Trauma
A Short Story
By Maryanne Peters

He woke up in hospital. He was puzzled at first. He had no idea why he should be there. The memory of the train crash only came later, after usual questions were asked. He remembered the girl who had been sitting beside him, and how she had fallen into his arms as the railcar left the tracks. They could feel that moment of weightlessness as gravity seemed to no longer apply, just before the impact. He had held her tight, and she had held him.

Have you ever had that dream where you’re sailing through the air, simply admiring the sky and the wispy strands of the clouds as you pass through them? But then, you fall. You can flap your arms and kick your feet, but to no avail. You reach terminal velocity and your heart races as the Earth gets closer and closer until you strike something like a car, Then, everything goes black, and you wake up.

I had to admit. Robert was right. It was a good idea to experiment alone. I will not describe what I did. It was familiar and yet completely different from anything I had done as a guy in that same bed. Shelly had had the wherewithal to have me buy bath products while we were out and I made use of them afterward. It was my first shower in this body and it too was eye opening.