Hospital.

A blinding light engulfed Lilith, searing her eyes and making it impossible for her to see anything else outside of the white light.

Lilith attempted to move her body but was unable to. She felt trapped in one spot as if her body was paralyzed, but she could tell she was lying down beneath a bed because of its softness.

"Is this heaven or am I inside a coffin?" She questioned herself because the light embodied all Lilith had imagined heaven to be.

Lilith's eyelashes fluttered as she heard the sound of footsteps in the background.

'Could that be God?' She questioned herself, but couldn't answer her damn question.

As Lilith waited patiently for the caller of the footstep to approach, the dazzling white light that enveloped her vision faded gradually.

'Am I already headed to hell? I can't remember what happened, so why am I...?'

Before she could finish her statement, she observed something odd.

Lilith saw that her surroundings were blurry. And then she noticed a white wall of a building… almost as if it was a room.

A brown long cushion sat beside the wall.

"How are you feeling young lady?" A male voice spoke, breaking through Lilith's thoughts.

She gulped back her saliva as she forced herself to turn her head in the direction of the male voice she heard.

Interestingly, her head did not feel trapped.

Lilith arched her brows as she glanced at the man who had just spoken to her. He was short, approximately 5 '3 feet, and he wore a white long coat that reached his knees, but it wasn't fastened since there was plain clothing underneath the coat.

He held a book and a pen in his right hand, and a torch in his left.

'Is this a dream?' Lilith questioned herself because what she was witnessing was strange.

"I was born blind, so does this mean that since I'm in heaven I will be able to use my sight." She reflected within herself.

Lilith smiled as she sighed in relief, knowing she could see now that she was in heaven.

"Arr uuuu arrr uuu!"

'What was that about?' Lilith questioned herself.

She had intended to ask the man in front of her if he was God or if he was in command of heaven, but to Lilith's dismay, the words that came out of her mouth were all garbage.

The man with the white coat had not received a response to his prior query, and when he spotted Lilith's peculiar behavior, he smiled pleasantly at her.

"Hold on." He murmured as he placed his hands above Lilith's forehead. "Please can you open your mouth?" He asked nicely.

Lilith scuffed.

'Isssssss.'

Lilith tried to speak to the guy again, asking him why he wanted her to open her lips, but she was unable to do so since all of the words that came out of his mouth were garbage.

After observing Lilith's difficulty in speaking, the man hastily left the room while he called a few men and women to inquire about the medication Lilith had been receiving.

As the man, followed by a small group of nurses dressed in light blue scrubs styled as tunics and pants, entered the room, a sudden rush of panic coursed through Lilith's veins.

Ignoring the peculiar sensation of being stuck that had consumed her just moments ago, Lilith's heart pounded with unrelenting terror as each second ticked by.

Driven by an overwhelming urge to escape, she hastily flung herself off the bed, her bare feet landing softly on the cold, sterile floor.

Her sudden movements startled the medical staff, who froze in surprise, their eyes wide with bewilderment and concern as they tried to make sense of the unfolding situation.

Lilith realized at this point that needles had been pricked inside her flesh, and when she stared at the bedside, she noticed a machine beep.

'What's all this?' Lilith questioned herself as she moved around the room, analyzing her surroundings.

She could now detect a subtle odor of medication in the air, and when she put it all together, she knew the ladies and men dressed in white were doctors and nurses.

'Could this mean I'm alive? And why am I seeing with my eyes that are supposed to be blind?'

Lilith's mind was overwhelmed with questions, but nothing seemed to make sense.

The wall and equipment in the room confirmed that she was in a hospital.

"You have to lie down, miss. Walking around will weaken your body because you have not fully recovered." A lady spoke as she moved up to Lilith, reaching out her hands to soothe her down.

Lilith sneered and shoved the lady's hands away from her front.

Lilith desperately wanted to scream, "Get away!" but her frantic plea was reduced to a mere series of grunting sounds that tumbled from her lips. Her inability to communicate only intensified the fear that had wrapped its icy fingers around her heart.

A gentle voice broke through the chaos. "Why don't you take a deep breath and try to calm down?" another lady suggested as she approached Lilith, a warm and reassuring smile gracing her lips. "We promise not to hurt you, so you can trust us." Her presence exuded a soothing energy that seemed to ease the tension in the room, if only for a moment.

"But I died a while ago." Lilith was thinking to herself.

Everything didn't make sense, and she could feel her legs weaken.

The ground underneath her appeared to be going to swallow her whole, and the entire room started spinning.

Lilith began to feel a throbbing pain in her head, forcing her to pull her hair in anguish. "Wh... where am I?" She questioned herself, and perplexity crept in.

As Lilith's panic continued to spiral out of control, more nurses, both male and female, quickly assembled around her.

With gentle yet firm hands, they carefully guided her toward the bed, determined to prevent any further harm.

Lilith struggled against their hold, her eyes wide with fear and confusion.

Just as it seemed her resistance might overpower them, the doctor moved in with practiced efficiency.

He swiftly inserted a syringe into Lilith's neck, and within moments, her eyelids grew heavy, and a wave of weakness washed over her.

Unable to fight the overwhelming sensation any longer, she collapsed onto the bed, her consciousness slipping away into darkness.

