THE GIFT Read Free

eyes have been damaged to the point that they are no longer functional. What little vision you might have maintained will go away as they heal and scar over. All of your other wounds will heal, but your eyesight will not return. The damage is just too much to repair. At some point transplant may be an option, but it could be a while before that becomes a viable solution and, even then, there are risks involved. Do you understand what I am telling you, Amanda?” the doctor asked.
    For a moment, Amanda didn’t respond. She could hear her mother crying harder and she realized that she was crying, as well. The tears brought agonizing pain to her eyes and face as they filled the tiny wounds that had robbed her of sight. It wasn’t just dark here because she had bandages. It would continue to be dark when the gauze came off. It would be dark forever. The last thing she would ever remember seeing was a truck going off the side of the Queensboro Bridge. A truck that had taken her eyesight away from her forever.
    “Amanda, do you understand what I have told you?” the doctor repeated gently. Amanda slowly nodded her head to indicate that she understood.
    “Very good. I’m going to increase your meds temporarily to help with the pain and to keep you from moving too much while you heal. We will release your restrained hand so you can reach the nurse’s button in case you need anything. Also, we will remove the ventilation tube so that you can breathe on your own and you’ll be able to talk. Your throat will be scratchy for a while, but that will pass. I am going to talk to your parents outside while a nurse takes care of all of that and then your parents will be back in to visit with you for a bit. I will check on you again later,” the doctor said. Amanda nodded slowly and she heard footsteps leaving.
    Moments later, the nurse arrived to tend to her. The nurse had been there for only moments it seemed when her parents came back. Amanda’s voice was so hoarse and weak that it was hard to speak but she said exactly what she later knew her parents must have dreaded hearing. “How is Dan? How are the others?” It came out in a weak croaking voice that she didn’t recognize as her own.
    “Amanda, I’m so sorry. Jane, Kirk and Holly are in pretty bad shape. They are here in the unit with you being attended to by some of the best doctors around. It will probably be a while before we know anything definite. The truck that hit you. I don’t know if you even saw it. They said it happened very fast and you were unconscious when the ambulance arrived. It was a semi-truck and it hit on the driver’s side. Dan never felt anything honey. It was instant.” It was her father speaking. His voice was barely a whisper by the time he got to the end and she could hear her mother’s sobs again.
    Amanda felt the sting again as tears filled her eyes. Dan was dead. The one boy she had ever loved and he was gone, just like that. Her mind drifted to the first time she had ever seen him, standing in the door of her chemistry class on the first day of her senior year. He had just moved here and didn’t know anyone. She didn’t have a lab partner and the teacher had directed him to pair up with her. She immediately felt a rush as he stood next to her and smiled, introducing himself. It was the beginning of a great friendship and soon after that, they began dating. He was her first real boyfriend. Eventually, she had given him her virginity and they had begun to make plans to attend the same university. He was her soul mate and now...what now?
     
    “Amanda, I’m sorry,” her father said. “I know how hard that must be for you to hear.”
    He didn’t. There was no way he could know how hard it was for her to hear. She felt numb and couldn’t respond, just continuing to lay there and let the tears fall, letting them sting across her face to match the pain she felt inside. It was pain that had nothing to do with her injuries. Now, she could