She

It was 9:00 am when she woke-up slowly in her pristine and cushioned bed, a fuzzy daze hanging over her eyes and seemed reluctant to leave. The whiteness of the room nearly blinded her and she squinted. She tried to get out of bed but the searing pain in her head put her back to her position. She fell back onto her pillow, swimming in dizziness and gripped the blanket, trying to stop the ceiling from spinning. After sometime when the ceiling stopped spinning and the dizziness faded, she turned her head and looked out through the large window near her bed. She pushed herself into a sitting position and got up to go towards the window and fill her lungs with fresh air. Her legs felt stiff and refused to move as if they forgot to walk.

She looked out of the window. It was a sunny day and the sky seems to be void of any obstructions in the form of clouds. The temperature was a comfortable 23 degrees as indicated on the wall in front of her building. The street below was bustling with people of different ages; surprisingly all dressed in blue jumpsuits just like hers. Some were playing, some relaxing in the morning sun and some having their merry way. She also wanted to join the crowd below and enjoy the lovely day.

She turned around to find the room to be in a mess. Her favorite painting was lying on the ground, the chair was toppled. She tried hard to recall what happened the previous night but she failed miserably. Then she saw her. She saw on the other side of her bed was her 4 year old. She seems to be awake and in pain. She looked pale, her lips were dry and cracked, and eyes were buried deep in her eye-sockets. Her hair was all messy and her hands were shaking. It looked as if she was trying hard to breath. She quickly ran by her side and tried to help her. She didn’t know what to do. She tried to open the windows to let the fresh air come in, but surprisingly the windows were sealed. She ran to the door and tried to open but it was locked from outside. She ran back to her and saw red colored liquid flowing from her nose. She didn’t know what to do. She started screaming for help to all the people below but no-one seemed to hear her. She started banging the doors hoping someone would come and help her. She could not locate the phone also.

Suddenly in one corner of the room she saw a camera. She pulled the chair and climbed on it and started pleading to the camera hoping the one who is watching her would come. She started running around the room, looking for any medicine or medical kit which might relieve the child from the suffering. Finally the room opened and 3 men rushed in.

She said: “Yes, she is there, she needs your help” pointing towards the bed.

The men didn’t look that side and started walking slowly towards her. One of them asked: “Are you alright?”

“Of course I’m, you need to do something about her.”

The man said, “I think you need to come with us.”

She shrieked angrily, “What do you mean? You are going to leave her there?”

The man grabbed her hands firmly and told, “We believe you are having a nervous breakdown. There is no one on the bed.”

She turned back to see and she could still see her. “Noooo” She shouted and something sharp pinched in her shoulder and her world turned into a tunnel of darkness.

The man picked up the pile of papers hanging from the bed and wrote:

“Subject has had continued panic attacks that have worsened considerably and she refuses to take medication.”