Consequences

After disobeying the rules Adelyn was thoroughly reprimanded and has been asked not to return to the hospital as a volunteer anymore. She didn't wait for Margret to raise the complaint instead she outed herself just to relieve the anxiety of waiting for it to happen on it's own. Once home she plopped down onto her bed face first, satisfied with her last encounter with Sandra. Rolling over she kicked off her shoes and spread out across the sheets "She woke up" a smile creased her eyes as a tear spilled gently out knowing it was the last time she'd see Sandra again. "This is for the best." exhausted from a long day she falls fast asleep fully clothed on top of all the blankets.

Ring ring... Ring ring... Click "Hello?"

"Hi honey, it's your mom. I just wanted to see how your doing." Cheryl Stewart spoke in a cheery intonation that only hid her true nature slightly.

"Um why? You never call me." caution and confusion in Adelyn's voice.

"That hurts, I'm your mother. Of course I worry about you." the tone sounded mildly sad.

"I'm sorry mom, was there something you needed?" Adelyn asks using her best concerned voice.

"I been watching KSDK news.." her mother's words trailed off.

"OK and? What's so important that you wake me up in the middle of the night?" irritated that this conversation couldn't wait.

"Oh you haven't seen it yet? It's everywhere." Cheryl emphasizes the word everywhere.

"What is? Can you just tell me already?" rubbing her temples Adelyn questions.

"OK well there is this whole article telling this crazy story about some woman that was put in a coma for a whole year? They are naming you... It's bad enough you have your 'perversions' now this? My god Adelyn do you have no decency! Do you not think for one moment how this will look! Your father was furious when his boss brought it to his attention."

"Wait what? Why the heck is it on the news?" Adelyn sits up with a start.

"Obviously you pissed someone off. The things that are being said... my God Adelyn, is it true? Why didn't you tell me you were in trouble!"

"I was in a car accident, what's to tell?" her words dismissive.

"Obviously a great deal according to the news. It says that you had been drinking and driving. Now dear I know I taught you better than that." her tone quite matter of fact.

"It was below the legal limit mom, I swear I wasn't driving drunk!" exasperation in her tone.

"You put a 27 year old woman in a coma for a whole year! Her mothers voice now more than skeptical. "After what happened to Benedict, you'd think you would have known better."

Tears in her voice with a tinge of anger "I know what I did mom! Don't you think I hate myself enough already? You don't have to add insult to injury."

Ignoring the sadness in her daughters voice she continues "You're father and I are put in a very difficult position. Whatever you do don't talk to the media, you'll only make things worse. You know I love you dear I just wish you'd accept God into your heart so you can be done with all this nonsense."

"Not this again, I told you my being agnostic isn't the reason I'm gay ugh." Adelyn getting flustered knowing exactly where her mother is taking this conversation.

"All I'm saying is you wouldn't have gotten into this mess if you were going to church like the rest of us." her mother replies with a matter a fact tone of voice.

"OK mom, I need to go" exasperated Adelyn quickly tries to end the conversation.

"Think about what I said dear" her mother adds before hanging up.

Adelyn tosses her phone on her bed with a great sigh and a few tears. Running her hand through her hair she decides to take a shower. As the hot water passes over her body her thoughts wander back to Sandra. At first it was the guilt creeping up, remembering her laying there in the hospital every day, taking care of her. Then the more recent memory over takes the old ones. The memory of Sandra waking up and how their eyes connected. The moment she opened her eyes and stared back at her. The confusion on her face, the way her eyes gazed back with such beauty. Her eyes reminded Adelyn of the dreams she was having, the ones where she and Sandra were happy together. The one's where they laughed and teased each other, making Adelyn feel like she's known Sandra her whole life. Closing her eyes Adelyn lets her mind get lost in those dreams. Those intense green eyes captured Adelyn's thoughts as she absently washed her body, the water beginning to lose it's heat. She found herself drawn to the memory of Sandra's lips that night they kissed, flushing her cheeks a rosy red, she leans against the wall imagining what those lips would feel like in real life. Her hand slides down her tone stomach. She imagines Sandra's fingers are caressing her skin gently and moving downward towards her center. Suddenly she realizes the water turned icy as it pounds her sensitive nipples. She shivers with the shock of cold shooting through her body and quickly reaches for the faucet.

