Flip The Script

The beeping sound was getting annoying.

Toshi experienced a sensation akin to struggling through thick, viscous cement as he attempted to move. The act of opening his eyes proved to be a challenge as if they were glued shut. After exerting immense effort, he managed to break the hardened crust and force one eye open. He was apparently in a hospital room, specifically, the hospital bed.

Positioned in the distant corner was an excessively large chair, occupied by a man in his late thirties who was sound asleep. Nestled against him, a teenager of about seventeen leaned into his protective embrace, displaying a noticeable resemblance to the man. Toshi's eye wandered around the rest of the room, briefly gliding past a machine emitting intermittent 'ping' sounds, before settling upon a woman seated beside his bed. Her face was cradled in her arms as she peacefully slumbered, her head resting upon Toshi's leg.

Despite his best effort, Toshi found himself unable to speak due to the presence of a ventilator. A reflexive urge to draw a breath overtook him, only to be thwarted by the machine's control. Panic began to grip him as adrenaline surged through his body. Sluggishly, he reached his hand towards his mouth, grabbed for the ventilator, and forcefully yanked it out.

The first person to rouse from slumber was the woman. She jolted to consciousness and blinked rapidly as she rubbed her face in confusion. Initially, her gaze shifted towards the man and girl who were still peacefully sleeping in the nearby chair. Toshi was now able to clearly see the woman's face. She was unmistakably the girl's mother. A sense of sadness washed over her as she comprehended their surroundings, and her eyes met Toshi's before abruptly turning her head back in a double take. Her eyes widened dramatically, resembling dinner plates. Toshi, now coughing, simultaneously removed the feeding tube from his nose.

There was only a slight stirring over in the chair until the mother exclaimed, "HIRO! HINA! WAKE UP!" The woman then jumped up and ran to the exit, screaming unto the hallway as she arrived, "NURSE! HE'S AWAKE!" The man, referred to as Hiro, jolted at the sound of his name and shook his head in an attempt to clear his drowsiness. His appearance indicated that he had likely gone without a proper shower or bed for several days.

The girl, Hina, also woke abruptly. She had the presence of mind to leap out of the chair and rush to Toshi's bedside, "Toshi?" she asked anxiously, while he coughed and struggled to regain composure. The mother returned, positioning herself on the other side of the bed and firmly gripping Toshi's hand. "Toshi! Listen to my voice! Stay with us!" she implored urgently.

Toshi tried to talk but ripping out the life support did a number on his throat and all he could do was cough and take deep gasping breaths. The father seemed to go into a blind panic, "Oh God! Oh God! He can't breathe! He ripped out the breathing thingie! Oh, God!" Hiro seemed on the verge of tears.

The mother looked over at the man, "Calm down." She turned back at Toshi, reaching out to pry open  his eye that was still stuck shut, "This is perfectly normal." The girl smacked at her mother's hand, "Stop That!" She turned back to Toshi, "Just keep breathing. Okay? You stopped before and I really don't want to see that again." She grinned in an attempt to make it seem like everything was fine.

Toshi's coughing slowed as his throat slowly stopped burning. He was finally about to speak just as when a man wearing nurse scrubs came in, "Please! Other people are trying to sleep! Use the nurse call-"

Hiro leaped across the room and grabbed the nurse by the collar, "My son was listed as brain dead in a coma! I was told he'd never wake up again and you are telling me to worry about people sleeping???"

The mother rolled her eyes, "Kimoto Hirofumi!" Hirofumi turned to look at his wife. She glared back, "Calm. DOWN." He let go of the nurse while mumbling an apology.

Letting out one last cough before taking a deep breath, Toshi looked up at the excitable man, "Sorry to hear about your loss, sir." Everyone in the room stopped and stared at Toshi.

"I hope your son gets better."