Hospitals are one of the most depressing places on earth. Everything reeks of antiseptic and disinfectant, the food is bland and the portions are small. Plus, you can't have a moment's peace to yourself and you have no privacy whatsoever. And guess what? I'm going to be spending my Easter Weekend here on the fifth floor of Mississippi Medical Center because mother nature hates me.
Okay, all joking aside, it's really a very severe case of seasonal allergies or “Hay Fever” that landed me here. That and a summer cold that somehow turned into pneumonia. You see, a few days ago after my sixteenth birthday, I started to sneeze a little. I thought nothing of it at first. Well the sneezing turned into coughing, and coughing turned into more sneezing and from there, everything kind of just snowballed. At first I tried to treat it with some over the counter allergy medicine. That helped a little, but only a little. I did feel better for a few days. One day, about a week after my birthday, I got caught in a sudden downpour while I was walking home from cheer practice.
And I got soaked to the bone. Despite rushing right home and jumping straight into the tub, and getting a nice warm shoulder and then into a nice, clean, and warm change of clothing. I still came down with a case of the chills.
It was just the chills at first. Anyway, I thought I was coming down with a summer cold, yes, you can get a summer cold in spring. Anyway I dosed myself with more cold medicine, more allergy medicine, and vitamin C tablets. And hoping for the best I kept chugging right along. Then one morning I woke with a sore throat, took some medicine for it, had a light breakfast of warm grits, scrambled eggs, and a small cup of warm milk that was flavored with chocolate powder and then I returned to bed. I'd hoped to just sleep it off, but when I woke up from my early morning nap, my sore throat had not gone away as I'd hoped, instead it was worse and my head was so hot you could figuratively fry an egg on it.
On top of that, I had shortness of breath, and it felt like some professional wrestler had crept into my bedroom while I was sleeping and had then proceeded to put me through the paces, in other words everything hurt, everything was sore and I felt totally drained. Mommy at this point had had enough. She told daddy to get the car ready and told Lily my older and only sister to get me bundled up in a blanket. Lily did just that and before I knew what was going on, I'd found myself being wrapped tightly in a woolen blanket and ushered from my warm bed into the backseat of the family car.
An hour later, mom was pulling into the brightly lit parking lot of Mississippi Medical Center that was located in the heart of downtown Jackson, Mississippi. Once the car was parked, I was ushered into the ER. From the ER I was ushered back into an exam room. Once I reached a room I was given a breathing treatment, a penicillin shot, they then hooked an IV up in my arms and ordered me to get some rest.
So that brings you guys up to speed on me. That was yesterday on Maundy Thursday, that makes today Good Friday and I'm honestly starting to feel a little better, still fatigued, still aching, but I'm breathing a lot easier than I was a few days ago and I'm starting to grow reckless too. One can only sleep so much and despite still being sick I wanted to get up and move around a little. But the head nurse wanted me to stay chained to my bed and get some rest. But speaking of nurses, here's one now. I think she's my night nurse.
My night nurse was a petite woman with shoulder length brunette hair that she had pulled back in a nice, neat ponytail. She wore pink hospital scrubs and the name badge that was pinned above her right breast read. 'Dawn Sharbrough'.
“Good evening Ms. Potter.” She said as she pushed a trolley into my room. It must be dinner time, because I can already smell the flavorless food the hospital staff has so tenderly prepared for me. “Tonight's dinner is oven roasted chicken, green beans, butter peas, a cornbread roll, and a chocolate pudding cup for dessert.” She said in a cheerful tone of voice as she pulled the tray toward me. “And of course, unsweetened tea to wash it all down with.”
I bleached at the last part. For us southern belles, sweet tea was the beverage of choice, you always had sweet tea with every means. I mean heck. I think we were even nursed on the stuff. I've often said this before and I'm going to say it again. Down here in Dixie Land we often take in sweet tea right along with our mothers milk. And to not have sweet tea with chicken was a tad amount to trampling upon the Holy Cross.
“Something wrong sweetie?” She asked as she pushed the serving tray up to me and smiled. I forced myself to lean up a little.
“Plenty.” I said, sighing a little.
“Oh? Care to enlighten me?” Dawn said as she started to check over the machine's I was hooked up too. Oh that another thing, they had me hooked up to more machines and more monitors than you could shake a stick at. Most of them were perfectly harmless, but their constant beeps and pings would get on your nerves before long. I mean I guess they needed to keep a constant check on my breathing, heart rate and all that. But flipping Jesus, I felt like blooming Frankenstein hooked up to all those things.
“Okay, well first off, my bottom hurts.” I said in a flat tone of voice.
“And as expected, the doctor gave you a full round of shots. And in a few minutes we are about to give you another full round of shots before you go to bed this evening. And depending on how you're breathing, the doctor might suggest another steroid shot.” She said with a sigh. “I know sweetie. Shots are no fun at all. And trust me when I say this, I have given you them, just as much as you hate having to get them. We got to, doctors ordered and all.” She said, nodding her head.
“Right!” I said huffing as I rolled my eyes to the side. “Oh and lets not forget, no WiFi either.” I said pointing toward my phone. “I mean, how else am I supposed to check on my news feeds? You know Instagram, Tiktok, Twitter, and Facebook? How am I supposed to keep in touch with all my friends and family.” I said leaning back into the bed with a huff.
Dawn looked at me for a good few moments. It was kind of a hard look, the look your mom or dad give you when you'd said something really dumb or rude. A kind of disbelief look. “First off young lady.” It was then I knew I was in for a scolding. “This is not a motel Ms. Potter, this is a hospital. Instead of focusing on your Myspace or what ever you kids are using these days, You should be focusing on getting better.” She said in a commanding, almost scolding tone of voice. “She paused and took a deep breath. “But if you're a good girl and you somehow manage to finish all your dinner and you take your shots while kicking up a storm. I'll see about bringing you something to read tomorrow morning when I start my shift Anything you might like? Because we have a vast collection of YA novels in the reading room down the hall.” She asked me with a hopeful smile on her face.
Now, I know that Dawn was just trying to be nice to me. But right now I just wanted to pout and fuss, and to pour out all my frustrations on her. But I decided if I wanted something to keep my mind entertained, I better be a good little girl, and eat all my veggies and clean my plate, and take my lumps with some sugar as the old saying goes. But once more I decided to put my foot into my before and before I could catch myself, I found myself saying.
“Yes ma'am Nurse Ratched.” I said as I lifted the pink plastic dome from my tray and breathed in the bland aroma of hospital food. The small plastic tray held two pieces of oven roasted chicken, a leg and a thigh, and like the nurse said a small mountain of green beans that looked more like pieces of green string that beans and beside them a smaller mountain of green peas that looked like tiny-lime colored wads of paper. I swear to God, Jesus, The Holy Ghost, The Holy Family and Mother Mary, when I get out of this place, I'm going to get some real food in me. Anyway I was just about to put a fork full of green beans in my mouth when I noticed Dawn peering at me.
“First off, curve the attitude young lady. Second, my name is not Mildred Ratched. It's Dawn Sharbrough. And Third, I'll have you know we have a special nurse here in this ward that keeps bratty teenagers like you in line. So unless you want a late night visit from that special nurse I would suggest you again curve that little attitude of yours young lady.” She warned in a stern tone of voice.
“Oh you mean the 'Phantom Nurse' I've heard that was just a silly little urban legend you guys like to use to keep children from misbehaving in the ward.” I said, spearing my fork into the mountain of green beans. I then popped the fork into my mouth and chewed them up and swallowed hard. The veggies tasted bland as heck, I'm used to my mom's cooking, who like all southern women, season their veggies with bits of bacon, ham, or salted pork.
“Oh.” Dawn said, shaking her head. “Trust me when I say this, 'The Phantom Nurse' is no mere silly urban legend. We nurses tell us to keep misbehaving brats like you in line. She is as real as you and I.” She said winking her eyes as she jotted down some notes on her clipboard.
