Post by cam83 on Sept 23, 2003 17:44:21 GMT -5
Chapter One
Karen awoke and saw that all sorts of tubes and wires surrounded her. She knew, from glancing around, that she was in the hospital. But for what? She couldn't remember anything happening.
Only that her chest was really throbbing in pain, but a dull pain. She lifted part of her hospital gown, and saw that part of her chest was covered with bandages and gauze. Some tubes were coming out from that particular area. It seemed really serious but for what?
She lay back down and tried to think of why she was here. It took her awhile to remember but then it slowly came to her, like pieces of a confusing puzzle.
She remembered that she was getting up for the day, and she was just going to head into the shower. She and her mother Agnes were going wardrobe shopping, as she needed new clothes. She was just thinking of what she would wear for the special outing and was in her wardrobe, which housed all of her many clothes which she saved, when without warning, she hit the floor and passed out.
That was all that she remembered. She rang the buzzer at the side of her hospital bed, and soon enough a nurse came to her room.
"Oh, I see that you have awakened?" asked the friendly nurse.
"What happened to me, and where am I?" Karen inquired, "and where is my family?" Karen asked as she sat up in her hospital bed.
She had no sense of time, and still thought it was that morning. Why wouldn' t they be here? She wondered to herself. Did they even know she was here? Oh, and she still had an appointment with her lawyer Werner Wolfen to sign the divorce papers. He wasn't going to be too pleased that she had missed the appointment.
"No need to get worried, they are down in the cafeteria. You gave them all quite a scare. It's a good thing that you were revived. For a few minutes…well, you're fine now. That's the important thing right now," said the nurse.
Karen could see the concern that was evident in the nurse's face, and knew that this was a serious matter. She wanted to know what had happened to her as she just could not remember, try as she might. All she remembered was passing out.
"Can you let them know that I am up and want to see them," asked Karen, who was starting to feel tired and drained. She closed her eyes, as the nurse left the room, but she started to reflect on what happened. Mom is sure not going to be happy. Her and Richard will say that I am not better and I'm just going to get in more trouble. Oh sometimes I wish I were dead, than to have to face all of this. I wish they would all understand that I am better. I haven't even thrown up, taken laxatives, or starved since I came back from New York. There were times I wanted to, but I didn't. I did win my fight with anorexia and it definitely wasn't easy, but I did it. Why can't anyone see that?
The door opened, and in walked her parents, Agnes and Harold Carpenter, and her older brother Richard. They seemed to have aged overnight, it seemed to her. She had never seen them look quite this way before, and it terrified her, but she tried to keep calm about it, and find out what had really happened to her.
They came to her, and embraced her, and the tears began to fall not only on Karen but also on everyone in the room. Karen was so shocked. Her family was not a warm, tactile type of family. She realized that her illness and hospitalization had changed the family dynamics in some way. She didn't know if it would last or not and that kind of worried her. She was scared that everything would go back to normal, and then all concern would be gone.
"Oh Karen…we thought…that we had lost you…we were in agony…what would we do without you here?" said a shaken Agnes, amidst sobs. Agnes very rarely if ever showed these kinds of emotions, as this was not the way that she had been raised. It was very unusual to see Agnes like this. Something horrible must have happened. But what?
Karen could see that her father Harold was visibly moved. He didn't say anything, but she could tell by the tears streaming down his face. Her father was more of the quieter reserved type, and he let his wife do most of the talking.
Richard's face was gray and he looked way older than his 35 years. He still was dressed fine, and his hair was perfectly in place but his face…he just didn't look the same way it usually did. In a split second, Karen realized how close she had been to death, and maybe still was. She could just tell. But she wasn't sick. Why had this happened to her? She had beat anorexia, and she was cured. Wasn't she? She just didn't seem to know any more, and she lay her head back in her pillow in exhaustion.
She had only been awake for awhile, and already she was drained. Her chest also hurt her, and she could see the tubes all over her body running here and there attached to various machines.
The same nurse came in, and told the family that Karen needed to get more rest. Agnes didn't even bat an eyelash or stand her ground. She was too exhausted to fight and be authoritarian. She wanted to be home and sleep and wish this awful nightmare away. In the comfort of her own home, she would be fine. When Karen came home, she would be fine as well, and life would continue on. This was Agnes' way of thinking. Just pretend that everything was better, and everything bad would go away. After their warm good-byes, the room became quiet, as they left.
The only sound in the room was the sound of Karen's breathing, and the machines that were attached to her. Karen started feeling groggy after the nurse gave her medication, and soon she was out, lost in a dreamworld.
Her dreams were weird. She dreamt that she and Richard were together, and then he just vanished. She woke up during the night in tears. It had seemed so real, that Richard was taken from her. What would she do without him. He was her everything, and without him, she knew that she was nothing. That was the way it had already been, and probably always would be.
