managing to bite one of her assailants on the arm, making him release his grip on her. Her victory was short lived though as another nurse kneeled and grabbed her around her knees to keep her from kicking anyone or escaping.
Despite this, she kept fighting, much to the disdain of everyone involved. “Stay away from me you bastards. I don‘t belong here… Let me go,” she shouted, struggling harder.
“It’s all right Aidan…” said the doctor, but Aidan only resisted. After a couple of moments, the orderlies were able to keep the young woman still just long enough to let the doctor inject her with the sedative.
Aidan felt a slight prick in her arm and a fullness in it after as the medicine was injected. “Why you sorry pieces of sh…” she growled, but after a moment realized the sounds of the doctors‘, nurses’ and patients’ shouts and commands were growing fainter. She also noticed her movements growing sluggish, and couldn‘t even throw a decent punch anymore. As darkness closed in she felt herself being picked up by the orderlies and being strapped to a gurney. The last thing she thought before losing consciousness was wishing that she never said what she did to the green guys. …
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MelMac
Jade Warlock
TigreMalabarista
member is offline
Joined: Oct 2006
Posts: 371
| | Re: The Path We Choose
« Reply #12 on Jan 26, 2009, 10:32pm » | |
Suddenly, the noises stopped and it was dark. Aidan opened her eyes with a start and abruptly sat up, realizing she wasn’t restrained - or on a gurney for that matter. Instead, she was on a table of some sort. Looking around, and only seeing darkness, she remembered what happened. “Great… now I get to be taunted while I‘m under sedation,” said Aidan, sighing in defeat as she pulled her legs close to her. She then rested her head on her knees, thinking about everything that had happened.
“No, Aidan, you’re quite conscious,” said a voice in the darkness, scaring Aidan.
“Who are you?” she said fearfully, looking up as a bright blue light shone from above on her.
“Do not worry Aidan, you know us. You have for over a year now,” said the figure as he stepped into the light.
Aidan blinked when she saw it was a green guy, in fact the same one who sent her into the alternate reality. “Hello Mr. Greenguy,” said Aidan with a soft, but confused, smile. She then quirked an eyebrow, a bit skeptical. “Are you sure I’m not really lying somewhere in the hospital unconscious and about to have my brains fried or something?”
The green guy smiled and reaching out, pinched her arm. Seeing her yelp, he chuckled. “Is that not proof enough?” he said.
“Yes it is… but you pinch hard,” she said, rubbing her arm. She then paused, thinking about the events. “Wait a second… since I’m awake then tell me this. I was sedated just a couple of moments ago… or I think so.”
The green guy merely nodded, confirming what happened, but confusing the woman. “OK, so if I was drugged only a short time ago, why am I ‘quite conscious’ as you said - so quickly? I should have been out for a while.”
“We have ways of removing drugs and anesthetics from your system, even if they have already induced unconsciousness,” he said. “You should suffer no ill effects, and if so, we have treatments for them.”
“Oh,“ she said as her vision adjusted to the world around her. She then realized where she was. “Why am I back on the ship?”
“Because you said you wished you never said what you did to us. That is part of a choice we gave you - a time out of sorts as you‘d say,” said the alien simply. “You have seen what might be.”
The woman nodded, wiping away the tears that had started to form. “Ralph’s dead… if it’s not my parents, it’s him,” said Aidan, her voice breaking at the revelation. “Two sides of the same coin, but they lead to one thing… death.”
“That is part of the circle of life, and every choice is part of that,” said the green guy. Aidan closed her eyes and took a deep breath, knowing this would be difficult to say. “What happened to Ralph in this reality?” she said, only to see the green guy turn away. “Sir, Bill said that Ralph was gone, but wouldn’t tell me where he was buried. That’s why I didn’t believe him.”
“Because I wasn’t buried Aidan,” said a new voice. Shocked at hearing that voice after a few days, she turned and saw the figure. She was stunned to see who it was.
“Ralph?” she said, slightly in disbelief as she got up off the table and walked closer. She paused, a bit hesitant to progress to see if the figure was real. After seeing the person hold a hand out though, she grabbed it and the man walked forward. Sure enough it was Ralph, who was wearing a sports jacket - complete with the elbow patches he always wore, pants… and a white shirt with a blue suit emblem like the green guy wore.
However, other than the fact it appeared as though he wasn't dead - or even had ever been shot, there was something odd about the man. “You’re young,” she said. “You look as young as I am.”
Ralph chuckled. “Yeah, it’s a gift of the green guys. I don’t know why, though I’m guessing it’s a thanks for the help, but they did this,” he said.
“But, you’re wearing a suit… well a white one under your clothes.”
Ralph looked at the shirt and made a face. “Yes, but at least I got them to agree to let me wear a jacket and pants over it. Guess it’s also a gift for wearing the suit for so many years,” he said. "I guess it was a way to say I could feel grown up."
“Yeah, the suit can make you feel like a little kid," said Aidan, and both chuckled. "But I thought you couldn’t wear it anymore."
The man shrugged. “I don’t know your reality, but here I did until… well…” he said, letting the fact trail off.
Aidan cleared her throat, realizing again the truth about this Ralph. She thought for a moment, then realized she needed to know this answer, especially with her seeing him there. “So, if you’re here, am I here forever too,” she said simply, ready to accept her fate. “Did the doctors screw up and kill me?”
The green guy shook his head and answered instead. “No, again you’re out of both times. You have one more choice to make, and your fate will be decided,” he said simply. “Either way, what has happened will change. You will start anew.”
The young woman paced for a few moments, then paused, turning to Ralph. “I don’t know what to do,” she said as she ran a hand through her bangs, flustered. “I don’t know if I want to wear the suit anymore. Why did I get it in the first place?”
“I don’t know Ade, but if it’s anything like the green guys did with choosing me, it was because they know the good you can do,” he said gently. “I see that in you, even in my world.”
“But, it keeps ruining my life. I’ve missed work, dates, spent time in the hospital, so much so that I should have a frequent patient card…”
“Maybe, but I have too. Yet, even with those hindrances, I persevered, and you will too," he said, chuckling. He then sobered up slightly, so she would listen to every word he said. "It’s not easy, like the green guy said. But you get another chance, you can choose which life you want to lead. Before you choose though, this is what you need to think about: Do you sacrifice a little bit of time and comfort to help many, or walk away from it and let people you know you could help end up like what happened here?”
Aidan nodded sadly, knowing this was difficult. She had two choices: Live the life she knew, one where Ralph and Pam had adopted her and she wore the suit, or one where her parents were alive - but Ralph was dead and she didn‘t have the suit nor could help others that way.
Both choices could lead to great lives, especially since the green guy said she would get to start over, but Aidan realized the biggest effect of her decision of all was who lived - and who died. That was what really scared her - this time, her choice also made her essentially the judge, jury and executioner, and all over the choice of wearing the suit or not.
After weighing the options and the results of both, she took a deep breath and let it out, knowing the life she knew was going to change… again.
“I want to return to my own timeline - the reality I was in before I was first beamed up to the ship,” said Aidan to the green guy. “I have to wear the suit.”
The green guy, noticing her brief glance toward Ralph nodded. “Is this your decision? You did say the suit was ruining your life.”
“It does, but the more I think about it, I’ve been thinking about it wrong. Yes, I do have those problems, but if I walk away… I’d never forgive myself, and that… would be something I couldn’t overcome,” she said, then her voice grew firmer. “I want to wear the suit… Sure it’s rough, but if I don’t… people could die who aren’t supposed to.”
Ralph smiled softly and put a hand on her shoulder. “I’m glad to hear that Aidan,” he said, and glanced at the green guy.
“So am I,“ said the alien.
Aidan smiled. “I just wish I was wearing it when I was in that wreck. It’s going to be hard to explain why I’m all right afterward, if what you said about my injuries was true,“ she said.
The alien only nodded his head. “It was bad, but it could have been worse. You must be careful with your emotions Aidan. Those emotions helped cause that wreck, and it could’ve cost you more… it could’ve cost you everything.“
Ralph nodded, and catching the green guy’s look, had a feeling what was coming next. But instead of what Ralph thought, the green guy motioned him to come forward. Aidan looked at the two, curious, but after patting her shoulder, Ralph went over to the green guy.
The two chatted briefly, and Aidan's godfather was handed something by the alien. As they parted, Ralph looked at the green guy again. When the alien nodded, he turned to his niece. “Aidan it's time to go back now...but before you go the green guys wanted to give you something as a reminder of what happened,” he said, holding a simple blue box in his hand. "You have a gift Ade to make this world a better place. That is why they chose you. Whether it is with your hands to create jewelry for people or with the suit to change someone’s life for the better, it still a gift and no one can take that from you. Remember that OK?”
“I‘ll remember,” she said. Ralph gave her the box, and she put it in her pocket.
The man looked at the green guy again, and seeing the green guy nod, realized what he had to do now. “So, I guess this is goodbye - for the moment,” he said simply.
“Yeah, guess so… Goodbye Ralph, see you soon,” said Aidan, giving the man a hug. This alternate Ralph hugged Aidan tightly, not wanting to let go but knowing he would have to soon.