I had to roll my eyes hard at the last part.
“So are you going to tell me the story behind 'The Phantom Nurse' or what? I mean there has to be a story behind it.” I said, huffing out a stream of hot air.
Dawn blinked as she slowly turned her head toward me, she eyed me for a few long seconds before she nodded her head again. “Do you want to know the story?” I gotta warn you it's pretty scary? Your not going to have nightmares if I tell you this story, are you?”
I blinked and blinked again as I reached down and took another big bite from my roasted chicken leg, okay the chicken did taste pretty good, not as good as my mom's roasted chicken mind you, but decent enough. I quickly swallowed and took another bite and swallowed again before giving Nurse Dawn my answer.
“I mean, me and my friends gather in the forest behind our houses each Saturday night to exchange ghost stories and stuff. And none of those stories have ever bothered me. So sure, go ahead and tell me this super scary story about the 'Phantom Nurse'. Heck, I might even write it down and share it with my friends once I get out of the hospital. I said finishing off the roasted chicken's leg.
I mean how scary could this story be really? I mean since Jamie life has thrown me nothing but one curve ball after the other. I've really been put through the ringer, lets see, first I was attacked at homecoming by some crazy girl, who threaten to have me raped by the whole football team, then I had a bright red target painted on my back by some bigot Southern Baptist preacher, who was supported by some “Good Old Boy” Headmaster and a old, fossil of a science teacher. Then I'd almost died on the operating table, in this very hospital about a year or so ago. Okay maybe I did die, my memories of that day are fuzzy. But I do remember getting rushed into the OR, the anesthesiologist putting me asleep.
Then having to fight to fight a shadow version of myself. And after defeating that shadow version of myself I somehow managed to get before the gates of Heaven I think? I don't know, and I don't care to remember.
So yes, since becoming Jamie I've had a number of hair raising adventures. And I've been through enough to make even a sane person question their sanity. So, sure nurse Dawn, tell me super scary ghost story, I might even get a chuckle or two out of it.
“Okay,” Dawn said, smiling as she peered toward me. “Okay, first off there are several different versions of this story, I'm going to tell you the one I know okay?” Dawn said as she took a deep breath. I started to attack the roasted thigh, getting entertained while I ate dinner, talking about living high on the hog.
“Okay according to what I heard, there was once a pediatric nurse by the name of Amanda Fairchild, she used to work on the floor back in the late eighties. Then one day around Halloween just as she was getting off she was killed in a tragic wreck right off Highway 80. We'll shortly after her death, some say a few weeks, others say a month, still others say it was not till the following Halloween that children in the ward started to report seeing a strange nurse, the nurse would visit them late at night and bring them books, juice boxes and sometimes even little treats.” Dawn said.
“Now, when she was alive Amanda, often called 'Mindy' by her fellow nurses, was a stickler for rules and often kept order by scolding misbehaving children and teenagers. She was even known to take really rambunctious teenagers over her lap.” I swear I saw Dawn blush when she mentioned that. “Anyway, a few months after her death, a few rambunctious teens started saying that a strange glowing nurse had spanked them for mouthing off with the other nurses or for being out of their rooms after hours. Now, we nurses are not allowed to spank troublesome teenagers, no matter how much we might want too. That's just a lawsuit waiting to happen. Anyway, we nurses just sweep it under the rug. Till one day, an RN named Isabella Bell, had her curiosity piqued and she started to keep records of all these encounters and even interview children and teenagers who swear they encountered this mysteries nurse.”
“Anyway, through her research Isabella Discovered that all these stories were connected via one thread, the nurse's name badge always read 'Amanda Fairchild' and the nurse always called herself 'Nurse Mind'. So naturally Isabella assumed the ghost of Amanda Fairchild had returned to keep her appointed rounds from beyond the grave.” She said, smiling sweetly. “And that about it, it's been well over forty years since Amanda Fairchild was killed in that tragic wreck, but every now and again her spirit makes an appearance.” Dawn paused. “I think the last reported sighting of the phantom nurse was about two or three years ago. A girl named Madeline Brewer was on the ward here, and according to her she encountered the ghost of Amanda Fairchild, who even gave her a book. Of course their have been other whispers of her appearing since then, but there was something about the way Madeline said she looked that makes hers the most believable account.” Dawn paused. “And not just another plea for attention.”
I blinked and blinked again. It was then I remembered one of Madeline's stories, indeed just a few nights ago when it was Madeline's turn to tell a ghost story around the fire, she had told us the very same tell of encountering a ghost nurse who had given her the courage to accept that she was indeed a girl, a very special girl.
“Anyway I said enough.” Dawn said, smiling. “I'll leave you to finish your dinner, and tomorrow I'll bring you a collection of books to read, just pick out the ones you want to read and put the rest to the side and one of our Candy Strippers will be around shortly to collect them.” And with that Dawn left.
And I finished my meal, a few moments after I'd finished my meal, another nurse came in, pushing another trolley, and again I was given another round of shots. Penicillin, steroid, and another antibiotic shot. After those shots, I fell asleep, and I dream, dreamless dreams. Though, when I woke up around midnight to go make water, I did stumble upon an idea. I decided that I'll push my luck and try to encounter this phantom nurse, and maybe I'll have my own ghost story to tell.
To be Continued.
I woke up the next morning feeling a little better, I was starting to breathe a little easier, my throat was so sore and I felt my fever starting to retreat. Breakfast was soon served to me, it was a homey breakfast of boiled turkey bacon, scrambled eggs, without salt and pepper of course. Toast without butter, and a small bottle of chocolate milk. Out of hunger I ate every morsel and left not a scrap of egg or a speck of crust on my plate. I was then ushered into the bathroom and given a hot shower, my long blonde hair was washed and conditioned and then blown dried out and given the classic one hundred strokes with the brush.
It was then pulled back into two cute pigtails. And each pigtail was tied at the base with a cord of pink ribbon. And at last but not least I was changed into a fresh hospital gown, a matching pink hospital gown to go with the pink ribbons in my hair. I was then informed by Dawn who had just clocked in and it seemed her first order of business was to go check in on me with a steady stream of visitors waiting to see me.
And she was right, word of me being in the hospital had spread quicker than a Californian wildfire in the small township of Benton. And it seemed like the whole whole town had queued up right outside the door of my room. Okay maybe not the whole town, but most of my friends and of course the Benton Academy Cheerleader's whom I was a proud member of. By mid-afternoon the tiny beside stand that sat near my bed was overflowing with highly get-well cards, stuffed animals and candies. Then in the doorway appeared my best friend, a tall girl with flowing brunette hair and the prettiest set of blue eyes I've ever laid eyes on.
“Hey little sister.” She said strolled into the room. With causal ease she flopped down in a chair. Behind her soon followed brunette this one had bright pink eyes, and another girl. I knew them both, the second one was a tomboy by the name of Susan Elizabeth Mari Bell, one of my cousins and by whom both Madeline and I were both in a way cousins, though distant. I'm not one to climb the family tree, much less play Tarzan.
And behind Susan appeared another girl, her name was Linda Bell, formerly Linda Perry but it seemed she had been adopted by Susan's mother Isabella Bell, who's mother and father had visited me in the hospital once. I still held a bit of a grudge against Linda for attacking me once, but it seemed she had really turned over a new leaf if you will. So right now we were both working hard to put the past firmly behind us and leaning toward a bright future. I had even accepted after much hesitation accepted a friend request from her on FaceBook.
“Hey Jamie.” Both girls said as they took a seat on the fold out sofa that was pushed to the far side of the room.
I smiled and waved to them from my bed.
