Fluorescent Adolescent

I turned my alarm clock off a few minutes before it was set to go off, and seeing as how I'd been staring at the three neon green numbers for the fast few hours I thought it was stupid to wait since I was already wide awake. I wouldn't say I was nervous per se, I wasn't sure what I was feeling. Excited? Happy? How are you suppose to feel about something you've never encountered before? These are the questions that kept me up all night.

I didn't bother answering those questions as I rolled out of bed, rubbing my eyes in the process. I walked over to my bathroom and grabbed a towel from underneath the sink and turned on the shower. I stuck my hand under the running water, and immediately snached it back with a quiet hiss. Cold, as usual. My appartment wasn't the best one in Baltimore, but it was the nicest one that was closest to the hospital. When I moved to Maryland, I wanted to make living and working as easy as possible, and that started with where I'd actually be staying. The closer I was to work, the easier my life would be, or so I thought.

I quickly undressed and snatched my toothbrush and toothpaste, squinted my eyes and prepared myself for the most uncomfortable feeling there is: taking an ice cold shower. I thought I'd be use to taking freezing showers, seeing as how I do it every morning, but I'm not. I washed my hair, put in conditionair and brushed my teeth as fast as I could. I slipped out of the shower, a towel firmly wrapped around my body, and walked back into my bedroom where I layed out my blue scrubs. What fashionable clothing the hospital has you wear.

I didn't bother with makeup anymore, because working with hospitalized people makes you realise that no one really gives a shit about what you look like, especially the ones who've been around for a long time. But now that I think about it, I should have atleast tried to make a good impression when meeting my new patient.

Speaking of new patient, that's the reason I'm running on zero sleep. Dr. Marsh, the woman who's assigning each of the new nurses a patient, is introducing me to mine this morning. Am I excited? Sure. Am I happy to meet a new person? Of course. But was I prepared for what lay ahead once I met my patient? Absolutely not. But we'll get to that later.

After jumping into my (shitty) car, a granola bar hanging halfway out of my mouth, and silently hating myself for listening to Taylor Swift on the radio for most of the drive, the bright lights of the hospital came into view. I chowed down on the rest of my breakfast, took a swig from my water bottel, and I'm out of my car and walking in through the sliding doors of my work in record time. "Morning Mitchy, catch any sleep last night?" Miss Jannis, better know as Jan, asked me as I past her sitting behind the reception desk, a cup of coffee in hand.

I laughed at her question. For most of the people who work in the hospital, sleep doesn't come easy. You start to worry about the people you've taken care of that day, and even the people you'll take care of the next day. Or maybe you saw something horrific that you can't erase from your memory. Working in hospitals isn't about hugs and kisses and making things all better with the wave of your hand. Things will keep you up at night, and if you aren't ready for that, then you're in the wrong business.

"Not a chance, Jan. Stayed up all night thinkin' about who my mystery patient will be. I guess..I'm a little nervous." I let out a huge sigh, feeling somewhat better that I had gotten that out. Jan only smiled at me, that knowing smile that makes you wonder if she knows what's in store for your future and if what you're worrying about is actually worth worrying about. "I'm sure you'll love whoever you get, honey." I smiled, nodding my head, and continued to walk to the break room, the place where everyone who comes in the morning stays before they start their shift.

As I walked in, I was faced with the usual sight. Mckenna was spread out on one of the couches, sleeping like a rock. Everyone knew not to mess with her while she was sleeping, so no one but me woke her up to remind her about her shift. I first walked over to my locker, placing my purse and phone in there before closing it. Now was the real hassel. I quietly walked over to Kenna, gently placing a hand on her shoulder and shaking her lightly. "Ken, you gotta wake up, we're meeting Dr. Marsh in the lobby in like," I looked at my watch, "fifteen minutes. If she catches you sleeping again-"

McKenna turned over and faced me, an obvious smirk on her tiny lips. "She's not gonna say shit to me, Mitch. She adores me. You said it yourself. Now shut up and let me enjoy these last few minutes of sleep." With that, she turned around and sluggled back into the cushions of the couch. I sighed, knowing I did all I could without upsetting her. I stood up and walked over to the coffee maker, pouring myself a cup of the bitter energy. I winced as it burnt my tongue, but continued to drink it.

"Good morning Michelle, and good morning Miss Johns. Getting as much sleep as you can before you meet your patient, I hope?" McKenna shot up from where she was laying as she heard Dr. Marsh's voice fill the room, a light blush covering her cheeks, "Yes, ma'am." She answered, "Gotta be in tip top shape to take care of these people." Dr. Marsh smiled and nodded her head, "That's what I like to hear. I'll be seeing you girls in ten minutes, correct?" Kenna and I both answered her with another 'yes ma'am', and she walked out of the room.

