Disclaimer: This is a work of fiction, and it was created solely by me as the author. Any similarities to characters, businesses, places, or things are all happenstance, though my appreciation to those who have
inspired
my works is immense.
Author's Note:
To make things clearer, I've recapped straight into the next part of the story. You might have noticed a little surprise at the end of the last part!
Also, for those who get annoyed by the "slowness" or "repetition," I guess maybe this might not be for you. I am giving a fair warning here because it may seem that way to some of you. But if you hold out & try to imagine what Bekah is going through having just woken up in a hospital... well, I ask of you: What would you do? How would you handle that?
As most of you know, this is the fourth part in a series about the Nickels family. I believe many of you will or have come to love Bekah, Dave, Joe, Nancy, Bob, and Nana. (Who doesn't love a spunky, lovable, doting Nana?!) My stories are STORIES, so many details make for fun, exciting, and interesting plot lines. Remaining calm in awaiting the next installment may be necessary, but I assure you, it'll be worth it. Questions and comments are welcome. Please take the time to rate this story also. I hope everyone will be kind.
Dreams: Bekah 04
"Rebekah? Rebekah? Can you hear me? Rebekah? I need you to open your eyes," the voice told her. She didn't recognize it. She turned to look at the person, but her eyes stung. She wasn't floating anymore. She wasn't wet. She was confused.
When Bekah opened her eyes, she put her arms out to keep from falling. She didn't know where she was and had the sensation that she was about to hit the ground. She was in a hospital. She was so confused.
"Rebekah? Hello, my name is Dr. Whitney," she told her and took out her flashlight to shine in her eyes. "You've been out for two days. Do you remember coming into the hospital?"
"What? What day is it? Where's Dave?"
"Today is Thursday. Dave is your best friend, right? He's out in the waiting room with your family. He hasn't left since they brought you in."
"Brought me in? Why?"
"You fell from the second story of their house. What is the last thing you remember?"
Bekah took in a huge gasp of air and shook her head. "What date is it?" She was in a hot tub on Tuesday, January 10th, last she knew. She fell off the roof?
What?
"Rebekah, the date is Thursday, December 22
nd
. What day do you think it is?"
If she told them what she thought, she realized they'd end up calling the psych ward. She'd be wheeled away before she could argue about anything. And truthfully, she wouldn't blame them.
"Um, can I see Dave?"
"Sure," Dr. Whitney answered skeptically. "Let me go and get them." She left the room, and Bekah tried to steady her breath. She looked at her hands and saw that the ring was missing off her left hand and that her nails were short and needed a manicure. She wanted to see a mirror. What about the color in her hair or the... what had the colorist called them? Money pieces?
What about all that had happened to her? What would she do when she saw Dave? Dave, her husband? Oh gosh! Dave, her best friend... who didn't know how she felt about him. Dave, her friend with whom she'd done all the things in her dream and who wouldn't know any of that when he walked in. Her breathing became erratic.
The door opened, and not only did Dave enter with the doctor, but Dad, Mom, Joe, and Nana were scurrying with them. They all looked at her and seemed to be waiting for her to smile or jump up and say something. Instead, she began to cry. At first, they thought she was happy to see them. That was until she shook her head and looked pleadingly at the doctor to get them out. "I don't... I don't know them!" she whispered and then yelled. "I can't do this! I can't," she choked out in between sobs.
The doctor realized it was too much on Rebekah so she turned and apologized, told them she needed to figure out some things, and asked that they leave the room so she could assess some things. Dave tried to stay by the bed, but when he reached for Bekah's hand and she pulled it away, he flinched and followed his family.
"Rebekah, I thought you asked for Dave. I'm sorry. I don't understand. What happened?"
Bekah laughed in a sarcastic way and threw her hands in the air. "You're going to want to call Psych, I think," Bekah told her. "You're not going to believe me, and I wish I didn't believe it myself."
Dr. Whitney took the chair which had been sitting against the wall and told her she had a long shift and thankfully not many patients to check on, so she had time. "Why don't you let me decide that, alright?"
Bekah took in a big breath and looked at the doctor. She knew she was taking a huge chance by admitting this, but she had no other person to speak with about it. "Dr. Whitney, I lived the next three weeks already with those people out there." She closed her eyes and then shook her head. "I literally feel like it's been three weeks. In my mind, it's January 10
th
."
"You were in a coma for two days. That's a lot of dreaming."
"I can't explain it, but Dr. Whitney? I could tell you right now what happened each day of that time from December 22
nd
until January 10
th
if you don't believe me. I won't be making it up. I couldn't possibly come up with that much information. It's all too crazy."
"New Years Eve?"
"I got married."
"What?"
"Dave proposed on Christmas Eve. We decided to get married on New Year's Eve. I got up to an alarm at 8AM, and Dave, his brother, and his dad left to get ready at Nana's house. Pictures were taken at the house, and then Nicole, Dave's cousin who is a photographer, left before Mom and Nana and I did so she could take pictures at the church of the guys."
