I tried to nod, the reaction instinctive. Pain shot through my head, my world shifting, my vision blurring. I snapped my eyes closed, my world continuing to spin as I struggled to suck in air, trying desperately to suppress the nausea swirling in the pits of my stomach.
The machine beside me buzzed, blaring out an ear-piercing trill.
I felt the doctor shift beside me, and a moment later, the machine stopped buzzing. He moved down the bed, placing his hands on the soles of my feet.
"Okay, Emily. Can you push against my hands?"
I pushed, feeling weak but grateful for his approving sounds.
"Good." He let my feet go, moving up my body as he checked for movement. "Can you tell me what day it is?"
"New Year's Eve," I whispered, eyes still shuttered.
"Close but not quite. Your accident happened two days ago. You've been in a coma since then." He touched my neck, feeling around the back and asking if anything hurt.
The muscles were sore, whiplash perhaps? But I didn't feel overwhelming pain like that in my head.
"What happened?"
"Do you know what year it is?"
"If it's the new year, then it has to be twenty-fifteen."
The doctor's hand rested on my shoulder.
"Twenty-fifteen?" he clarified.
"Mm."
"What's the last thing you remember?" he asked, his tone soothing, his voice quiet.
I wracked my brain, desperate to remember. "A party. Cal, my fiancé, was there. We were driving home." I shot up, trying to focus on one of the two doctors weaving before me. "Where's Cal?"
Double vision. Nausea. Pain. Bandages. We’ve been in an accident. Shit. Shit. Shit! Where’s Cal?
"Your hus—fiancé is fine. He wasn't involved in the crash. He's just popped home to get a change of clothes, but we'll advise him of your waking and ensure he returns soon."
I closed my eyes, embracing the dark. "Okay. What happened?"
"Your car came off the road and hit a tree. Emily, I need you to open your eyes so I can do some tests. Can you do that for me?"
The tests were straightforward but left me exhausted and in more pain.
"Right, we're going to get you some more pain medication. You'll likely sleep after it's administered. That's for the best right now. The double vision is to be expected but should wear off in the next day or so. We're going to run a few more tests, but I'll talk about them after you rest."
"Okay," I muttered, eyes squeezed tight against the bright lights.
"We'll also move you out of ICU to a ward. Your vitals look good, though this concussion is nasty. You've received a few minor abrasions and have some rather painful bruising, but overall you're lucky it's not worse."
I tried to ask what happened, tried to form the words with my exhausted mouth. But the painkillers were flowing through my system, and the pull of blissfully painless sleep called.
I sank down into the nothingness, embracing the dark.
I next wokein a different room with a slightly less painful head. This room had dim lighting and fewer machines. My sister sat with her husband in chairs beside the window, quietly murmuring.
"Collins?" my whisper was nothing more than a hoarse exhalation of air.
"Oh, Emily." Collins surged forward, immediately disengaging from Nick to come to my side, her fingers intertwining with mine. "You're awake. Thank God!"
