Bobby Gets A Boo Boo!

By Bryon Smith

>A story written for a witer challenge on the Ember Reign reader writer group on Facebook.<

Bobby got a new bicycle for his 6th birthday.  He was so happy and couldn't wait for his dad to teach him to ride it without training wheels.  He began practicing riding around the living room and finally out onto the patio.  He would pause looking at the steps leading down into the yard.  It was clear that his new bike wasn't made for going up and down the stairs so he would turn and continue in another direction.

One night his dad said he would remove the training wheels and spend the weekend teaching Bobby how to ride like Johnny the neighbor boy did.

Johnny was a full year older than Bobby and he knew all kinds of things.  The neighborhood kids their age called him the keeper of the stories.  They were best friends and would spend hours talking and playing.  Johnny warned Bobby that he must be careful with his new bike because he might get hurt.  Always do what your mom and dad tell you he would say or you might end up in the hospital.

From Johnny's stories the hospital sounded like a very scary place, a place Bobby would never want to go.  When Johnny was there he could hear the strange sounds in the hallway at night.  What was that sound?  Johnny would pull the covers over his head as the shadow would pass by the doorway down the hall.  He sure was glad to get out of there.

"What do you think it was?" Bobby asked.

"Trolls," Johnny answered.  "I heard someone talking and they said the hospital has trolls that patrol the hallways at night to keep little kids in their rooms."

"Trolls?"  Bobby gasped his mouth falling open.   "What if you went out there in the hall at night?"

"I knew a girl in the hospital.  She had the room next to mine.  She's the one who told me.  She said if a kid gets caught in the hallway at night by a troll they are never seen or heard from again," Johnny answered.  "Then it happened to her."

"Oh, no!"  Bobby exclaimed.

"Yes," Johnny nodded. "I woke up one morning and went to see her and she was gone.  I never saw her again."

"A troll got her?" Bobby asked.

"It's the only thing I can think of," Johnny said.

It was Friday and Bobby anticipated learning to ride is bike for real.  He circled the patio a dozen times being careful to avoid the stairs leading into the yard.  Pausing he looked at the garage door knowing his dad kept the tools in there that he would use to remove the training wheels.  Maybe he could help.  He pushed his bike into the garage, looked at the bolts holding the training wheels on, and began searching for a wrench.  Finally he found one and a pair of pliers and set to work.  In a while he had removed both the training wheels.  Proud of himself for having done this on his own he pushed the bicycle back onto the patio, put the kickstand down, and parked it just like Johnny did his.  He sat in the chair watching the clock on the wall waiting for his dad to come home.  It was taking forever.  Mom called him in for lunch and he ate then took a drink back outside with him.

In a little while Bobby's mom checked on him and noticed the training wheels were missing.  "Did you take the training wheels off your bike?" she asked.

"Yes, I did it all by myself.  Dad's going to teach me to ride this weekend."  Bobby smiled proudly.

"That was very mechanical of you."  Suspicious of Bobby's intentions, Mom added, "You must not try to ride it until dad gets home."

"All right, mom.  Don't worry, I'll be fine," Bobby reassured her.

Bobby played in the yard with his puppy kicking a ball around then chasing it.  She was the best little dog ever and her name was Sophie.  She loved to run and play in the yard and Bobby would throw her chew toy and Sophie would run and bring it back.  It was great fun but the clock on the patio wall wasn't much help.  It was only 3 o'clock and Bobby was eying that bike with extra enthusiasm.

Carefully he slipped into the house and peeked around the corner into the living room to find his mom on the sofa watching TV.  She had finished cleaning the house and she was tired.  She would be there for at least an hour, maybe two.

Bobby went to the kitchen and got another drink then back to the patio.  Maybe he could just sit on it.  Sure, that would be all right.

Bobby's mom was startled to hear him scream from the back yard.  She found him and his new bike laying in the yard at the bottom of the stairs.  Grabbing him up she knew what she had to do.  She put him in the back of her car, strapped him in, and quickly drove away.

"Where are we going?" Bobby asked.

"We are going to the hospital," his mother answered.

Bobby's heart sank. He looked at his arm.  Something was seriously wrong with it.  "It's still daylight, it's still daylight," he said to himself.