"January 5
th
?"
"I was kidnapped. A woman decided she would save me from the sin in which I was engaging and from the guy who was obviously brainwashing me to sleep with him. She had two accomplices and a son named Trey who ended up making my rescue possible. "
"You said you got married," Dr. Whitney asked her skeptically. "At 18?"
"Yes, that's a much, much longer story. Basically, that family out there is the only family I have. My mother and father are vacationing somewhere in Colorado, as they do every year without me. In my dream, I guess it was," Bekah stated and shook her head because she couldn't imagine all that she'd been through hadn't really happened, "Mother wrote me a letter telling me they were moving away and left me a savings account and the house in which I live, and that was that. So, whether I stayed engaged to Dave or married him, I was going to be with him all the time, and no one could come up with a reason that I shouldn't marry him. I think the most absurd part of the story was that a Catholic priest married us six days after asking him to do it rather than the usual four to six months which is generally required by the Church." She sniffed a laugh.
"When you got married, did you experience a honeymoon?"
"Yes," Bekah answered shyly. "I felt everything. I even had a period from the 26
th
through the 30
th
before the wedding. And I got sick. I had a fever of over 103 on the 29
th
and ended up throwing up, though we never really figured out what had caused it. The family felt it was stress."
"Are you a virgin?" Dr. Whitney asked. Bekah felt tears stinging her eyes.
"I was before I fell, so, yes. Dr. Whitney, I..." she faltered and then shook her head to continue, "I experienced a wedding night. I made love to Dave countless times, and I could describe to you every one of them in detail. I had orgasms. I felt him inside me. What am I supposed to think about that?"
"Dreams can seem real, Rebekah, but that usually fades in time. Let me ask you this. Did you ever see things that you couldn't really see? Like, did you see Dave doing something or the kidnappers fleeing?"
"Um..." Bekah began to answer as she closed her eyes and thought back to her dream. "I saw Dave sneaking downstairs to put my ring under the tree while I slept," she remembered and opened her eyes. "And I saw Dad and Dave discussing the need to call the police and all that they went through. Oh," Bekah noted when she realized a person can't see those things other than in a dream. "Oh," Bekah repeated and teared up when she realized for the first time how true it was that it had only been a dream. It wasn't real.
"Dr. Whitney, may I see my chart?" Dr. Whitney held it out to her, and when Bekah saw that her name was listed as "Rebekah M. Kuhn," she closed her eyes and felt a tear trickle down her cheek. "I would swear on the Bible, Dr. Whitney, that my name is written incorrectly on this paper. In my heart, in my mind, I'm Rebekah Nickels. I can't process this," she confided as she began to silently sob and handed over the chart.
Dr. Whitney sat still for a while and let Bekah cry out her feelings. "I don't know what to say, Rebekah," she admitted. "I only know the facts. Today is Thursday, December 22. You have been in a coma for two days. You have a catheter in you and an IV in your arm. Other than that, there was no other damage, miraculously. You fell on some deep snow and hit your head the hardest. You may find some soreness in your back, but that's about it."
"I don't know what to do."
"Well, I can hold you here one more day so you can hang here and see if the dream reality subsides. If you continue to feel it's that real, I guess we could
voluntarily
go and speak with a psychiatrist to get her opinion, but Rebekah, I don't feel that you're psychotic. You just don't show any symptoms of concern. You are more lucid than most coma patients, so I can't justify putting you through some rigorous testing."
"Those people out there love me like no one else has ever loved me," Bekah shared. "That part is true. But the person I married, and his family are not those people. Maybe it's so real because almost everything that happened could very easily happen. I've been around them so much that I know how they'd respond or treat me.
"But Dr. Whitney? I feel like I'm losing five people at the same time. I became so close to them, and I can't even begin to process how I will ever be able to delete what Dave and I did on that honeymoon from my mind." Bekah put her hands to her eyes and cried harder. "I'm in mourning, I think," she assessed who actually touched her shoulder.
"I understand," Dr. Whitney replied. "You are going to go through a process, I think. You are going to have to either talk out or write out the things you believe you experienced and then process them mentally to know in truth the real from the dream." She turned to leave and then turned around before opening the door. "If I'm right, and I'm sure I am, Dave is going to find a way in here. For now, you need to decide if you plan to tell him or hide it away. I don't envy your decision. He clearly cares for you. But I don't know what you should do." She opened the door and left.
Bekah put her head back and closed her eyes. When she heard the door opening, she knew it was Dave sneaking in. "I hope it's just you," she told him and opened one eye to check. Dave looked miserable.
"They went home after the doctor stopped to tell them that you were going to stay another night. They promised to come back tomorrow to bring you back to the house."
"They still want to see me?"
Dave looked at her incredulously. "Bekah, they know you're confused. They're just concerned." Dave paused and reached for her hand. "We're all confused. Why did you say that you didn't know us?"
"What you're asking of me is a full, hours-long conversation. And it's going to be hard to swallow, and I don't know if I have it in me nor if it's the right thing to do
