Apollo's 11

by Anna Collins

  I wondered if my eyes would ever get to see a glimpse of happiness; pain and shattered hopes had joined hands with my shadow. Dr. Edward Wright. When I heard about him, I expected to see a mature neurologist with gray hair and wrinkled nose. Our first meeting was an embarrassing one.

  Eric and I were waiting in the beautiful garden area of the nursing home which was only reserved for mental cases. Eric was very pleased to see the colorful flowers planted in a round pattern around the shining white ceramic Mother Mary statue holding baby Jesus in her hands. The statue was a real piece of art and stood distinctly in the middle of those yellow, pink and purple rose plants. Eric had spelled all the colors as we waited and I was crossing and uncrossing my legs. Thankfully I was in my jeans; if I had worn a dress, then the situation might have turned a bit awkward. Blinking continuously and trying to shove away all the silly thoughts in the world, I found myself tugging on my blue jacket. That's when I saw a tall guy wearing rugged jeans and a wrinkled white shirt. He was pushing the wheelchair of an elderly man and was having a one-sided conversation with the patient who seemed to be in a vegetable like state.

  The guy pushing the wheelchair was talking about the sunrise, new beginnings and everything that included the word life in it. His words made me think differently about life. Well, it only lasted for a second, as the next moment, all the clouds of problems made me realize there was no light at all. The lecture the guy gave about sunrises, new day, new page blah blah blah, was total bullshit; By the way, he looked like he was in his late twenties and could easily replace a Calvin Klein model with his sculpted body and square jawline. How could I write something new in the new page of life when all the pages of my life were covered in black grease? There was no room for me to write anything.

  The blue eyed guy was asking the old man to breathe the scent of life. He told him every day offered a new page for us, where we could write anything we wanted; frowning and hating life would only make things worse for us. He advised him to live each day for his family, for the people who loved him. The man in the trolley who was very helplessly listening to the words offered by the young guy was numb from the head down. I heard the nurse speaking about him; apparently, this man who was now in a vegetable like state was a wealthy businessman, but it was history. Age made him sick, and now he lived with the help of a life support system. The young guy, who I thought was his caretaker or something like it, was trying to inject words of wisdom to this man; he probably wasn't even listening to his bookish quotes.

  A hint of a smile appeared on the old man's face. I felt a pinching pain seeing the ray of hope on his face because I knew every single thing the guy had said about life, only looked good in books; it wasn’t applicable in real life. He gave false hope to a person who maybe only had minutes to live. What would he do with new beginnings? I couldn't take in this 'playact' performed in front of me. It disgusted me, and I looked down at the wet grass floor which was shining with morning dew.

  "Umm...I beg your pardon, may I have the pleasure of knowing what this harmless floor of grass did to make you angry?" The voice broke down my trail of thoughts, and I looked up to see the bearer of this voice. The frown and disturbance must have been quite apparent on my face.

  "Ahh, isn't it the great philosopher of life," I taunted.

  His brow creased as he tried to understand my words, then he smiled and kept both of his hands in his pockets.

  "Sorry, didn't get you," he said, and I detected a dilute British accent.

  He was just standing next to the white bench where Eric and I were sitting. Eric seemed to have been lost in solving a cube iron man puzzle Kate had bought him this morning.

  "Am I speaking in Hebrew?" I squinted my eyebrows and acted as if I was trying to find something in my purse, thinking he would go away if I ignored him. I had no mood explaining things to this philosopher-ward boy.

  "I understood your words but not the reason behind your tone," he spoke.

  "You know what? I am not obliged to answer to you. Go and use your words on those vulnerable patients, and those empty headed nurses who are going all puppy eyes for you. I'm sure they are gonna buy the crap you are trying to sell," I stood up in a jolt, without looking at him. I had no idea why this guy made me so angry. Maybe because of the lies and the false hope he was preaching around.

  "So basically you are upset with me?" he raised an eyebrow.

  What? Was he really trying to mess up with me?

