I woke up with a start, breathless, with an aching back. My torso ached, as if I had just fallen from a three-story building and was unlucky enough to have survived. I tried to move, but every time I tried to turn, a sharp, stinging pain shot through my body. IV tubes passed through my arms, their narrow channels transferring clear fluids, from large blister-like sacs, into my veins. The pungent smell of fresh disinfectant assaulted my nostrils so strongly that the needles seemed to prick the inside of my nose with every breath. The soft patter of padded feet echoed in the distance, each step amplified by the empty corridors. Turning my head I saw a white room; The constant beeping of a computer monitor sounded next to me. To my left was a small table, the surface of which was slightly above eye level; I could barely make out the silhouettes of medical bottles, gauze pads, and what appeared to be a clipboard. Tearing my eyes from the table, I directed them ahead of me, towards a rectangular clock on the wall. The digital numbers on the clock read "16:35". If that were true, I would have been under anesthesia for seven hours. Before I could figure out how long I had been asleep, the sound of a door gently opening caught my attention. Turning my head towards the noise, I stared at the source of the disturbance. The culprit was a nurse in traditional scrubs: light blue trousers and a short-sleeved shirt; Around her neck was a white string attached to a name tag that read "Hi, I'm Gladys." Gladys approached where I lay, dragging her feet, back slumped, lips meeting in a tight line, staring impatiently at the clock. every few seconds. Stopping to the left of my bed, he asked in a flat, almost monotone voice, “Fr...... middle of paper ......nsense of numbness. Suddenly numb, I lay still. Gladys, to my left, grabbed the notepad that was on the table and began recording the data. Thankful for the notes for obscuring Gladys' face, I smiled. Only to be disappointed again when she returned the item to its resting place, but not before writing "Spinal Fusion" in large letters on the back. Without warning, Gladys began walking towards the door she emerged from. His shape was different from before, his back straight, his arms making large pendulum movements, each step covering the distance of two normal steps. Once he reached the door, he reached out to a light switch located to the right of the door. Turning to face me, he said the words, “Goodnight,” in the same monotone voice he had used initially. With heavy eyes, I tried to ask her what she meant, but darkness met me..