Monsters & Fairytales (40 page)

“Mirabelle?
Is everything okay?” The lady asked loudly.

“Sorry, yes. I was thinking for a moment. I actually recommend just leaving his bowl full for now, until he gets used to things. That might help him.”

“Okay. Did he have a vet, just in case? I’m sorry; I guess these are all things I should have asked when we got him.”

“No, no, not a problem.
I’ll look up the vet information and call you back.” I said.

I didn’t have vet information. He's a ferret, lady. She would just judge me some more if I admitted that, though. Oh well, she’ll catch the hint.
             

I closed my phone and watched Joe swoop in through the window and plop on my floor. He was graceful. It echoed out in the awkward silence. Well, he didn’t seem to be awkward. I was, however, standing there with my cell phone in my hand and my eyebrow
raised
in his direction.

“Hey, you.
Sorry I’m early. I saw your lights come on and just figured I could help out. Did you take a nap?” He blurted out, walking towards me all suave and cool.

He pet Spike’s head as he passed him, then he wrapped his arms around me. I watched him lean down to kiss me. I stood there for a second wondering if it was a dream. When his lips brushed against mine, I jerked away. What was happening? This was real?

“What?” I shrieked.

I felt myself getting scared. Was I missing out on something? I had to be missing out on something. How could I not remember?

“Are you okay?” He asked placing his hand on my forehead.

“I think so.” I said moving his hand.

I grabbed a sweater and wrapped it over my shoulders. I felt chilly. I sat on the barstool and stared at everything, trying to get a grasp on reality. Joe just stood there with an odd look on his face.

“Why are you looking at me like I’m a complete stranger?”

He walked over and looked into my eyes. I was nervous.

“Why should I be looking at you like you are anything else?” I leaned back.

“Mira!
What happened?”

He seemed honestly concerned. Did he care about me? There was some sort of a vague feeling for this guy deep inside me somewhere. I remembered when I met him that I thought he was the most handsome man I had ever seen. I remembered wishing he had walked me up to my door, but that was it.

He was supposed to take me out to breakfast tomorrow morning. Maybe we had already done that and that’s why he was here now? I tried to remember it. I felt nothing spark a memory. What had we done together?

“I don’t know. I can’t remember anything after meeting you in the lobby.”

I got up and sat down on my couch.

“Are you serious?”

Joe knelt down in front of me. He looked so scared.

“Yes.” I nodded.

“We did a lot more than that. I took you out to brunch; I met your friend Sebastian. Say, where is he? I haven’t seen him around since earlier at the arcade. Maybe he’ll be able to fill in the gaps.”

“Sebastian?” Who the heck was this guy talking about?

“We need to take you to a hospital.”

Joe instantly tried standing me up.

“What? Why?”

I was honestly scared now, but I wasn’t moving. I was dead weight in his arms unless he was going to explain his panic.

“Mirabelle, you are telling me now that some stranger was in your house for who knows how long, and now you can’t remember anything? I mean c’mon, you are sitting here in a total daze!”

“Yes, but I mean, that’s not really something to worry about. I’m here, right? I’m safe? All my belongings got here. That has to mean that I was acting sane when the movers came this morning. Did you say arcade?”

I raised my eyebrow at him again.

“Yes. You brought Sebastian to the arcade. You invited me for dinner. I got off work early, though, because you left your purse. I’ve been waiting for you to get home all day. You honestly have no idea what happened?”

He held his hands out in front of him, palms up. He was out of breath, panting almost.

“No, I don’t. Where is my purse?”

I wasn’t sure if I could trust him. He seemed to be putting way too much effort into all of this. It wasn’t likely. I’m not the type to just wander off with a stranger, or even invite a guy in. Heck, I'd turned him down earlier. Why would I say yes to this Sebastian fellow?

“Are you honestly questioning me?”

“You’re still not answering! How do I know that Sebastian guy wasn’t a friend of yours you had drug me, so you could look like the good guy?!”

“Why would I do that?”

He was surprisingly
calm .

“I don’t know
,
you’re the mastermind here.”

“Stay here and I’ll go get your purse.”

“How do I know you won’t be back with more of your ‘friends’?”

He picked my phone back up and handed it to me. He had dialed 911.

“If anything looks suspicious, anything at all, when I’m coming back down those stairs,
dial
it. If I’m not back in five minutes, send the call.”

“Okay!”

I had no idea how to take any of this. My head was hurting. I squeezed between my eyes. The pressure was getting heavier. I sat up and water splattered on my lap. Had I just drooled? I looked down and saw blood on my white shirt. I felt it above my lip. I wiped under my nose frantically and jumped up when I saw the blood on my hand. I felt dizzy.

“Okay, looks like we’re going to the hospital right now.” Joe said as he caught me. I thought he had left?

He laid me back down on the couch and took my phone. He pressed the send button and took off down the hall.

His voice got louder. He was talking to an operator frantically. I could hear him giving out my address. I had to remind myself he lived in the same building as me so that’s how he knew. Spike wandered over and rested his head next to mine.

“Okay, let me change.”

I sat up and got a head rush.

“Seriously?”

Joe just stared at me. He had the phone on his ear. I imagined it was much how I looked to him when he was knocking on my window.

“I’m not going covered in blood.” I said pointing to the spots all over the shirt.

Joe finished talking on the phone and then walked over to me.

“We’re leaving, c’mon.”

