I woke up in a hospital bed.

My vision was hazy, but I was still able to make out all the wires hooked up to me. I looked around and noticed the plain, white hospital walls. There were no decorations, just a small flatscreen tv hanging in the corner.

I looked down to my stomach, gently touching over the thin fabric. I hissed in pain as I lifted the hospital gown up. My stomach was wrapped in a bandage, meaning I probably had a few broken ribs.

I could feel the excruciating pain in my ribs, it felt as though someone was digging their claws into my abdomen and squeezing the life out of my insides. My whole body was on fire. It was still hard to breathe, but I was hooked up to a machine that helped my body take in oxygen easier. I could feel the bruises covering my body, but when I saw them, they weren't as dark as I thought they would be.

My eyebrows furrowed in confusion as I tried to figure out what happened. Why weren't the bruises on my legs purple? The only bruises that were a rich, dark purple color were the ones located on my abdomen.

I then looked over to see Jace and Olivia laying on the floor. Liv was covered in a small, gray blanket while Jace was using his arm to cover his eyes, blocking the sun from disturbing his sleep.

"Pst, Jace," I whispered, trying to get his attention.

Because I've been out for who knows how long, my voice came out scratchy and rough. This hurt my throat as I started violently coughing and I felt myself about to pass out from the pain. My ribs were throbbing and I wanted to throw up due to the agonizing pain coming from my chest and stomach. I couldn't catch my breath.

Jace shot up from the floor and looked towards my direction. We immediately locked eyes as he visibly tensed, his eyes widening in shock.

He broke out of his trance and finally noticed me coughing, and gave me a cup of water as fast as he could.

"Dakota," he breathed. "Thank God you're awake. We were so worried about you." He handed me the cup of water as I took it from his grasp and scarfed it down. I automatically felt better as the liquid traveled down my throat, immediately soothing the pain.

"What exactly happened, Jace?" I questioned as my eyes traveled down to my little sister still sleeping soundly on the tiled floor.

Jace told me that It's been a few days since our mother beat me.

A few days? What?

Then, a flood of memories came crashing into my brain all at once.

My mom. Jace pounding on the door. The baseball bat repeatedly making contact with my ribs. Coughing up blood. My mother beating me until I passed out.

It was all coming back to me.

Apparently after I blacked out, Jace and Liv brought me to the nearest hospital. Jace mentioned that our mother passed out on the couch after she beat me, but not before chugging a few more beers.

Jace had to pick up my unconscious body and put me in the back seat of my car. Even thought Jace was still a little sore from Brody, he still managed to carry me with ease.

Since he was old enough to drive, Jace got Liv from her room and they immediately drove to the hospital.

When the doctors asked what happened to me, Jace quickly made up a story saying I was robbed and beaten in an alleyway by two older men. He knew that he had to make something up in order to protect our mothers ass. The doctors didn't question anything and they began to do whatever they needed to help my body heal.

My little brother said I was out for a good three days, and they both never left my side the entire time. I could see the dark eye bags under his eyes and knew it was because of me. I knew the restless nights and the constant worry of wondering when I would wake up affected Jace. I knew that this situation was very stressful, especially for him.

I didn't even realize how much damage my mother had done until I intensely studied my body when I woke up.

The doctors told Jace what harm my mother had caused. I had two broken ribs, many dark, purple bruises all over my body, a black eye and other minor cuts across my arms and legs. Jace said the doctor questioned the bandage on my arm but he told him I ran into a sharp piece of glass, and that I put the bandage over it to protect the wound from getting infected.

Once again, he didn't question anything.

Jace also told me that the nurses brought them blankets, pillows, and food, so they could sleep next to me as they waited for me to wake up.

Because I was in a coma for three days, my body healed itself quickly due to the days of constant rest and no movement. The light colored bruising on my legs made sense to me now. I was on pain medicine and my torso was still wrapped in a bandage to help my broken ribs heal.

Jace finished explaining everything as I tried to grasp all the information given to me. I just couldn't wrap my head around being out for three days. Why was I out for so long? Did my body go into shock?

I heard a knock on the door as me and Jace turned to see who it was. There was a male doctor who had brown hair and dark brown eyes. He stood at around 5'10 and he was wearing a white lab coat with a name tag that read "Dr Berman".

"Hi Dakota, my name is Doctor Berman and I've been taking care of you for the past few days you've been out. How are you feeling, dear? I know this has taken a pretty hard toll on your body," The doctor questioned as he repositioned the clipboard in his arms.

"I'm actually feeling really well," I lied. "My ribs don't hurt as much and I can actually move my body without it hurting."

"That's good to hear! You were pretty banged up when your brother and sister brought you here. I'm sorry that you had to go through that Dakota. You are one lucky girl. The men who assaulted you didn't rupture anything, they just got a few lucky hits on your abdomen, hence the broken ribs," Dr. Berman explained. "And not to mention, Jace and Olivia have been here the whole time, patiently waiting for you to wake up."

