I heard your voice, pleading with someone. Garbled, but I could tell your voice from a mile away. The room lightened. My finger twitched painfully. What happened to me? My lips pursed and tasted the metallic air. I could always tell when I was in a hospital. I groaned and rubbed my eye, shooting hot coals up my arms. "Fuck" escaped my hoarse throat. The light was blinding, but I could make out your silhouette. Feeling your eyes, I murmured your name. Something fell.

"Luke?"

"What the fuck happened, Shelby?"

I heard your sobs and footsteps, and you were gone.

I sit up bleary eyed and sore everywhere. The first thing I notice is the beeping of a machine, I soon realize is a heart rate monitor, and I'm in the hospital. I have no memory of the past however long I have been in a coma but my last memory was I was in my car driving home from work and then something happened. I don't exactly remember but all I remember was the stress and anxiety I felt....

(To be continued...)

Crashing pain.. And a deluge of throbbing ache in my head..

How do you breathe? The air doesn't reach me.. No matter how much I'd love to live now..

The darkness resurfaces.. Ugh! Voices, hushed whispers..

Bleep.. Bleep.. Bleep..

"He is waking.. Maybe you should wait some more.."

No.. Wait..! Where the hell am I? This white ceiling..

Shit.. It's so much pain.. Why am I lying down? I need to pee..

By the way,.. Who am I?

I always loathed waking up from a pleasant dream. As my consciousness struggles to rouse, I find myself consumed with rage. Not because the dream is over, but because the warmth and security I felt has no place in this world. Then I'd remember to love my life, and allow the anger to recede. Only this time was different. This time,I awoke having lost all semblance of a life. I slept away the last ten years, leaving my body to fall prey to entropy as my mind to retreated to the warmth of dreams. This vitriol won't subside.

I must have gone blind because I can't find where that beeping is coming from. It sounds like it's far away, yet it sounds so close. I keep searching, but the harder I try, the faster the beeping becomes. If I didn't know any better, I'd say it was matching my heartbeat. I can feel it beating hard and fast in my chest and the beeping is doing the same. I heard a click and can finally see light. It burns, but my arms won't move to shield my eyes. They're heavy. Then I remember: I've been in a coma.