After stepping out and wrapping a small towel around herself she strolls towards her bedroom to grab some clothes. Her dresser on the opposite side of the room, she notices something outside her window. The curtains are drawn open and the blinds partial allowing light to trickle in. The small slits reveal a silhouette and the sounds of clicking. Gasping Adelyn grabs the covers from her bed and wraps them around herself before closing the curtains. "What the hell! her mothers words come to mind "Reporters!" she haphazardly dresses as quickly as possible before peaking outside her curtains once more. "Fuck" a few people walk around her yard trying to take pictures of her any way they can. A man with large clunky camera equipment wobbled over. Calling after her "Miss Tracy, do you have anything to say about your crash? How much were you drinking? Why is this only coming to light a year after the incident? Do you know the coma patient personally? Their questions persisting.

"Don't they have something better to do?" she gathers her things attempting to give them the slip going out the window furthest from her room and makes a run for the bus as it drives up to the nearest bus stop. Thankful for it's timing she quickly grabs a seat. Looking out the window at the News van displaying a large red number 5 on the side; thinks 'Must be a slow week if they are seeking me out.'

_______

Stuck in her hospital bed Sandra looks around the room wishing she could express more than simple words. Her vocal cords feel rough and ache to some degree just from the small amounts she is able to say. Though unable to move very much she attempts to move her arms for gesturing water whenever the nurse stops by to check on her. She heard the doctors talking outside telling someone that she will have to stay for observation for at least a week. She resigns herself to her prison and decides to make the best of it. Glancing around the room she notices some drawings hung up haphazardly on the wall. A smile creeps up her face slowly as though it's draining her energy bit by bit. She notices some of them are in different styles and stages of artistic ability, she wonders 'who made them?' Just as that thought crossed her mind a young boy walked by with his mother, he glanced over. To her surprise he bounded into the room dragging his mother in with him.

"Bobby! What are you doing? " the woman scolded.

looking up with an apologetic pout "I'm so very sorry momma." feeling satisfied with his apology he turns to Sandra.

"Hi, I'm Bobby! " the boy exclaimed with the enthusiasm of winning a prize "I'm glad your awake now, every time I came here before you were sleeping."

He pulls a paper from his little batboy backpack and lays it on Sandra's legs face down "I didn't give you this one last time" he chuckles " it's a seacwet" he then bounds out of the room as quickly as he entered.

"Please forgive him, he's very social." the mother walks out "Don't run in the hall!" was the last thing Sandra heard as the pair left. A soft breathy laugh escaped her lips. The paper sitting atop her legs drew her attention "A secret?" her strength was not enough to retrieve the small gift. She strained to lean forward and to move her arm but did not move more than a few centimeters forward. She eyed the bed controls deciding she will make the bed sit her up electronically, she put all her efforts into pushing the up button. Lifting her arm was quite the challenge already but using her fingers was out of the question. Sandra's shoulders slouched in dismay when she was unable to achieve even that. Her hands stiff but her strength not enough to compress the button fully. She laid there looking at the upside down paper contemplating what it might be and how to obtain it.

Her thoughts were interrupted by a gravely voice nearby "Where is Adelyn? She hasn't come in to take care of me for a while." Mrs. Bethel questions the nurse as they walk up and down the corridor.

"She's been asked to not come back, something about violating policies or what have you, doesn't surprise me. That girl was always getting into trouble" the grouchy nurse replied.

"I liked her she was a nice young woman, is it criminal to bring a lady something decent to eat?" the voices trailed off as they got further away from Sandra's room. Suddenly a nurse walked in startling her slightly with her chipper bounce.

