Viviana compared the figure in her sketch to Chelsea's and could indeed see some similarities. What did this mean she thought, what was the relationship between her, Chelsea and the dream she wondered? Chelsea was still waiting for an answer due to the unexpected development, maybe she had met Viviana before without knowing, but still, she had some doubts because she had spent most of her life in hospital wards, and she wasn't a native of Port Marino as she was from a different state entirely but had to come to port Marino because of her health condition.
To ease Chelsea's suspicions Viviana decided to tell a white lie as she also needed answers too.
" Oh, that's shocking. I just had this image in my head and decided to draw it. Like you know how artists have images and ideas in their minds. Although I am not an artist, I love drawing. It is a shocker that my center of attention looks like you. Isn't that crazy?" Viviana pulled on a fake smile, hoping Chelsea would drop the case.
" Okay, I get, I apologize for questioning you like that. To be honest, your drawings are very realistic, maybe if you are free you can make a proper sketch of me. I would love to have a masterpiece like this." Chelsea finally replied because she did want Viviana to feel uncomfortable.
" Ok sure, but I am not sure my skills are as great as you claim." Viviana was glad Chelsea hadn't pushed further.
Chelsea then explained a lot about the ward, the rules, the patient and many more in clear details. It turned out that Chelsea was one of the longest-staying patients in the ward and she made herself the children's president and normally welcomed new patients to the ward as she knew a lot about it. She gave Viviana a few warnings about what was not allowed and also encouraged her to decorate her room as she would be staying for quite a while in the ward. Viviana didn't find Chelsea's chatty personality annoying because she enjoyed their conversations and all the information Chelsea gave to her. They also talked about things outside the hospital. Before Chelsea left, she gave Viviana a chocolate bar she called a welcome gift.
The next day, Viviana attended a psychologist session along with other patients. The ward consisted of children and teens, as adults were treated in a different facility. The patients of the specialist ward were all scheduled for psychology therapy sessions because of the emotional stress most of them suffered while fighting for their lives. Viviana was fascinated and scared at what most of the patients had been through. She discovered that these rare diseases have a great emotional toll on their victims, as most of them watch their friends die and also experience cases where some have been successfully treated and discharged from the hospital. It is uncertain who would die or survive, as most rare diseases don't have enough information on them.
Although Viviana's mood was initially damp after finding out that there was a chance of survival also because the hospital had someone who had survived CFX, she was glad at the little ray of hope. Since Viviana was new, the psychologist made her and the other participants introduce themselves to each other. After the session in the morning, routine medical treatments were administered to Viviana. That was when Viviana was informed that the international specialist was presently out of the country for a medical conference, but she would be back soon.
Viviana was not bothered because she was convinced that the professionals knew what they were doing. She was made to carry an atmosphere supplying-respirator (ASRs) to assist her in breathing because CFX affects the respiratory system of patients, making normal air toxic to the patients. If they had too much exposure their noses start bleeding, although Viviana hasn't experienced any nose bleeding as she was diagnosed very early, it was still mandatory for her to use the respirator.
Viviana was a bit disturbed because since 2 days ago, Theo left the hospital, she hadn't heard anything from him, not a single call or text, which was very uncharacteristic of him. She was reading novels to pass the time, but her thoughts kept drifting to Theo, after their father broke the news, she was so aggrieved that she didn't notice when Theo left her room. She hoped he was alright and wouldn't do anything stupid.
Feeling bored with the novel she was reading, Viviana decided to take a stroll. She left her room and started wandering in the hallway, which was almost deserted except for some nurses going for routine check-ups of patients under them.
" Miss Marino, I am glad you are energized enough to be wandering around" Viviana turned to her side to realize that it was the nurse in charge of her Gloria who was coming out of another patient room. " You know you should not move around too much unless necessary as you have to conserve energy for your recovery." Gloria reprimanded Viviana.
Beads of sweat formed on Vivi's forehead because of Gloria's tone, which made it seem like she had committed a crime. " I was feeling cramped in my room and decided to move around a little bit" she replied nervously to Gloria's reprimand.
" Still you shouldn't move aimlessly around this hour, but I understand your situation. Everything must be new to you." Gloria then moved close to Viviana's ear and whispered " I know I shouldn't be telling you this but whenever you feel like having some fresh air during the night just take the elevator to the roof deck most patients like sneaking their when it is dark, avoid the staircase as some staffs normally go there to smoke when they are free to avoid getting caught. Most importantly, don't stay too long there because of the weather. We are still in winter, and you have to be back before your last routine check-up. I am sure you would love the view up there." Gloria winked at Viviana before excusing herself.
Viviana started imagining what the rooftop view would be like because Chelsea had also praised the view to her.