Paper Airplanes - Chapter II

"Mei Mei! You beat me! That's amazing!" My aniki's voice rings around the backyard like bells. For the first time in my life, I've beaten him at paper airplane throwing. He picks me up, carrying me over to the planes.

"Look Mei-chan!" I look where he's pointing, where my paper airplane lies a couple feet away from his, the point slightly rumpled. I grin. I turn to face him, but something is... wrong.

His face is glowing. Brighter, brighter, it's burning my eyes. I have to look away--

The florescent lights of the hospital blind me, and to make it worse, someone screams in my ear.

"Mei! Mei oh my god I thought you'd never wake up! You were out for weeks and the doctors said you might not wake up and oh my god you did you did I knew you would I told them I told them- oh Mei!!"

I'm still trying to figure out what has happened. What's going on? I try to sit up, but I can't. I must be drugged. At this point, I've deciphered that I am in fact in the hospital. Why, I don't know. The last thing I remember was...

Oh. I hadn't looked when I crossed the street. I had been hit by a car. And now I was here.

Kohana was still hovering. "Hey Mei, your mom... she... oh Mei..."

Well if she was trying to confuse me, she'd done it. I was absolutely completely and utterly baffled. What about my mom? What happened? And why was she still crying?

Kohana looked at me, tears in her eyes. "Mei, I don't know how to tell you this, but... part of your spine was shattered."