'She must be new, nothing at all like the other ones I'm used to dealing with' Sandra's thoughts a bit judgmental after the slight scare 'I guess she's alright' attempting to be optimistic just before the chipper young woman picks up the paper that's been laying on Sandra's legs and shoves it into a drawer 'she's the devil' Sandra's face grimaced with frustration 'now how am I going to get that paper?' "Ugh" she groans audibly. The pink clad nurse organizes a few more things before flashing a bright smile at Sandra.

"It must be awfully boring in here all alone" the tone is high pitched and just as bouncy as she looks.

'Just what I need, a valley girl' Sandra sighs loudly hoping it would make the girl leave.

"Here let me put on some TV for you, would you like that? " the nurse grabs the remote and begins flipping though the channels "hmm animal planet, no... who wants to watch stinky animals."

"I would' Sandra a bit disappointed inwardly.

"Oh here we go! The Bachelor, this is a great season!" the nurse smiles brightly then leaves the room absent mindedly placing the remote on a table.

'Really? Your going to leave me with this? Why are there so many girls in that house fighting over one man?' rolling her eyes she searches for the remote, hoping the buttons are easier to press than the beds up down function. Spotting it on the table nearby she clumsily hefts her arm over to it and shakily moves her hand over the remote then over the channel button. Her hand starts to shake worse from the strain and knocks the controller to the floor. 'Damn' she glances up at the TV deciding it's better than nothing. A few hours go by as Sandra soon realizes that they are showing a Bachelor marathon. Little by little she becomes invested in the characters. After some time passes a woman walks in "What do they have you watching?" she looks up at the tv and shakes her head in disappointment "What a terrible show." the woman picks up the remote from the floor and promptly turns it off setting the remote on the tv stand.

"But the rose ceremony just started! Now I won't know who Colton chooses!" her face scrunched up in concern until she realized who had walked in.

"ls that the face I get when I come to visit my baby girl?" Margret tucks the blankets underneath the bed absent mindedly not realizing how trapped Sandra feels already.

"The doctors said you will have at the very least four weeks of physical therapy at this special facility, they have trainers and everything! Until then you'll have to stay here in this dreadful place." She looks around remembering all the days she spent here with Adelyn.

"Only a week my dear but I'll be glad to rid myself of this place. " Margret sneered with that last sentence. "In the mean time I'll catch you up on everything, slowly of course" she picks up a small photo book and begins to flip through the pages "This is Suzanne, your sister, my youngest daughter after you of course. This is her husband Lukas, he's a decent man not unlike your father, bless him." Margret looks off to the side for a moment before returning to Sandra.

Sandra studies the photos closely examining the two figures. She realizes at that moment that she doesn't know what her own face looks like. She raises her hand to her face, unable to move well, she struggled to get an accurate depiction. Noticing Sandra's confusion Margret pulled out a mirror from her purse "I guess I should have started with this" she whispers to herself. Sandra's eyes dart around her face deep in contemplation. staring back at her were two intensely green eyes, then she notices her dark hair falling about shoulder length, finally resting on the scar on her eyebrow sparking a memory of the time a woman at a bar gently touched that scar. She wonders why that woman hasn't come to visit her since she first woke up.

"Your scar? You got that when you were five years old. I told your father not to chase you around the house but he did anyways, you thought it was hysterically funny until you fell and split your eyebrow open on the fireplace. Thank God it wasn't worse, eight stitches and you were right back at it again." Margret's eyes looked far away for a moment as if lost in time. "Well that was a long time ago." she dismissed whatever it was she was thinking about and continued with the photos "Oh this little bundle of joy is James, Susanne decided after a little coercing to name him after your father." she lifts the photograph out from the book, smiling fondly before displaying it for Sandra to see. The blurry ultrasound photo shows a small baby boy suckling his tiny thumb.

"He is about 28 weeks right there, you should see him now. The little tike sure has grown a lot."

Sandra smiles watching the woman beam with pride at her collection of memories, while still struggling to regain her own memories of the past.