“So.” Madeline said after a few moments of silence. “I've been thinking since we're all here, and we're all cousins in a way, why don't we have a pizza party. I'm sure Jamie would like something beside hospital food. Plus it would give us chance to catch up.” Madeline said, smiling sweetly. “We don't really get a chance to see much of each other. I mean minus Easter, Christmas, and Thanksgiving we really don't see much of each other.”
“Sounds good to me, I'm kind of getting tired of hospital food and pizza sounds wonderful!” I said, smiling broadly.
“Sure pizza sounds good to me!” Susan said, smiling.
“I have twenty dollars I can chip in.” Linda said, smiling softly as she pulled her purse around and reached into the confines and pulled out her wallet.
“I can chip in twenty too.” Susan said, smiling as she did the same.
“I have ten or so dollars I'd been saving.” I said blushing a little.
Madeline though just shook her head. “Don't worry about it girls. I got you all covered,” She said, smiling softly as she reached into her skirt pocket and pulled out her phone. A moment later she was dialing the nearest pizza place, a Papa John's if I recall correctly.
“Yes, good afternoon this is Madeline Brewer at room one eighteen in the pediatric wing of Mississippi Medical Center.” Madeline said to the person on the other end of the phone. “Right. I'd like to place an order. Delivery please ma'am. Okay I'll like one large pepperoni pizza and one large triple meat pizza.” Madeline nodded her head and smiled again. “Madeline Brewer, I'll be using my Visa card.” Madeline then told the person on the other end of the line all the information she needed to know. “Great thanks, yes room one eighteen, just look for the room with four lovely ladies in it.” She added.
At that, Linda, Susan and I all flushed a dark red, Madeline just laughed though. And with that she hung the phone up and slid it back into the pocket of her skirt.
“Pizza should be here in about an hour.” Madeline said as she settled back into her seat.
“So Jamie.” Susan said, smiling. “Have you seen her yet?” She asked as she leaned in.
“Seen who?” I said, settling back into my pillow.
“You know 'The Phantom Nurse' you said to yourself that one of the nurses threatened you with a visit from here last time you were here. And we've all encountered her, Linda, Madeline and myself.” Susan said as she shifted her eyes around the room.
“I encountered her evil twin.” Linda said with a sigh, “According to what Grace told me, there are two phantom nurses, one a good nurse who just tends to spank and scold you if you misbehave, the other is a more meaner and a lot more cruel. According to the stories, the good one is called 'Nurse Mindy' and the evil one is called 'Nurse Spooky' or so the stories say.”
All eyes turned toward Linda.
“You guys want to hear that story?” Linda said, sighing as she noticed the sudden amount of attention she was getting.
To that we all nodded our heads in agreement. You see Madeline and I were part of a society of story tellers. One that gathered each Saturday night in the woods behind our houses, the woods behind our houses were the right kind of woods to tell ghost stories in. And of course Susan was a budding paranormal investigator.
“Mind if I write the story down? I'm still collecting stories for my next book 'More Ghost Stories and Urban Legends of Benton' . I might change that title to 'More Ghost Stories and Urban Legends of Benton and Beyond' since I'm starting to cover the area that surrounds Benton.” Madeline asked as she leaned in a little. “Man I wish I had something to write on, like a notepad and a pen.” She added with a sigh.
“Sure,” Linda said, sighing again. “I'll give you guys the abridged version of the story and I'll tell Madeline the unabridged version. So you guys just gotta buy her new book to get the full story.” Linda said with a little smirk.
“I'm going to give you guys free copies of the book anyway.” Madeline said giggling a little, “I'm even going to sign them, because after all you guys are family.”
“Anyway you Please Linda, go on with your story.” I said.
“Okay.” Linda said blushing as she looked down, “You guys.. after I kind of flipped out, okay I was a mess, I was totally out of control.. I was hearing voices, my inner darkness had taken full control of me, I was processing a lot of emotional pain.. Anyway, after I'd attacked Jamie. Mom and dad brought me to the 'Behavioral Health Ward' here that just another name for the Psych ward.” Linda said, sighing. “Anyway, they took everything I'd had, even took my shoestrings and stuff, and put me in this thin hospital gown, it took them a while to get everything sorted out. Like a day or two and it was cold, like cold in the tiny room they put me in.” Linda's voice started to shake a little.
“Anyway, they fed me and told me to go to bed. I don't remember what they fed me, but it was like a kind of thin soup with crackers or something. Anyway... that night a nurse came in, she was dressed differently from the other nurses, like instead of wearing white she wore this black dress.. and she had plastic gloves on, she also had this knife in her hand..” Linda's knee was bumping up and down. “And she threatened.. She threatened to cut my breast off..” Linda said paling.
All of our faces paled a little. And Madeline just blinked.
“Shit.” She said looking down. “You sure you were not just high as a kite or something?” She said looking down at the floor. “Cause like you said, you were pretty messed up at the time. Sure your mind was not just conjuring up images or something?” She asked.
Linda shook her head and then much to my amazement, the girl started to unbutton her blouse, she then removed her blouse, and then she unhooked her bra and then much to my horror, I saw she had a faint scar under her left breast. Susan looked on in amazement, and Madeline shivered as if somebody had just thrown a bucket of ice cold water on her.
No, on the second night I was there she returned again, this time she removed my hospital gown, and reached over and grabbed my left breast. Once she had it in her hand, she placed it under the blade of the knife. I could feel the sharpness of the knife cutting across the skin. I screamed, and she vanished, but not before the bitch had nicked me.” At this point, Linda seemed to be on the verge of tears. She quickly hooked her bra back and put on her blouse. None of us were bothered by what we saw, I mean Linda’s bare chest that is, after all, were all girls, but the three inch scar… that sent shivers down our spine.
“Jesus girl.” Madeline. “I never knew ghosts could hurt you. I thought the worst they could do was scare you.”
“Demon.” Linda gently corrected. “That was a demon, not a ghost.”
“Might need to get Cerridwen to look at that.” I added. “She is our token pagan at Benton Academy. And the green witch of the party. She is good at reading stuff.” Madeline then added. “That or Lauren, she is our token pagan down at Benton High School. Not as skilled or knowable as Cerridwen but she is pretty good with charms and stuff.”
“I'll keep that in mind next time I visit.” Linda said as she dryly. “But yes, that was my encounter with Nurse Spooky.”
At that moment the pizza delivery man arrived. The smell of melted cheese, garlic, and rich tomato sauce teased my nose and made my mouth water. And much to my embarrassment my belly started to growl a little. Thankfully nobody seemed to notice it, and if they did, they were polite enough not to comment on it. Anyway, once the pizza arrived, Linda volunteered to step into the hallway and fetch us some drinks from the vending machine, she returned with eight cans of coke-cola. And with that we dug in.
“Okay, I guess I should tell you guys my story.” Madeline said after she finished her first slice of pizza and was about to start on her second. “I mean, mine is nothing compared to Linda's, but in a way, I kind of owe Nurse Mindy big time. She is the one that gave me the courage to take those first few uneasy steps into discovering my true self and she is the reason I chose the name 'Madeline' I guess without her.. I'll choose something else.”
“No offense,” Susan said as she finished her second slice of pizza and started on her third. “But 'Madeline' just seems to suit you.” Susan said, winking as she bit into her third slice of pizza.
“Thanks.” Madeline said as she bit into her second slice.
“So, Madeline. Please go on with your story.” I said leaning forward a little.
“Right, this was like a few years ago. It was early January.. And I was in the hospital. This very same hospital. I've been here for about two weeks or so. I'd been in a horrible car wreck and was all broken up. And I was dealing with a lot of baggage too. Stuff I'm really not going to go into.. but you know what I was dealing with.” Madeline paused just long enough to finish off her second slice of pizza, she then reached for her third. I was on my forth and almost as full as a tick on the back of a dog.