Aidan returned the hug, and smelled Ralph’s aftershave. It was the spicy smell of Old Spice… but, she noticed, it was a little different, almost intoxicating. After a few moments, she felt sleepy and started to relax. “Ralph…” she said.
“Yes Aidan?”
“I’m tired…” she said slightly muddled.
Ralph flinched, giving a glance at the green guy. He then knew that what he heard the green guy speak to him in telepathy was true. In order for Aidan to return to her timeline, she was going to have to return the same way she came to the ship the first time - unconscious. This time, however, he was taking her to the reality - not the green guy with his device.
Despite this, he continued as though it was normal. “I know you are, but you’ll feel better soon.”
Feeling herself relax some, she started to worry. “Ralph, I‘m scared…”
“It’s OK sweetheart,” Ralph held her closer trying to reassure her from her fear. “Just rest…” He then picked her up, carrying her to the table.
Aidan leaned into her godfather’s shoulder as he carried her. She heard Ralph telling her it was going to be OK as he laid her on the table then took hold of her hand, gently squeezing it. “You’ll be all right Aidan,” he said softly as brushed her bangs away from her face.
His words followed her into her sleep, then they changed. His voice was no longer youthful but aged containing more wisdom, it was still telling her it was going to be OK. She clung onto it and followed it, as she held his hand. Aidan could still feel his hand, but now it wasn’t smooth but aged yet still strong. She recognized it, because these were hands that held her when she found out her parents died and helped her recover from that accident. And, the same voice that told her then it was going to be OK was talking to her now…
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MelMac
Jade Warlock
TigreMalabarista
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| | Re: The Path We Choose
« Reply #13 on Jan 26, 2009, 10:34pm » | |
“Aidan, I'm here. C’mon sweetheart, wake up,” said Ralph quietly as he held her limp hand. Sighing, he turned to look at Aidan’s face. She still looked pale and slightly waxen, just like she had the past two days plus she had lain in a coma. The only sign of color on her face and the purple bruise on her jaw where Tony had tried to stop her from leaving.
Remembering the story his former student told him, Ralph was not too happy with the fact that Tony hit Aidan. But, he understood the reasons why - and it was one of the few times he wished that Aidan had the same glass jaw that he had. He'd rather her had just been briefly knocked out and brought back to his and Pam's house tied up rather than...
Ralph frowned as he wiped away a few tears, thinking about the events that had happened since the car wreck that put Aidan in the hospital. Tony had found her in the car where it went over the side of the road and landed about 200 feet from the lookout point. One side was nearly covered and crushed by an avalanche of rocks, debris and snow, the other side the driver‘s side butted with a boulder. The roof, while it showed some signs of damage, appeared to have not been severely crushed.
Fearing the worst but hoping for the best, he called for a rescue team and paramedics, then ran down the side of the hill and reached the totaled car, looking inside. Aidan was inside, slumped over the steering wheel after the airbag and seat belt stopped her from hitting the wheel. Her head was bleeding, and looking down, he knew that her left knee was injured - possibly dislocated or broken. Tony was pretty sure though that she might have some damage inside the knee as well. She also had a gash in her thigh as well, which like her head wound were bleeding slowly.
Tony, taking a calming breath, reached for Aidan’s neck to find a pulse. While she was cool to the touch, he let out the second breath he had been holding when he found she in fact had one. After covering Aidan with his jacket, then updated the paramedics, saying they needed LifeFlite to be on standby as well.
Once the paramedics had stabilized Aidan and took her to the helicopter waiting to rush her to Arrowhead Regional Medical Center, Tony took a nervous breath and dialed a familiar number. It was one of the two phone calls he wished he never had to make - someone was hurt, or someone was dead. He was thankful that it was the first one, and he hoped it would stay that way.
When Ralph got the phone call that she had been LifeFlited to Arrowhead Regional Medical Center after being in a severe car wreck, he felt nauseous as he relived the night her parents died. The feeling worsened when he remembered the last time she spoke with him, it was an argument. He prayed those words weren’t the last they’d ever say to each other.
After rushing to the courthouse to get Pam, who had stayed there late to look over a case she was presiding over, the two headed over to the hospital, where the doctors told them Aidan was stable, but had a severe knee injury and fractured ribs among a few other injuries. The worst, however, was the doctor saying she had a moderate concussion and hypothermia, which combined put her in a coma.
For the past two days, Pam and Ralph would take turns staying in her room, doing what they could to let her know that they were there and to get better soon. They also would manipulate her arms and legs to exercise them and keep her muscles from atrophying. Most of all, they also prayed that she would get better soon and not suffer the same fate as her parents.
Ralph glanced over at the cards that lined the room and smiled faintly. They, along with a pendant a student made for her, were from students and faculty wishing her to get better soon. Aidan was a popular teacher at the school, and he felt the well-wishes from the school population would only help her get better.
The man looked at Aidan again and put a hand on the side of her face, stroking it gently. “Aidan, nothing in the world would make Pam and me feel wonderful than for you to wake up,” he said softly as the doctor came in.
Ralph glanced at his watch and chuckled softly, realizing the man was like clockwork, having come in every few hours to check on Aidan‘s condition. In an odd way, the man’s punctuality was had a calming effect from the worry if Aidan might never - no she would, Ralph told himself - wake up.
The doctor bent over, checking Aidan’s pulse. “How are you doing Mr. Hinkley,” he said politely, though he also wanted to be sure that Ralph wasn‘t making himself ill from worry. The doctor had already received voices of concern from his patient’s friends and family that her godfather was starting to refuse to take breaks and let Pam or someone else visit. While he understood the reasoning - given that Ralph lost his sister in a car crash, the doctor didn’t want to end up with two patients.
“As well as I can be. I just wish she’d wake up,” he said. “It’s been too long…”
“Mr. Hinkley, given what happened, your goddaughter is lucky to be alive,” he said abruptly.
“Yeah, lucky… I‘ve heard that a lot here lately,” he said sarcastically. While he admitted it was the truth, he didn’t want to hear that all the time from the doctors and nurses.
The doctor looked at Ralph with a diagnosing look, studying the man‘s reaction and mannerisms. He didn‘t mean to upset his patient’s godfather to that point, but was thankful that Ralph was not giving up on his goddaughter. Some cases - he remembered sadly - the patient’s family just sat there doing nothing except wait for their loved one to die. But not here, he mused, Aidan’s family is fighting along with her no matter what.
Seeing Ralph’s glare, he apologized for staring and then checked Aidan’s eyes. “I’m sorry, I know this is tough on you. I want her to get well too, especially after the pictures I saw of the wreck in the newspaper. It’s a miracle she got out with the few injuries she has, let alone live. And the freezing temperatures helped also. It slowed her system down and kept her blood loss at a minimum. However, these sadly do take time to recover from,” he said gently, opting to not say the worst thing that could happen to his patient‘s godfather. “Her body’s healing itself right now.”
Ralph nodded. “I know… I should apologize. I’ve done this before,” he said. Seeing the doctor’s curious look, he continued. “She she’s been out cold for a long time before, when she was nine, but it was only a few hours. But this..." He paused and looked at his goddaughter the continued in a whisper as he fought back his emotion. "This has been two days, going on three.”
“I see,” said the doctor as he checked the IV bag and the IV itself. “All I can say is she’s improving. She’s responding to treatment, but I don’t know when she’ll…”
Ralph closed his eyes and nodded, resting his head on his and Aidan’s interlocked hands. A couple of moments later, he felt a slight squeeze on the back of his hand. The man looked up, eyes wide open in disbelief, and then at his hand, slightly hopeful he wasn‘t imagining things. “Ade?” he said. “Doctor, I think she just squeezed my hand.”
The doctor tilted his head and went back over to her side. “Aidan, can you hear us,” said the doctor, grabbing her other hand and trying to make her move it. He frowned when Aidan didn’t respond.
“Here, she‘ll listen to me. Let me try again,” said Ralph, chuckling quietly in hope as he moved his chair closer to Aidan’s bedside. He then gently squeezed her hand, trying to get her to respond. “Aidan, squeeze my hand again… please sweetheart.”
After a moment, Aidan again weakly squeezed his hand back. Ralph held back a cheer as he leaned over near her. “OK, I can feel you squeezing my hand. Now, open up those pretty eyes of yours,” he said.
It took a few tries, but Aidan slowly opened her eyes, wincing at the light and closing them again. “I know it’s bright, but you need to keep your eyes open now,” said Ralph, and trying again, she succeeded. “Hi sweetheart. Welcome back."
The doctor bent over into Aidan’s line of sight. “Hello Aidan, I’m Dr. Brandon Ulvalde. It’s good to see you awake,” he said gently. Seeing Aidan look at him, squinting in pain, he realized that she was conscious of the world around her.
Aidan turned back to Ralph and tried to say something, but her voice cracked. Ralph looked at the doctor again and frowned. “What’s wrong?” he said.
“Nothing to be overly concerned about. Her voice will return in a day or so,” he said, and checked her pulse. “Now, can you go outside and wait for a few minutes? I have to do some further tests.”