  "Listen you ward boy, go and mind your own business. I'm not interested in your happy-go-lucky chit chatting" I snapped and tugged on Eric's arm. "Let's go, Eric, we are gonna be late for our appointment," I said.

  "But sis, I don't want to see another doctor. They are very boring," he pouted.

  "Shut up and follow me," I shot my big angry glare at him.

  "Hmm, so you behave like this to everyone. Thank God I'm not an exception," sighed the ward boy.

  Oh, he was still here, I thought my ‘I-am-not-interested’ face had shooed him away.

  "Why are you still here?" I asked.

  "I thought I might be able to help you out with something," he offered.

  "Thanks. But I don't need help from pretty strangers" I snapped and started to pull Eric by his arms. He was protesting, but I chose to ignore this.

  "Hmm, you consider me pretty, glad to know that. And it doesn't take long for strangers to become friends. By the way, I know your name. Correct me if I am wrong, but aren't you Ms. Freya Lawrence?" Now his voice had that extra gentle tone, which according to my dictionary meant nothing else than fake. Wait...how did he know my name?

  My mouth fell open, but I closed it quickly and cleared my throat. "Oh...so along with philosophy you happen to have detective skills too. Good! Now get the hell out of here before I show you my skills which include suspending you or even better throwing you out of your job," I crooked my eyes at him.

  "Sis, you are very rude," yelled Eric as he jerked away from my grip and ran to stand behind the blue-eyed, over-smart guy.

  He shook his head, "interesting I must say, but I was just doing my job. By the way, I think Eric Lawrence isn't the only one who needs proper medical attention," he said in a casual way and kept looking at my eyes for a reaction as if he was anticipating for a strong comeback.

  I opened my mouth to give him more than his anticipation, and that's when the voices in my head spoke up again. Freya what's wrong with you? Why are you getting all worked up for no reason? Remember the reason that brought you here in the first place. Yes, they were right. I was unreasonable; just because life had been unfair to me, I couldn't take it out on other people.

  "Hello, Ms. Lawrence," he broke my trance again.

  "Umm…," after a deep breath, "I'm sorry, can you take me to doctor Wright's office please?" I asked softly and even tried to smile politely.

  His eyes went bigger, and he stared at me again, "ya sure, please follow me," he smiled and looked down at Eric, who was still hiding behind his back. "I'm sure this doctor isn't going to be boring," he winked.

  "Make yourself comfortable, the doctor will see you now," he informed as he lead us in a cleanly decorated doctor's cabin. Everything in that room was white in color, and no spots of dirt could be spotted. Yes, from the floor tiles to the curtains and from the wallpaper to the table, chairs, sofa, even the examining bed was white in color. The room was filled with wall hangings which displayed several pictures of the inner membranes of the human brain.

  The blue eyed boy tried to make a move to the inner curtain closed area; maybe he was going to inform the doctor about our arrival. "Hey, I didn't get your name," I said.

  "You will get it later, I'm sure we are gonna see more of each other," he smiled and disappeared behind the curtains.

  Weird, I thought. Then the nurse came; she asked Eric a few questions and checked his blood pressure, the routine stuff. As soon as she was done, the door opened "Doctor is here," she said, and we turned back.

  "WTH! What are you do
ing with the lab coat and the doctor's stethoscope?" I asked in awe.

  He smiled, "Just regular practice madam" and he made his way towards Eric.

  "Hello Eric, I am Edward Wright, your doctor," he offered his hand which Eric shook with hesitation, "are you also gonna give me electric shocks?" He asked innocently.

  "No love, we are just going to chat today. I can't wait to hear all about you," he said while eyeing me. I wasn't really sure if those words were meant for Eric or me.

  With a confusion hanging from my pale face, I finally asked, "What the hell is going on? Why is this ward boy dressed as a doctor?"

  The middle-aged nurse looked at me as if I had asked for her kidneys.

  "What?" I asked again.

  "There's nothing to say, he is the doctor mam," she gulped.

  "But...I saw him pushing the trolley of a patient. How can such a renowned neurologist be so damn young, he looks like a mannequin," I said while eyeing him from head to toe.