“Anyway, one night I left my room. I wanted to get some fresh air, after all I'd been cooped up in ICU for the last fourteen days or so and they had just moved me to a normal room. Anyway, I ended up down in the reading room, it's this small kind of room that just down the hallway. We passed it on our way to Jamie's room. Once their I started to read some books, one book was about this girl, who wore a yellow dress, a yellow straw hat and had blue eyes and brown hair like me.” Madeline paused again.
“Anyway.. I started to read that book. Next thing you know this nurse, she had blonde hair and blue eyes and wore some really pretty pink scrubs that appeared in the doorway. She kind of told me off for not being in bed. Saying I worried the other nurses, she dead named me, and I corrected her. And for the rest of the night she used my new name. And when I was discharged a few days later, she brought me a copy of that book. It's on my bookshelf at home.”
After Madeline told her story, none of them were really in the mood to tell any spooky stories. Instead we all focused on eating the last remaining slices of pizza. Once the pizza was gone the sun was starting to set and the day nurses were starting to leave and the night nurses were starting to arrive. I knew then that visiting hours were about to come to a close and I'll soon be forced to say good-bye to my friends.
But I was sure that we could squeeze in one more quick story.
“Hey Susan!” I said, smiling. “Mind telling us about your encounter with the 'The Phantom Nurse' I know you said you encountered her one Halloween.” I said leaning in. “And don't worry, you're not in the hospital right now. I doubt she'll come after you.” I added.
Susan blushed and lifted her can of coke-cola to her lips and took a nice long drink. She then sighed, crushed the can and tossed it into a nearby paper waste basket.
“Sure. Though like Linda. I'm just going to tell you guys the abridged version. Visiting hours are almost over so I'm kind of pushed for time. Is that okay with everybody?” She looked around the room, it was like she was looking for our approval or something. We all nodded our heads.
“Okay about four years ago. I was twelve at the time, I came down with pneumonia. And Halloween fell on a Saturday that year too. But anyway, being sick with pneumonia kind of ruined any kind of Halloween theme adventures I might have had planned. Plus I was stuck in the hospital. Anyway to make a long story short, I decided it would be fun to explore the morgue.” Susan said blushing as she started to play with a few strains of her hair.
“Girl,” Madeline said, sighing. “Of all things you wanted to explore the freaking morgue?!”
“What happens when you read too much 'Fear Street' ? It screws with your mind.” Linda added.
“Let her finish.” I said, sighing. “Remember girls, we're on a time limit here.”
“Right, sorry.” Linda said, sighing a little.
“Right, sorry, please keep going.”
“Anyway before I could reach the morgue. A nurse stopped me. She scolded me for being out of my bed and for roaming the hallways. And she really told me off when I told her I was on my way to the morgue.” Susan blushed. “Anyway, when I was being discharged the next day, I saw a picture of a nurse on the wall. And the picture on the wall looked just like the nurse I saw, only this picture.” Susan did not get a chance to finish her sentence. She just shut down and looked down at her hands that were folded neatly in her lap.
I was just about to open my mouth when the door to my room swung open.
“Okay ladies.” Nurse Dawn said as she walked into my room. “I'm afraid you gals gotta go, visiting hours are over and that means the pizza party is done too.” She said looking around the room. She then sighed. “Jesus girls, how many pizzas did you order and how many cokes did you drink?” She said, shaking her head again. “Come on, you lot get this mess cleaned up. I gotta get Jamie here ready, the doctor has ordered another round of shots to keep the infection at bay. And she needs to bathe again, since she got pizza sauce and pepperoni all over her new gown.”
I blushed. And the rest of the gang just stood there blinking.
“Okay ladies.” She said her voice raising her hair. “Like I said, visiting hours are over.” She said in a commanding tone of voice. “You can come see your friend tomorrow morning.” She said as she crossed her under her chest and nodded her head.
Her message was crystal clear. And one by one my friends filed out of my room. Once the last one was gone Dawn turned to me and in a warning tone of voice said.
“Ms. Potter, don't let those stories 'Inspire' You in the least. Remember this is a hospital, not a fun-land, nor a spooky land, nor is it a knock off Disney World. You are here for one reason, and one reason only to get better.” She paused. “No, you are not allowed anywhere near the morgue.” She added as she closed her eyes.
“Yes ma'am.” I said meekly. But little did Dawn know that an ideal seed had already been planted.
To be Continued.
I woke up around midnight with the urge to pee. Once I'd finished my business, I'd decided it was time to put my plan into action. Taking a deep breath I inched my way toward the door to my room. Gathering up my courage, I reached out and took hold of the door handle and pushed upon it. The wooden door crept open and before I knew it I was standing out in the hallway.
The hallway seemed almost deserted. Releasing my breath I inched out into the hallway, and slowly I started to make my way down the long corridor. I figured the morgue would be located at the bottom of the hospital and the best way to get to the bottom was to use the elevator. Seems simple enough, but to get to the elevator, I'll have to slip past the nurses station.
As I approached the nurses station, I noticed only two of the four nurses that worked the ward seemed to be stationed at the desk, the other two seemed to be roaming around the ward, doing check-ins. If that was the case then I had to act quickly, no doubt one of them would peek into my room and see nothing more than an empty bed and that would send all the alarm bells ringing. A manhunt would no doubt follow and the whole hospital would go on lock down, or they would just shrug their shoulders and say in a cynical tone of voice. 'Not my problem' and move onto the next room.
Anyway, I've come this far, it was time to cross the Rubicon. And so I approached the nurses station with my heart beating like a jackhammer, my palms sweating and my tongue sticking to the top of my throat. Then I noticed that both of the nurses seemed busy, one nurse I knew as Dawn seemed to hunched over the desk and seemed to be scribbling something into an open notebook in front of her. And the other nurse who was sitting beside her seemed to be flipping through the glossy pages of a fashion magazine.
Rolling the dice I then passed in front of them. And none of them seemed to blink. I could not believe my luck, I thought a sickly pale girl wearing a paper thin hospital gown passing in front of them would raise some questions, but Dawn never looked up from her scribbling, and the other nurse seemed engrossed in some Hollywood drama. Or maybe she was just soaking in some eye candy since the cover showed a bare chested man with rock hard abs and jet black hair that was cut in a crew cut. Not my type but then again who am I to judge.
Anyway I was not about to go back and try my luck again, so I quickened my pace and soon I was standing before the silver elevator door. With the palms of my hands starting to sweat, I pushed down the down button a moment later the button lit up and the silver door opened. And without wasting a second I stepped right on in. Now at this point, I'm sure I could have gone to the first floor, walked into the canteen or up to the twenty four hour coffee shop and ordered me a extra large milkshake, yes it seems the small coffee kiosk located on the first floor next to the gift shop offered ice cream and would fix you extra large milkshake if you had the money.
It also seemed the canteen located right across from the coffee kiosk remained open twenty four hours a day too, just like the coffee kiosk and for the right amount of money they would fix you either a grilled cheese sandwich hot of the griddle with warm tomato soup or that other stable of classic southern cuisine, chicken and dumpling. But neither of those things were on my mind right now. All I wanted to do was to go down and check out the morgue. I then stopped in my tracks.
'BAKA' I wanted to shout at the top of my lungs. It had just dawned on me, I had no way to record or prove I'd been there. My phone was still on charging on the nightstand beside my hospital bed. In my frustration I reached up and gave one of my pigtails a hard tug. I felt so foolish.
For a moment I debated if I should go back and get my phone. But that would mean passing the nurse's station again. I doubted if I could slip pass them unnoticed again, even if I did, I doubted I could sneak back to my room, get my phone and then slip back out. No, that would take too much time..Plus I doubted my luck would hold that long. In fact I already felt like I had pushed my luck too far.
