Normal P.O.V.

The next morning I was up at the crack of dawn, literally. The sun was just barely starting to come up as I slowly crawled out of bed, stretching as I stood up and went over to me dresser. “Wake up Jen,” I groaned, kicking the air mattress she was sleeping on as I passed. “We need to get going.”

I heard her groan as I pulled a pair of baggy shorts out of my dresser drawer. “Yeah yeah, I’m up,” he grumbled as I heard the mattress shift as she stood up.

I then turned to her as I pulled up my shorts; she was looking down at her phone with a weird look on her face. “Everything okay?” I asked, pulling my shirt over my head.

She just nodded, tossing the phone onto my bed and picking up her own clothes. “Yeah, everything is fine. Jamie just sent me a video, I’ll show you later,” he replied, giving me a half-smile. I decided to take that answer, since it was too early to put up any kind of fight. “Now come on, go brush your teeth so we can get going,” she added, pulling a clean shirt over her head.

Five minutes later we were in my car, heading over to the hospital. “You know you’re gonna have to fill out paperwork while they’re working on me, right?” I asked.

She nodded. “Yep, I know. I already got all the info I need from your mom and dad. We’re all good,” she replied. I nodded and turned on the radio, trying to stay awake through the fifteen-minute drive. I must not have made it, because I was being shaken awake what felt like five seconds later. “Wake up, sleepyhead. You slept the entire ride,” Jen said as she turned off the car. “You want to get this over with or what?”

“More than anything,” I chuckled groggily before undoing my seatbelt and climbing out of the car. Luckily I was having outpatient surgery, so I wouldn’t have to be here all day or overnight. It took us a few minutes to find the right place, so it was good that we left when we did. I hated hospitals with a passion, they freaked me out, but I was glad for the extra time. “Hi, I’m scheduled for a procedure this morning,” I said to the nurse at the desk when we finally reached the right place.

“What’s the name?” she asked.

“Kitsalis,” I replied. She nodded and typed away on her computer for a minute before handing me a clipboard.

“Go ahead and get started on this paperwork, and we’ll call you when we’re ready,” she said, giving me a warm smile. I guess she could sense my nervousness, because she added “You’ll be fine. You’re in good hands.”

I gave her a wary smile before turning with Jen and sitting in the waiting room. I only got about halfway through the paperwork when we heard, “Jean Kitsalis?” We both turned our heads to see an older gentleman in scrubs waiting by the doors into the ward.

I took a deep breath and stood up, handing the clipboard over to Jen. She then stood up and gave me a hug. “I’ll be in as soon as they let me,” she said, and I nodded before following the man through the doors.

The first thing I had to do, before even changing into my gown, was pee in a cup. Typical. What’s not to love about pissing into a container and getting a little on your hand? Exactly. It sucks.

After I handed the cup over I was given my gown and a private “room”, which was really just a portion of the outpatient center sectioned off by curtains. After I was changed and my hair was up in the cap, Jen was allowed in. “How are you feeling?” she asked.

I sighed. “Exhausted, and ready to get this over with,” I replied. It was then that a nurse came in to give me my IV hookup. “Can you show me that video your brother sent you? I need a distraction from this; I’m not good with needles,” I asked.

“Says the girl with a tattoo,” she chuckled. I just glared at her. “Alright, alright. I’ll send it to you; Jamie wanted me to record your reactions when you watch it,” she continued, typing away on her phone. My phone then dinged and she handed it to me, getting her camera ready. “I’m just warning you, it’s not what you expect.”

“Well now I’m expecting the worst,” I mumbled, opening the attachment and starting the video.

The second I started it, I wished I hadn’t. I was watching Tyler in a bar, with at least five women hanging off of him. I could tell before he even started talking that he was drunk, and that was when my worst fear came to life. Tyler wasn’t only bashing me; he was bashing my mom, and her cancer. I couldn’t believe he would stoop that low, even if he was plastered. By the time the video was over, tears were flowing freely down my cheeks as I turned to Jen, camera still up in her hands.

“I’m so sorry sweetheart,” she said softly.

Before I could say anything, the anesthesiologist came in. He was an older Asian man, and he said, “Okay, time to make you go to sleep.”