Karen awoke and saw that all sorts of tubes and wires surrounded her. She knew, from glancing around, that she was in the hospital. But for what? She couldn't remember anything happening.
Only that her chest was really throbbing in pain, but a dull pain. She lifted part of her hospital gown, and saw that part of her chest was covered with bandages and gauze. Some tubes were coming out from that particular area. It seemed really serious but for what?
She lay back down and tried to think of why she was here. It took her awhile to remember but then it slowly came to her, like pieces of a confusing puzzle.
She remembered that she was getting up for the day, and she was just going to head into the shower. She and her mother Agnes were going wardrobe shopping, as she needed new clothes. She was just thinking of what she would wear for the special outing and was in her wardrobe, which housed all of her many clothes which she saved, when without warning, she hit the floor and passed out.
That was all that she remembered. She rang the buzzer at the side of her hospital bed, and soon enough a nurse came to her room.
"Oh, I see that you have awakened?" asked the friendly nurse.
"What happened to me, and where am I?" Karen inquired, "and where is my family?" Karen asked as she sat up in her hospital bed.
She had no sense of time, and still thought it was that morning. Why wouldn' t they be here? She wondered to herself. Did they even know she was here? Oh, and she still had an appointment with her lawyer Werner Wolfen to sign the divorce papers. He wasn't going to be too pleased that she had missed the appointment.
"No need to get worried, they are down in the cafeteria. You gave them all quite a scare. It's a good thing that you were revived. For a few minutes…well, you're fine now. That's the important thing right now," said the nurse.
Karen could see the concern that was evident in the nurse's face, and knew that this was a serious matter. She wanted to know what had happened to her as she just could not remember, try as she might. All she remembered was passing out.
"Can you let them know that I am up and want to see them," asked Karen, who was starting to feel tired and drained. She closed her eyes, as the nurse left the room, but she started to reflect on what happened. Mom is sure not going to be happy. Her and Richard will say that I am not better and I'm just going to get in more trouble. Oh sometimes I wish I were dead, than to have to face all of this. I wish they would all understand that I am better. I haven't even thrown up, taken laxatives, or starved since I came back from New York. There were times I wanted to, but I didn't. I did win my fight with anorexia and it definitely wasn't easy, but I did it. Why can't anyone see that?
The door opened, and in walked her parents, Agnes and Harold Carpenter, and her older brother Richard. They seemed to have aged overnight, it seemed to her. She had never seen them look quite this way before, and it terrified her, but she tried to keep calm about it, and find out what had really happened to her.
They came to her, and embraced her, and the tears began to fall not only on Karen but also on everyone in the room. Karen was so shocked. Her family was not a warm, tactile type of family. She realized that her illness and hospitalization had changed the family dynamics in some way. She didn't know if it would last or not and that kind of worried her. She was scared that everything would go back to normal, and then all concern would be gone.
"Oh Karen…we thought…that we had lost you…we were in agony…what would we do without you here?" said a shaken Agnes, amidst sobs. Agnes very rarely if ever showed these kinds of emotions, as this was not the way that she had been raised. It was very unusual to see Agnes like this. Something horrible must have happened. But what?
Karen could see that her father Harold was visibly moved. He didn't say anything, but she could tell by the tears streaming down his face. Her father was more of the quieter reserved type, and he let his wife do most of the talking.
Richard's face was gray and he looked way older than his 35 years. He still was dressed fine, and his hair was perfectly in place but his face…he just didn't look the same way it usually did. In a split second, Karen realized how close she had been to death, and maybe still was. She could just tell. But she wasn't sick. Why had this happened to her? She had beat anorexia, and she was cured. Wasn't she? She just didn't seem to know any more, and she lay her head back in her pillow in exhaustion.
She had only been awake for awhile, and already she was drained. Her chest also hurt her, and she could see the tubes all over her body running here and there attached to various machines.
The same nurse came in, and told the family that Karen needed to get more rest. Agnes didn't even bat an eyelash or stand her ground. She was too exhausted to fight and be authoritarian. She wanted to be home and sleep and wish this awful nightmare away. In the comfort of her own home, she would be fine. When Karen came home, she would be fine as well, and life would continue on. This was Agnes' way of thinking. Just pretend that everything was better, and everything bad would go away. After their warm good-byes, the room became quiet, as they left.
The only sound in the room was the sound of Karen's breathing, and the machines that were attached to her. Karen started feeling groggy after the nurse gave her medication, and soon she was out, lost in a dreamworld.
Her dreams were weird. She dreamt that she and Richard were together, and then he just vanished. She woke up during the night in tears. It had seemed so real, that Richard was taken from her. What would she do without him. He was her everything, and without him, she knew that she was nothing. That was the way it had already been, and probably always would be.
