Woman On The Beach - Chapter 3
Written by Sandie May Joyce (Sandie Angel)
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Chapter 3
Freddy Fidamon
"Wake up, Freddy, wake up!" I could hear Johnny's voice prodding me to wake up.
I felt sick all of a sudden, and I could feel water rushing out through my mouth. Then I opened my eyes. I could see a lot of people surrounding me. Why? What happened? Have I fallen asleep while watching Mike and the Goddess? Where is Steve? He was supposed to be sitting beside me.
I coughed up a load of water from my lungs, and then I saw Johnny's face.
"Freddy! Oh! I'm so glad you're back. For a moment I thought you were dead! Don't move now - the emergency team is here to take you to the hospital." Johnny said.
"Wha...what happened? Where am I? And where are Mike and Steve?" I asked frantically. I hoped they were all right.
"They are on their way to the hospital too. The emergency team has taken them over already. Mike was almost dead as a fish, and Steve was unconscious like you. I am glad you've come to," Johnny said.
"Fish!" This had become such an unusual word all of a sudden.
"What were you guys doing on the beach last night? You know better not to come out so late at night! There was a big storm here last night, they say a hurricane had struck and there were big waves everywhere!" he continued to tell me.
Ah! So there was really a storm here last night after all! I was about to tell him more about last night, but the emergency crew had just arrived to transport me to the hospital. They put me on a stretcher, but wait a minute!...
What kind of emergency team is this?
I have not seen such a uniform worn by any emergency unit before - their faces looked solemn and gray, just like their uniform. I thought the uniforms were supposed to be blue? As they loaded me into the ambulance, I quickly realized that it, too, looked nothing like any emergency vehicle I had ever seen.
Wait a minute! Help! Johnny, help! Don't let them take me away please! I don't know who these people are but they are not the emergency team. Please, Johnny, help me please! I kept calling, but none of the words would come out of my mouth. It was all inside my head. What's happening? They must have given me a needle to keep me from screaming.
Johnny, don't you see what they're doing to me? How can you let these strangers take me away? I thought you were my friend. Johnny! You disappoint me!
I continued to protest in silence...then...came...
The Dream:
"Freddy, Freddy, wake up! Are you here? Oh, please wake up Freddy please!" I heard a woman's voice calling my name.
Where am I now? I'm inside this dark tunnel which leads to nowhere to go but forward. Wait, I can see the light. There is a light at the end of this tunnel, so it must be an opening for me to go out. I have to walk towards it.
"Freddy, Freddy, don't go away please, come back, come back to us!" It's that woman's voice again.
"Don't go towards the light kid, come back, turn around and come back to us! We're here for you, hun! Mom and Dad love you, don't you go away from us!"
Oh! It's Mom and Dad, they still want me, they're calling me to go back, so I must go back. I turned around and look back. I can see Mom and Dad standing there. I ran towards them.
"Mom, Dad, here I come! here I come!" I tried to yell, but I was voiceless.
"Freddy, Freddy, is that you? Are you back now?" I heard a woman's voice calling me again. I could feel someone using a towel wiping off the sweat on my forehead.
I opened my eyes to find a woman standing next to me. She looked to be in her forties, with dark brown hair with a little bit of gray. Beside her was a man about the same age, with a little bit of gray hair. They were both looking at me, appearing very worried!
"Freddy, oh Freddy, I'm so glad you're back sweetheart! We thought we've lost you already. We were so worried," said this woman. But who is she? I don't even know her!
"Who are you? Where am I?" I asked her, as I struggled to remember who she was.
She looked at me in disbelief, and then turned around and sobbed uncontrollably.
"How are you son? That's your Mom. Don't you remember us, Freddy? I'm your Dad," the elderly gentleman looked at me sadly.
"I'm sorry! You must have mistaken me for another person. My name is Freddy Fidamon, my parents are Elaine and Thomas Fidamon, they are my parents. You must have mistaken me for someone else."
By this time the doctor and the nurses had rushed in.
"Hi, Freddy! How are you? You've been away from us for the past couple of days. Welcome back!" The doctor said.
I looked at his name tag, "Dr. Greene" was written on it. Well, at least he had a doctor's white coat on. I felt much better already. He held up my wrist to check my vital signs, then he listened to my heart.
"Thanks, doc! I'm fine! But who are these folks beside me?" I looked at the woman and the man who were standing next to my bed.
"You've been in a coma for the past 2 days."
"In a coma, I thought I was the one who was okay, Mike Dolan was the one who was in a coma."
"Yes, Mike had it, and so did you." He said. "After we brought you to this hospital, you had a seizure and then you were gone for the past 2 days."
"Two days, what day is it today?" I looked at the calendar on the wall.
"It's Monday today, and it's 2 o'clock in the afternoon, so you were almost out for two days." He looked at me and looked at his watch.
