Three

Cole

"He's not conscious, we need to start him on fluids. He has second-degree burns on the bottoms of both feet and his left hand," someone said from my side. I tried to open my eyes but couldn't. It was as though all the energy I normally had was drained from me. I could hear all they said around me, but I was hopeless to respond in any way.

My eyes barely opened when one of them lifted the lid to my eye. "Sir, can you tell us what happened?" a man about my age asked as he tapped my cheek, and I struggled to crack open my eyes.

"Lightning," I managed to say.

"You were struck by lightning?" he asked.

I could only nod in reply as my eyes slid shut again.

"Sir, I need you to stay awake. We want to make sure you're not hurt more badly than it appears," he explained, but I knew exactly how bad it looked.

"Did you say someone brought him in?" the male voice asked.

"Yes, he's out front," someone standing right next to me said.

"Go get him. I need to ask him a few questions."

There was silence then beyond the sounds of metal clanking together and shoes on the hard floor. I drifted, and for a time forgot where I was as emotions passed over me that reminded me of when I was a small child and had been injured. The caring way my mother had looked after any injuries made me forget I'd been hurt at all. In the end all that was left were feelings of peace, warmth, and love.

"I don't really know how I can help," a familiar voice said as it drew nearer.

"What did you see," the voice from earlier asked.

"He was jogging, and the weather got ugly really fast. He was struck by a bolt of lightning that blew him about ten feet over to the side of the road. When I got to him, he was smoldering. His shoes were blown off, he was unconscious, and covered in soot or ash."

"When he came to, what was his state of mind?" A light was shone in my eyes and a needle was jabbed in my hand as I tried not to wince.

"He was lucid, told me his name, and fought me about having me give him a ride."

"What do you mean?" the voice, who must have been the doctor, asked.

"I think he was afraid I was going to abduct him, but I only wanted to get him some help. He was aware of what was going on, but there was no way he would have been able to walk back to town. Then when we were about twenty minutes from here, he had a seizure."

"How do you know it was a seizure," another voice asked, making me wonder how many people were in the room, but I was still too weak to open my eyes.

"One minute he was sitting in the car seat covered in ash, burnt hair, and no shoes, and talking to me. The next minute his eyes rolled back in his head, and his back arched off the seat while he shook. Does that sound like a seizure to you?" Bobby asked. Bobby. I was surprised I remembered his name, but his voice was familiar to me. It was the first thing I remembered after I'd been knocked out. For a moment everyone was quiet before one of them started barking out orders.

"I want a full panel of tests, let's figure out what we're actually dealing with," the same voice who had questioned Bobby now said. The room was a jumble of motion and sounds as everyone was either poking or prodding at me in various ways. Then a wave of calm washed over me. You'll be okay , I heard someone say, or maybe I imagined it. A strong hand took mine and squeezed it tight.

"Don't worry, Cole, I'm not leaving until I know you're being properly taken care of," Bobby said from my side.

I wanted to thank him, or at least open my eyes, but all I could manage was to cling to his hand for all it was worth. And right now, it was worth a lot. My mind drifted, and I was in that strange state between wakefulness and sleep where you're completely aware of everything around you, but it takes on a dream state. Occasionally strange thoughts crossed my mind that I knew were not my own. Some were focused on medical care, while others were random feelings of worry for someone I couldn't picture.

Flashes of images crossed my mind, none of them were visible long enough for me to interpret what they were, and before I could think about it too much, I fell asleep and dreamed. This dream was different than any other before. I don't know how I knew but I did. It started with me running down the road I'd run on nearly every day for as long as I could remember. The sound of my shoes on the pavement sounded the same, and I thought in the dream I'd at least get to finish my run. Of course I wasn't that lucky. Dark clouds rolled in fast, and out of the corner of my eye I saw a faint blue glow in the clouds. When I turned my head to get a better look it wasn't visible. My eyes were drawn to my hands that now glowed the same blue I'd seen hidden in the rolling clouds.

"What the—" I started to ask but all my thoughts and words were cut off when a slicing pain cut through my skull. My subconscious was ripped from my body, and I was floating above the gurney I lay on. Bobby knelt next to the hospital bed, still holding my hand while everyone else in the room rushed around me. Time stood still until slowly, Bobby looked up, and I would have sworn his eyes met mine.