And so gathering up my courage I reached over and pressed the 'B' button. A moment later I felt a jolt as the elevator roared to life and slowly started to descend down the shaft. One by one the floors light up as the elevator moved swiftly down the shaft till at last it touched down at the bottom and the doors open and the total darkness of the hallway surrounded me.
I took a deep breath and for a moment I played with the idea of pushing the button that read '5' and beat a hasty retreat. I mean what the worst thing they could do to a sick girl? All they could do was just tell me off for being out of bed. I thought about doing just that for a few long minutes before I vanished that thought from my head. That was pure nonsense, I was on a mission after all! And so with trembling feet and sweaty palms I moved into the darkened hallway.
It seemed the basement was mostly used for storage. The long, narrow hallway was lined with all types of old, outdated medical machines, incubators, old gurneys, some to my horror still had what appeared to be splashes of blood on them. Old wheelchairs, IV Stands.. walking past all this stuff made the hairs on the back of my neck stand straight up. And the noises, the whole ambient of the hallway, made me shutter. And the sounds, the sounds seemed almost inhuman. It sounded like air being passed through a tube, and inhuman groans. I started to picture eldritch horrors around every corner.
But I pushed on and after twenty or so minutes of inching my way down the hallway. I finally came to a set of double metal doors. The letters, bold and blanket and written in Time New Roman script simply read 'Morgue'. I blinked and blinked again. So this is what it came too. Just beyond those doors were bodies, bodies of people who had been loved, cherish. Bodies of people who were brothers, sisters, son's, daughters, mothers, husbands, grandmothers, and grandfathers. Maybe even nameless babies. And here I was about to just casually push open that door and walk right in and see them.. Jesus I need to stop spending time around Cerridwen, I'm going from perky cheerleader to Hot Topic Gothic.
I took a deep breath and was about to push open the door when a loud scolding voice boomed in ears.
“You've gone far enough Ms. Jamie Sarah Potter.” The scolding voice seemed to boom.
I froze. And slowly turned around there standing a few feet from me was a nurse, a nurse with golden blonde hair and sparkling blue eyes. The nurse wore an old fashioned nurses dress, you know one of those starch white dresses with white stocking and white low heel shoes. The name badge that was pinned just above her left breast read. “Fairchild” It was followed by “R.N”
I felt my mouth go dry.
“You're in big trouble young lady.” She said, sighing. “When I went to check in on you, I found your bed was empty, your bathroom light was on and your television on too.” She sighed again. “The whole hospital has been looking for you. I'd expected to find you in the reading room or the play room. But instead I've found you down here.. a place where young ladies should not be.” She said in a scolding tone of voice.
I blushed.
“Well young lady lady?” She said, raising a finger. “Do you have anything to say for yourself?” She said, folding her arms across her chest as she peered directly at me.
“I'm sorry?” I said, I peered into her eyes, her eyes were the deepest shade of blue I've ever seen and she seemed to glow a little. I mean there was a faint aurora of shimmering light that seemed to surround her.
The nurse sighed and shook her head. After a moment of shaking her head from one side to the other she finally spoke again.
“I guess that would just have to do.” She said. “Kids these days, always getting into trouble, always sneaking out of their rooms. First it was that Susan girl over at River Regional Hospital, then it was that Madeline girl.” She paused, “Teenagers always causing trouble in the ward. None of them can stay in their beds at night.” She said in a low, muttering tone of voice.
“Pardon?” I said tilting my head to the side. I'm sure if this was a popular anime, a huge question mark would have appeared floating above my head.
“Never mind that!” She snapped. “Anyway, what in the world possessed you to leave your room, and venture down here. I mean I'm going to put two and two together and say you were trying to sneak into the morgue. And beside being very disrespectful to the dead, that area is off limits, you could get into some major trouble if you went in. Right now you're just in hot water.” The strange nurse sighed. “So, go ahead and explain yourself young lady. But choose your words carefully, right now I'm debating calling your parents and letting them deal with you.” She said, sighing.
I took a deep breath . And then I started to ramble. Okay it was more like I decided to come clean and spill the beans.
“So, yesterday a bunch of my friends came to visit me. And we had like this pizza party thing in my room. And it was fun, maybe too much fun because we started talking about ghosts. And then somebody mentioned this hospital was haunted. “
At the mention of the hospital being haunted the strange nurse arched her eyebrows and leaned in a little. A sign of fleeting annoyance I wandered. Soon those she motioned for me to keep telling my tale. And I kept right on rambling off the top of my head. I mean I had been caught red handed after all, there was no reason to hold anything back right? I mean I might as well go ahead and spill the beans right now and get it over with.
“Anyway! My friends mentioned that there was this old rumor of a supposed 'Phantom Nurse' that suppose to roam the halls of the hospital. And I kind of wanted to see if I could encounter her.” I said blushing. I looked down and braced for the scolding to come. Instead of scolding me the nurse just sighed again and shook her head from left to right.
“Okay.” She said with a sigh. “Let me get this straight. I want to make sure I understand everything. Your friends told you a silly urban legend about a ghost nurse who is supposed to roam the halls of this hospital. And instead of brushing it off you decided to sneak out of your bedroom and roam the halls?”
“Yes ma'am.” I said as I felt my cheeks starting to darken a little.
“Do you have any idea of the trouble you caused us?” The strange nurse said. “Nurse's who should be tending to sick children are now looking for you! This is a hospital Ms. Jamie Sarah Potter! Not a haunted Halloween fun house! This is not one of those pop-up haunted attractions you see on the roadside each October. This is not a prop hospital, but a real hospital.” She added.
“Yes ma'am.” I said blushing again.
“Furthermore, you're still sick! You're not over your pneumonia! So instead of being in bed, resting and getting better, you can get out of here, and go play with your friends again, attend school dances, go on dates, and do all the normal teenage stuff. You decided to roam around. Pretty much, you are throwing out the window all the hard work we've done to get you well!” She added.
I blinked and felt myself starting to shift my weight from one foot to the other.
“We'll Miss. Jamie Sarah Potter, it seems you and I are going to have a little talk. But first I'm going to return you to your room.” She said, “And then I'm going to have a talk with Miss. Dawn about keeping a closer eye on the ward.” She said as she reached down and held out her hand.
I blinked and slipped my hand into her hand, and I noticed her hand felt very cold, very cold to the touch. Once my hand was in her hand, she nodded her head. And without saying another word she started to guide me back down the hallway, back to the lift and back to the fifth floor and back to my tiny hospital room.
“Now.” The strange nurse said as she closed the door behind her. “Its time for you're punishment.” With that being said, the nurse eased her bottom down upon the bed. Once she was seated she patted her lap, almost inviting me to lay across it.
I blinked and blinked again. I was a little taken back by the invitation. But there seemed to be some kind of unearthly power behind the pale blue eyes of the nurse. A power that made me shutter, and made me fear what would happen if I disobeyed her.
With trembling legs, and shaking knees, I climbed up and laid over the lap. I then noticed how cold she was, she was ice cold, it was like laying on a cube of ice. Then before I could catch myself, I felt the hem of my hospital gown being raised up. I felt the coldness of the air conditioned air and then I felt the sting of her palm!
“You!” She said smacking my bottom again with her open palm sending waves of sting into my bottom. “Put your health and life in danger!” More smacking, I counted on smack for each word. It was a funny feeling her hands were ice cold and I could swear I felt her fingers going right through me, but I could feel the stinging of her open hand and the heat that followed each strike.
“And broke more rules than I can count!” She added. I could feel it, she was in her rhythm now. Each word was followed by a fiery swat to my bottom with her phantom hand. Soon I felt tears forming at the edge of my eyes, the seconds seemed to slow to a crawl, with each passing second bringing another wave of sting and burn that seemed to roll into my bottom.
“All because you wanted to see if some silly urban legend was real or not?” She added after she delivered twelve more seats to my bottom. I'm sure at this point my bottom was glowing, and from the way it ached it felt like it was glowing hotter than coal in hell
“Yes ma'am!”