Though he didn’t want to leave Aidan alone so soon after her waking up, Ralph nodded and, after putting a gentle hand on Aidan's face, stood up. He started to walk, only to find that Aidan would not let go of his hand. “Ade, I’ll be right outside the room,” he said, only yelp when she squeezed his hand tightly. In fact, she was holding his hand so tight now that her arm was shaking, and for some reason Ralph could not pry free from it.
Looking at her face, Ralph could see that she was staring at him, and giving a look that he knew - all too well. It read, “Please don’t leave me.” Ralph also noticed that she looked back at the doctor, apparently frightened at the thought of being alone with the man. While he knew that Ulvalde wouldn't harm her, he was still concerned.
Seeing Aidan’s pulse and blood pressure start to skyrocket, the doctor also looked at his patient in worry. “Aidan calm down…“ he said, taking a closer look at his patient. Seeing the tears and worry in Aidan’s face as she looked at Ralph, he started to think. While medical-wise, he was pretty sure she didn’t dream while in a coma, his heart couldn’t help but wonder if that belief was wrong and she did in actuality dream something, and it was something bad had happened to her godfather.
Whatever it was, he knew that at the moment, if her vitals didn’t stabilize, she could either pass out again, go into seizures, or worse. “Mr. Hinkley, you can stay… she wants you to stay,” he said gently to not upset Aidan further, then looked at his patient. “Aidan, he’s staying OK, but you need to calm down or you‘re going to make yourself sick.”
Aidan calmed down slightly then shifted her head to see Ralph, who was now sitting in the chair again. The tears in her eyes made him cry inside too. She was hurting and he would do anything to take the pain away if he could.
Right now though, he could only do that staying nearby and holding her hand. “I’m here sweetheart. I’m not going to leave you,” he said. Seeing her calm down more, he then looked at the doctor. “Doctor Ulvalde, is there someone who can go to the waiting room and tell my wife that Aidan’s conscious?”
“Yes, I’ll page one of my staff and have them notify her,” he said as he picked up the phone.
Ralph then looked at his goddaughter and smiled, stroking her hair. “Pam and I won’t leave you,” he said gently. “You’re back, that’s all that matters.”
Aidan took a breath, and stubbornly tried to talk again. "Hug," she said in a faint and crackly voice. While it was hard to hear, and nearly wore Aidan out from the effort, the word and meaning spoke volumes.
The doctor and Ralph blinked in surprise. "Well, already proving me wrong Aidan," said Ulvalde, chuckling. "But, that's good... we need this type of ornery patients. Ones who want to get well quickly."
Ralph chuckled. "It's the old Hinkley stubbornness," he said and turned to Aidan. "I can't quite hug you right now sweetheart - too many wires on you that'll set off alarms. Then the doctors will be mad at both of us. Will a kiss be all right for now?"
The young woman nodded softly, and Ralph kissed her on the forehead. After he pulled away, still holding her hand in his, Aidan looked back at Ralph’s face. The creases in his face seemed a little deeper and his face a bit haggard, but she knew that it probably was from the stress of her being in a car wreck just like her parents. His hair was still curly, graying and in shambles from not being combed, and his eyes were red, probably from crying and lack of sleep. But, to Aidan that didn’t matter. To her, Ralph looked like he was the most handsome man on Earth. Her godfather was alive… and even though this meant her parents were gone, she knew that this was right, this was the way it was supposed to be.
After a few minutes of exams and checking Aidan, Ulvalde spoke briefly to Ralph and then left to talk with other doctors on the issue. Ralph turned to Aidan and smiled softly. “Ade, why don’t you rest some more? Pam will be in the room shortly when the doctors give the OK to have two of us in here."
“Stay…” she said softly, slightly confused and worried he was going to try and leave again.
Seeing that she was trying to fight going back to sleep, he chuckled, gently tousling her hair. “Don’t worry, I’m staying. Now why don’t you go rest,” he said gently. Aidan wanted to stay awake to make sure that he was still there, but realized that she was still tired. She decided to close her eyes, realizing that if she rested, then she’d get better faster…
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MelMac
Jade Warlock
TigreMalabarista
member is offline
Joined: Oct 2006
Posts: 371
| | Re: The Path We Choose
« Reply #14 on Jan 26, 2009, 10:35pm » | |
The voices woke Aidan up.
Even though she was still in that place between sleep and waking, she could identify one of them as her godfather’s, the other was a lot harder to put a name to. She let herself float for a while, moving closer to the edge but not quite reaching it.
She heard the other voice talking to a nurse then she heard the nurse excuse herself and leave.
Knowing the nurse was there bothered her but she couldn’t understand why. There had been a lot of them that came in and out of her room.
Her room, she thought, she shifted testing the bed, and felt it was the same, right down to how uncomfortable it was. And even the smell was familiar. All of it told her that she was in the hospital, and for a split second the memories of that other hospital came rushing back. Aidan yelled, bolting out of the bed only to fall on the floor as her leg gave out. She tried to grab on to the IV stand as she fell, but ended up knocking it over on top of her as well.
She laid there feeling the pain in her side and knee where she had whacked it tumbling out of the bed. Aidan gave a yelp and closed her eyes as tears formed from the pain.
Then she heard footsteps approach and Ralph’s panicked voice. “Aidan? What’s the matter?”
He knelt down next her signaling the other person to get a doctor. She could feel him close even though her eyes where still closed. She then opened them and focused on his, and then she knew she wasn’t in that other place anymore but was home, where she belonged.
Aidan could see that he had been clearly startled by her sudden cry and fall from the bed.
“Ralph?” She tentatively asked, putting her hand on his face as a small part of her still wondered if this was a dream too. She let out a sigh when he smiled down and brushed away a tear from her face.
Ralph smiled faintly and put a hand over hers, though he was still worried. “I’m here Aidan, are you OK?” he told her, his voice breaking some as he lifted the IV stand enough so the fluids didn‘t back up on the woman. “What happened?”
Aidan shook her head slightly, not really wanting to talk about it. “I had a nightmare" she said quietly as a doctor came in followed by a nurse.
Ralph stood and backed up but never broke eye contact with Aidan as the doctor checked her. Finding she didn’t further injure herself, the doctor and nurse got her back into the bed, making sure that the guardrails were securely up so she didn‘t fall out it again. As he talked to his goddaughter and watched her go back to sleep, Ralph frowned. Something was bugging the young woman, especially since this was the second time she had a nightmare in the hospital.
Pam had mentioned what Aidan said when she witnessed the first nightmare, which Aidan had while her godfather was getting something to eat. Ralph at first thought it was just the effects of the medicine she was taking, but watching the last part of it now - not heavily medicated and three days after waking up from her coma, he saw the connection. Both times she also mentioned him - no cried out for him, and cursing out someone in her dream just before she woke up - and it concerned Ralph. For the moment, he decided to let her sleep, but kept guard to wake her up in case she started having the nightmares again.
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MelMac
Jade Warlock
TigreMalabarista
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| | Re: The Path We Choose
« Reply #15 on Jan 26, 2009, 10:36pm » | |
Aidan had been asleep for a while when she again heard the voice from earlier, but this time she recognized it as Tony. She opened her eyes some and saw both Ralph and her partner standing in the doorway talking to a doctor.
"Tony?" Even though she said it very softly Tony still heard and both men turned toward her bed.
As Ralph finished talking with the doctor about how Aidan was healing, Tony crossed the room to stand next to the bed. He then reached for her hand, shaking it. “Hey Cub… looking good,” he said as he sat down.
Aidan scoffed. “Yeah… for someone who has been through the wringer,” she said in a barely audible voice. Her mind drifted back to the alternate reality and what Tony had become. Here was a man who was obviously very concerned about how she felt, but in that other time was so mad at Bill Maxwell, that he took a shot at the agent… but hit Ralph instead. Only this time, unlike when Ralph had been shot so many years ago in a shootout with neo-Nazis, he did not survive…
“You with me Cub,” Tony asked breaking her out of her thoughts.
Aidan nodded slightly, blocking out the memory “Yeah, like I said, I’ve been through the wringer,” she said quietly, but louder than the first time. “Bet I look like I have too.”
“Ade, trust me… you look wonderful,” he said, shuddering slightly at the memory of finding her at the wreck. He had seen her injured before - even severely beaten - but the day of the wreck, he was truly terrified. It had been eerily quiet when he reached the mangled car and when he found her, she looked, and when he went to feel for Aidan’s pulse, felt like she was dead. Though the young woman was hypothermic, Tony decided that he would never tell Ralph how scared he was to have thought he could’ve been the reason Aidan died.
“OK, I look wonderful… you look terrible in that,” she said, making a face at Tony’s attire. She then grabbed the pendant one of her students made for her - a carved gemstone turtle with a diachronic glass shell, and began playing with it. “So, what did the doctor say as far as inside? Am I in the pink of health or am I leftover SPAM?”
“Well, ya ain’t leftover SPAM, but if it says anything, anything compared to what happened, you’re in the pink of health,” Tony said, trying to smile but failing. Something was bothering Aidan, and he knew it. She was doing her usual unconscious habit of toying with a necklace if she was worried. He then glanced at Ralph, who shook his head, also wondering why she was acting this way.
