One eye open. The ceiling looks unfamiliar. Panels and a ceiling fan, which moves slowly and sways a little from side to side. She struggles to open the other eye but it's heavy, as is her head. The room is semi-dark, but she can make out the shape of a window across from her as she manages to raise her head slightly from the pillow. She lies back again, feeling confused, without a sense of time or place. She hears a voice say "Here, drink this," and becomes conscious of a warm liquid being offered to her from a china mug. She swallows, tasting tea as it slips down her throat, feels a hand on her forehead and drifts back into sleep again.
It's dark now, and she wakes again. Manages to get both eyes open and lift her head more this time, but the room is a blur, she can detect shapes which are becoming clearer as her eyes accustom themselves to the gloom. She thinks she hears breathing, but she's not sure...is it the wind? Where is she? In hospital? Her head hurts, but her body is free of pain, still it feels constrained and she isn't sure why. She hears footsteps, she can't see but she can feel the presence of someone in the room with her. Somehow she can't stay awake and drifts off again.
She dreams. Driving along the wet road, off to...where? To visit her friend, yes, she remembers now. She has a vision of the car sliding sideways, a sickening crash and blackness following, then a voice...reaching out to her, a sense of moving, being carried, but then she wakes...
With a start this time. She sits bolt upright. It's morning. She is able to move and the heaviness in her head has cleared. She feels an urge to pee, throws the covers off.
Holy shit! Where are my clothes? She thinks, she sees that she is dressed only in the camisole and knickers she put on...yesterday? Why can't she remember? And what is she doing here?
She sits back down, not knowing what to do.
She looks around the room, it's what seems to be a motel room. One bed, a chest of drawers, a mirror, a chair in each corner. Garishly decorated in tan and orange. There's a print on one wall, and the other has a door which leads to what appears to be the bathroom.
She heads for the bathroom, pulls down her knickers and begins to pee, feeling completely disorientated. She hears a key turn in the lock, gets up with a start, stumbles into the other room.
There's a man standing there, paper bag in arms, looking at her. "Oh god I am sorry, I thought you would be asleep for hours," he says. "You must be wondering what's going on?"
He proceeds to tell her he found her car driven off the road, in the rain. Night before last. He brought her here because she seemed ok, maybe a bit of concussion but otherwise ok. He gave her painkillers, he has some first aid training, he knew what to do. Brought her here to rest, looked for her phone to call someone but it must have been lost, or maybe she didn't have one?
"Anyway now you're better we can take care of that," he says.
"God. Thanks so much.I had no idea where I was!"
"I know, you were out to it. Are you ok? How's your head? Can I make you something?" he asks and she agrees to a coffee.
"I feel ok, a bit woozy but otherwise fine. Can't believe I did that," she answers.
"Phew," he says "I haven't slept since I found you, I was too worried to leave you even to shower," he says. "Are you sure you're ok?"
"Yeah I actually feel fine. I'm surprised myself really," she says, amazed at how much better she feels since the last time she tried to wake.
She watches him as he makes the coffee. She judges him to be about her age, somewhere in his late thirties, he's tall, over 6 foot, but then at her just-over-5 foot height everyone seems tall. He looks dishevelled, his dark, grey streaked hair is a wreck, he hasn't shaved, and his clothes are crumpled. But his eyes draw her in. Light grey, with a corona of black,intense, unblinking. She is transfixed by them. He looks so familiar to her, she is having some recollection of seeing his face in her half awake state, his hands touching her as he undressed her carefully, his voice in her ear. She feels a strange sensation of falling going through her as she looks at his eyes, and an odd weakness run down to her belly. He doesn't speak as he makes the coffee, just hands it to her silently. She fixes his gaze as he does so.