10This was an entry to a competition and I just decided to put it up here for everyone to read. This is ALL copyrighted. Hopefully no one will steal my work and force me to take desperate measures to take it back... Anyways, enjoy!
1996.
"Leave me alone!" Elaine raised her hands up instinctively to protect herself. She staggered back from another punch to her face. Her head was throbbing painfully, blood running down her face. Her nose was broken from the blows she'd received.
She looked at her attackers. It was a group of them, mixture of both genders. They sneered at her, prepared to hurt her some more, malice in their eyes. She fell to the ground and curled up into a ball, covering her face with her hands.
"You're useless," One of the girls, Kim hissed, kicking Elaine in the ribs, her blue eyes blazing with hate. Elaine didn't cry out. She couldn't because now blood was building up in her throat. She coughed it out, staining the white tiled floor of the school hall. Her whole body was aching and she knew she had a broken rib.
"Why are you doing this to me? Please stop." She whispered, pained yet submissive.
They guffawed and snorted. "We hate you." One of the boys said. "No other reason."
"Pathetic." A girl said, punching Elaine in the gut.
"Please stop." Elaine's voice was barely audible.
Then one of the boys, Logan, kicked her in the back with all his might. Elaine heard the sickening snap before she felt it. This time, she did scream. No, she shrieked. Her back exploded with excruciating agony, fire coursing through her spine. She screamed her lungs out, stopping only to choke on more blood. In advance to any more pain could be inflicted upon her, she fell deep into unconsciousness.
2006.
"You've got to be kidding me. Are you serious?"
Dr. Marcel Hill sighed, running a hand through his hair. He stared at his patient, watching her black eyes well up with tears. He let her cry. He didn't want to intrude on her moment of decadence. Instead, he closed her file and walked over to his door, opening it just a little for a peek. He resisted a groan. He had at least another six patients waiting for him to see. He wasn't an impatient man but sometimes he wished he would be granted all the patience in the world.
"I can't be pregnant!"
Marcel turned around to his patient. Her name was Casey Wales and had good lungs. He'd once received quite an earful and he couldn't hear a thing for half an hour. Marcel sighed and motioned for her to take a seat again. She sank down, her bottom lip quivering, tears spilling down her cheeks.
"There are three options for you." Marcel said in his calm, professional voice. He liked his tone when he addressed his patients. It gave them a feel that everything he did was for their own good and will always turn out right. "One, you can keep the fetus for the next thirty weeks then keep the child. Two, after you give birth to the child you can give it up for adoption. And three, you can have an abortion." He laced his fingers together behind his head and leaned back.
Casey's head fell into her hands and she moaned. She shook her head to herself whilst grabbing her purse. "I'll think about it. I have to go home to feed my children." She muttered sadly before leaving the office.
Marcel exhaled deeply and replaced Casey's file. It was going to be one long day. He went to the secretaries' desk and picked up the next file.
"Miss Elaine Cassidy," he called out.
A head of fiery red hair snapped up. Her bloodshot eyes widened as she drained his appearance in. Marcel swiftly twisted away and marched down the corridor to his office, not waiting for his next patient. He suddenly felt self conscious of his looks, of how he appealed to his co-workers and patients. After all, he was the best doctor out of the whole medical centre. He preferred to have an eminent reputation rather than charming looks.
A moment passed by until she meekly entered the room, her head lowered. A strong, reserved air surrounded her. She was short and pale like pure white snow. Marcel cleared his throat to get her attention. She raised her head and this time, his eyes broadened. Dark bags circled her eyelids and light freckles scattered across the bridge of her nose and cheeks. But her eyes startled him the most. They were an amazing rare shade of deep violet; bar they were hollow, empty. She was perfectly emotionless.
"Please tell me the reason for your visit today, Elaine." He said politely.
Elaine retrieved a pad of paper and pen from her jacket pocket. In elegant writing she wrote on the light blue sheet, I'm mute.
Shock flashed onto his face. The woman was mute? Then pity stabbed him in the chest like a sharp blade. The poor woman was mute. He saw her narrowed her eyes at him, now filled with fury. "Were you born with this condition?" He asked, hoping it didn't offend her in any way.
No. She wrote.
Marcel frowned, clicking his pen. So she had selective mutism. That's something you don't find every day, he thought. His train of thought cut off. Why was he wasting time on a woman he didn't know? He wanted to go home didn't he? He abruptly noticed another sentence on Elaine's sheet.
Does anyone here understand sign language?
He held a finger up for her to wait, scurried to the secretaries desk and asked if they knew any who spoke sign language.
"I do!" Bell, one of the new recruits, chirped. She was a young, plump girl with an animated face.
"Come with me please." Marcel said. He felt the need to be with Elaine, to help her through whatever she was facing. And he had no clue why.
Elaine grimaced, the first facial expression Marcel saw, when Bell followed in after him. She beamed at Elaine and made signs with her hands. Elaine smiled slightly and nodded. Marcel raised an eyebrow at Bell who giggled as soon as Elaine signed something back.
"Now ladies," he interrupted, not willing to let them fall into a women's conversation that wasn't relevant to anything at that instant. "I'd like to please proceed with this appointment so that we may all go home."
Elaine's cheeks coloured a light shade of pink before she signed symbols complex to Bell. Bell nodded seriously, a hand gripping her hip. As soon as Elaine finished, she translated, "Elaine has been having mild pains that build up in the small of her back and after a few moments, they increase in tenderness, giving her trouble when she is trying to sleep. And she's also been having numerous headaches which sometimes evolve into migraines."
"Ah," Was all Marcel said. He flicked open her file and wrote this all down, mentally scolding his messy scrawl. He was never one for precision but sometimes, it was just irritating. "Would she like me to examine her?" He stared down the sheet of paper in front of him.
A minute passed afore Bell said, "She'd like you to speak to her. She's not deaf." She added with a giggle.
Marcel met Elaine's gaze. "I apologize. Would you like me to examine you?" He requested civilly. Elaine nodded with a grateful smile on her dead face. He noticed a twinkle in her eyes.
He gestured for her to lie on the bed which was located in the corner of the space. She hesitantly shuffled to the bed, her eyes downcast the whole way. Marcel nodded to Bell and she left quietly, shutting the door behind. Marcel lifted the back of Elaine's grey shirt, his fingers trembling for an unknown reason. The swirl of a black tattoo trapped his awareness. It was a butterfly, its wings curling and tendrils of black ink spiralling outwards.
He blinked a few times to regain focus and touched a fingertip to the soft flesh of the small of her back, in the middle of the black butterfly. Elaine winced, her small hands balling up. That was where the pain was.
"How long has this been occurring for?" Marcel asked automatically before realising the poor woman was mute. He fetched her pad of paper and pen, handing it to her.
10 years. She wrote.
"Ten years?" Marcel squawked. "Why haven't you seen a doctor earlier like ten years earlier?"
If I can handle it for ten years already, then what was the point in the first place? Just yesterday it's been particularly bad. Her writing slowly grew messier with each word she scribbled.
"Have you been involved in any vigorous exercise?" Elaine shook her head. This was becoming extremely confusing to Marcel. "Ok, hop off."
Elaine climbed off and returned to her seat where he became aware of how she positioned herself on the seat. A force of some kind made Marcel desire to help her; to ultimately cure her of this pain.
"You may leave." He murmured, sensing that his time was up with her. He sadly observed her exit, wishing for her to return. Marcel gazed down at his watch and groaned loudly.
One hour to go until he was work free.