***

Lilith awoke after three hours, and when she fluttered her eyelids, she noticed a lady wearing light blue scrubs who smiled at her.

"Are you feeling any better now?" The nurse standing behind her questioned.

Lilith shook her head sideways. '

Arrrrrrur!'

Lilith let out a big sigh after attempting to communicate but failing to make words.

"I'll get the doctor for you okay." The nurse said this and then walked out of the room.

Lilith stares at the ceiling, calmly waiting for the nurse and doctor.

After a few minutes of waiting, they both entered the room.

It was the doctor from earlier that came into view. "I'm glad to see you're awake," he said with a gentle smile.

Lilith nodded her head weakly in response, still trying to process the events that had transpired.

"You were sedated because you experienced a panic attack when you woke up earlier," the doctor explained, his voice calm and reassuring. "We had to ensure your safety and the safety of the medical staff. It's not unusual for people to have a difficult time processing such an event. Do you feel a little better now?" he asked, his caring tone offering a sliver of comfort amid the confusion.

Lilith nodded her head once again, as she couldn't speak with her lips. "What's your name, young lady?" The doctor interrogated.

"Lullllll!"

Lilith's eyes welled up with tears when she realized she couldn't tell the doctor her name since she had lost her voice.

"Get me a wipe." The doctor addressed the nurse, who offered him a wipe, which he placed on Lilith's hands. "We ran some medical tests and noticed that you were born with apraxia of speech." He spoke before pausing for a moment.

Apraxia of speech means when a person can't be able to move their lips or tongue the right way to say sounds.

Lilith's eyes welled up with tears after hearing the doctor tell her she had apraxia of speech.

Lilith was born with Retinopathy of Prematurity, a condition that rendered her blind from birth, and it feels strange to hear the doctor tell her she was born with apraxia of speech.

"We would love to get your name young lady and likewise the name of your guardian." The doctor spoke briefly before analyzing Lilith's face. "We have to contact your guardian so that they can clear up the bills." The doctor added.

Lilith does not have any money, and she cannot tell the doctor her aunt's phone number because she was unable to read and write when blind. After all, she had believed that learning to read and write was a waste of time for a blind person.

The doctor nodded momentarily at his nurse as he noticed Lilith's lack of response.

The nurse quickly pulled out an alphabetical book. "Point out the spelling of your name." The nurse muttered.

Lilith sat down properly on the bed and stared at the alphabetical book. She had no idea what each alphabet was called.

Lilith sighed, clearly frustrated. She wanted to ask the doctor about what happened to her voice, but she couldn't.

"Since you don't seem familiar with the alphabet, why don't I show you a book filled with numbers?" The nurse stated.

Lilith murmured nothing as she saw the nurse retrieve a set of books containing numbers. "Why don't you point out the number of your guardians for us?" The nurse proceeded to inquire.

Lilith stared intently at the number for a minute before shaking her head sideways.

"It appears you're still in shock, which is understandable," the doctor continued, offering Lilith a reassuring smile. "We found you outside the hospital building, collapsed in the rain with your clothes drenched in mud and dirt. You seemed lifeless, so we immediately brought you in for treatment."

The doctor paused for a moment, allowing Lilith to absorb the information. "For now, try to get some rest," he advised in his empathetic and kind voice. "We'll be close by if you need anything. Remember, you're safe here."

With a final nod of encouragement, the doctor and the nurse stepped out of the hospital room, leaving Lilith to process the fragments of her bewildering situation.

Lilith took advantage of the nurse and doctor's absence from the hospital room to stare at her hands.

A drip was attached to the cord that was stinging inside her skin.

Lilith closed her eyes while biting her lower lips and pulling the cord from her hands.

She took a deep breath, straightened her hospital gown, and softly opened the door to the hospital room.

Lilith stepped out of the room after noticing a different nurse from before walking past. She was cautious of her surroundings while searching for the hospital room's departure door.

'There it is,' Lilith thought to herself as she quickened her steps toward the door.

Her determination to escape grew with each passing moment.

As she burst through the doorway, she collided with the doctor from earlier.

"Young lady, what are you trying..." the doctor began, his voice laced with concern but before he could finish his sentence, Lilith shoved him aside and broke into a frantic run.

The urgency to get away consumed her and she couldn't afford to let anything or anyone stand in her way.

The doctor called out after her, his words lost to the echo of her hurried footsteps as she disappeared down the road.

Lilith sprinted as fast as her feet could carry her, a whirlwind of emotions fueling her every step. She came to an abrupt halt as she reached the middle of the bustling road, her chest heaving from the exertion.

Her gaze fixed upon the onslaught of moving cars whizzing past her in every direction.

The blaring horns from impatient drivers assaulted Lilith's ears, exacerbating her already heightened anxiety.

Lilith found herself frozen in place, unsure of how to navigate the chaos that now surrounded her.

In a moment of sheer terror, Lilith's eyes locked onto a red car barreling toward her at breakneck speed.

It was as if the vehicle had been specifically sent to end her life, its menacing engine roaring as it closed in on her trembling figure.

As the distance between them rapidly dwindled, Lilith's fear reached its peak.

Overwhelmed and helpless, she released a blood-curdling scream.

"Urrrrghhh!"