The emergency room doctor fixed his arm and it was rather unpleasant.  Then he went out to talk with his mom but Bobby could hear some of what he said.  The terrifying words, "I want him to spend a night in the hospital so I can keep an eye on him."

"Oh No!" Bobby cried.

As the orderly pushed Bobby along the hallways he looked down every one and tried to see into any open door but not one troll did he see.  "They live in the basement, that's what Johnny said."

Situated in his room, he eyed the bed and TV controls.  They had given him something for the pain and it made everything look and feel kind of strange.  His mom watched over him closely until dad got there and his dad reminded him how he wasn't supposed to try to ride his bike until he was there to help.  Bobby nodded then cried because he knew he remembered and said he was so so sorry and it would never happen again.  That's what his friend Johnny was trying to tell him.  Always do what your mom and dad tell you.

His dad left for the house because he had to get some sleep so he could go to work in the morning.  His mom read a book to him and then the clock on the wall said it was nine P.M.

"I must go home and get some rest," his mom said.

"Oh No! You can't leave," Bobby insisted.

"I must go home and get some rest so I can fix your dad breakfast in the morning.  You will be just fine.  There are lots of nice people to help if you need anything."  She showed Bobby the call button for the nurse's station.

Bobby held the remote control in his hand as the door closed behind his mother.  This was it, the time of reckoning.  It was just Bobby and the unknown that patrols the hallways of the hospital at night.

The lights outside were dimmed and he turned the TV on trying to distract himself.  He could see the shadows moving past the door, but likely they were just people who worked there.  He wondered if they ever saw the trolls.  Sure, they knew about them, they had to.  So why didn't they do something about them?

A few minutes passed and the door opened.  A lady entered, told him it was time to sleep, and turned his TV and light off.  She leaned his bed back and tucked him in again.

"Get some sleep now.  Everything will be better in the morning," she said as she left the room.

Bobby watched the door close and in a few moments he was fast asleep.

"What's that?"  Bobby woke with a start.  He heard something coming down the hallway outside.  It made a strange growling sound.  Quickly he checked the clock on the wall.  It was midnight!  He pulled the covers up around his head and watched as the sound and the shadow passed beneath his door.  "Troll," he nodded.  It was just like Johnny had said.

He looked at the clock again.  "I'll be safe as long as I stay in my room."

Before Bobby realized what was going on there was a lady standing next to him.  He had fallen asleep and she was there to take his temperature and blood pressure.  She gave him something for the pain.  He looked at the clock and it was one o'clock in the morning.  She finished her work, patted him on the head, and tucked him in again.  He watched the door close once again.  He could hear mysterious sounds down the hallway and yet that lady walked out there like it was nothing.

"They have to know about the trolls.  Maybe they work for the hospital," he said softly to himself.

He closed his eyes until he heard the strange growling sound again.  He watched in anticipation as the sound came near then the shadow passed under his door and off again into the distance.

"There's no way I'm going out there!"  Bobby pulled the covers tight over his head.

Before he realized it there was another mystery sound in the hallway and it was even louder.  His eyes grew large as the sound approached and the shadow passed beneath his door.  He clutched the remote control tightly under the covers as the sound moved away.  Boy was he glad when that sound was gone.

Several more times during the night the strange sounds came and went and some were very frightening.  All the while Bobby kept his remote control close in case he had to call for help.

It was four o'clock in the morning when he heard another sound outside and woke, watching as the shadow stopped at his door.  His heart leapt into his throat as the door began to open.  Quickly he pressed the nurse call button.  There was a shadowy figure inside his room.  It was dark and everything looked and sounded strange.  It moved to the wall and did something then moved to the other and did something else.  It paused as he pulled the covers over his head, then slowly it moved toward him.  It touched his covers and began pulling them back.

"No!" Bobby screamed.

"What's wrong?" a kindly voice asked.

He looked up but there was no troll, just one of the nice ladies checking on him.  He looked.  There was still a shadow near his door, but what was it?

"Can I tell you a secret?" Bobby asked softly.

"Yes, of course you can," the nice lady answered.

"There's trolls in the hallways at night," Bobby said eyes wide watching the shadow under the door.

"Trolls?  Are you sure?" the lady asked.

"I hear them," Bobby reassured the lady.