  He was wearing red Converse shoes and faded jeans; I had never seen a doctor wearing this kind of clothes.

  He cleared his throat and spoke, "Martha, I can take it from here," and he gestured the nurse to leave. Martha's look of shock hadn't changed, and I too was staring at the guy who claimed to be Dr. Wright.

  And he kept talking to Eric like they were best buddies. They talked about all the latest video games, and Eric kept opening up to the doctor about the unbearable pain he felt every time he got those panic attacks. Strangely he never shared any of his discomforts with me; I thought we were pretty close.

  "Ms. Lawrence, you are awfully silent. Anything wrong? Or you are still not convinced a pretty stranger like me can actually be a real doctor?" He asked with a playful smile on his face.

  Eric giggled.

  I swallowed and looked everywhere except for him. God! This was so embarrassing. When I looked in the opposite direction of the sofa where I was sitting, my eyes landed on the wall; several framed certificates and diplomas hung and addressed to Dr. Edward Wright. In one of the pictures, he was being awarded by the health minister of Great Britain himself. Why didn't I see this before? Freya! You are such a fool, I swore underneath my breath. I hit my own head and sunk in lower at my seat. I wanted to curl up into a small ball so no one would be able to see me. I was certain my cheeks had gone red in embarrassment.

  ‘Don't judge a book by its cover,' this quote flashed in front of my eyes. Jeez, Freya! You mistook him for a caretaker!

  "Sis made a boo boo," Eric's giggling made it worse.

  "Shut up Eric!" I let it out when I couldn't bear it anymore.

  Ah! The doctor also seemed to have found a great source of entertainment. He was pursing his lips to stop himself from laughing out loud. Was I performing some comedy scene for him?

  "Are you done enjoying your little game?" I knitted my brows and looked away.

  Jeez! It was such an odd feeling, I was was angry and embarrassed at the same time.

  My palms got sweaty which always happened when I was nervous. Enough of this drama, "Eric, I'm leaving," was I? Then who would talk to the doctor about Eric's condition? I shook my head, while my mouth was busy cursing my own self.

  "Freya, please wait," he said hastily.

  My feet never moved in the first place. I had just stood up and was busy in my thinking sessions.

  He stood in front of me, "I mean Ms. Lawrence. It was all my fault, and I'm genuinely sorry for this," he said softly.

  "But why did you did all this in the first place? You could have corrected me. That would at least have saved me from this embarrassing situation," I frowned.

  "Ms. Lawrence, there's something different about you," he said.

  "What? You mean I'm also mentally unstable?" I asked with a challenge in my voice.

  He looked down and started running his hands through his hair, which as I now noticed were golden in color.

  "No! I didn't mean that. I meant you are unusual in a good way." He gulped.

  I squinted my eyes at him.

  "I noticed you when you were getting irritated; probably my long lectures about seeing the positivity of life seemed lame to you. I thought you were one of those rich, uptight girls who saw nothing except for branded cosmetics and designer bags," he bit his lip as he said it as if he had made a mistake, and looked at me to get a reaction.

  I rolled my eyes, but before I could protest, he spoke up.

  "I enjoy reading people's facial expressions, they are a reflection of their mind and the way they think about everything. So, I started talking silly, because I was 100% sure you would end up insulting me. But it came as a shocker when you gulped down your anger and apologized to me. That did offend me," he sighed.

  "What? My politeness offended you?" My eyes went bigger.

  He laughed, "yes mam because I hate being wrong."

  "So you did all this drama so you could prove yourself right? Know you are damn weird," I muttered.

  "I know," he nodded.

  "And your clothes? I have never seen any doctor wearing faded jeans," I said while eyeing his pants.

  "You want me to hang a stethoscope around my neck24/7?" He asked.

  "British doctors wear suits or....just leave it. You are above my thinking level," I furrowed my eyebrows.

  "What is your thinking level? I would love to explore it," now his voice became deep, and if he weren't Eric's doctor, I would have mistaken it to be a flirtatious line.

