The Lunar Witch

Chapter 8

The man remained unchanged, lying on the bed in the same spot. While I didn’t think he would have moved, it was still disheartening. What if this doesn’t work? My heart ached at the thought, so I pushed it aside. I’ll deal with that if the time comes. Rhonda stood at the end of the bed, one arm crossed over her belly, biting the nails on her other hand.

I checked his vitals again, but they also remained unchanged. I unscrewed the cap, opened his jaw, and poured the liquid in. Nothing. No reaction, not even a bit of eye movement. My hands shook, and I sighed, setting the bottle down on a little end table next to the bed. I smoothed the front of my shirt and looked at Rhonda. Her eyes were clouded with worry. But she wasn’t looking at him. She’d been watching me.

“Well, there’s nothing to do now but wait. You should get some rest,” I said. We both looked at the uncomfortable little couch. She shook her head.

“I think I’ll pass. That couch sucks.”

“You could sleep in Oliver’s’ old room? Maybe House could make it to your liking?” I looked around the room, and patted the nightstand, hoping House was feeling nice tonight.

“I’m not tired; I can stay up.” Rhonda said. But she yawned, and we both laughed.

“Not tired, huh?”

“Alright, you caught me. I’m beat.” She began gathering her things.

“Want help taking this up?”

“No. It’s not much. And I think you should stay and monitor him.” Rhonda motioned to the man.

“Okay. Let me know if you need anything. Good night,” I said. Rhonda paused before leaving. She pulled me into a hug. I melted into her, resting my head on her shoulder. The hug wasn’t something I realized I needed.

“I don’t know who he is, but he seems important to you. I hope he gets better. But you should prepare yourself, just in case. We can’t will people to stay alive.” She pulled away and looked me in the eye. I gave her a weak smile and looked away before the tears started. Rhonda turned and left the infirmary.

I checked the man again, before sitting on the little couch, and resumed knitting the baby blanket.

It was difficult to focus on knitting while listening to the man breathe. I found myself stopping to listening for irregularities. Eventually, I decided I had to get up. The clock on the nightstand told me it was 3 in the morning.

I tidied up around the room, doing busy work. Checking what elixirs, salves, and other healing potions House had put in the room. If there was an emergency, it would be helpful to know where everything was. You’re just nervous, Pepper. Just sit down and work on the blanket. But I couldn’t. Knitting didn’t keep my mind active enough to distract me from waiting.

Waiting was the worst torture of all. Would the potion work? How long until he shows signs of recovery? I had no idea. This was unfamiliar territory, and nothing Gran had taught me prepared me for this kind of injury. Gran would know what to do. I wished she was here now. But would she have agreed with Chrys? Is he a lost cause? My heart ached at the thought, and I found myself standing next to him.

He looks so peaceful. His face still resembled a corpse, sunken in and pale. I stroked his cheek. Is he in pain? He didn’t react to my touch. My checks became wet, and I realized I was crying.

“Why am I crying over you? I don’t even know your name.” A sob escaped my lips, and I couldn’t hold it in any longer. I began crying; tears ran down my face and neck, dripping onto the bed. I grabbed his hand and held it tight. It didn’t look as miserable as his face, not as pale and sickly.

I allowed myself to cry. I had seen countless patients die, but I couldn’t let him go. My vision became blurry as my tears dripped onto the bed. My hand became wet with tears, and slowly my sobs dissipated. Instead, they turned into stuttered breaths, like a child after a fit. My legs became weak, but the thought of letting him go made my heart ache more. So, I sat on the edge of his bed, with our interlocked hands in my lap.

I sat there for a while, not looking at him, or anything really. Why does it hurt so much? I tried to control my breath, to keep myself from crying again.

His hand squeezed mine, and he groaned. Shocked, I looked at his face. It scrunched up, squeezing his eyes closed. As if nothing had happened, his hand and face relaxed.

It happened so suddenly; I hadn’t had time to react. I sat there, with my heartbeat pounding in my ears, not believing what had happened. He moved!

