Fluorescent lights stripped the saturation inside the waiting room. A cacophony of coughs was only occasionally interrupted by the whoosh of the sliding door to the ER.
Ramsey sat in a far corner, holding a clipboard, rapidly filling out forms.
'The ER was the right choice. I don't have enough time to schedule a regular appointment. Just get in, pass a few tests and get out. Or if they find something, then I'll know.'
"Mr. Garret. Ramsey Garret" a nurse leaned against the open door, looking around for a response.
Ramsey waved and walked toward the door. "Sorry, I haven't finished the forms yet".
"It's okay, you can bring them back with you." She gestured welcomingly into the hallway. "We're going to room 5, last room on the right."
"Thank you."
Ramsey quickly entered the room and sat on the crinkly paper table cover. The nurse entered and shut the door behind her.
"Here, I'll take your paperwork," she reached out, accepting the clipboard.
"This says you're.. having issues with your hearing and vision, is that right?"
Ramsey swallowed hard, this was the part he feared the most. How to describe what was happening without sounding like a maniac.
"Yeah, I've been hearing.. strange sounds and occasionally my vision seems.. obstructed. It started last night and I'm afraid it could be something serious."
"Okay, we'll check your vitals, get a look at your eyes and ears, and talk to the doctor to see if she recommends any tests."
The nurse proceeded to take Ramsey's pulse, blood pressure and temperature. She checked both ears, shined a bright light in his eyes, and asked him to count her fingers in various directions.
"Everything looks fine so far. I'll let the doctor know and she'll be in to see you soon."
Ramsey let out a thankful sigh and said, "Great, do you know how long?
[System Reset will occur automatically in 2 days, 14 hours, 9 minutes]
The pleasant female voice drowned out the response from the nurse. Her lips moved, but he didn't hear it. Ramsey's eyes grew wide as he stared at her.. the text was back as well.
"Sir? Sir? Mr. Garret, are you okay?"
Ramsey blinked hard and shook his head. "I'm sorry, I'm still having issues. What did you say?"
[System Reset will occur automatically in 2 days, 14 hours, 8 minutes]
While the nurse was trying to answer again, Ramsey yelled, "I'm not talking to you! I'm talking to her!"
The nurse was now the one staring back with wide eyes. She took a step back, reaching behind her back to open the door. "I'll go get the doctor, Sir. Just a moment."
Ramsey's chest began hurting again. 'This was a mistake.
Okay, calm down.
Breathe.
When the doctor comes, just apologize and tell her it was a misunderstanding.'
After a moment, Ramsey could see a few people walking toward his room through the narrow door window. It was a woman with dark hair and two men. They entered quickly.
The woman seemed to be about Ramsey's age. She wore the typical white doctor coat over casual clothes. But the thing Ramsey noticed about her the most was her intense gaze. 'Either she's pissed or has really bad bedside manner.'
"Hello Mr. Garret, I'm Dr. Patel. I understand you've been experiencing some issues with your vision and hearing, correct?
I'd like to evaluate further, but I need your cooperation. For everyone's safety - I'd like to ask you to wear some minor restraints while we evaluate and run some tests. Is that okay?"
"Restraints? I'm sorry there's been a misunderstanding." Ramsey tried to reassure her.
The two male nurses took a step forward and the doctor continued "Please, Mr. Garret, your cooperation will make this much easier."
"Look, I'm sorry. Coming here was a mistake, I think I'll just go now," Ramsey said as he stood, which was clearly a mistake. The male nurses were at his sides and quickly stopped him.
A pinch in Ramsey's arm made him look down to see a withdrawing needle.
"I'm sorry Mr. Garret. Let's get you comfortable and I'll be back in a little bit."
A tingling took over Ramsey's body, it was getting stronger and deeper. After a moment, he realized that he'd been laid back on the bed, his wrists now in restraints.
"What is happening?" Ramsey said, and as his consciousness faded, he heard a reply.
[Begin Syst . . .
***
A vignetted view of a long curtain hanging from the ceiling slowly revealed itself to Ramsey as he attempted to wake up.
'Tired.'
His eyelids failed a few times.
'What was I doing?'
A door opened and a woman with curly brown hair entered from behind the curtain. She was not familiar, but she had a nice face. Ramsey smiled a bit.
"Mr. Garret, how are you feeling?"
"Uh, fine, thanks." Ramsey tried to adjust his position to talk to the nice lady, but he couldn't. He looked down to see the restraints on his wrists. His recollection startled him and he jerked.
"It's okay, Mr. Garret. We had a scare earlier, but you can relax. I'd like very much to remove those after we talk, okay?"
After a moment, Ramsey nodded and she continued, "My name is Amanda, I'm a Nurse Practitioner. May I call you Ramsey?"
Ramsey nodded again.
"Thank you, Ramsey. Do you recall your conversation with the nurse that took your vitals earlier?"
'Unfortunately, I do now' is what Ramsey wanted to say, but now that he was alert, he knew he had to be careful with his words. "I'm sorry about that, I think I was overwhelmed and stressed because of my symptoms. If possible, I'd like to apologize to her."
Amanda smiled and said "That's very kind, and I'm sure she would tell you no apology is needed. Her shift is over, but I'll be sure to let her know."
'Her shift is over? How long have I been asleep?
Don't panic. Play along.'
"Ah, thank you." Ramsey did everything he could to appear calm and genuine with his responses. He tried to relax his hands, his face and his breathing.
She continued, "I do have the notes she made regarding your symptoms. I'd like to get a little more detail and see what we can do to help."
"That sounds great. Thank you." Ramsey cooperatively replied. "Occasionally, in my vision I will see.. areas of black. It's mostly in my peripheral vision. And the hearing issues seem to happen at the same time. It seems to.. cut out, so I can't hear what people are saying. That's why I yelled at that poor girl, it's very confusing and frustrating. I'm just really worried."
"And are you experiencing any issues currently?"
Ramsey resolutely shook his head, "No issues since I woke up."
"That's great. It's possible you were experiencing a panic attack and these symptoms were just a side effect. Since everything has calmed down, I'd like to get these restraints off you, and we'll do a CT scan just to be sure." She leaned forward to undo the restraints.
Ramsey felt a huge weight lifted off his shoulders. Getting a scan was the reason he had come to the ER in the first place. Although things hadn't gone quite as planned.
After she undid the first restraint, Ramsey said "Thank you. Do you know the time?"
[System Reset will occur automatically in 2 days, 10 hours, 24 minutes]
Thankfully, Amanda was looking at the second restraint while she responded. She didn't see the change in his expression. Of course, he didn't hear her response either. However, Ramsey was not as visibly shaken as he was before. Understanding that his reaction right now was the most important thing, he just smiled. Ignoring the text that was obscuring his periphery.
As the second restraint was undone, he could almost taste his freedom.
Almost.
***
The scan was completed quickly a few hallways away and Ramsey was returned to his room. Given his previous detainment, he couldn't help but to look for exits as they walked.
Hospitals had a habit of being really difficult to navigate. Signs pointing to a location might continue for several turns before you actually arrive there. If Ramsey needed to make a break, he hoped to choose the shortest route.
It would take an hour or two before the results of the scan came back. Ramsey was alone in his room with nothing but his thoughts. Well, his thoughts, and the pleasant voice in his head.
'I guess I should take advantage of the free time.'
Barely audible, Ramsey asked "What are the settings I can choose?"