Hidden Among Humans

Chapter 3

(POV will alternate between Izza and Alejandro unless otherwise stated)

“Wake up!”

I could hear a voice in the distance, it was as if it was trying to convince me to open my eyes. It had been dark for days. I honestly don’t know how long I have been here.

“I said wake up!”

The voice said again, still, I was hesitant to leave the safety of the night.

“Damn it, can’t you hear me?”

The voice began to drift closer. Still, I could not see it.

“Wake the f*ck up!”

“What is this place?” I whimpered into the air; it was hard to see with the bright lights blinding me. I rubbed my eyes several times before my surroundings became clearer. I quickly noticed my parents lying perfectly still on a couch directly across from where I was lying. I stared at them for what seemed to be hours until my eyes were caught by something else. On closer inspection, I found cords hiding under the sheets draped over me. I immediately pulled the sheets down only to find them attached to my body. Still confused about my whereabouts, I tried to sit up, only to fail miserably. That’s when I heard it, the beeping, how dreadful that noise was. An electrocardiogram machine sat beside me, that was when I knew. I stared in shock; I could not believe I was in a hospital. I rubbed my eyes again, hoping this was only a figment of my imagination. When it did not work, I rubbed harder and harder.

“Honey take it easy,” I could hear the voices of my parents coming closer to me. Although I had stopped rubbing my eyes, I kept them over my eyes, in fear that nothing would change once I removed them. “Honey,” I heard them call again, realizing I could not hide forever, I decided to face them. But all I found was a pair of helpless eyes staring back at me.

“Get me out of here!" I shouted uncontrollably. "I have a game to win!” Despair filled my voice as I tried to convince myself I was not in a hospital bed. I looked up to see the clock strike midnight. My heart sank knowing it was late. I had missed the game altogether, even if there was still time, my body felt weak. There was no way I was going anywhere any time soon.

“Honey, please calm down,” my mom said as she let out a cry.

When my mom began to cry, I feared the worst. I stared as my father leaned down to comfort my mother. The clock and my mother's pleas centered me for just a moment, long enough to just observe my parents. They were your average run-of-mill poster-ready of a preppy couple. Not a hair out of place, they even cried pretty. I knew they loved me but at that moment it was as if they were consoling each other for my illness, like if I wasn't there. I could tell they were afraid; they had no idea what to do since I had never been sick. Not ever a simple paper cut had crossed me.

“What is wrong with me!” I buried my face between my hands as a sharp pain took residence in my skull once more. Although I felt them near me, they did not rush to comfort me. For the first time in 12 years, I felt alone again.

Without a response, I attempted to turn on my side. It took some effort and pain, but I managed. The light from the room invigorated the stabbing pain in my skull, so I buried my face into a pillow.

“Please turn off the lights,” I pleaded with my parents.

From underneath the pillow, I found myself surrounded by darkness. But I also found myself facing a window. I stared at the endless darkness outside. I never hated the dark, it provided comfort from time to time, plus I was never truly in the dark. That was another benefit of my mysterious abilities; I could see in the dark. In the distance, I spotted a faint shadow of a bird, maybe an owl of sorts. It glided freely as it hunted for its prey. A gentle creak pulled my attention away from the window, it was the door opening and closing. I knew then that I was truly alone in that room. It was evident they didn’t want me to notice they had left, but after 12 years of caring for me, they should have known better.

Alone in the room, I had no option but to close my eyes. My pain had not ceased since I woke up, making sleep challenging to acquire. In my darkness, the same pair of fiery eyes returned to hunt me. Somehow, I knew he was the reason for my current predicament, although as I stared into his deep-set eyes that pierced through my pain, I noticed it gave me a degree of comfort. I was only removed from his trance as several voices were heard outside the door.

“Doctor Brown, what is wrong with our daughter?” Their voices demanded answers.

“Isabella’s body appears to be attacking itself from the inside.” There was a pause before the doctor continued to speak. “All her chemistry enzymes are abnormal. Currently, it's difficult to understand why. Further testing has proved to be inconclusive. What we do know from a hematology analysis is that her body is attempting to fight off an infection. At this time, I can’t give you any answers, we just have to be patient. We have already begun treatment; we have to see how she responds.” His voice was calm and collected, it was clear he had done this many times before.

“What do you mean, you don’t know?” My mother hissed. “We need you to fix her.” It was strange, my mother had never been one to lose her composure. “She can't stay like this,” It was strange, it was as if she said those words with anger towards me.

“Calm down honey, he is doing everything he…”

“It’s been two weeks and we are all as clueless as day one. How much longer do we need to wait, Doctor?” I gasped as I heard those words, two weeks. I have been here for two weeks. Sometimes I wished I could remain obvious to what was going on. A tear rolled down my cheek, realizing I faced a new challenge, one that I could not overcome by will alone.