  "My brain, heart, and everything are filled with darkness. And I thought you were Eric's doctor. I will contact you when my brain dies. For now, please concentrate on my brother," my face and tone both said I meant business.

  "That will be good, for now," he smiled.

  After this, things went down pretty smoothly. Eric was getting less and less panic attacks, and Dr. Wright and his team assured us Eric's condition was curable; it brought me a bit of relief.

  The cold globe of snow hit my face, bringing me back to the backyard of my townhouse, where I was supposed to stop Eric from playing with the snow, but I had chosen to get lost in my thoughts instead. Silly me.

  "Eric, you are messing with the wrong girl!" I called, and when he didn't listen, I knelt down on the icy ground, made a ball of ice and threw it on his bum.

  "Ouch, my bummy," he yelped.

  I made a winner's face. And it turned out to be a huge snow fight between me, Eric and the other kids. I was laughing and rolling on the snowy ground with them.

  Chapter Eighty

  The door did begrudge in protest as she tried to force it open with her black sticky claws. Sparks ran in the air as her sharp and long nails rubbed against the heavy wooden hinges of the door. It once had golden leaf designs all over it, but now the shine had decayed due to neglect. The room was dark, it was impossible for any normal being to make out anything in there. In spite of that, she walked in there; as she marched forward, little globes of lantern started to illuminate and brightened up the whole room.

  Vines had formed a twisted maze on most of the walls which had reached down to the roof. And the smell of dirt and weed could almost choke someone. She quietly entered the dark living room, the tinkling sound of the small bells in her anklet echoed everywhere. The windows were covered with grime and dirt. The cool moonlight struggled to penetrate the darkness in thin thread rays.

  The bells in her anklet stopped singing as she halted. She looked straight, and a yellow glow escaped her eyes. Soon the giant mirror, which had been attached to the wall since the place had been built, became visible.

  The antique full-length mirror was made out of black stone, and there was a lion's mouth at the very top of it. If one looked carefully, it would appear like the lion's mouth was engulfing the whole mirror. It surely had a unique touch, but it also had an ominous look on it. In fact, the whole room looked like as if it was covered with black shadows while the constant sound of someone's weeping was adding to the heaviness and ugliness of the place.

  The mirror
was sparkling in all its glory. The yellow flames coming out of her eyes were reflecting right through the mirror. She carefully checked out herself from her toe to her head.

  The peach business suit had covered her tall and shapely body. It was clearly visible that her once milky white in color hands, as she held them up near the mirror, were now oozing with a greasy black substance. Red patches of burn marks spread all over her face and neck; no matter how much she tried to hide them with those silky locks of blonde hair, they were visible anyways.

  She kept looking at herself with sheer displeasure; even the Marie Claire shoes, gracefully fitted on her toes, were unable to hide those ugly burn marks, very much apparent now on her feet as well.

  "Caroline! What have you done to me?" She yelled at the mirror which had stopped reflecting her and was covered with some white smoke.

  From behind the white smokes, a figure appeared, identical to the one standing near it.

  "What did you think Rebecca? You could just trap me in this mirror and get away with my body? The game's over sister, you forget we were born from the same mother," Caroline's eyes went stern with confidence.

  Rebecca growled, yelled and jumped, with both anger and pain. She had never expected Caroline would find a voice to fight against her.

  Caroline and Rebecca were sisters. Except for the fact they were brought into this world by the same parents, everything about them was different. Both were poles apart from each other, in spite of being twins.

  Rebecca and Caroline had inherited the witch genes from their mother, Nina. Nina was the complete look alike of Rebecca who had inherited most of the power genes from her. But Nina was never a fan of this witch game; in fact, she hated she had been born a witch. Nina was a good witch, and she always used her powers for good, that's why when Steven Greyson fell in love with the beautiful and innocent Nina, she thought she could finally be in her dream paradise where the stamp of 'witch' wouldn't be stuck on her forehead. Steven was a very handsome guy and loved Nina dearly. So she said goodbye to her wretched old life of a witch and eloped with Steven in search of a better, normal future.