I turned to Jen again, stoic expression on my wet face. “It’s time for you to go,” I mumbled. She leaned forward to try to give me a hug, but I shoved her away. “Get out!” I shouted, throwing my arms over my head and wrapping them around my head, trying not to go totally insane from anger and sadness.

“I’ll see you soon,” she said as I was wheeled to another station.

At this point my crotch was covered in iodine, and I felt the pinch of a needle going into the top of my leg, just to the side of my cooch. Then, much to my surprise and fear, my leg started jumping off the table all by itself as the nerve blocker spread throughout my leg. The last thing I remember was more tears falling from my eyes as I was wheeled into the OR, eyes starting to close no matter how much I tried to stop them.

------

“Are you starting to wake up?” I heard a distant voice say to me. “You need to start waking up, Jean,” the voice came again, and I forced myself to groggily open my eyes. “Hey sleepyhead. You just had surgery on your knee, and it went great,” the nurse said to me as she removed my IV line.

I then leaned up a little bit and saw a mountain where my leg should be. I freaked out at first, the thought not registering that the nurse just said I had surgery on my knee. I was then wheeled back into the first “room” I was in, and Jen was allowed back in.

Just seeing her brought all the feelings from before back, and I could barely look at her. “Jean?” she asked nervously. “You doing okay?” I sighed, she still had the camera rolling. “I told Jamie I would record you before and after the surgery, to see if you would be loopy or not,” she said, making me chuckle a little. “There it is.”

I sighed again and looked up at her. “Can I be totally honest for a second?”

“Of course.”

“I really didn’t want to wake up just now,” I said, and I saw her smile fall instantly. She went to say something, but I stopped her. “You know, all my life I’ve had to deal with bullies and people not accepting me for who I am, or where I came from. When I met Tyler, I thought he would be different, because he seemed to like me for me. I honestly thought I was falling hard for him. Now I know that it was all a lie,” I said as fresh tears fell from my eyes.

“Sweetheart, you know he loves you. He was just drunk out of his mind,” she replied, trying to defend him.

I shook my head. “That’s not an excuse!” I exclaimed. “The drunk mind says what the sober mind is thinking Jen. But you know what? I’m done. It’s one thing to mock me, but mocking my cancer-stricken mother is a whole nother level of low. Now, I need you to turn off that camera and help me get dressed,” I finished as a nurse brought me my bag of clothes.

She chuckled and turned off the camera. “Yes ma’am,” she said, giving a little salute and a smirk. I just rolled my eyes as I took the clothes out of the bag. “Need help getting on your old lady bra?” she asked, holding up my most comfortable bra. I will admit, it did look like an old lady bra because of the padded straps, but I didn’t care.

I snatched the bra from her and gave her a look. “Hey, don’t knock the comfort of the granny bra,” I chuckled, shifting the gown so she wouldn’t see anything as I put it on. “I need your help pulling my underwear and shorts up my legs,” I said, removing the blanket and moving the gown again.

“You ready?” she asked, positioning herself behind the fixed leg.

I nodded. “It’s not like I can feel anything right now,” I chuckled. She then gently lifted my leg, putting it through both my underwear and my shorts. “Okay, now the other leg,” I said, and all she had to do this time was help me maneuver my good leg through before pulling them up just far enough so I could finish the job myself. She then handed me my shirt as I removed the gown completely, and I was helped into a wheelchair.

“I’ll go get the car,” she said as I was wheeled to the front doors. I nodded and she walked off, leaving my by myself for a few moments. I was then helped into the car and we made our way back to my house.

When we got there, I wasn’t surprised to see that my parents weren’t home; I remembered that Mom had treatment today as well. I turned to Jen and saw that the camera was on again as she helped me through the door. “Jen, get the camera out of my face, I look like death,” I said. I then noticed a vase of flowers sitting on the kitchen table.

I knew exactly who they were from without even reading the card, and I realized why Jen was taping again. I crutched myself over to the table, picked up the vase, and in on swift motion, sent it crashing to the kitchen floor. “Why did you do that?” she asked, a look of sheer horror on her face as she helped me into the living room and over to my dad’s armchair.

“Like I said before, I’m done.”

Notes