-Doctor's Office-
Bill sits quietly on the examining table of the sterile
doctor's office, wearing a paper hospital gown and his black dress socks.
His wife Sherri sits in the padded chair next to the table
and holds his hand tightly as the doctor sitting across from them tells them
the results of the testing.
Sherri starts to cry and holds onto Bill's arm as she tries
to burry her face into his leg.
Bill only nods and stares in shock at the thick-rimmed
glasses the doctor wears as the words fade out, replaced by a buzzing in his
ears.
-Car Ride-
Driving in their car, Bill goes through the motions of steering
cautiously, taking the side roads home, but his expression is the same blank
look of shock; Sherri continues to cry in the passenger seat.
-Kitchen Table-
Bill sits at the table in their quaintly decorated kitchen
as Sherri cooks a healthy breakfast to set in front of him. But Bill only
glances at the delicious looking food then stares out the kitchen window at the
grey landscape outside.
Sherri stands beside him with her hand on his shoulder,
staring at the bleak view with him.
-Bathroom-
Looking at his reflection in the mirror, Bill sees how tired
he looks; dark circles growing even darker under his watery eyes.
He opens the medicine cabinet to reveal shelves full of prescription
pill bottles, which he chooses several of and starts taking a different sized
pill from each with a heavy sigh.
-Hospital-
In the dimly lit chemotherapy room, a slightly more tired
and thinner Bill reclines in a comfortable chair along side others in a row;
all occupied with people receiving their doses of medicine intravenously; all
at different stages of their illness.
-Bathroom-
Back at home, a pale, freshly shaven bald image of Bill
stares back at him in the mirror as he closes the medicine cabinet with his
daily plethora of pills to choke down.
He begins to cough and sputter, holding onto the counter for
support as blood sprays from his mouth and splatters the white sink bowl.
Bill looks weakly at his reflection, which is now also
splattered with blood specks.
-Bedroom-
In the darkened bedroom, a skinny, grey-skinned Bill lies in
bed and begins to cough until he leans over the side of the bed to throw up in
the garbage pail sitting beside the bed.
Sherri stands in the doorway clutching a washcloth, looking
haggard and drained as she watches Bill wretch in pain; her eyes red and raw
from crying.
-Hospital-
Lying in a hospital bed, grey light coming through the thin
curtains covering the windows to the left, an emaciated Bill struggles to breathe
as tubes and wires connect him to all manner of machines surrounding the head
of the bed.
Around the room, amongst the many bouquets of flowers, his
friends and family stand and sit, filling the room, making him seem even
smaller and skeletal in his inclined bed.
Sherri sits beside him and holds his hand gently as she
stares into his barely opened, milky eyes.
The monitor to the right of Bill's head beeps rhythmically
as the digital line spikes with each heartbeat; but soon the spikes get weaker
and weaker until they flat line and the beeps turns into a long tone.
Sherri breaks down and buries her head into the crook of
Bill's neck as he lies peacefully with his eyes closed; the others in the room
move to put a hand on the two of them or hug one another.
For a long moment everyone weeps quietly in the stillness of
the hospital room; mourning.
Then the heart monitor tone stops its long droning sound and
the beeps weakly begin again.
Bill takes a deep breath as Sherri pulls back and looks into
his surprised eyes; the milky haze fading away as they return to their normal
emerald green shade.
Doctors and nurses come in to check on Bill as the rest of
the room looks on in stunned silence.
Bills pulls at the tubes he is connected to and the Doctors
try to calm him as he struggles to sit up; the nurses usher the others out so
the doctors can figure out what's happening.
Sherri tries to stay by his side, but is helped out as well,
still looking at Bill's now vibrant eyes.
-Hospital Later-
The hospital room is now brighter and cheerful with the
colour of the many flowers adding to the happy scene.
Bill sits up in his bed, eating and laughing as his family
and friends gather around again, joining in his merriment.
Sherri sits beside him, beaming with joy as Bill wolfs down
his mushy hospital food.
The tubes and monitors are all gone and the doctors confrere
with each other in the corner, confounded by their charts.
-Home-
Sherri opens the curtains in the living room as Bill opens
the blinds in the bed room and looks out on the sunny back yard of green grass
and blossoming lilac trees.
His skin no longer grey and sallow, he smiles and breathes a
heavy, long breath as Sherri comes in behind him to put her arms around him in
a happy embrace.
He turns to hold her in his arms and kisses her deeply.
The two laugh and giggles as they fall onto the bed and out
of vision from the window.
-Kitchen-
Bill, now back to his healthy normal self, sits on a chair
wearing shorts and a t-shirt lacing up his running shoes.
Sherri shuffles into the kitchen sleepily, still in her
slippers and bathrobe to make coffee, shaking her head at how early it is.
Bill jumps up to kiss her good-bye and runs out the back
door, full of energy as Sherri yawns, still shaking her head at him.
-Early Morning
Street-
The sun, still just rising in the early morning sky, shines
its glow on the tree-lined street as Bill jogs along the sidewalks listening to
music in his headphones.
He approaches some garbage cans left out from the night
before and leaps over them, laughing to himself and he jogs on.
-Grassy Hilltop-
On a hill top overlooking the city below, Bill comes up over
the crest and stops to take in the scene.
Looking over the horizon as the sun rises higher behind him,
Bill smiles at the new day; he beams with happiness as he looks healthier than
ever.
After a few moments enjoying the scenery he heads back down
the trail toward home.
-Tree-lined Street-
Back on the streets, Bill jogs along the sidewalk, signing
along to his music as he crosses a street at the crosswalk.
Without warning, a car slams into Bill with a skid and a
crunching thud.
The driver gets out of the car dazed from the airbag
deploying in their face and rounds the front of the car, concerned at what they
have hit.
The hood and grill are crumpled with steam billowing out
from the engine underneath.
Startled, the driver stops in their tracks to find Bill
standing in front of the car, the first few feet of the hood buckled in around
him as if the car had impacted with an unyielding lamp post.
Bill stares in shock at the damage cause to the vehicle, yet
there was not even a scratch on him anywhere.
"What the hell?" The confused driver asks of Bill.
Bill looks up at the driver as if just realizing they were
there.
"Sorry..." Bill stammers as he pulls himself free
of the car with a ripping of metal and runs off down the street, heading toward
home; leaving the car wreck behind on the quiet neighbourhood street.
-End of Part One-