This guy really wanted to help me. I wanted to trust him. I wish I knew why.

“Okay, but-”

“Mirabelle, you’re going to a hospital where people defecate all over themselves, a little blood on your shirt is not going to be an issue. Please.” He begged.

“Fine.”
I snorted.

“You do need shoes, though.”

He looked down at my feet. I looked down, too. They were very dirty. What had I been doing?

“Oh.” I sighed.

I got up and went into my room. I opened my closet and a few of my shirts ruffled, an odd smell lingered on my nostrils. I had to catch myself on the doorframe. What was I doing?
Shoes.
Right.
I slipped on some zebra striped flats and walked out.

“Come on!” Joe called from the foyer.

I could only go so fast holding my head back. When I made it to him, he handed me my purse. I had to give him credit; he hadn’t been lying about the purse. Or he was just really crafty and had known where I had it in the house, and had acted like he just got it from his apartment.
More important things, Mirabelle
.

“Tell me again why are we going to a hospital?” I asked.

He was walking way too fast. I was going to fall again. He was halfway down the stairs and I was still fumbling trying to get my keys out. Wait, if my keys were in the purse, how’d I even get inside? Were they
back
inside?

“Mirabelle you may have a concussion and you’re bleeding from your nose.” He said, rushing back up to me.

He grabbed my arm and pulled me back out of the house.

“Okay, but isn’t the whole point of calling an ambulance to wait for them to get here to take me to the hospital?”

I skidded my feet to try to stay as close to the apartment as possible. I really didn’t see the emergency being so important that I had to leave my door open and unlocked. What about Spike?

“Yeah, but we can’t hear them from in here. It’s best to be waiting out on the curb. Everything will be fine.”

He tugged me one more time out of the doorway; this time with a bit of force.

“My keys!”

“Whoops.”

He stopped moving finally and smiled. He mouthed 'Sorry.', and then allowed me to close and lock my door. He was off again in no time down the stairs. When he finally looked back and saw that I hadn’t moved at all, his shoulders dropped.

“Going as fast as I can.
Nose is bleeding here.” I rolled my eyes.

“Okay, sorry. Here, let me guide you.”

I walked down the stairs with him closely at my side. I had to admit, I was feeling light headed. Maybe he wasn’t overreacting for calling me an ambulance. After all, he couldn’t take me himself, considering he drove a motorcycle. Wait, how had I known that?

“They’re here.”

Joe jumped down the last few steps. He ran to the door and held it open for me. The ambulance stopped in front of the building. How humiliating. The back doors opened and an EMT got out. She asked if I was Mirabelle Frances. I nodded my head. She and Joe helped me up into the back of the truck. When I was in, it started moving.

“Sorry.” He whispered.

“It’s okay. Thank you for helping me.” I smiled.

When he smiled, something familiar about him drove my stomach into flutters. I couldn’t quite pinpoint it. Maybe it was just his good looks. I was starting to blush. He noticed me staring at him. I leaned my head back again to make the blood stop.

“
You starting
to remember anything?” He asked.

I could see his head just barely out of my peripheral. He was trying to
lean
up and make some sort of eye contact.

“No, sorry.
I just- I feel like I know you a bit more than just from that day I
fell
face first on the floor.”

“A whole day of falling on your face, huh?
That could be the reason, ‘
ya
know?” The EMT smiled. “Let’s take a look at this.”

She moved my hand and the blood started coming out again. She took a napkin and squeezed some more. She was counting to herself. The pressure hurt but I didn’t say anything. She let go and looked. I didn’t feel anything. Then she wrapped something on my arm. I didn’t want to move. I was afraid gravity would get me.

“I only fell once.” I said to her.

“Three times, actually. You fell into the fountain first.” Joe so lovingly reminded me.

“Has she been acting any differently, forgetting her name, days?”

The EMT looked to Joe. How would he know? Why was she asking him?

“She doesn’t remember anything from yesterday morning until now.” He nodded.

“And you can’t think of anything else that may’ve caused this? No sudden trauma to the head? No alcohol consumption or drug overdose?”

“Wouldn’t a drug overdose kill me?” I raised my eyebrow.

“No. She said she just woke up in her bed and couldn’t remember anything.” Joe said to her. How rude. My question was perfectly legitimate.

“Okay. Well you did the right thing by calling us. We’ll get her in and run some normal tests to see what kind of damage, if any, we’re dealing with.”

Joe nodded again. He was very thankful to this woman. I was glad she wasn’t talking to me. I guess when it boiled down to it I’d rather just lay here with my thoughts for a little bit than worry. Who knows what is real or not.
             

On cue, she turned to me and started asking me questions. Was she a mind reader?

“Mirabelle Frances.
At 509 Wilshire Park.
Date of birth?”

She looked at me and nodded her head to acknowledge she needed me to fill in the blanks.

“February 29th, 1992.” I whispered.

I knew that Joe was giving me that look of complete bewilderment, not for the day I was born on, but the year. I didn’t want to make eye contact with him.

“Just turned eighteen?”

The lady made a curious face. It seemed she didn’t pick up the leap year thing either, nor care. Why did no one ever care? I thought it was the only thing in the world that made me special.

“If you’re counting by the year.”
I joked.

She didn’t say anything. She was writing something down.
Maybe that I hadn’t lost my humor...yet.
It didn’t matter. I knew the next question that was coming. It was always next.