A World Apart

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Chapter 3

When I woke up again I felt better. I looked around the small room, taking in the hospital’s décor and noticed my mother. She was talking to Robin, Ren’s twin, and looked my way.

“Raven! Sweetie, I’m so glad you’re all right. I was so worried when you didn’t come home last night!” She said and got up to come closer.

She gave me a kiss on the cheek and pulled the chair over to my bed,” I heard you were attacked, was it true?”

“Yes,” I replied,” I didn’t think this would happen though.”

“We’re just glad your okay!” She said, running a hand through her long red hair,” I’m going to go find your dad and tell him you’re awake. I’ll be right back.”

I watched my mother exit the room. My brother stared at me for a moment before speaking.

“Ren was really worried about you. Did you know that?” He said.

“He was?” I asked.

Robin nodded and bit his lip,” He thought you were dead when he found you. He said there was blood everywhere.”

I was shocked to hear the truth. I really could have died. If Ren wouldn’t have found me, then…

“Raven! You’re awake finally!” Rhea said giddily and came running into the room.

I watched my brother enter with mild amusement. He was always hyper, no matter the occasion. He pranced into the room and for a brief moment I thought he was going to jump on me. Instead he stopped right before my bed and pulled me into a gentle hug.

“I told you not to go out last night, did I not?” He said.

I pushed him away with whatever strength I had. His eyes were dancing and happy. He was wearing only a blue t-shirt and jeans. He ignored my protests to the last remark and sat down in a chair next to Robin. He pulled out some kind of candy bar from his pocket and began munching on it.

In between bites he said,” You know what, Rave? You’re really lucky.”

“I know,” I replied, suddenly looking around the room.

Unlike a normal hospital, I had no roommate. I had the entire room to myself. There was not a tube, heart monitor, or IV in sight. I had been encouraged to drink lots of water from the glass they kept full near my bedside table. The bed I was in was at least a full and very comfy. Pillows had been piled underneath my head, so I could see everyone in the room. A small television sat on a TV stand in front of the bed. It was like my own little hotel room. I also realized I wasn’t dressed in much - only an oversized cotton t-shirt that buttoned in the back.

I spent a good week in the hospital, before I was released one cool evening. I had spent the majority in the hospital sleeping and getting re-hydrated. They had encouraged me to drink a lot of water. Meals had been strange - consisting of anchovy soup or potato shrimp. As strange as the meals were, I had found myself enjoying their taste. My doctors were amazed, as well.

I had healed quickly, wanting desperately to just go home and get on with a normal life. I was shocked to find that the village of Kingsdale had a population of almost 8,000 cats. It amazed me to think that so many people lived in the middle of nowhere. The hospital was a decent size too.

I remember the evening being released on a Saturday night. I had been pushed out of the hospital in a wheelchair to our car that stood under the small hospital overhang. My brothers insisted one helping me into the car, so I had to make myself at home in the back seat.

We drove around for a while first. I know I hadn’t been very conscious the first time we had came through town, but none of this looked familiar. The buildings were all very tall, instead of wide. Most averaged three to six stories. The village was unimaginably clean and had perfect green lawns and several flowers. The sun was almost set and it would be dark soon. I wondered why they had released me so late. We’d have to drive for five hours before we got home and dad hates driving in the dark…

“Here we are,” Dad announced knowingly and pulled the car into the drive of one of those strange, tall buildings.

“What do you mean? We were supposed to go home. Is this like a hotel or something?” I asked from the backseat.

“Rave…there’s something we need to tell you-“

“We sold our house! We’re going to live here from now on!” Rhea interrupted.

“What?”

“It won’t be that bad, honey. You’ll get used to it quickly,” Mom said, turning around to look at me.

“But what about all my stuff? What about all my friends and my job?” I asked in a panicked voice.

“Don’t get yourself all worked up about it. We’ve already got it taken care of, alright?” Dad said and opened the car door and got out.

He came around to my side of the car and opened my door. I had no choice but to comply as I was dragged out of the seat and back out into the summer weather.

“This is ridiculous!” I argued as I was led into the house.

“It’s really not that bad, Raven. It’s actually kind of nice. You should see the downtown. It’s really cute and the people are really nice,” Robin said softly from next to me.

I scoffed, “Great! Just what I need…cute downtown!”

The room was dark, but instead of turning the lights on, I felt strong, yet gentle hands on my arms, pulling me up some stairs.

“Watch your step, especially with your hurt ankle,” Dad instructed.

By the time I got to wherever it was they were dragging me, I was exhausted. It seemed like there were hundreds of stairs. At one point I had grabbed onto Rhea to keep from falling. I felt him wrap an arm around my waist. I swear he thinks he’s older than me.

A light wooden door was opened. I noticed it had a big, blurry window on it for a little bit of privacy. I was still arguing when I was pushed inside the room.

“This is your sleeping room,” Dad said and flipped on a light from somewhere.

The room was small and very unlike what I had imagined. From what I had seen at the hospital, everything had been very contemporary and clean. There hadn’t been a whole lot of furniture or decorations, just the basics.

This room, my room, was the very opposite. The walls were covered in burgundy paint with a gold trim at the top. Fancy velvet pillows and blankets lined the floor and a tiny bookshelf was built into the wall. A bed sat upon a platform just a few feet away. The bed took up almost half the room and overlooked a horizontal window.

Against my will, I was eased down onto the bed.

“Goodnight Raven,” My dad said before shaking his head, turning the light off and walking out of the room, closing the door behind him.

I cursed and laid in the darkness. I pulled the few soft blankets closer to my body. The bed was actually very comfortable. It didn’t contain a hard mattress, but just a big, soft cushion. The one pillow under my head was enormous and full of feathers. I fell asleep in my new home that night.