Ralph then walked over to Aidan’s bedside, sitting down in a second chair next to Tony. “You all right Aidan?” he asked.
“Yeah, pink of health,“ Aidan, joked to herself, then became serious. “How bad was the wreck?”
“Pretty bad, since you’re in the hospital,” said Tony chuckling. Seeing Aidan’s glare, he sobered up and continued. “Yeah… it was bad Cub. When I found ya, the car was in really bad shape, well… let’s just say you’re lucky to be alive.”
“That bad huh?” she said, and seeing Tony flinch, she decided she had to ask. “Tony, what shape was I in then?”
The agent shook his head adamantly. “Aidan, I ain’t gonna say how ya looked - ever. When people around here say it was a miracle ya survived and with as few injuries as ya got, they ain’t shoveling horse…”
“Tony,” warned Ralph, but had to chuckle inside seeing Aidan grin at his reprimand of the agent.
“Uh, sorry… well lying to ya. They mean it. Will say this, when they got‘cha here, they fixed ya up, put some more blood into ya and then it was the waiting game.”
Aidan nodded softly, realizing she must’ve looked even worse than when he found her in a dumpster a few months ago after being beaten up. At least, she looked that way from their point of view. She shuddered to think how she looked when the green guys brought her to their ship to heal. Aidan knew they were also part of her “miraculous” survival - even though she wasn‘t totally healed. She assumed, however, the green guys gave her back some of her injuries so there were no questions as to why she was unscathed.
Not wanting to think about how she might’ve looked when Tony found her, Ralph then continued. “I know Tony’s seen you injured and the like, but he doesn’t know everything that we were going through afterward while you were in the coma. When I first saw you lying in that hospital bed, I started thinking about the night your parents died.”
“Because they died in a wreck, and I wound up in the hospital after I hit my head,” said Aidan timidly.
“Yes, and in that case, they died instantly and felt no pain. Here, every moment watching you lie here was painful. When it was more than six hours, Pam and I started to get even more worried. Seeing you lying here, unresponsive to our voices or touch, wondering if you were in pain, wondering if you'd ever regain consciousness, wondering if each breath you took was..."
Ralph let the thought trail off, then took a breath, running his hand through his hair. “That was hard sweetheart. You have no idea how I felt when I felt you squeeze my hand like that.”
Aidan sat there and thought about what Ralph said. Her mind wandered off to when she saw the alternate Ralph and what happened to him…
“Yeah… I do, the best feeling in the world,” said Aidan as she put a hand on his chest, placing her hand over Ralph’s heart.
Surprised, the man grabbed her hand, looking at her then Tony. It was definitely unlike Aidan to do something of that nature in particular… unless she was worried about him. “Sweetheart, what is it?” he said, holding her hand in both of his. “There’s something really bothering you…”
“Nothing’s wrong,” she said and started to pull her hand away but her godfather held tight.
“Uh un, I don’t believe it Aidan, something is.” Ralph let her hand go and Aidan drew it back to her necklace as he continued. “ I haven’t said anything about it because I didn’t know if the painkillers they were giving you were affecting your mind.”
Seeing Aidan fidget, he knew he was right and continued. “But, early today, before you fell out of the bed, you were having a nightmare. I couldn’t make out a lot of it, but you called out for me and were … well, telling someone to let you go find me,” he said, deciding to not mention that she had at one point started cursing. She had been using words he never thought she knew - and rather loudly - at the time she fell. “Pam said that you did the same thing yesterday. If something’s bothering you, you need to tell us.”
Aidan adjusted the bed so she could be closer to eye level with the two men, and then rearranged her sheets so she'd be comfortable. "All right, but if I do, you've got to promise me something - both of you."
Ralph and Tony looked at each other then her. "OK, but what is it?" asked Tony, knowing that if she was asking for a promise, it was serious.
"That you'll let me take my time if I need it. This will be hard enough for you to believe, and won't be easy for me to talk about. I've been dreading it as it is," she said.
The two men nodded, but were concerned that this might be too tough on her - but so was not saying anything. "All right sweetheart, we promise. And, if we can tell it's getting too stressful for you, we'll tell you to stop. It doesn't have to be all at once," said Ralph. "But, what's bothering you? You've been awfully overprotective of me, and you seemed a bit vapid when Tony talked to you."
“Yeah,“ Aidan grinned slightly, and cleared her throat. "OK, the reason I've been so touchy-feely is because I'm making sure you're here - really here."
Her godfather shook his head, confused. "Really here? Ade, of course I'm here. I've been here in the hospital with you since you arrived,” said Ralph when then chuckled. “In fact, I’ve been here for so long during this that I'm on a first name basis with the doctors."
"No, Ralph... I know you're here, but... that nightmare I said I had earlier was a rehash of a few days ago," she said, pausing as her emotions rose. She decided the best way to say this was to say it as fast as she could before she started to cry. "I thought I was in that insane asylum in that alternate reality I was put in about to be sedated again and no one would let me go find where you were buried."
Ralph did a double take at Aidan's response. "Alternate reality... wait BURIED?" he said loudly, surprised. Seeing Aidan huddle up slightly as though to sink into the bed, he stopped and calmed down. "I'm sorry Aidan, but it's a bit of a shock for me here. What do you mean insane asylum and alternate reality? You’ve been here for five days now, two - almost three of those in a coma.”
“That’s what you’ve seen, but I know what happened to me,” said Aidan, giving a slight glance upward.
Noticing the reaction, Ralph paused. He remembered the doctor mentioning that Aidan‘s holding his hand as tightly as she did so soon after waking up from a coma was unusual and that she was worried of him leaving to the point that she could‘ve had a relapse or worse. Ulvalde mentioned his feelings too - medical and personal, and now seeing her looking up, Ralph had to wonder too if the green guys were a part of that dream.
He took a breath, realizing this would explain a lot about her reactions, and held her hand. “OK, I trust you Ade, but I think you'd better start from the beginning though," Ralph said.
Aidan nodded and continued. She told them what she encountered from the moment of her wreck to the ship to waking up in the hospital from her coma. Though she told them almost everything, she left out the part about seeing the alternate Ralph in the ship.
As she talked, Ralph and Tony listened quietly. Every so often, Aidan would have to take a short pause to regain her composure, but both waited patiently and if necessary, gave a reassuring comment or hug to let her know that they were there.
There was a longer pause in the chat when a nurse came in to check the young woman’s vitals. As the nurse made sure Aidan was all right and if she needed anything, Ralph leaned back in his chair, stunned at what she had said. He now knew what Aidan was so leery of Tony at first - he had been Ralph's murderer in the alternate time.
The man glanced at Aidan and frowned in that thought. There had been several times he had been near death because of the suit, but none of those was by someone who he respected and cared about. Since high school, Ralph knew Tony's father didn't care about the man, and took him under his wing. Ralph considered Tony a son, and to know that in this alternate time Tony shot him in the heart...
"Ralph, you OK?" said Aidan shortly after the nurse left, concerned. "I can move over a little if you want to lie down."
Her godfather shook out of his reprieve and chuckled, shaking his head. "No, I'm all right sweetheart, just thinking about what you said," he said adamantly. "At least now I understand you putting your hand on my heart. I can't imagine what it felt like for you to hear that I was killed in that timeline."
"No... but let's just say that it was like when you told me about Mom and Dad's deaths, but double - a double whammy," she said quietly, remembering her visit to Bill in the alternate time. "I think it's what led to my seizure in the alternate reality."
"Seizure?" inquired Tony.
"Yeah... apparently I was an epileptic in that time period. Don't remember much about the actual fit, but sure do remember how sore I felt when I regained consciousness."
Ralph reached for her hand, grabbing it. He couldn‘t believe that she dealt with even more than what happened to him and Tony. "You were an epileptic in that time huh? When did that start being part of your life then?"
"According to what those doctors said, apparently I had seizures when I was younger in that reality - I don’t know what caused them - but they eventually went away. The night you supposedly were killed, I fainted and hit my head on the buffet in the dining room. That accident brought them back with a vengeance, and mostly the worst ones - grand mals."
Her godfather shook his head, slightly confused. "But you didn't hit your head on the buffet... it was the desk in this reality. And, the doctors were concerned that you would have epilepsy from the injury, but that didn't happen,” he said gently. “They said part of it was that we didn't overexert you and that when you were injured, we didn't do anything that would deprive you of oxygen, such as put a pillow under your head. And, more I think about it, the buffet is lower, so you would have hit it with more force than the desk, and would’ve had a more severe head injury."
"Even with that hard head of hers?" asked Tony. Seeing Ralph and Aidan glare at the man, he shrugged. "Well... Cub ya do have a head injury here and are doing well considering that wreck."
Remembering how long the doctor said she’d probably still have a headache from the concussion, Aidan reluctantly nodded. "True, and to think that if Ralph and Pam didn't offer to let me come over to stay with them, my parents and I all could've died that night in the wreck given Mom and Dad did at times let me come along to celebrate their anniversary," she said, shuddering at the memory of the alternate time. "I'd still rather not have had that accident to begin with, but given the two choices - at least it was the desk. And, the differences as to why are really wild - Mom and Dad dying in the car wreck, Ralph being murdered..."
