Lullaby And Goodnight

I swatted out beside by bed to switch off that annoying beeping sound. But the thing I hit was soft, and yelled out when my hand collided. I slowly unpeeled my eyes open and saw my little brother. His glasses askew and his hand over a red mark, that I assumed I made.

"Sorry." My voice was hoarse and sore. I saw a drip to one side of me, and a bag of blood on the other. Both were attached to each of my hands. I also discovered the beeping sound was a heart monitor. I started to panic. I could feel something in my hand, A NEEDLE! I started screaming and thrashing. Mikey jumped on the bed and held me tight, trying to calm me down and keep me still. I was sobbing by now and shaking. I just wanted that fucking needle out! An elderly nurse rushed in and helped pin me down. I was still trying to thrash about and pull the IV and the tube with the blood out.

"Mr. Carter. Mr. Carter calm down. What is wrong?"

I balled my fists tightly trying to stop the tears so I could talk.

"Get the needles out of my hands!" I managed to yell.

"He's Bellonaphobic." Mikey explained.

"Mr. Carter, there's no needle in there. We used needles to put them in but they're out now. I promise. Its just a piece of plastic to keep the tubes attached. You lost a lot of blood and also needed fluids to keep you hydrated. But I promise that there is absolutely no needles in you what so ever." I calmed down slightly more and was now just letting out the odd dry sob. Mikey hugged me tight and let me calm down. The nurse had a kind face, baby blue eyes, and her smile made the wrinkles beside her eyes more noticeable. She stroked my hair softly and brushed the long strands behind my ears. I winced as pain burst through me again.

"What happened to me?"

"Well Mr. Carter..."

"Please, call me Gerard."

"Well Gerard, you had a broken rib and horrific injuries to your stomach and you had multiple cuts to your urm...lower...region." She smiled sympathetically.

"Do you wanna tell me what happened?" The nurse, Helena, as her name tag read, asked me softly. I glanced at Mikey but quickly shifted my gaze to the foot of the bed when I caught his eye.

"Um...Well. I was raped this morning." I whispered softly. I heard her gasp and felt her hand on my bare shoulder. "That might explain the lower cuts. And in the school grounds at break, the captain of the football team attacked me with his switch blade and cut all my stomach." I glanced down at my naked torso and read the words he carved, now surrounded by stitches.

"Honey. You need to tell this to the police." My gaze shot up to meet hers.

"No I don't." She sighed and made me lay back down, which was painful. "We'll see how you go shall we?" She smiled softly and left the room.