I looked over at my siblings. Liv was still sleeping on the floor while Jace sat back down on a plastic blue chair. Jace already fell back asleep, knowing exhaustion completely knocked him out. I smiled as I watched them, they looked so peaceful.

"I really am lucky to have them," I admired. He just smiled and nodded his head.

A few moments later, Doctor Berman cleared his throat. I broke my gaze away from my siblings and gave my full attention back to the Doctor.

"So how has your breathing been since you've woken up? Is it easier to breathe?" He asked as his eyebrows raised in curiosity.

"It's good, definitely easier to breathe since there isn't blood spilling out of my mouth," I joked, giving an awkward laugh.

He didn't find it funny.

"I sure would hope so," he said, narrowing his eyes towards me. "Well, since you are doing better than I thought, all I have to do is run a few more tests to make sure everything is good," He wrote a few things down on his clipboard. "But other than that, you will probably be able to leave the hospital tonight. You will just need to keep it easy for the next few days. I will also send home some prescription medicine to help with the pain."

"Thank you," I yawned, giving him a genuine smile.

I was still in pain, but I hid it pretty well. I needed to get Liv and Jace home as soon as possible.

I could feel my eyes droop lower as I tried forcing myself to stay awake.

How the fuck am I still tired after sleeping for three days?

"Get some sleep Dakota, your body still needs rest in order for it to completely heal. Just ring the bell on the side of your bed if anything is wrong," he explained, giving me a sad smile as I noticed a hint of pity hiding behind his eyes.

I just nodded my head, not even trying to get any more words out, because before I knew it, I immediately fell asleep before I could even say thank you.

•~•~•~

"Alright and you are good to go," the doctor exclaimed as he gave me extra bandages for my torso and my two different types of pain meds.

I slowly got out of my uncomfortable hospital bed as Jace and Liv packed up all of their stuff.

Jace and Liv woke up a few hours ago and we just played cards and watched tv to pass the time until they released me. They eventually gave me a t-shirt and sweatpants so I wasn't stuck wearing a hospital gown the rest of the time.

While playing cards, I would accidentally move a certain way while reaching out to grab a card from the stack in the middle of the floor, and pain would erupt in my lower abdomen. It knocked the breath out of me, but I quickly covered it in case my siblings saw. The pain didn't last long, but it was definitely noticeable.

We eventually got to leave the hospital during the evening and drove back home. The doctor said I was capable of driving as long as I took it easy. Jace insisted on driving, but I told him l felt fine enough to do it.

We arrived home quickly after the five minute drive that seemed to drag on for longer. We were all so exhausted and just wanted to be in the comfort of our own beds.

My mothers car was not in the driveway at this time, so I felt more relieved about sleeping tonight, not having to worry if my mother would barge in and hit me again. I definitely needed a break from that.

We gathered all of our stuff including the blankets, bandages, meds, and pillows.

It was around 8:30pm when we stepped foot into our house. I immediately got Liv ready for bed as I heard Jace turn on the shower, the running water was easy to hear through the paper thin walls.

I helped Liv get changed into her pajamas, helped brush her teeth, and tucked her into bed as soon as possible because we all had to go back to school tomorrow.

I closed Liv's door as I started walking down the hall to my bathroom. I was finally able to brush my tangled hair, already feeling the rats nest resting on top of my head. My hair was a mess.

Jace walked by my bathroom, and leaned against the doorway. His hair is soaking wet as he already took out his contacts, replacing them with glasses. With a brush in my hand, I looked over at him and smiled.

"I'm going to bed Dak. Please don't stress yourself out too much tonight ok? You deserve a break," Jace insisted. I just nodded my head as I finished brushing out my hair, then I grabbed my toothbrush and tried squeezing the remaining toothpaste on the brush.

"Thank you for staying with me the whole time at the hospital," I mumbled, the vibrating toothbrush in my mouth making it hard to pronounce words clearly.

"You're my sister Dakota, we aren't just going to leave you in a hospital all bruised up by yourself dumbass," he joked as he playfully rolled his eyes.

I looked at my brother and chuckled. I playfully shoved him as he took a step back raising both his hands in the air, indicating that he surrendered. I laughed even more before telling him to go to bed.

"Shoo, get out."

"Goodnight sis!"

He finally walked out of my bathroom and went to his room.

I spat out the toothpaste and washed my mouth with water to get the remaining minty substance out of my mouth.

I slowly lifted up my shirt to see how the bandage was holding up. It looked fine so I decided not to replace it tonight and just save it for tomorrow morning.

I trudged my way towards my dim lit room, the moon shining through my large window as I made my way under the covers of my bed.

I laid there for a while, just staring at the ceiling. My mind was racing and I couldn't stop thinking about today. I was so focused on trying to shut my thoughts out that I didn't even realize I was crying until I felt the salty tears graze the top of my lips.

I silently cried myself to sleep, the only thing on my mind before I drifted off was questioning how I'm going to deal with my mother once she finally returned home.

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