Tony felt a cold chill down his spine at the memory of what Aidan told him about his alternate self. "Yeah, ta think that I was the cause of Mr. H's death there..." he said, and shuddered. "I mean, I will admit there were times I wanted to punch your godfather's lights out..."
"And did too," interrupted Ralph. Seeing Tony open his mouth to protest, he put his hand up. "You did do that at least twice when you were attending Whitney."
The agent, realizing Ralph was right, chuckled. "OK, anyway, even when I did, I never wanted to shoot him. He did a lot for me, ’cause if I kept going the way I was, I could've been in jail or dead now."
Aidan smiled sadly at the irony. "True. I mean hearing what Bill said about what happened to make you a criminal, I couldn't believe it."
"What happened?" inquired Tony.
"Well, he said that you had been washed out of the FBI for stealing evidence, I think drugs, and that Ralph had verified it by a holograph," she said. "He didn’t explain further, but I guess you kept protesting, but there was too much evidence to the contrary. Then, after you were fired, you basically tripped out and turned into a bas... uh, monster. Then, well... the rest you know."
“Cub, that has to be the weirdest story I’ve ever heard,” Tony scoffed. “I’d known about those holographs if he got one off me.”
“Not necessarily Tony,” she said. “I’ve gotten them off people all the time and they haven’t said they’re hallucinating.”
Ralph frowned, thinking about what she said. He then turned to Tony. "You know, there is some truth to Aidan’s story."
"Whatdaya mean Mr. H? Ade here was living it in that alternate reality. How could it..."
"Tony, I do remember a time when you first started in the FBI when you could’ve been washed out," he said. "It was back in the ‘90s, Only, when I got the holograph, instead of finding it was you who was in the evidence locker stealing drugs, it was someone else..."
Tony's eyes lit up, remembering what happened. "Franklyn Thomlinson back in 1994. Yeah, thought he had it up real nice and neat tryin' ta frame me for his theft 'cause I was the last one who signed out on that paper, but I knew it wasn't me."
"How?" said Aidan, slightly confused.
"Because... the time that was signed - well altered - was not possible," he said. "I was helping someone."
"You were? Who?"
He smiled, shaking his head slightly at the fact Aidan's memory was a little fuzzy at the moment. "You Cub."
Aidan looked at Ralph and Tony, confused. "OK, you were helping me... at the agency ... in 1994?" she said, trying to check Tony for a fever only to get her hand playfully swatted away. "You sure I'm the one who should be in bed?"
Ralph thought for a minute to remember all of the story, then smiled. "No, he's right. Remember, fall 1994, you were a sophomore at Whitney and I arranged for your civics class to tour the agency..."
She looked at Ralph for a few moments, and then smiled. "Yeah, now I remember. You came as well, but went off to talk to Bill, my guess at the time was to say hello, but must've been a suit scenario," she said, and he nodded.
Tony grinned, remembering himself. "Well, I'd rather not remember part of that day, but that morning had been rough. We had made a huge meth-cocaine bust on the interstate and we went and put the drugs in the evidence locker for crimes. I had just signed out saying everything was there when I had to go and take a group of students on tour..."
"My tour. I remember Tony was taking us around the agency and telling us about what went on," she said, then furrowed her brow slightly in thought. "It seemed to go on forever though, and the office was real stuffy and hot..."
"Oh yeah, the lousy bums had the heater on almost full blast in 80-degree weather it seemed,” laughed Tony. “And they still don't get it right."
"And, I remember Tony talking about something when... when I fainted," she said, smiling sheepishly at the memory.
Tony nodded. "Yeah, hadn’t seen anyone go out without a warning before then, so it totally took me off guard when ya started to fall. Managed ta catch ya though and lay you on the ground. Got someone to get Mr. H and started ta try and wake ya."
Ralph thought for a moment, and continued where Tony left off. "Then, Bill and I went down the hallway to the room where you had passed out, but he saw Thomlinson head out the room just as we came in. Bill asked the man where the fire was, and Thomlinson said he was getting you water. Bill thought about it for a moment, but dismissed it and went in.
"Then, we came into the room, and I knelt next to you just as you came around," he said, then cleared his throat, remembering the next part. "Bill hadn't seen Thomlinson come back in with the water, and grew suspicious. Knowing the other agent was at odds with Tony, and that they were together during the bust, Bill had me put a hand on Tony's shoulder to get a holograph. Sure enough, I got one of Thomlinson was stealing some of the meth from the lockers."
Tony continued. "That musta been when Maxwell told me ta come with him to the locker, and we caught Thomlinson. He had me go out first to challenge the bum, who then said that it wouldn't matter... I'd be busted for stealing drugs from the locker. He said as I was the last one out of the evidence locker, I'd be the one found guilty. When I said I could prove I didn't use them, he told about a friend at the drug testing company who would skew the results. That's when Maxwell came in and busted him."
"Wow, and all that while I was recovering from passing out," Aidan said, entertained slightly by the story, knowing this time things turned out better.
Ralph looked at Aidan, and things started to click together. "Aidan, do you see what the linking factor has been in this?" he said. Seeing her shake her head in negation, he continued. "You... it was you. If you hadn't fainted, Bill and I wouldn't have gone to the room Tony, you and the students were in and we wouldn't have seen Thomlinson leave the room suspiciously."
Tony nodded. "Yeah, and then Maxwell woulda blamed me for the crime as I was the last one who signed out."
"And even if I got a holograph, it might've just been Tony in the locker room with the drugs, and it would've implicated him... like you said," Ralph finished, smiling. “Aidan, you’re supposed to be here, wearing the suit. If your parents hadn't died then you would never have been brought here. Based on what you’ve said could’ve been, all those people I helped save or Tony helped wouldn‘t have been helped. Then all the good you have done.…”
She smiled softly, wistful of what could’ve been too. “Yeah, but at what cost Ralph?” she said quietly as she hugged the stuffed lion Ralph and Pam had brought from their house. It had been a gift from them when she had her tonsils out at 12, and she always had to have it when she was in the hospital.
Ralph frowned, realizing what she meant by the comment. "Yes, it cost you your parents... and my sister,” he said, moving to sit on the bed next to her. Aidan shifted over as much as she could without falling off it again to accommodate him, and he sat down, putting an arm around her shoulder.
Seeing a few tears fall down her face, Ralph gave her a gentle hug, careful of her ribs. "Ade... it's always going to be tough. It was tough for me when Dad died so many years ago. There's always a negative with a positive, and while I wish your parents were alive... I can see too that if they were, there'd be these negatives as well."
"Tell me about it…” she said, smiling wryly. “But at least I have another chance to do what I’ve been chosen to do - even with the occasional bumps and bruises.”
The three chuckled and heard a knock at the door. Wondering who it could be, as the nurse had left and Aidan could only two guests, Ralph went to open the door.
He had just enough time to dodge out of the way when Bill came charging through the doorway. “Hi Ralph.” Bill said glanced over his shoulder to his friend as he continued forward to Aidan’s bed. “How’s the most beautiful girl in the world feeling today?”
Aidan blinked, given she knew she had to look like a mess, but then knew he was kidding. “Hi Bill…” she said.
Ralph however shook his head. “Bill... you can't be in here. Aidan can only have two visitors at a time.”
“Well, I think Villacana was just leaving, right?” Bill asked raising his eyebrows at the younger Agent to give him the hint that it was time for him to leave.
Tony, realizing that Bill does have a point, decided to show a bit of bravado himself. “Yeah, sure Maxwell. Get well soon huh Cub?“ he said, then stooped over to Aidan. Remembering her chat earlier, he paused. “Uh, can I?…”
Realizing what he was thinking, she smiled. “Yeah... you can give me a hug, so long as Rhonda won't get mad.”
“Nah, it's from me, her and the kids,” he said, giving her a gentle hug. “ Get well soon, and don't let the old agent here drive you up a wall.”
“I'll show you old rookie,” muttered Bill, only to see Tony smirk at him. Looking at Aidan laugh a little from the banter, he decided it was worth getting kidded by Tony - just this once. He had tried to get in and visit Aidan while she had been in the coma, partially so Ralph and Pam could get some rest, but the nurses wouldn’t listen. This was mostly because he kept referring to her by his nickname for her, not proper name. Not that this mattered, as even Bill knew in his heart even if he was allowed in, it’d taken everything in the world to get Ralph and Pam to listen to him, especially if their goddaughter was hurt.
Aidan‘s chuckling snapped him out of his thoughts. “Don't worry, Tony, I won’t. Besides, I don't want to spend more time here because I'm a monkey and decide to climb the IV stand.”
Tony laughed and, after saying that he’d come back later to visit, left the room.
Bill looked at Aidan and smiled. He was relieved to at last actually see what Ralph had said over the phone: Aidan was awake and smiling, even though he could tell in her eyes she was still a little in pain from her injuries. But, remembering the photo in the paper, he knew it could have been a lot worse…
He took a breath, deciding to brush away what could’ve happened. “So, Artie, how's it going…” he said, only to see Aidan pale slightly. “OK…”
Ralph noticed the reaction as well, and was concerned. “Aidan, are you all right?” he asked
“Yeah…” she said, looking at the agent. “What did you call me Bill?”