“That was a very foolish thing to do!” She said as she kept swatting my bottom. Again, I did not so much feel the palm crashing into my bottom as much as I felt the after effects. I mean I felt the first few, but after that it seemed the palm sailed right through my bottom! Anyway my head was spinning at this point. And the flood gates were about to open and soon they did. A wave of salty tears started to roll down my face, the tears spilled onto my pillow, a pillow I was now clutching for dear life. I mean clinging to that pillow like a sailor who'd just been shipped wreck would cling to a piece of driftwood.
“I trust!” She said as she kept the tempo going, “That this would be the last time you and I have this conversation Miss. Jamie Sarah Potter?” She paused. It seemed she was waiting on my answer.
“Yes ma'am!” I answered in a weak tone of voice. It was more like I meowed it. Yes, meowed like a kitten. I meowed it like the sick, weak, scared, and tired kitten I was and felt like.
The strange nurse nodded her head and then she returned to the spanking. After another dozen or so swats with her open palm she said, in a very bone chilling tone of voice.
“Good. Because I hate repeat offenders. Next time I might use the hairbrush or a paddle instead of my hand, do you understand me?” She said, striking my bottom hard! I yelped!
“Yes ma'am!” I said quickly, a small stream of salty tears were flowing down my red cheek bones. My bottom felt like a swarm of angry hornets or wasps had been released upon it.
“Good,” The strange nurse said with another sigh. And with that she reached down, pulled me into a tight hug, she held me for a good long time, minutes? Hours? I'm not quite sure, everything just seemed to run together. But after what appeared to be a long time, the nurse gently eased me down and lifted the thin, woolen blanket over me.
“Now, get some rest. The morning nurse should be around in about a hour or two with your breakfast.” The strange nurse said. “And remember, no sneaking out of your room without permission. If you need something from one of the vending machines outside, ask one of the nurses or one of your friends to get it for you. It's flu season now, and we're all battling it. So do us a big favor, don't be a spreader okay?” She said as she turned her head over her shoulder and peered right at me.
“Yes ma'am.” I said weakly, I just wanted to sleep.
“Good girl.” And with that she passed right through my door. And I mean she did pass right through the door, as in she passed right through the freaking door, sure I was a little freaked out, but I was also worn down from my spanking, and tired and my eyelids were growing heavier by the moment. And so, I nodded off, and soon I was fast asleep.
To be continued
Breakfast was brought to me the next morning, it was a simple breakfast, grits, boiled turkey bacon, toast, and milk. Still worn out from the nights before I ate and fell asleep, I awoke in time for lunch, a piece of broiled fish seasoned with just lemon juice and dill, steamed broccoli, and tea. Still tired I ate and again I fell asleep, dinner was a little better, roasted chicken seasoned with lemon and pepper, more steamed broccoli, a small slice of yellow cake with chocolate icing and more tea. Again tired I ate and fell asleep.
And so the cycle repeated till two days after my encounter with Amanda Fairchild I was deemed well enough to be discharged from the hospital. I remember that morning, the forecast for that day was cloudy with a slight chance of rain. In fact it did rain. Anyway, after breakfast, more grits, boiled turkey bacon, toast and milk, I was ushered into the bathroom and given a nice warm shower. The Nurse on duty, a blonde-haired and blue eyed nurse whose name tag read “Veronica” that was followed by the letters “RN” had taken her time and washed my hair again.
And after much debating and some teasing I'd allowed her to style my hair in two braided pigtails with a cord of pink ribbon looped around the end. I felt the pigtails complemented the rest of my outfit, a black pleated skirt, white woolen stocking, black leather shoes, and finally a pink turtleneck sweater. A sudden Easter Snap had dropped the temperature to near winter freezing levels. Okay, maybe not really freezing as a hard freeze, but it felt like freezing. But Sunny Jesus, and the Holy Spirit, every time you have a thin sheet forming on your window pane you know it's colder than a well diggers bottom outside.
Anyway, Nurse Veronica had just finished packing my bags and had just ducked out of my room. You know to check on somebody else. That left me sitting there, alone in a wheelchair. Why was I in a wheelchair you ask? Because most hospitals have this policy where all discharging patients are escorted to the exit and more often that not such transportation is provided by a wheelchair.
Anyway as the minutes ticked by, I found myself wondering where Veronica could be, I was ready go, and believe it or not, I was ready to see my family again, also as a added bonus, dad had promised to take us all out to get hibachi, you know to celebrate me getting out of the hospital.
also dad had promised to take us all out to hibachi, to you know celebrate me not dying of pneumonia or something. Also the weather was kind of perfect for hibachi, it was cold, windy, and frosty. Anyway as I sat there, twiddling my fingers, waiting for Veronica to return. I started to think about my encounter with Nurse Mindy, my bottom was still a little sore.. and well the fact that the nurse had spanked me, made the encounter a little too personal. I doubt I'll ever share that encounter with another living soul as long as I live. Anyway, the minutes seemed to slowly tick by then something happened. The door to my hospital room slowly opened and there in the doorway stood Nurse Amanda Fairchihld.
“So.” She said, strolling into the room. “You're finally well enough to go home.” She peered down at me. She held a box in her hand. The box was the size of a shoe box and was wrapped in pastel blue wrapping paper and tied around the box was a cord of pastel ribbon that ended with a box on top.
“Yes!” I said blushing as I stared up at her.
“Good.” Amanda Fairchild said smiling. “I've been keeping taps on you. You've been a good little girl, staying in bed, getting plenty of rest, eating all your food.” She said as she bent down and looked me right in the eyes. I felt a chill run down my spine as I peered into her bright blue eyes.
“And so, Nurse Mindy decided she should go out and buy you a present. For you know, I've been a good little girl these past few days.” She said with a giggle as she held the box out to me.
I'm not sure what came over me, but I slowly reached out and took the box from Nurse Mindy's hands. I could feel myself starting to blush with embarrassment, getting a gift from a total stranger, was something. Even if that stranger was a nurse.
“Go ahead and open it.” She said smiling. “You have a few moments before Veronica returns from making her rounds. And Dawn is printing out some papers for you.” The woman paused. “Plus, I want you see the gifts I've picked out for you.”
I blinked again, and slowly I undid the bow, and gently I removed the paper. Nurse Mindy giggled like a schoolgirl as she folded her hands behind her back and swayed from one side to the other. It's cute that a grown woman would act in such a childish manner. Also it was a little embarrassing too.
Anyway, musing aside, I quickly reached down and removed the lid of the box. I placed the lid at the bottom of the box and there much to my embarrassment was a teddy bear, one with white fur and one that was dressed as a nurse.
“Nurse Brenda Bear is a very special teddy bear.” She said, smiling softly. “She'll be keeping taps on you while you're at home, each night she'll be reporting back to me, keeping me informed on your progress. Should you decide to stray and fall back into your old habits? Such as pushing yourself too hard, not taking your asthma medications, and you know, endangering your health. Then she'll tell me and I'll just have to visit you at home.” She said with a giggle.
“Okay...” I said blinking as I peered up at the strange nurse.
I gently placed the bear on my lap. And then I swallowed hard. Because sitting under the bear was an black walnut paddle hairbrush. I blinked and blinked again as I peered down at the brush. My blood ran cold, and I felt a chill pass over my shoulder. Nurse Mind was now smiling a very feral smile.
“Remember what I told you about repeated offenders. Ms. Jamie Sarah Potter.” She said as she stood up and before my eyes she started to vanish. “Consider yourself lucky, that I found you first. Nurse Spooky was hunting you that night. If you'd gone into the morgue. You would have been caught like a fly in a spider's web.” Her voice echoed and soon she had vanished..
