• Kaitlyn lay half asleep on her bed the next morning, the yellow light coming from the same style of windows with bars.
    The rooms were all made like this, barren. Barren was an understatement which implied that items within a certain space are few and far between. All that were in the rooms were a mattress, chair, and a small closet. Some rooms were made more personal for permanent or long-term residents and were decorated with things from home like pictures and posters, drawings and other pieces of furniture. The wall color was off-white with a light touch of mint green.
    Blue eyes blurred as they were overcome with bright white. The door was opened a crack and she could hear the normal buzz of patients talking and playing games as well as the nurses who made frequent checks to the different areas, rooms, and particular patients around the ward.
    Each ward held about twenty patients and had about ten or fifteen nurses at the least, working around the clock. The wards were normally kept in small numbers to offer better care to the patients, but in cases of overloads each single-floor ward could hold up to three times its normal capacity.
    Patients were usually assigned individually to one nurse for their first few weeks in the hospital; Kaitlyn’s nurse opened the door slightly and looked down at her face that was still and sleepy.
    “Not feeling well dear?” The nurse spoke with a fading Irish accent.
    “Just tired, threw up the medicine if you don’t recall, couldn’t sleep.”
    The nurse came in and stood in front of her; Kaitlyn reached out an arm and touched her white canvas shoe.
    “Could I get some water, please Becky?”
    “Yes, I’ll be right back.” Becky slowly slid her shoe from Kaitlyn's hand and walked out.
    Kaitlyn sighed and put her hand on her empty aching stomach. But she wanted to sleep and she knew if she got up and ate that she wouldn't be able to settle back down.
    “Are you going to stay in there all day?” It was Ben's voice coming from her doorway.
    “I’m thinking,” she rolled back over and stared at the ceiling without even looking at him.
    “Thinking put you here, didn’t it?” He stepped forward two paces and stopped, leaning against the closet wall just behind the shadow.
    “Shut up, Ben. I'm tired.”
    “Not in the mood at all? Shame, there was a spot on the couch with your name on it.” He stepped forward once more, a sly grin on his face as the light came over him.
    “It doesn’t really have my name on it.” She looked at him with an eye of childish attitude.
    “How would you know? You didn’t look.” He kept grinning.
    “Oh, come on,” she prodded, sitting up.
    He held out his hand to her.
    “Nope, not moving. I want water and I want sleep,” she lay back down and crossed her arms over her chest.
    “Yeah, I heard you sick last night. Always gives me a bad feeling when people throw up. My uncle died like that, alcoholic.”
    “Just like I’m afraid of people coughing, you know, lung cancer.”
    “I suppose you’re afraid of Arab people and camouflage as well?”
    She stared a hole through him with her burning gaze.
    “Sorry, I’m trying to get you up. You look so sad,” his hand was still outstretched.
    “I am sad. That’s why I’m here.”
    “I thought thinking got you here?” He prodded again.
    “Thinking made me sad," she rolled on her side, aggravated, but she knew he was right. She felt so powerless.
    “I’m sorry,” he stepped over again and knelt next to her mattress, “I’m just trying to cheer you up. I told you no dying, remember?”
    She nodded, but there was still a tear in her eye. He hesitantly reached his hand out and moved her hair from her eyes; he continued to stroke her silky red strands until she stopped gathering tears.
    “Now, would you please come out and see the couch?”
    She rolled on her back again, sighed, and then sat up.
    Becky walked back in before Kaitlyn had given an answer.
    “New friend?” Becky gestured towards Ben who was still sitting on the floor next to her bed.
    “More like a new pest,” Kaitlyn smiled.
    “Hey!” Ben gaped.
    “Becky, does it really say my name on the couch?”
    Becky looked down at Ben who smiled up at her, and she smiled at him and handed Kaitlyn the glass of water.
    “No fair, you two are in on it together!”
    “I’m not getting into this,” Becky laughed and left the room.
    “You'll just have to find out for yourself,” Ben smirked.
    Kaitlyn sipped her water, put it next to her bed in front of Ben and lay back down.
    Ben poked the glass with his finger and it left a print on the side.
    “Nope, not moving.”
    “Okay then,” Ben turned towards her, “you leave me no choice.” He leaned over and picked her up in his arms.
    “Hey! Put me down!”
    “I’ll bring you back if you’re good.”
    She clutched around his neck tightly in fear of falling but she knew he was strong. He showed no signs of weakening, and she didn’t weigh very much anyways.
    “Whoa, you are wicked light.”
    “Is that supposed to be a compliment?”
    “Sure, whatever,” he smiled. They rounded the corner of the hallway and came into the patient lounge. She looked on both ends of the couch and lo and behold, her name was written on a sheet of paper in black marker and propped against the cushion in the same spot she usually occupied. Beneath her name was a gold star.
    “You b*****d,” she smiled playfully.
    “Now you don’t really want to stay in your room do you?”
    “I do want to sleep.”
    “Alright, but you’re taking the sign.” He leaned down slightly and Kaitlyn grabbed the paper. She smiled at his scratchy writing and poked the star with her left hand.
    “So, has this been cleared with Dr. Boyd?” She referred to the doctor who was in charge of this ward.
    “Nah, it was just to cheer you up.” He set her back down in bed and sat next to her on the chair.
    “It worked.” She smiled, “Thanks.” She propped the sign up against the wall beside her bed and took another sip of water. She pulled the blanket up over her shoulders and lay on her stomach facing him.
    “No problem, Kait.”
    “What time is it?”
    “About ten.”
    Kaitlyn looked back up at the window and saw blue sky.
    “No chance we get to go out today though, too much extra work they say.”
    “They always say that, they just don’t want to put us on leashes and watch us like dogs. We’re not allowed to do anything.”
    “So true,” he stroked her hair out of her face again. He smiled at her and she grabbed his hand; it was warm and soft although bony. He was pretty skinny himself, but he was strong. He laced his fingers into hers. “I think I like you.”
    “I don’t think that’s allowed either,” her smile faded.
    “I can’t really help it,” his smile faded too.
    “I just don’t want to attach myself to anything if I’m just going to lose it anyways.”
    “Lose me? I’m like a bad dime,” he dared to smile, but her face was still serious, “Look, where do you live?”
    “Salem.” She rolled on her side.
    “Now see I live in Danvers, that’s right next door.”
    “Yeah, but what if you get out and I don’t, or vice versa?”
    “Now see, you’re thinking too much again. How about you just do what you want for once? Seems to me you worry way too much like you got no choice. I mean we'll cross that bridge when we come to it…" he trailed off and settled his eyes back on hers. "You don’t have to like me back.”
    “But what if I do?”
    “Then don’t worry about it.” He leaned down and kissed her cheek and kept stroking her hair.
    She got this strange feeling in her stomach, she’d never actually had a boyfriend before, or any love or crush either. Strangely, she was comforted by him even if she hadn’t exactly told him that she liked him too.
    He continued stroking her hair until her breathing was rhythmic and she was asleep. He put her name sign and the glass of water on the chair and left the room, closing the door behind him.