Glancing over her shoulder she saw the shadow of her cart at the door.  Smiling she leaned down and whispered into his ear.

"Can I tell you a secret?" she asked.

Bobby nodded.

"I'm a hospital troll," she said.  "My name is Kate."

Bobby's eyes grew wide.  "Shape shifter?"

"Sometimes," the lady said as she began taking Bobby's temperature and pulse.  "It just depends on what I’m doing."

It was clear that Bobby was very concerned but so far this troll had not harmed him.   Maybe the hospital trolls aren't bad; maybe they are there to help.  Maybe Johnny was wrong.

"Johnny said you live in the basement," Bobby said.

"Oh no, those are different trolls.  They keep all the plumbing, heating, and other things working here," Kate explained.  "They hardly ever come up here."

Kate finished her job, tucked Bobby back into his covers, and smiled.  "Night time makes everything seem different I guess."

Bobby nodded.

"Don't worry. The hospital trolls won't hurt you."  Kate went out the door and as the shadow moved from the door he heard that strange sound again.

Bobby's eyes widened.  She must have changed back into a troll; it was the only explanation.

Morning came and when Bobby woke up there was his mother reading a book in a nearby chair and all was well with the world.

"The doctor said you can go home today," his mother said.

"That's good." Bobby pressed a button on the side of the bed raising himself upright.

"Did anything interesting happen last night?" Mother asked.

"Oh, uh," he glanced at the door.  "I guess not."

An hour or so later another person showed up with a wheelchair and led the way into the hall with Bobby's mother following.  They paused at the nurse's station and Bobby again heard the strange sound.  His eyes grew large as the sound approached from behind.  He looked to see a small cart with equipment being pushed by a familiar face.  She paused next to him.  Smiling, she winked and put a finger across her lips.  Leaning down she whispered into his ear.  As she walked away he smiled noticing the strange sound coming from one of the wheels on her cart.

Bobby returned home safe and sound with his arm in a cast.  If only he had listened to his mom and dad and obeyed them none of this would have happened.  The back gate opened and here came Johnny with a brand new airplane toy.  Taking a seat at the patio table next to Bobby he nodded.

"Trolls, right?" Johnny asked.

"Oh yeah," Bobby nodded.  "They're real all right."

"No kidding! Did you get to see one?"  Johnny leaned closer.

"I did," Bobby nodded.  "I not only got to see one, I got to meet one."

"Seriously?" Johnny gasped.

"Her name was Kate," Bobby answered with a smile.

"Basement troll?" Johnny asked.

"Nope, just a regular night time hallway troll," Bobby answered realizing for the first time ever he had Johnny at the disadvantage.

"Good thing you didn't run into a basement troll," Johnny warned.

"I guess so."  Bobby smiled.  Leaning toward his friend, he whispered.  "Kate said the basement trolls seldom ever come up into the hospital but when they do it's almost always important."

"Seriously?"  Johnny's eyes were wide.

"You want me to tell you a secret?" Bobby asked.  "Kate said not to be afraid of the hospital trolls.  They are there to help people, not hurt them."

Johnny's mouth dropped.  "Really?"

"Kate was very nice."  Bobby nodded.

Johnny jumped up, dashing toward the back gate yelling, "Bobby met a real hospital troll and lived to tell the story!"  Quickly he changed directions, ran back, and got his new toy.  "Amazing!  I have to tell everyone!"  Quickly he dashed out the back gate into his own yard.

Bobby smiled as his mother came out the patio door to check on him.

"Johnny is sure wound up about something, isn't he?" Mom asked.

"I guess so," Bobby smiled.

Bobby had learned some important lessons thanks to a tumble on his new bicycle.  He learned he should always do what his mom and dad tell him.  He learned hospitals are where people go to get well.  He learned there is such a thing as a hospital troll but they are just regular people with important jobs who work in the hospital hallways at night and sometimes the wheels on their carts make mysterious sounds.

Johnny was certain his best friend had met a friendly hospital troll and lived to tell the story and he wanted to tell all their friends about it.  One day he knew he had to tell Johnny the truth about the hospital trolls, maybe he would tomorrow. ;-)

The End.

This story is dedicated to the friendly hospital trolls at Sparks,

if you see one tell them I  said, "Thank you."