Hospital “The Adjoining Room”

My son went into the hospital the other day.

The room next to his had a weird sign on it. The sign said “Contact Precautions. Visitors: Please report to nursing staff before entering the room. Staff: Please limit the transport of this patient to medically necessary procedures only.” I figured the person was sick with something contagious, some-thing that was made clear by the sounds I was hearing. There was this sound, like a deep grunting, but then it was replaced by a giggling sort of cough.

I hate hospitals. Unfortunately, due to my kid's condition, it has become common for me to have to take him in. He doesn't mind them all that much. Thankfully, this time it wasn't related to his illness; ended up being a case of bronchitis. He didn't need to be kept overnight fortunately. They sent him home with some antibiotics I think, but I didn't really get all the details. I was distracted by the sounds in the other room.

They kept getting louder.

I went to get some coffee at the hospital. I'm not sure if I needed it, or if I just wanted to get away. Soon after leaving the room, I came upon one the family members of the person in the other room. He was throwing away a medical mask and loose scrubs, along with a pair of medical gloves. He noticed me and said hello.

I didn't want to be rude, so I said hello back. I asked him if the person in the room was doing okay. He admitted that there hadn't been much change. So, I asked him what was wrong, if he didn't mind sharing. He was friendly and told me what had happened.

I wish he hadn't.

The person in the other room was his sister. The doctors say that she has a form of necrotizing fasciitis. I don't have much medical experience, but I had seen it before. It is a severe infection that causes the death of healthy tissues around the site, usually caused by flesh eating bacteria.

I asked him if they knew how she had contracted it. They said that they had found several small wounds on her body and determined she had contracted it through several insect bites, but how she came in contact with insects carrying it is a mystery, since the bacteria lives in warm saltwater.

I felt bad for him. He was doing his best to not cry. He wasn't all that successful. Whatever was behind that curtain, couldn't be good. Said that she had been saying strange things since she was admitted, something about returning to the source. She was also placed under psychological observation after she was seen eating the dead tissue from her arm.

They had to pump her stomach.

The doctors think that the infection may have reached her brain, though the scans they had ordered hadn’t come back yet. The doctors were confident that they can save her life, but they were unsure what the infection has done to her mind. She spoke about a man called “Keeper,” and said that she was being born again. A psychologist had been doing work with her, but because of the coughing and the secretions, contact had been limited.

Before he could say more, the alarm went off in the room, and several of the nurses went inside. She apparently had slipped out of her bounds.

I don't want to imagine how she managed that.

I didn't want to hear anymore, so I decided to skip the coffee and returned to the room. I didn't hear much after that, and after a half hour or so, Noah was released.

Hate when people do that. When they come up to you and unload. I mean, why the hell would I want to hear about something awful like that?

I haven't told Margaret about it. I guess putting it up here means she will find out eventually though. She doesn't like that stuff anymore than I do, though she probably handles it better. I suppose no one normal would enjoy hearing about something like that.

I finally managed to stop thinking about the sounds that the woman had been making. The psychiatrist says that the fact I am reacting means I am making progress of my own. I suppose he is right.

I'm still having the nightmare, but it isn't as frequent as before. So I suppose things are improving. Margaret and I went out to dinner the other night. It is the first time we have been out of the house for any reason other than working, at least since we moved in.

It was nice.

The tremors have been getting better, which means working at the restaurant has been easier. I have even been able to deliver more than one plate at a time to bigger tables, and I have noticed that my handwriting is improving. I actually saw the man from the hospital in the restaurant the other day. I don't think he remembered me which is fine. He looked really tired and kept itching the back of his neck.

It is bit warmer today, but the nights around here get really cold. Something has been chewing on the pumpkins in front of the house. I put down some traps. Haven't caught anything yet.