Everyone froze.
“I’m still here,” I said.
Alice blinked.“We know.”
“I mean—” I paused, choosing my words carefully.“I know I was out for a while.But I’m awake now.And I’d like to be included in decisions about me.”
My mom’s expression softened.“Of course, sweetheart.”
“I don’t need a guard schedule,” I added.“Or whispered conversations.”
Alice grimaced.“Okay, but in our defense, we whisper about everything.”
“That’s fair,” I admitted.“But I’m not fragile glass.I know I got hurt,” I continued.“And I appreciate all of you.I really do.But I don’t want to feel like a problem you’re managing.”
The room was quiet for a moment.
Then Karmen nodded.“Okay.”
Alice nodded too.“Okay.”
Clove smiled.“Okay.”
My mom hesitated, then nodded as well.“Okay.”
Ender didn’t say anything.
But his eyes stayed on me, steady and intent.
A nurse poked her head in a moment later, clipboard in hand.“Well, look at this,” she said brightly.“Awake and alert.”
“Mostly,” I said.
She laughed.“I like your honesty.”
She checked my vitals, shined a light in my eyes, asked me to squeeze her fingers and push against her hands.I complied, even when it made my head throb again.
“Good,” she said finally.“Very good.”
“Can I eat real food?”I asked hopefully.
She smiled.“We’ll start light.”
“Define light.”
She grinned.“Jell-O.”
I groaned.
Alice patted my arm.“I think chocolate cake is the same as Jell-O, so we can just do a little switch-a-roo.”
“Alice,” Mom scolded.
Alice winked at Mac.“You had to have known that you were going to run into the loudmouth ol’ lady that does whatever she wants, right?”she asked.“Which one of the Iron Fiends ol’ ladies gave you grief?”
“All of them,” Mac confessed.
“Just stick to Jell-O to start with,” the nurse laughed again.“The doctor should be in to see you in a little bit.”She finished typing away on the computer and then escaped the crowded room.