The moment she vanished from my sight was the moment I felt all the color drain from my face. It then dawned on me, I'd been talking with the Phantom Nurse all along. My hands started to tremble, a cold sweat broke out across my forehead. My breathing increased. Now, I've had supernatural encounters before, but I've done my best to just write them off. Like the time I saw Joan of Arc, that could have easily been a hallucination brought on by stress. That time I thought I saw a white dove descend from heaven and smack me in the head. I kind of wrote that off as another hallucination brought on by the religious fervor brought on my Baptism and Confirmation into the Episcopal Church using my new name of 'Jamie Sarah Potter' which in a way kick started the whole process of me becoming 'Jamie Sarah Potter' more than anything else.
Then it was the time I fought the shadows... When I fought, and slew my shadow self.. my old self. Again I chalked that up to another hallucination brought on by the raging fever that was pretty much boiling my brain. Yep, you read that right, boiling my brain like an egg in a pot of boiling water.
But this, this I could not mark up as a hallucination. This was real, and the bear and the brush were real too. It was at that very moment that Veronica decided to make her return. She was trailed by Dawn who had a thick folder of papers in her hand. Both girls blinked when they saw my face. Veronica was the first one to speak.
“What wrong honey?” She said kneeling down beside the wheelchair. “You look like you've seen a ghost or something?” She said as she reached up and touched my cheeks, that one thing I love about Veronica, she had a lovely bedside manner.
“She might have.” Dawn said, shrugging her shoulders. “There know telling how many people have died in this room over the years. Plus, she and her friends were telling each other ghost stories a few days ago. You know teenagers and their overactive imagination. There is no telling what supernatural image her mind managed to conjure up.” Dawn added in a flat tone of voice.
“Dawn!” Veronica shouted in a scolding tone of voice.
Dawn just rolled her shoulders.
“Nurse Mindy.” I said as I peered down at the stuffed bear and the hairbrush. “Came to visit me before I was discharged.” I quickly added.
At that both Veronica and Dawn exchanged a glance. Dawn was the first to speak.
“Okay!” She said walking over and taking hold of the handlebars of my wheelchair. “I'm sure you thanked Nurse Mindy like a good little girl. And Anyway your family is waiting for you. Your Mom and dad have just signed the release forms and the doctor is briefing them now. You know, saying what you need to do and what you don't need to do. Nothing major.” And with that she started pushing me out of the room. Veronica soon followed us.
Anyway, as I was wheeled down the long corridor, I happened to look up and glance into one of the empty rooms. And there standing in the room was Nurse Mindy, her arms folded across her chest, her baby blue eyes twinkling as she peered right at me. A predatory smile seemed to grace her face. I only saw her for a second before she vanished again. It was then I knew that what I was seeing was no hallucination. But a real ghost, I had just seen the real Phantom Nurse and her name was Amanda Fairchild.
The End.
The Adventures of Jamie Sarah Potter will continue in 'The Adventures of Jamie Sarah Potter: Jamie Play's Dotty'.
A deep blush colored my face as I peered into the floor length mirror. The reflection showed a girl with blonde hair, baby blue eyes, and a petite frame. The girl was also dressed in one of the most embarrassing costumes I've ever laid eyes on. The costume was a short white dress with black spots. The accessories included a purple dog collar with a golden nameplate that read 'Jamie' engraved on it. And last but not least a pair of black dog ears. A small sigh escaped my lips as I spun around. This has to be the dumbest thing I've ever volunteered to do. And I've done a lot of dumb stuff too since becoming Jamie.
Now, I'm sure you're wondering why I'm dressed like a dog? Well to answer your question its because my best friend talked me into volunteering to play 'Dotty The Dalmatian Princess' a popular Saturday Morning cartoon always seems to be playing on PBS Kids. Think Clifford the Big Red Dog infused with My Little Ponies. Yes, as horrible as that sounds, it's what the cartoon is like. I use to watch it when I was eight. That was about eight years ago, and yes it's still running. It's been running for eighteen or so seasons and still going strong. Heck, there is even a cult following of the show on the internet and maybe even one or two conventions. It's weird okay.
Anyway, each month or every few months the newly opened Benton Animal Rescue, our town's only no kill animal shelter sponsors a charitable stunt were somebody cosplay's as Dotty and gets covered in a few buckets of chili after performing a few tricks, like fetch, rollover, speak and shake for the amusement of the crowd. Yes people donate to see how many tricks the person in question must perform and how many buckets of chili get dumped on them. It's weird, but then again, when it comes to helping animals, no sacrifice is too great I suppose.
“Oh this is so embarrassing!” I said aloud as I turned around from the floor mirror, folded my arms under my breast and sunk my head down. “And is so dumb too! And all my friends will be here too! And all my cheer sisters!” I said pouting a little.
Then it dawned on me, most of my fellow cheerleaders had donated to see me perform those tricks too! The whole squad had collectively donated around three hundred dollars or so, the football team had donated another three hundred dollars, the soft ball team another two hundred, both the girls and boys basketball teams had donated around a hundred dollars a piece. And the girls track team inspired by my friend Lana had donated around another hundred dollars, and the boys track team, not wanting to be outdone, donated another one fifty.
Add in another hundred dollars collected from the other students. Then it was the business, Sweet Magnolia the maid-theme cafe my sister and her best friend Robin operate donated a hundred dollars, Ginger Evans Bakery and Sweet Shop donated another one hundred dollars, St. Mary's Episcopal Church donated another one hundred dollars, Edward's Butcher Shop donated another one hundred dollars, The Lost Dog Pizza Parlor, a newly opened business in the downtown area had donated around fifty dollars. Pandora's Family Hair Salon donated another fifty dollars, and All Saints Catholic church, not to outdone by the local Episcopal Church donated a whopping two hundred dollars.
So yes, Madeline was right, by volunteering for this little stunt I'd proven to myself that I was still as popular as ever, but maybe a little too popular. A gentle sigh escaped my lips as I turned away from the mirror. The time was a quarter till ten. That meant I had ten minutes before I was to go out on stage and make a total fool out of myself.
“Hey Jamie!” A voice said behind me, “You won't believe this! But the school's auditorium is freaking packed! I mean packed like you would not believe it! They even have a television crew from new channel WJTV News Channel 12 out there covering it. You're going to be on the evening news girl!”
The voice startled me, and I quickly spun around to see who the voice belonged to. And their standing in the doorway was, much to my surprise, a girl with long brunette hair and baby blue eyes. She was wearing a pink blouse, a flora print skirt, and open toe sandals. Of course the voice had to belong to none other than my best friend, Madeline Diana Brewer.
“What are you doing here?” I asked. “I thought you'll be doing stuff at your school.” I said blushing a little. Okay I know that sounded rude but still, Madeline should be the one wearing this costume and going out on stage and performing those tricks and getting covered with chili. Not me! Even though I'm kind of the one who volunteered for it.
“Oh!” Madeline giggled a little. “Don't you know! Since I'm like your best friend forever and all that good stuff. They wanted me to be the one who would guide you out on stage, help you perform the tricks, and then in the end gunge you!” She said smiling as she folded her hands behind her back and swayed from one side to the other. “I even brought a cute little leash.” She said holding up a pink nylon leash.
I felt my jaw drop a few inches as I peered toward Madeline, if looks could kill then Madeline would be as good as dead. It took her a few minutes but soon Madeline noticed the look I was giving her, she responded the only way she could by shrugging her shoulders and giving me a smile. The girl could charm a viper.
“Hey! You volunteered for this!” She said as she strolled up to me. “Plus, like I said, they have a television crew from WJTV News Channel 12 out there. They're going to broadcast this live across the whole freaking state! Heck I think even some parts of Arkansas and and Louisiana will get it.” Madeline paused. “Heck girl your going to be the most most famous Dotty there ever was!”