I shook my head in disbelief. "Even when she catches you sleeping, she still let's you off the hook? Madness, I tell you.." McKenna laughed before, once again, shoving her face into the pillows.

* * * * *

"ALEX! MORE SHOTS! Come on, man!" Jack shoved me forward into the crowd, leading me to the bar. My head was spinning and my mind was somewhere else. Last night was our last show of our headlining tour, so the guys and I have been staying in a hotel somewhere in Baltimore. We went to a bar last night, got hammered, and slept through the day. Tonight was just a repeat. Don't get me wrong, I felt bad that I lied to Lisa about when I was coming home from tour, but I'd like to have a little more freedom and fun before I go back.

I knew I shouldn't have come out tonight, though. I had a feeling in my gut, or maybe it was the alcohol that was still in my stomach, I just knew tonight wasn't going to end well. But that didn't stop Jack and Rian from dragging me out of bed and into a different bar. Zack had decided to go home and stay with his girlfriend, something I wished I would have done, but I guess I wasn't thinking, as usual.

My eyes couldn't stay focused for more that a few seconds, and Jack had to hold me upright so that I didn't fall over. If him or Rian weren't as plastered as I was, they would have seen that something wasn't right. I concentrated on calming myself down, and before Jack could feed me another shot, I pushed his arm away with my hand. "Jack, I need to go back. I'm not feeling right."

Jack's smile only got wider. He thought I was joking. "Dude, if you take a shot you'll feel better, I promise." Again, he shoved the tiny brown liquid-filled glass in my face, only causing me to get pissed off. I swatted his hand away, accidently knocking the drinking out of his hand and onto his shirt, the glass shattering on the ground. One of the guys behind the bar yelled at us, but I was already stumbling over to the exit. Jack and Rian's shouts were faintly heard over the loud music, but I didn't bother stopping.

I shuffled out of the door, getting angry comments from the people I ran into. I would have appoligized, but I didn't know how to form the words. Angry and drunk, I continued walking until I realised I had no idea where I was going. Loud footsteps came behind me, and I turned around to see who it was. "Dude, you shouldn't be walking out here alone and drunk, you could hurt yourself. I'm going to call a cab to take us home." Rian quickly pulled out his phone and called for a cab. I didn't want to wait around for a cab, what I wanted was to go home. I turned back around and continued my way to the unknown, walking dangerously close to the side of the rode. "Alex! Stop fucking walking, a cab's on its way, you're gonna fucking hurt yourself-" Before Rian could finish his sentence about me hurting myself, I slipped on curb and tripped. Oh the irony.

Normally, people who fall throw their arms out to catch themselves, earning a few cuts on their hands. But for me, silly drunken me, my reflexes were a bit on the slow side thanks to the booze in my system. As I fell onto the street, the side of my head was the first thing to encounter the street. Pain slowly spread throughout the rest of my head. "Fuck, Lex! Rian, forget the cab, call 911!" Jack slowly picked me up, carrying me out from the street and onto the sidewalk.

I sighed, "Jack, I think I slipped." He chuckled, but it wasn't his usual laugh. He took off his jacket and rolled it up, placing it under my head. I could hear Rian on the phone a few feet away, "Yeah, he just slipped and his head hit the concrete...Yes its bleeding!...Well, yeah..he was laying in the street, we couldn't just leave him there...Um..Thames Street, down the road from O'Murphys Bar...5 minutes? Ok, thanks." And he hung up. "Jack, they said it wasn't good that you moved him, but make sure you don't move his head. I think he has a concussion."

I closed my eyes, feeling a lot more tired than I was a few minutes ago. Rian called Flyzik, telling him what happened, and probably getting yelled at, while Jack sat next to me, asking me if I was alright every few minutes. The sounds of the sirens could be heard down the road, bright lights flashing in every direction. Three or four different voices started talking to Rian and Jack, asking what happend to me while they carefully lifted me up onto a stretcher and carried me into the back of the truck. "There's only room for one person to ride, are either of you coming?"

I think I heard Rian say that Jack could ride with me, but I could be wrong. Everything after that was confusing and blurry, and I was more tired than anything. All I wanted to do was sleep, but Jack kept pinching my arm, telling me I couldn't. Though while we were on our way to the hospital, my eyes fell closed for good, and not even Jack's hurtful pinches and worried voice could keep me awake. Sleep at last.