teary and her straight, thin brown hair wisped as she walked. She smiled weakly at Adriana and, as though in slow motion, walked toward one of the bedrooms. Joanne spoke to her as though to a child. âYou going to lie down sweetie?â she asked in a loud voice. The woman nodded.
Joanne opened the door to a small single room with a view of the harbour. Adriana gazed at the rectangle of light. She couldnât see the water from the doorway, just the bleak light from the cloud-filled sky. The bed was smooth and cold looking, covered with a tawny bed spread, the white sheet beneath it turned over neatly.
Joanne opened a closet door next to the room. âHereâs a couple johnny shirts and a pair of slippers,â she said briskly, bustling to put them at the bottom of the bed. Adriana looked around drearily. There was a chair, a bedside table with a drawer, and a locker. The tiled floor was waxed to a dull shine.
âYour dad is going to bring you some clothes and things. If you need anything, just give me a shout,â Joanne said, slightly out of breath. âIâll be your nurse till 7 this evening.â She departed, leaving the door to the room open halfway.
Adriana sat on the bed looking at the door. She didnât know whether she was allowed to close it or not. But just then, a man with dark skin and black sunglasses shut the door with a loud bang. Adriana startled, but did not get up. She heard other doors further down the hall bang shut, and Joanneâs angry voice yellingâ Melvin, keep that up and youâre headed for
TQ
.â
Adriana wondered wearily what TQ was. She sat on the bed, looking at her hands which were white and cold and useless. She got under the covers and curled in on herself. Her eyes were wide open, the clicking of the abacus of her thoughts, deafening. She lay that way for ten minutes until her eyes closed and the muffled sounds from the hallway blended into one another.
Chapter 11
Adriana woke the next morning, hollow. On the chair next to her bed was a bag with a few things in it. Some T-shirts and underthings, a pair of jeans, a tooth brush. Also a bag of chocolate covered peanuts, but the thought of eating made her nauseous.
She looked at her watch. It was 10 a.m. and sheâd slept since yesterday afternoon. Even though sheâd just woken, the day seemed old and stale as a crust of bread. Maybe that was how things were hereâdry and endless.
Adriana doubted that the nurses would let her stay in bed all day. As if on cue, there was a knock at the door and Adriana expected to see Joanneâs blonde perm. But instead, it was a younger woman, a strikingly attractive one, who stuck her head in. âFeeling like getting up?â She asked, kindly from the foot of Adrianaâs mattress, her honey-streaked hair still neatly pinned behind her head. Adriana felt a sudden pang. Her mother had never taught her how to take care of her hair. She looked away toward the dark scuff mark on the wall.
âSomeoneâs been moving furniture,â the nurse said leaning forward to try to catch Adrianaâs eye. âIâm Fiona. Iâll be your main nurse,â she said, smiling and twinkling. âWeâll get to know each other a lot better soon,â she said. âIn fact Iâm going to have to be completely impolite and get your weight and your blood pressure, my dear, before weâve even been properly introduced. The doctor wants to see you this afternoon, so we need to get them before lunch.â
Adriana closed her eyes and didnât bother to answer. It didnât matter to her whether they drained every last drop of blood from her body, really. Fiona was quiet for a moment then patted the bed. âYou rest for now,â she said. âIâll be back later.â
Adriana lay there, but couldnât close her eyes. She stared up at the ceiling tiles, which were full of little air holes, and she imagined snakes
Joanne opened the door to a small single room with a view of the harbour. Adriana gazed at the rectangle of light. She couldnât see the water from the doorway, just the bleak light from the cloud-filled sky. The bed was smooth and cold looking, covered with a tawny bed spread, the white sheet beneath it turned over neatly.
Joanne opened a closet door next to the room. âHereâs a couple johnny shirts and a pair of slippers,â she said briskly, bustling to put them at the bottom of the bed. Adriana looked around drearily. There was a chair, a bedside table with a drawer, and a locker. The tiled floor was waxed to a dull shine.
âYour dad is going to bring you some clothes and things. If you need anything, just give me a shout,â Joanne said, slightly out of breath. âIâll be your nurse till 7 this evening.â She departed, leaving the door to the room open halfway.
Adriana sat on the bed looking at the door. She didnât know whether she was allowed to close it or not. But just then, a man with dark skin and black sunglasses shut the door with a loud bang. Adriana startled, but did not get up. She heard other doors further down the hall bang shut, and Joanneâs angry voice yellingâ Melvin, keep that up and youâre headed for
TQ
.â
Adriana wondered wearily what TQ was. She sat on the bed, looking at her hands which were white and cold and useless. She got under the covers and curled in on herself. Her eyes were wide open, the clicking of the abacus of her thoughts, deafening. She lay that way for ten minutes until her eyes closed and the muffled sounds from the hallway blended into one another.
Chapter 11
Adriana woke the next morning, hollow. On the chair next to her bed was a bag with a few things in it. Some T-shirts and underthings, a pair of jeans, a tooth brush. Also a bag of chocolate covered peanuts, but the thought of eating made her nauseous.
She looked at her watch. It was 10 a.m. and sheâd slept since yesterday afternoon. Even though sheâd just woken, the day seemed old and stale as a crust of bread. Maybe that was how things were hereâdry and endless.
Adriana doubted that the nurses would let her stay in bed all day. As if on cue, there was a knock at the door and Adriana expected to see Joanneâs blonde perm. But instead, it was a younger woman, a strikingly attractive one, who stuck her head in. âFeeling like getting up?â She asked, kindly from the foot of Adrianaâs mattress, her honey-streaked hair still neatly pinned behind her head. Adriana felt a sudden pang. Her mother had never taught her how to take care of her hair. She looked away toward the dark scuff mark on the wall.
âSomeoneâs been moving furniture,â the nurse said leaning forward to try to catch Adrianaâs eye. âIâm Fiona. Iâll be your main nurse,â she said, smiling and twinkling. âWeâll get to know each other a lot better soon,â she said. âIn fact Iâm going to have to be completely impolite and get your weight and your blood pressure, my dear, before weâve even been properly introduced. The doctor wants to see you this afternoon, so we need to get them before lunch.â
Adriana closed her eyes and didnât bother to answer. It didnât matter to her whether they drained every last drop of blood from her body, really. Fiona was quiet for a moment then patted the bed. âYou rest for now,â she said. âIâll be back later.â
Adriana lay there, but couldnât close her eyes. She stared up at the ceiling tiles, which were full of little air holes, and she imagined snakes
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