“Joy!” I said, sighing. “Okay! But you're volunteering next time they need somebody to play Dotty!”
At this Madeline paused and then after a few moments, a few moments of mentally debating I hoped. She nodded her head and sighed.
“Okay! I'll volunteer for the next event. Are you happy?” She said, shaking her head from one side to the other. “Anyway! Your adoring fans are waiting for you.” She said walking over and clipping the leash to the collar. “So come along Jamie girl, we're going to go for a walk.”
At that very moment I wanted the ground to open up and swallow me whole. Instead though I allowed myself to be led from the dressing room through the backstage area. And before you could shake a stick, I was being guided onto stage.
The first thing I noticed was the crowds, it seemed all of Benton Academy and then some had somehow managed to stuff themselves into the old auditorium. The moment the crowds noticed me was the moment and deafening cheer filled the air. Whistles, hoots, and the clapping of hands thundered in my ear and made the old concrete walls vibrate.
“Go Jamie!” Shouted somebody from the back.
“We love you Jamie!” Shouted another student.
I felt a little chill run down my body. But then a small smile started to form upon the bow of my lips as I started to wave toward the crowd.
“Good afternoon Benton Academy!” Shouted Madeline at the top of her lungs. “My name is Madeline Diana Brewer and I'm going to be your hostess this afternoon.” Madeline had a dazzling sprayed across her lips peering out at the crowd.
The crowd broke out in cheer.
“Anyway! Benton Academy, you princess, the lovely Ms. Jamie Sarah Potter here has agreed to take on the role of Dotty and entertain you this afternoon! Jamie did an amazing job raising money too, and you guys have been so generous with your donations. I mean counting the last minute donations, you guys have raised close to twenty one hundred dollars!” Madeline said with a broad smile.
I blinked and blinked again and allowed a low whistle to escape my lips. Twenty one hundred dollars was a good bit of pocket change for this small country town. It kind of filled me with a sense of pride that I'd managed to raise so much in such little time. I mean, I've pretty much shattered last year's record of fifteen hundred dollars that Rebecca Coleman managed to raise when she volunteered to play Dotty.
“And because you guys were so kind and generous that means Jamie here will be doing all the tricks and getting not one, not two, but three full buckets of puppy chow poured over her at the end!” Madeline said smiling as she twirled the cord of the microphone around her fingers and smiled toward the crowd. And the crowd answered with a roar of approval.
“Also.” Madeline said, smirking a little as she reached down into her pocket. “I have a few treats for our lovely princess.” She said as she pulled out a small red and yellow package. “Here I have a few dog biscuits as rewards.” She said smirking a little
I blinked and blinked again as I peered toward the package that Madeline was holding in her hand. And at that moment I wanted to bark for real. Because Madeline was holding in her hand was a snack size package of my favorite peanut butter flavored treat, a decadent cookie that was simply called Nutter Butters. Madeline smiled toward me and winked. That is the problem with best friends, they know all your weaknesses.
“Okay, the first trick is fetch!” Madeline said smirking as she reached down and pulled out a small rubber ball from the pocket of her skirt. “Okay!” She said grinning as she tossed the ball across the stage, the rubber ball bounced up and down as it traveled across the stage.
I blinked and blinked again and then muttering a quick prayer under my breath I bounded across the stage. Sighing deeply I bent down and picked the ball up with my mouth, I then carried it across the stage, then once I reached Madeline I dropped the ball down upon the ground and barked again.
“Good girl!” Madeline said in a praising tone of voice.
I felt my cheeks flush with color as I peered toward Madeline.
“Moving on!” She said smiling as she peered toward me. “Now Speak!” She said, smiling sweetly as she bent down. “Can Jamie girl speak!”
At that point I wanted to show Madeline that Jamie could also use 'Bite!' but I decided that might get me spanked with a rolled up newspaper. Knowing Madeline, she might have a rolled up copy of 'The Benton Herald' tucked into those pockets of hers.
“Okay are next trick is..” Madeline smirked a little as she peered toward me. “Roll over! Can Jamie girl roll over like a good little doggy?” She said smiling.
I sighed and rolled over on my back, Madeline again praised me for being 'Such a good girl!'. The next command was to sit, and that meant I had to sit like a dog. That was again embarrassing, that was followed by the command to speak. I think after this I'm going to need help, the mental kind. While all of this was going on, I started to wonder what kind of sick and twisted person would think up this idea. Okay not only think it up, but pitch it to as an idea for a fundraiser. And what kind of people would approve this idea! I really wanted to introduce them to my balled up first at this point. And then follow it up with my own trick, a high flying kick to the jawbone. Maybe the person at a pet-play fetish and this was their way of scratching that itch. I don't know and I don't care to find out.
“Good girl!” Madeline praised again as she peered toward the crowd. “Jamie was such a good girl! But now it's lunch time!” Madeline said as she reached over and clipped the leash on me again. I swear I wanted to thrash the girl on the leash, but the thought of my revenge when Madeline played dotty made me smile. Oh yes, revenge would be sweet indeed.
“Okay boys and girls, ladies and gentleman!” Madeline said as she ushered me across the stage. “It's now time for the main event.” She added with a wink.
And that is when I really wanted the earth to open up and swallow me whole. Because there on the other side of the stage was this huge, plastic dog bowl. It was about the size of your average wading pool. Somebody had even taken the time to plaster huge lettered stickers on the side. The stickers spelled out the name “Jamie” and in the center of the pool there stood a wooden stool.
I took a deep breath and slowly climbed over the edge of the plastic pool and sighing I eased my bottom down upon the wooden stool. I took a deep breath and turned to face the audience. A deep blush formed across my face as I folded my hands in my lap and then because it felt right, I barked.
“Oh!” Madeline said, smiling sweetly. “It looks like Jamie is hungry!” She said smiling as she picked up the first bucket of chili. “I guess we better go ahead and feed our puppy!” At this point I knew I was going to do everything in my power to see that Madeline raised a freaking tone of money when it was her turn to play Dotty. As I watched Madeline lift the bucket above her head, I closed my eyes and braced for impact.
A moment later, I felt a massive landslide of brown mush starting to tumble down upon my head. The chunky brown mush seemed to tumble down upon me, the smell struck me like a bolt of lighting. It was a savory smell, it kind of reminded me of the time I busted a whole case of Worcestershire sauce while I was stocking the shelves down at my family's store. I used to enjoy the savory smell of the sauce, but now I think I'll never enjoy it again. Then I felt the brown chunks of the stuff flow down my chest, my back.
“BARK!” was the only sound I could make to protest.
“Oh looks like Jamie girl wants more!” Madeline said, smiling sweetly. “We'll Jamie girl, we have another bucket right here.” Madeline said, smirking as she picked up the second bucket. I braced myself again and took a deep breath, a moment later, another brown, chunky avalanche came pouring down upon me, coating my blonde tresses of hair that I assumed would go from blonde to brunette once all of this was said and done.
“BARK! BARK! BARK! BARK!” I shouted at the top of my lungs.
“Okay settle down Jamie girl or I'll have to spank you with a rolled off newspaper.” Madeline teased as she picked up the third and final bucket of chili. I closed my eyes again. Another moment passed before I felt another massive landslide of chili come spilling down on my head. The savory smell of the brown chunky gravy filled my noise and clumps of beans seemed to cover every square inch of the dress.
“Okay Jamie girl I'm afraid that bucket we have for you today!” Madeline said, smirking. “But join us next time folks when another brave boy or girl will once again play Dotty and get fed!”
“BARK! BARK!” Was the only thing I could say.
“That right Jamie girl, we would like to donate to everybody who donated today too! Now before we take her out back to hose her down, cause Jamie girl was a messy eater, lets all give her a round of applause for being such a good sport and volunteering to play Dotty!” Madeline shouted at the top of her lungs.
And that how another messy adventure of my life comes to an end.