me. I open my eyes long enough to see Zoë being lifted onto a stretcher and carried away.
“I think these are the missing girls that are all over the news,” I hear a warped voice say.
I feel my body being lifted and placed on something sturdy and flat. I collapse into it and stop fighting my consciousness. I let myself fall completely into the slumber that has been trying so desperately to claim me.
40. WAKING UP
Darkness once again surrounds me. I have no idea where I am. The cold has vanished, and something soft and warm lies underneath me. My eyes feel heavy, like they have been closed for years. I feebly try to lift my eyelids but am unsuccessful. My second attempt fairs better and gives me a brief glimpse at my surroundings before they fall closed again.
I hear many noises I recognize, but my brain feels like it is in the process of a reboot and I am unable to clearly process them. I once again try my eyelids. After a few blinks, I am able to keep them open.
The first thing I notice is light. Bright, blinding, warm light that is filling the room I am in. A few more blinks and my brain finally kicks into action as confusion fades away.
I am in a hospital room. I am lying in a bed. There are tubes and wires coming off my body and headed in several different directions. A machine is beeping slowly somewhere to my left. A bag of clear fluid hangs above my head and drips down a tube, into a vein in my arm. I turn my head slowly to my right. My neck is sore and strongly objects to movement. I wince in pain.
My dad is asleep, sitting up in a chair in the corner of the room. The slight noise I have made cause him to stir. He opens his eyes and quickly stands up and rushes over to me, “Emma! You’re awake!” He reaches out and grabs my hand. “Are you okay?”
I look up at him. Talking should be interesting. I shoot for a whisper. “I think so. Where am I?”
“You’re in a hospital in Bangor, Maine.”
I am silent for a moment as I search for the words. “What happened?”
“You don’t remember anything?”
The moment he asks the question, my whole life snaps back into place. Memory after memory of the last few months flies through my mind at warp speed. “Wait… where’s Zoë? Is she here too?"
Just as I finish asking, a nurse opens the door to the room and walks directly to me. “Emma, you’re finally awake! We’ve been worried about you.”
She begins examining me. I do not like one single second of it. I want her to stop and leave the room so I can talk to my dad. I fight every urge I have to scream at her.
She puts a blood pressure cuff on my arm and a thermometer in my mouth while she asks me ridiculous yes/no questions. Do I remember my name, do I know where I am, do I know what day it is; it feels like it will never end. “I’m going to go call the doctor and let him know you are awake. He will most likely want to come examine you himself. Do you need anything sweetie?”
“Just a few minutes alone with my dad, please.”
“Sure thing. I’ll be back after I speak with the doctor. Take it easy. I’ll be monitoring you from the desk.”
She leaves the room and closes the door gently behind her. I turn and look at my dad. Before I can get a word out, he says, “I know you have a thousand questions for me. Let me start with what you already asked. Zoë is here in the hospital too. In fact, she’s right next door. She woke up yesterday and she’s doing fine. She’s still pretty weak though.”
He pauses. I interrupt. “Natalie?” I demand, unable to locate any memories of her awakening. “Have you heard anything?”
A smile spreads over his face. “She made it back. You did it. It’s been all over the news. Girl awakens from mysterious coma after eight months.”
I smile. My eyes well up with tears and overflow down my cheeks.
“I don’t know how you did it, but you did it.”
I push myself up in the hospital bed. Every muscle in my body is sore and I wince in pain. “Take it easy, kiddo. You have a long way to go before you’re