“AAHH!” A loud and dreadful shriek engulfed my ears, the cry only became louder and louder. It was not until the doctor and nurses came rushing in, that I realized the horrid shriek was coming from me. It was as if my body was being slowly consumed by fire. They were left with no choice but to restrain me. During the struggle with the corner of my eye, I caught my parents just staring into the room. They were lost in the despair and burden that I now brought into their lives.

“A sedative now,” I heard the muffled noises of the doctor. As much as I resisted, it was not long before I found myself losing consciousness. From under my eyes, all I could see were my parents watching me from a distance.

“What will we do now?” I heard my mom whispering to my father.

“Don’t worry…” Their images and voices faded into the distance as I fell into a deep slumber.

This slumber was different, it felt real, like a memory.

The moon called my name as I rode through the forest. The chilling breeze hitting my face was like a breath of fresh air. But the comfort of the moon nor the cool sensation of the breeze could keep fear away. I could hear howling closing in behind us, something was wrong. I looked down to find a set of large white ears under my hands. It was difficult to see over them due to my much shorter height. On closer inspection, I realized that every last hair was covered in blood. I pulled my hands back to realize they two were soaked with it. The next thing I knew, the flashing lights had begun, but not before I heard a voice in the distance.

My little grasshopper. I cannot hide you forever, I only hope you will be ready. Remember, do not reveal yourself until it's time. The humans will keep you safe for now.

In the distance, I saw the faint shadow of a wolf running away, back towards the howling. I howled into the moon, hoping my calls would be heard. Then the flashing lights were above me.

The next time I woke up, I felt weaker than I did before. It was odd, that dream felt so real, it was as if I had lived it before. The rest of my nights remained uneventful. My days though were left with me watching nurse after nurse coming in and out of the room. Bloodwork after bloodwork, only blurred visions of my day. To keep me calm, the doctors kept me sedated for the rest of my time at the hospital. I had lost track of time by this point.

Zander came to visit a few times, but I was too sedated to tell him to leave. My friends also come to visit, alongside Amanda. I watched them as they all wished me well before they left. But my eyes were on Amanda, who had stayed behind. She smiled before leaning in.

“I hope you stay this way forever,” My eyes widened at the words. “Oh, shocked are we,” she said, letting out a gentle giggle. “You have always taken what was mine,” she hissed before placing a gentle kiss on my forehead. A tear rolled down my eye as I watched her leave the room. I didn’t know who this Amanda was, but she was no friend of mine. Although Zander returned several times, Amanda never showed up again.

My parents also stopped coming around, they thought hiring a nurse would be sufficient. The last time they were here, they couldn’t get off their phone to even acknowledge my presence. Alongside my days becoming empty, they also lost hope with every passing day.

Eventually, with no answers to my sudden illness, the doctors had no choice but to discharge me. All they could do was to send me with sedatives, to help me through the pain. It never left me, but I was too drugged to care. I soon discovered I had lost almost two months of my life in that bed. Fortunately, I also stopped seeing the floating eyes. At least one thing was going well for me.

As I was wheelchaired out of the hospital, a peculiar scent hit me. I had never caught wind of it before. It was different than anything else I have ever picked up on. I would know soon enough, the smell kept approaching. As it neared, I caught a glimpse of a white coat turning a corner and out of sight. There was something familiar about her scent, I just didn’t know what it was. I wanted to follow but I was too weak to move on my own.

“Are my parents coming?” I looked up at the nurse, realizing there was no way I would reach the scent now.

“I’m sorry honey, your parents are out of town on a business trip,” she tried to comfort me with a smile. The nurse was kind to me, but she couldn’t replace my parents.

“Oh, I see,” I looked down in defeat, although I already knew the answer. “When will they be returning?” I tried to keep my head up, in hopes that life would go back to normal one day.

“I’m sorry, I am unaware of that information,” I had gotten used to her answers, they usually started with I'm sorry.

“Miss Isabella, it’s great to finally have you home again,” I looked up to find Fred, our driver, staring back at me.

“What is so great about it?” I knew it wasn't his fault, but I didn’t care. I pulled out my headphones instantly. I didn’t want to hear anything anymore.

I blasted the music as loudly as I could. Unfortunately, I didn’t have a choice. I could still hear them mumble about me.

“Poor thing, don’t mind her. I just informed her that her parents wouldn't be coming today. She is only upset.” The nurse tried to reassure Fred.

“I understand, it will be different for her now,” Fred replied.

I stared at them as Fred said his last words. He was right. For the first time, I thought my abilities were a curse, not a blessing.