I let out a startled laugh and began crying again. He’s alive! The potion must be working! I couldn’t help but to laugh as I kept crying. The ache in my heart lessened. I wiped the tears and snot from my face and laid down next to him. I was careful not to put my weight on him, afraid I’d hurt him. My back ended up against his side, and I cradled his arm with my head resting on his shoulder. I drifted off to sleep, holding his hand.

I woke up and laid there, listening to his heartbeat. It was steadier than the day before. I could lay here forever. But I thought of Rhonda and Oliver and knew they would be back soon. They’d disapprove of this. Do I care? Their pitying faces appeared in my mind. I knew they loved me. But I didn’t have magic, so they thought I was weak. That I wouldn’t be able to defend myself. Of course, they were right. If the man tried to kill me, there was nothing I could do.

Knowing they were right didn’t make me feel better. Didn’t take away the pain in my heart when they looked at me with pity. I sighed and sat up. The man’s cheeks were pink, and his eyes weren’t sunken in. And his breathing wasn’t ragged anymore; instead, it was steady.

He’s doing better. The medicine must’ve worked! His pulse was normal when I checked it. I grinned and hopped off the bed. I continued checking his vitals, and everything had improved. He wasn’t healed, but there was improvement.

“Thank you for getting better,” I whispered. I brushed his messy black hair out of his face and stroked his cheek. His eyes fluttered under their lids.

“Pepper?” Oliver said. He was standing in the doorway gawking at me.

“Oliver! You’re back early.”

“No, I’m back late. Work was swamped. What were you doing?” He squinted his eyes at me.

“He’s doing better. I was checking his vitals. Rhonda helped me make a potion, and it’s working.”

The floor creaked behind Oliver, and Rhonda came into the room. She yawned and stretched her arms.

“Good morning sweet pea. How was work?” Rhonda hugged him and gave him a peck.

“Busy. I brought bagels.” Oliver discussed his night at work while we ate breakfast. When he’d said work was swamped, he wasn’t joking. It was literally swamped, and he’d spent most of the night chasing out alligators.

“Pepper and I made a potion last night. The journey man’s elixir. It was fun!” Rhonda said before taking another bite of her bagel. Oliver raised his eyebrows at her.

“You? Made a potion?” he chuckled.

“Hey! I went through training just like you. And Pepper said I made it perfectly.” She jabbed a finger in his chest.

“She did it perfectly! And the potion is working. Last night, he squeezed my hand!” I said. They stared at me with wide eyes. Oliver’s mouth hung open a bit. He stammered a bit.

“What? He moved? “Oliver looked at me in disbelief, then looked at Rhonda. She shrugged and shook her head.

“Are you sure?” She asked.

“Yes! He squeezed my hand, and his eyes moved. Well, he didn’t open them, but they moved! It’s the most progress he’s had so far. He’s getting better, his face has color- “

“Wait. Hold on Pepper. Are you sure that happened? Cause, you know, sometimes we hope so much that it makes our minds play tricks on us.” Oliver continued to speak, but I didn’t hear him. My mind became fuzzy, and my heart sank. He doesn’t believe me. Thinks I’m just making it up?

Of course, he thinks I’m making it up. I don’t have magic. I’m so stupid! Why would I think he might believe me? But I know what I saw. I thought of when he had squeezed my hand. Sometimes patients moved in reflex while unconscious, but my instincts told me that wasn’t the case.

I didn’t know what caused him to move, but I knew it wasn’t just happenstance. It was real. But when I looked back at Oliver and Rhonda, I saw the sad looks they gave me. They had stopped talking and were just watching me with concern. My gut dropped, and I realized they were waiting for me to speak.

“Maybe you’re right. Maybe I am reaching. But it felt so real?”

“I’m sure it did. Just try not to get your hopes up, okay? If he doesn’t get better, I don’t want you to get hurt.” Rhonda looked at him and gave him a weak smile.

We continued eating in silence for a while. My mention of the man moving seemed to dampen the mood. They really don’t believe me. I rubbed my forehead and tried to think about the past few days. They had been here to help me this whole time, and yet they still won’t believe me. That he can get better. Or that I can make him get better. I didn’t know which was more upsetting. That Oliver didn’t think that he would get better, or that he thought I couldn’t heal him.