“Artie, though I had ta explain to the nurses that I call ya that …” he said, only to pause again when he saw Aidan freeze. Unbeknownst to him, she was thinking about what happened in the alternate reality, and was hoping history didn’t repeat itself in the opposite way.
Bill, however, took a closer look, having seen an expression like that before. The reaction after it, however, was bad the last time. “Honey, you all right,” he said, then giving Ralph a look of concern.
Ralph narrowed his eyes in concern and walked over toward the head of the bed. Leaning over, he noticed Aidan still just stare and gawk at Bill. He waved his hand in front of Aidan’s eyes, and frowned when she didn’t react to the motion.
Remembering what Aidan said about the alternate reality, he grew terrified something was wrong. He was afraid that Aidan was having a post traumatic stress reaction. “Aidan... you're worrying me, say something,” he ordered.
“Yeah Artie, say something,“ he said, not missing the worry in his friend’s voice. “Kid, she still having problems from that…”
Aidan, realizing that the two men were talking about her, blinked, snapping out of the memory, and smiled. “No, sorry, I'm fine. Bill... what did you call me?”
Bill, though relieved that Aidan was all right, was slightly annoyed by her repeating the question again. He knew, however, that might be from the concussion she had. “Artie…” he said gently.
Aidan‘s smiled thinly, wanting to tease the man slightly. “Artie... Bill, I want you to never.…”
“I know, but it‘s habit…”
“Never… call me Aidan again,” she said bluntly, interrupting the man.
“Huh?” said Bill, giving a slight double take at the woman’s change of heart.
“Bill, I want you to call me Artie…” she said, smiling only to find Bill put a hand on her forehead and grab her right wrist to check her pulse. “What are you…”
The older agent looked at Ralph instead. “Uh, Kid... I don't think she has a fever, but she sure seems a little loopy here,” he said, earning a slight glare from Aidan. Bill continued. “Are you saying to me that you want me ta call ya ‘Artie’ all the time? You must have gone crackers from that bump on the head. Ya‘ve always said ta quit calling ya that.”
“I'm no more ‘quackers’ than I normally am,” she said, sighing slightly in annoyance. Seeing Bill slightly miffed at her reaction, she coughed and smiled. “Bill I'm serious... it's a long story, but trust me, I don't want you to call me Aidan again… well, except one case.”
“OK, when?”
“If I am in the hospital, only so you can get into the room as my Great-Uncle Bill,” she said.
Bill was a bit skeptical, but realized Aidan was being serious. “OK, sure honey, whatever you say,” he said grinning slightly, and gave Ralph a look.
“Don’t look at me, it’s her choice but at least now you won’t hear her correct you all the time,” said the younger man, putting his hands up.
“Yeah… so, Artie, how are you feeling?” Bill asked.
“Much better,” she said, chuckling at the realization that the agent called her Artie and not Aidan from the start. “Yep, much better.”
Ralph, however, knew something was still going on with the young woman. He had a feeling part of the reason she requested Bill call her Artie all the time was to get away from that alternate reality. As she chatted with the two men again about what happened in the alternate time, Ralph started thinking more about Aidan‘s story. Looking at the woman, he realized anytime she mentioned the ship - especially the second time - she would start toying with her necklace. Seeing her nervous reaction of wanting to forget part of that visit, Ralph’s mind drifted off to another time, this one involving a visit to Las Vegas, and dealing with a man who used the suit for evil…
His thoughts were interrupted when Bill spoke up. “Glad that was there and not here Artie… I mean Ralph here dead…” Bill shuddered at the thought. He had a feeling in that reality Ralph was really not dead and the thought of the green guys and their ship made him shudder more as he stood up to leave. “Artie, uh… I’d love ta stay and chat all night with ya, but I know ya need your rest and I’m sure Ralph here would rather have the missus come in and visit. ‘Sides I don‘t want the nurse ta come in and try ta give me a sponge bath.”
Aidan laughed at the joke, only to wince slightly when her ribs protested the movement. “Sure, and thanks for coming,” she said, smiling as Bill hesitated on how to say goodbye. “Bill… you can give me a hug or a kiss if you want to. You don’t have to just shake my hand - I‘m not that fragile.”
The man chuckled, and gave Aidan a hug, not afraid to show some affection for the young woman who he did in his heart consider his niece as well. He then shook hands with Ralph and the two walked toward the door.
As Ralph said a brief goodbye to Bill, he again looked at Aidan, who was now hugging the stuffed lion deep in thought Even though she was 28, from the look in her eyes, he could tell that she had left something out that had deeply scared her. The more he thought about it, the more he realized how much everything affected her - particularly the point she wasn‘t mentioning.
After Bill left the room, Ralph turned back to Aidan and sat down in a chair. “Aidan…is there something still bothering you?” he asked gently. “Was there more to the story than what you told Tony, Bill and me?”
The young woman shifted, wincing slightly in pain from her ribs, and fidgeted, not really wanting to say everything about seeing Ralph in the ship. While the alternate version comforted her as she was brought back to this timeline, the thought of knowing that version of Ralph was dead - but at the same time alive - frankly scared her.
From his perspective, Ralph could see that his hunch was right, that Aidan had seen the alternate version of him reanimated on the ship. It pained him that she found out about that part of the green guys’ lifestyle that way, but he knew that was partially his fault.
He sighed softly and ran a hand over his face. “When Bill told you I was dead, I really wasn’t was I?” he said. Seeing her look at him in confusion and surprise, he clarified. “I mean to everyone I was except maybe Pam and Bill, who knew what really happened - that the green guys came and took me with them.”
Aidan nodded, realizing while she hadn’t told him the part, he must have had an idea of what happened. She also thought back to what that Ralph had said to her about his youthful appearance being “a gift from the green guys” and him wearing the white suit with blue emblem.
She cleared her throat slightly. “I think I understand why, but not totally…”
Ralph put a gentle hand over her mouth, then removed it. “It’s OK Aidan. I understand it was scary and I'll be glad to tell you more whenever you're ready - but right now you're not with all you went through, OK?”
Aidan nodded, and Ralph smiled softly, standing up. “Now, why don’t you get some sleep and Pam and I will be back later?”
“OK,” she said and Ralph gave her a kiss on the forehead. He then turned, walking to the door, and was almost to the door when she spoke up again. “Ralph?”
“Yes sweetheart?“ he said, turning back around.
“Thank you.”
“For what?”
“For everything. For always being there and you and Pam stepping in when my parents died… You didn’t have to…”
Ralph, realizing there were many levels to this thank you, past and present, had to fight the tears that were trying to fall. “Yes we did Aidan,” he said, crossing back over to Aidan. “You were our niece and I in particular already knew all the difficulties you had with your father’s family. Only Misha loved you for who you were and are now, the others were cruel. I saw the effect they had on you at times, and I couldn’t leave you there. Even if your parents hadn‘t put Pam and me as your guardians in their will, I‘d fought tooth and nail to have you live with us. I did when Kevin was little, and while I didn‘t win, just like then I would‘ve kept fighting for you.”
Aidan paused, remembering the cold eyes she saw of the Aidan that had ended up living with her father‘s family after her parents‘ deaths. She shuddered looking down at her hands. “I know,” she said softly.
Ralph put his hand over hers, grinning as she looked back up at him. “Aidan, you may be my niece and goddaughter, but you are always going to be my little girl, and I am proud of you. Now, like I said, why don‘t you get some sleep and Pam and I‘ll be back in a little while.”
“OK Ralph,“ the young woman said smiling, and after giving her a hug and another kiss, Ralph left the room. Aidan leaned back in the bed, turning on the TV to see what was on. She found a classic TV show and smiled. It was a favorite show of hers, Ralph‘s and Pam‘s. Watching it, Aidan relaxed some, realizing that for the first time in days she finally felt the weight of the world lift off her shoulders. She knew that once she was out of the hospital, there would be challenges - physically and suit wise, but this time, Aidan knew that she could say no. Afterall, she had to take care of her family, friends, others… and herself.
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MelMac
Jade Warlock
TigreMalabarista
member is offline
Joined: Oct 2006
Posts: 371
| | Re: The Path We Choose
« Reply #16 on Jan 26, 2009, 10:37pm » | |
Aidan leaned forward in her chair trying her best to put on a pair of slippers so she could take a walk around the hospital. She already succeeded putting her right shoe on and was working at putting the other on - which just happened to be the same leg that was injured - when the shoe slipped from her hands and skidded across the floor.
"Damn… stupid slipper," Aidan huffed as she saw the wayward shoe slide under the bed. She also rubbed her ribs, which were also a bit sore from the attempt. Leaning back in her chair, she realized even with the brace and a rehab cane, her simple walk round the hospital would not be so simple especially with her injured knee.
Straightening out her knee slightly, making a face, she remembered what the doctor said what happened to it. While it had appeared to be dislocated when she arrived at the hospital, Tony had been right and there had been a torn ligament in there. At first they considered doing surgery on it while she was in a coma, but didn’t want to risk putting her health and safety in further danger at the time.