"But doctor, I don't know these folks, I am not their son. I am not who they think I am, I am Freddy Fidamon, and my parents are Elaine and Thomas Fidamon. I can prove it to you, just hand me my wallet," I said to the doctor.
"Now, don't get yourself upset. Things will come back to you. Loss of memory is quite normal after a person is awakened from a coma. In a few hours you might be able to remember more," Doctor Greene said.
"You don't believe me? Just give me my wallet, I'll prove it to you. My parents' photos are in there."
He handed me my wallet and I opened it. All my credit cards were still there, with my name: Freddy Fidamon. But wait, the place where my parent's photo was supposed to be, someone had switched it to show these folks' photo! This is not the photo that was supposed to be in here! What's going on?
"Now, that is ridiculous! What's going on? Who has switched the photo?
I looked at the photo in the wallet. It read - "Dear son, Freddy: Best wishes always! Love, Mom and Dad."
I don't understand it, how did these folks get their photo into my wallet. I'm so heartbroken, I need my own parents' photo back!
"Don't you worry, it will all come back to you in a few days," Doctor Greene said again.
"Wait, but you don't understand! I KNOW my own parents, I can remember what they look like, I'm telling you, these folks are not my parents! My parents are Elaine and Thomas Fidamon. Will you ask them what their names are, please?"
"I am Elaine, and this is my husband is Thomas, our last name is Fidamon. I signed the admission papers for the surgery, remember doc?" The woman said, she looked really sad and appearing very distraught.
"Surgery! W-a-i-t a minute!... What kind of surgery was that? What have you done to me? And why was I in a coma for 2 days? What's happening? I'm getting out of here! I'm feeling alright now, I need to go home." I was almost screaming.
I tried to get out of bed. But I felt dizzy, so I fell back down. The doctor came over to try helping me, I swung a fist at his jaw.
"Get out of my way, I've got to get out of this crazy hospital. I don't know what you have done to me! I don't know anyone here!"
I swung my fist at Dr. Greene again, and this time I knocked off his glasses.
Several nurses have come in, two of them held me by my arms, and another two held me by my legs. Then they strapped me down onto the bed again. Out of the corner of my eyes, I could see Dr. Greene hold a needle in his hand and all of a sudden, I felt this sharp piercing pain in my left arm. Then I was out again...
XXX XXX XXX
I don't know how long I had been out in my dream, but when I came to I looked around me.
Where am I now? So it was a dream after all. I find myself still in this stretcher en-routing to the hospital. God, that was quite a dream for me! Oh! I think I'm at the hospital now. I am so afraid now my heart is now pounding.
The emergency van came to a stop, and now they were taking me out on the stretcher and I looked around.
It was a hospital...I guess. - A grayish looking building, with the capital letter "H" on top of the building, so it must be a hospital. But why is it situated at the top of a hill? And why do we have to go through a gate? What kind of security do they need for a hospital? I thought a hospital is supposed to be for the public. When one is sick, one can feel free to come in for treatment. I wonder why they would need all this security.
When I arrived at the hospital Mom and Dad were already there. Thank God!
"Freddy!" Mom cried loudly, "Oh Freddy! I am so glad to see you!" She came forward and gave me a big hug and a kiss so did dad.
Mom patted my hair as if I was a little boy again.
"How are you feeling, hun? Are you feeling any pain?"
I tried sitting up, but I could not feel my legs supporting me.
My legs! Where are my legs? Why can't I feel them?
The nurses were here already, and they quickly wheeled me into the emergency, where I was registered. Glad mom and dad were here to do the registration for me! I was totally exhausted!!!
will be interested to see where the tale takes us next
NEVER STOP WRITING
m
Reviewed by Danny Underwood
5/26/2018
Sandie, you have penned an exceptionally lively story. It is captivating and holds my attention from chapter 1 up to now. I can't wait to read about what is going to happen next to Freddy. You have a talent for baiting your readers' attention. Good job with all three chapters!
I don't have time right now to read the other two chapters, but this chapter is full of trauma that may explain the strange experience that Freddy is having. It certainly is confusing and frightening for Freddy. That would make the reader curious as to what's going to happen next. My assumption is that Freddy and his friends went surfing during a hurricane and were either drowned or close to it.
Your lead-in comment in the beginning could clarify that without having to read the other two chapters.
Only one little error detected: "Protest in [silence]."
Pieces of Eight, Part II is an eclectic collection of eight imaginative novellas that complement the eight tales that appeared in Pieces of Eight. The selections are a blend of different short story/novella plots and themes. Science-fiction, paranorm
MONSTROSITY n. 1. That which deviates greatly from the norm in appearance or structure. 2. The quality or character of being abnormal; hideous; frightful; shocking.