Later on, when the group was told that she’d have to have surgery on it, Aidan grew terrified at what it would entail. The thought of being in a state of total nothingness like she was when she was put in stasis made her nearly refuse to have the surgery. Aidan did not want to be defenseless and have no say in what happened to her care. Not only that, she also was terrified that when she woke up from the surgery, she would be in that reality - where her parents were alive instead and the doctors felt she was crazy.
Ralph at first was confused as to why Aidan would risk permanent and debilitating injury to herself until he noticed she would squirm slightly and fidget with her pendant when they mentioned she’d be put under general anesthesia. Realizing that Aidan was fearing she'd regain consciousness and find this wasn't real, he was dead and she was again in the sanatorium, spent time with the woman and the doctor, discussing a way to get Aidan to agree to have the surgery.
Dr. Ulvalde, remembering what happened when she woke up from the coma, agreed to have Ralph stay near Aidan when the anesthetist put her under. After a little more discussion, Ralph and Pam also came up with an idea to have Aidan wear a bracelet made out of Royal typewriter keys the couple gave her as a get-well gift, which she would later find on her wrist when she woke up in recovery - ensuring that they were all OK - and she was in the right time. The doctor agreed to it, with the stipulation that Ralph hold on to it when Aidan was in surgery so it wouldn't get lost or broken, which the young woman agreed to. On the day of the operation, however, it was difficult for Ralph to see his goddaughter be put under and have to leave the room afterward. But, when he saw Aidan show very little fear and nervousness during that process, was glad that he was able to help her get over another fear from the reality.
So, while her knee had been repaired a few days after waking up from the coma, Aidan was thankful that it wasn't hurt nearly as bad as it could've been. "It could've been a hell of a lot worse," she thought softly, remembering what the green guy said to her in the ship and that alternate time.
Deciding it was better to let the slipper stay where it was under the bed rather than getting down on hers knees to retrieve the slippery item, Aidan leaned back and relaxed, closing her eyes. Other than the delayed walk, the day was turning out good. Her doctor had visited earlier, announcing that she would be going home the next day. This to her, after nearly a month in the hospital, was like telling her she won the lottery.
Aidan smiled softly, thinking about what was ahead. She knew it was going to include continued visits to the therapist to strengthen her knee, working on the rest of this and next semester's schedule, accommodating it to fit some of the doctor's restrictions, but most of all, it was going to be a long process healing from what happened - from everything.
The door opened, snapping Aidan out of her thoughts. She turned her head to see Ralph and Pam walk in. Both chuckled when they found that Aidan had only one slipper on.
"Hi Ade," Ralph greeted then pointed to her feet, "deciding to be two left feet again?" he said, smiling.
"No," she said dejectedly with a slight pout and pointed toward her bed. "Its partner in crime is hiding out under the bed again."
Ralph chuckled at the comment and went to retrieve the missing slipper under the bed "I thought you said you'd quit playing shoe hockey," he said kneeling in front of her and slipping the shoe on Aidan's foot
"Yep, but unfortunately the slipper didn‘t get the memo …”
“So what is the score Aidan?” joked Pam.
“The score is Shoe 3 - Aidan 0," she said chuckling as she gave the couple a hug and a kiss. "Hey guys, I was going to try and go for a little walk around the corridors. I wanted to try and catch most of the nurses who've helped out the past few weeks and say goodbye before they got off tonight."
"They have helped out a lot, though one said to us they'd miss your telling your stuffed lion bedtime stories," said Pam, chuckling at how Aidan had kept that old habit. Even now, Aidan still would make up stories when she was in the hospital to pass the time. Given the hospital wouldn't let do her beadwork for safety reasons, it also helped break up the inevitable boredom of watching TV, drawing and dealing with the doctor's or nurse's visits to check on her. This time, however, Aidan also had another toy to talk to as well - a stuffed toy Himalayan cat that Rodney gave her as a get well present.
"Ah… I was wondering why Nurse Jennings was talking about Fred the Elephant and Jake the Cat the other day, eavesdropper," said Aidan, grinning only to pause slightly when she saw the look on her godparents' faces. "Is something wrong?… Don't tell me the doc changed his mind and I'm stuck here for another two weeks?"
Ralph sat down on the edge of Aidan's bed, shaking his head. "No sweetheart, nothing's wrong. We're just soaking in seeing you happy and healthy… if slightly silly," he added with another grin. "You've got to understand, the past three and a half weeks have been hard for us too with you being in the hospital and rehab from this wreck."
Aidan groaned when Ralph mentioned rehab. "And I'll still be in rehab seeing Sam for the next few months," she said, making a pained face. "I know physical therapists are supposed to be tough on you, but sometimes… well, lets just say with the way he barks orders I swear he must have been a drill sergeant in a former life."
Pam chuckled and sat down next to Ralph. "I don't blame you in that one, but he also told you that you're one of the fastest healing patients he's dealt with," she said. Seeing Aidan chuckle, Pam continued. "But, Ralph and I are here for another reason too."
"OK… what?"
"Well, we were wondering, given that all of us are about to have a week for Thanksgiving break soon, if you'd like to go to Casper this year instead of spending it at home," said Pam.
Aidan looked at the couple, surprised, but confused. She had wanted to return for years - 18 to be exact. While Aidan had asked to return off and on over the years, before they could make arrangements to visit, she'd change her mind. She never knew why, but she guessed subconsciously there was something from the events that led up to her parents' deaths that kept her from wanting to go.
This time, however, it seemed that Ralph and Pam had been talking about it for a long time and were wanting to go there. "Casper? I can't go there yet - not in this shape," she said, shaking her head slightly. "I bet I won't be able to safely fly in the suit for at least a little longer, and it'll be a pain to try and board a plane."
"Sweetheart," Ralph started, clearing his throat slightly. He could tell she was trying to talk herself out of going, but he knew after everything he was told this trip was what she needed - what they all needed, when they thought about it. "It won't be a pain, you'll get the royal treatment. You get to board first, and they'll have a wheelchair if you need it," said Ralph, only to get a playful bop on the head by his goddaughter.
“Ralph, you‘ll need one if you offer that to me,” she said jokingly.
He then chuckled. "Well, OK no wheelchair. But, even if you don't, do you know how many handsome male flight attendants would be glad to offer you their arm to help you down the boarding ramp?"
Though Aidan knew Ralph was only kidding, knowing that she was dating Rodney, she chuckled. "OK, that could happen, but still… why Casper?" she said. "We could go just about anywhere."
The couple looked at each other then Pam turned to Aidan. "Well, we've heard you talk about wanting to go there for some time and just see the sights again," she said. "And, you could also visit the ranch and we could go anywhere else you want to…"
"… And visit Mom and Dad in the cemetery," interrupted Aidan, frowning at the implication.
"Yes… that too," said Ralph, and seeing Aidan shudder slightly, put a hand on her shoulder. "Ade, I know you went through a lot, but both Pam and I agree you need to go back there, but for many reasons."
"I do want to go, but I don't know given that alternate reality," she said quietly, thinking about her parents. "I can still remember everything from that time: How Mom and Dad looked in their 50s, how they smelled, felt. How can I face seeing the opposite side after that?"
Pam sighed softly, knowing it was hard for her goddaughter. While Aidan had told her a little about the alternate reality, Pam also had heard a little more from Ralph about what exactly happened to the young woman. The one thing Ralph didn't tell her truthfully, however, was that he was dead in that timeline. He opted to use a different explanation for his absence and that absence was what caused her seizure in that reality.
Aidan's godmother then cleared her throat. "It will be hard sweetheart, but we'll be there to give you a shoulder to cry on," said Pam. "But, it would help close the door to this as well, especially given where that timeline led you."
Ralph continued. "I agree Ade. You've told me a few times lately that you wanted to visit the gravesite so you could say a proper goodbye," he said, remembering that talk. "You didn't really get to the day of the memorial service either."
Aidan nodded slightly. Ralph had told Aidan about her second, but fortunately for her health near fainting spell at the cemetery and how he had to carry Aidan back to the limo so she could lie down. He remembered that whenever he or Pam went to check on her she never looked up and he guessed she only sat there staring at her hands or anywhere but where the graveside ceremony was taking place, and by the end of the service, when Ralph and Pam returned to the car to return to the hotel, was asleep.
Ralph had always had a feeling that it did bother Aidan some subconsciously to not have been an active part of the graveside services, but not much given she had a spotty memory of the day. Now that she dealt with the alternate reality of him being dead and not being able to see him, he felt it was time for her to see the gravesite again and have some closure to what happened to her parents as well as that other life she experienced. Seeing Aidan look down, Ralph realized she had been thinking about that too.
The young woman cleared her throat. "Yeah... it would some. But like you said, that pain will never go away," she said.
"True, it never does," said Ralph, thinking about his sister.
Pam realizing that if they dwelled on this part too long Aidan might change her mind, decided to change the subject. "But, it would be more than just that Aidan. We thought of taking you to the places you like, that restaurant you always talk about with the huevos rancheros, and Fort Casper," she said. "If you heal fast enough, we might also drive over to Cheyenne or go to Devil's Tower. That way you can see everything you always love to talk about to your class and when you're remembering then."
The young woman smiled. "That would be fun, and I could have pics with both of you there as well to show my classes. It'd also be neat to go to the ranch again and see how it's doing. The company that runs it for me said they were doing well, and I'd love to see the old ranch house again," she said and looked at her godparents. She had to admit in her heart, they were right. After three weeks in the hospital staring at the white walls and friezes, it'd be nice to go visit a place full of color and beauty.
Pam and Ralph looked at each other and smiled when they saw Aidan's eyes light up - albeit slightly. They wanted their goddaughter to say yes, but also knew that she might say no.
Both also knew from the way she'd react to things at times when she was younger, that there were some memories of the ranch that weren't pleasant. There was one incident that stuck out in their minds - and it hurt worse when they remembered it was lost when she was injured so many years ago.
Shortly before her parents' deaths, there had been a huge fight over the ranch between the Onyxsards and Aidan's family over its ownership. The fight escalated to the point where Aidan and her mother were kidnapped to try and force Austin to give the Onyxsards the ranch. Unbeknownst to anyone save Ralph now, Aidan and M'Lynn were taken to a deserted location to freeze to death. They were nearly unconscious from hypothermia when an "angel" saved them - Ralph had been visiting to help them with the dispute and had the suit.
While both his sister and goddaughter didn't suffer long-term effects physically, Ralph knew that Aidan had a tough time whenever her mind remembered it, but not her.
Seeing the young woman's eyes light up more at the prospect, this time they felt she really wanted to go. "So... I take it that it's a yes, huh sweetheart?" said Ralph, smiling.
Aidan looked at the couple and smiled. "Yes, and I mean yes. I want to go," she said. "It's time I went back there, and the change of scenery will be nice. The food will definitely be better - no more tomato soup and scrambled eggs for breakfast."
The comment got a laugh out of the couple before Pam spoke up.
"That's great Aidan, we knew you'd want to go," said Pam. Seeing Aidan quirk an eyebrow, curious at to how she "knew," she clarified. "Well... you have been in a monochrome world it seems for a while now."
"True, it'll be nice to see color everywhere," said Aidan, chuckling. "Of course at this point you probably could suggest just about any place and I would agree as long as it got me out of here…." The other two laughed again at her comments then Aidan continued. "But, I do have one question."
"What's that?" said Pam, hoping she wasn't going to ask about the possibility of changing her mind. They had already had the ticket reservations secured.
"Would it be all right if I brought the suit?" she said.
The couple looked at each other, frowning. "Aidan… part of this too is to let you take a break from suit scenarios," said Ralph gently. "You need the break, and even Tony's been ordered by Bill and Cyler to let you have one. Why do you want to bring it?"
The young woman ran a hand through her hair and closed her eyes. She had never told them this, but felt she needed to. "Well… you remember the plane crash Tony and I were in last year?" she asked, and the couple nodded. "Part of the reason we were in it was that I was out cold and couldn't fly the plane to safety when the pilot died. Now knowing that knock out gas won't affect me while I'm wearing the suit unless I take it off before it’s out of my system, I've put the suit on whenever I'm in a plane - flying it myself or in a commercial one."
Ralph and Pam chuckled, realizing she had a point, but still weren't sure. "Good point, but you'll also be recovering a little bit from the wreck too. The suit might not let you wear it," said Pam.
"I've thought about that, but we don't know. Besides, while I know I'll still be recovering, I don't want us to be out on a limb if something did happen. Better to be able to have some help than none."
The other two nodded. "OK, deal, and hopefully it won't be needed right?" said Ralph.
"Right," said Aidan as the two continued chatting about their plans. While Aidan knew the toughest part of the trip would be going to the cemetery, Aidan also knew that her godparents were right: It would bring closure to her experiences in the alternate reality, and she would be able to move on with her life. My real life - Pam, Ralph, Bill, Tony... and the stu- no, silly suit, she thought, smiling. It's good to be home.
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MelMac
Jade Warlock
TigreMalabarista
member is offline
Joined: Oct 2006
Posts: 371
| | Re: The Path We Choose
« Reply #17 on Jan 26, 2009, 10:37pm » | |
Aidan walked along the row of solemn grave stones that lined the grassy knoll, after a few steps she paused and looked out over the plains rolling out in front of her all sides. She smiled when she saw the Rocky Mountains nearby, capped with snow. The sun was setting turning the sky ablaze with colors. A wind stirred the tall grass turning them into green waves. beckoning for her wade in the grassy sea and to be swept away by its currents.
In the distance she imagined a train whistle blew. A lonely and tempting sound floating across the earth to her ears. "Come away, fly away," it told her with each blow of its whistle. So tempting it is she wanted to stretch her arms out and pray for wings to grow so she might fly over the green sea and far from this place. …
The sound grew quieter, fading with the day until it was no more. With a sigh, Aidan pulled her coat closer around her as she looked back down at the grave that lay before her. She leaned on her walking cane, and while thankful that she had almost healed from her injury and wouldn't need even that style of cane anymore, hated the fact that it kept her from kneeling at the moment to get an even better look. The tombstone was simple - as her parents wanted, and was carefully engraved with their names and interlocking wedding bands.
Aidan closed her eyes as tears fell with nothing but the green sea to listen and the wind to wipe them from her cheeks.
Then after a few moments Aidan opened her eyes looking at the names etched in stone. "I love you," she whispered before she fell silent again. As Aidan slowly knelt in front of her parents, wincing slightly when her knee protested, she remembered sadly all the times, though short, they had together. The times her Dad took her to breakfast, just the two of them, and he treated her like a princess, or the times spent on the ranch and her mom teaching her how to ride a horse for the first time. All these memories came flooding back, and she smiled sadly, happy however that she could remember. They were memories that weren't taken away from her when she hit her head so many years ago.
They were something she knew she could always have and would hold close to heart, even if her parents were gone. Aidan placed the two roses in her hand at the base of the stone then gently touched it again, running a hand along the names.
"I love you," she whispered again, bowing her head some before slowly standing and walking back along the rows and on the hill to the car that waited for her. She smiled when she saw Ralph standing next to the car holding the door for her.
Her godfather sadly returned the smile and decided to walk out to her, meeting her a short distance from the car. He then welcomed Aidan's hug once she had reached the man. After a few moments he felt Aidan move and lifted his head, looking at her. "You ready to go Aidan?" he asked gently, one arm still wrapped around her waist for support so she didn't have to rely on the cane as he guided her the rest of the way to the car.
Aidan nodded, accepting her godfather's help, and put her hands in her pockets to keep warm and to hide the slight trembling she felt. Feeling something that was like jewelry box, Aidan gave a confused look and stopped, wondering how it got in her coat. She then pulled out the box, looking at it. She opened it up, and inside was a necklace - a strand of moonstone, blue goldstone, silver and aventurine beads, and had a center drop of a carved blue goldstone butterfly.
Ralph looked at the pendant. "That's nice Ade. Did you make it?" he asked, remembering the day when Aidan got to return to her studio at the gallery and work. Some of the projects she made that day were for the nurses who helped at the hospital, while others were a way of helping her heal from living the alternate reality. She relished the day, spending so much time making many projects to the point that her godparents threatened to carry her out of the studio when it was time to lock up for the day.
"No," Aidan looked at her godfather, shaking her head then looked back at the item in her hand, puzzled on where it came from, the only thing that came to her was it was a gift. "I'm not exactly sure where it came from, but I think it was a gift from...." she started, then paused, when she remembered on other time and place she last saw the necklace and that was the alternate reality…
She then realized that it was the gift the other Ralph had given her - the one from the green guys - a reminder of the second chance she had been given. She then realized why she had the necklace and why a butterfly. It represented rebirth - a new start in life. The green guys wanted her to remember that every choice had in its own way a butterfly effect, but whether it was the life she now lead or an alternate one was up to her.
"It was a gift from who," Ralph asked bringing her out of her thoughts, holding her a little tighter just in case something was wrong. She looked towards the horizon before answering.
"It was from a very old family friend," she grinned, putting the necklace and the box back in her pocket.
"Does this ‘friend’ have a name," her godfather asked curious at what old friend would have given his goddaughter such a gift.
Aidan thought about how she should answer then looked up at her godfather "A Karl Greene," she smiled hoping he would understand the reference.
Ralph looked at her confused for a second, not remembering anybody by that name. Then caught the glint of humor in her eyes and caught onto whom she was referring about. "Yes, I would say he is a old family friend," he chuckled and Aidan laughed with him. It was good to hear her laugh again, he thought. It seemed a long time since he had seen or heard Aidan laugh or even smile and it be a genuine one. With a contented sigh, Ralph asked Aidan if she was ready to leave.
Aidan looked back at her parents' grave, and smiled sadly. Part of her wanted to stay longer, but the more she looked at it, she felt at ease, as though her parents were looking back at her and smiling. For once, she realized, she was at peace with her past. "Yes, I'm ready Ralph. Let's go," she said as she carefully got into the car. Ralph closed the door and got into the front, and the car drove away.
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