The Transmigration
"As lightning tore the sky over Macedonia on Thursday evening, no one expected what was to follow..." was the weather report on the radio, as Marianne and Samuel rushed into the hospital with their son on a stretcher. Nurses arrived to take the stretcher to the emergency room. Marianne could not control her tears, while Samuel tried to hold and calm her down, waiting for the physician to arrive at them.
The air felt thick with urgency, voices overlapping, footsteps pounding in every direction. The elevators chiming endlessly, the wheels rattling all over the place, and the sterile, slightly bitter, scent of the artificial fragrances made Marianne and Samuel feel dizzy. After a few minutes of waiting, a nurse arrived, calling out to them. Samuel, holding Marianne, walked towards the consultation room. Marianne glances all over the place, noticing all stages of grief on the faces of families. They came to a halt. "Please, get inside. The physician allotted for your son is waiting to discuss the reports with you," informed the nurse, and left the place.
Samuel and Marianne, hesitated but, opened the door and walked into the physician's cabin. The immediate sterile scent made Marianne uncomfortable. "Please, take a seat. I am Daniel. Could you please fill out this form, so that we can continue discussing the condition of your child," greeted Daniel, handing over the form towards them. Samuel filled out the application, while Marianne was looking around the room. "Here." Samuel fills and hands over the form. "Interesting," claimed Daniel, clicking his pen, "Doctor Mikhail is currently performing surgery on your son, Adrian. Rest assured. We were informed that Adrian was triaged Red; with immediate treatment, he has a good chance of recovery,"
Daniel pours water into two glasses, and hands over to them. He rings a bell at his table, A nurse arrives, "Give this at the front desk, and tell them to prepare the registration," whispers Daniel, and hands over the form to the nurse. Just for legal and insurance formalities, are you willing to share what happened to Adrian? You can take your time, whenever you are ready," asked Daniel — with trepidation.
A Few Hours Ago
"Dad, Mom, you guys take the checkout, I will be waiting at the car" Adrian said — putting his headphones on, He stepped out of the store, looked to his right and left, and stepped forward towards their car on the other side, a bit far away, of the road. The drizzly weather made Adrian smile, as he had always loved rains, he wished that it could get heavier, and looked at the sky with the same hope.
A white delivery truck took a sharp turn, right near the store, and accelerated into the lane where Adrian was walking. Before he could notice, Adrian was already in the air. People around the pavement saw the accident take place in a frozen hush and shared horror. "That was one hell of a collision", "Let us just hope he does survive", "Call the emergency services", murmured the crowd as they gathered around him.
Samuel and Marianne walked out of the store, holding groceries, toward their car. They noticed the crowd, "What do you think might have happened?" asked Marianne curiously, "I don't know. I will check on it, pack the bags, and wait for me at the car" responded Samuel — walking towards the crowd. He cuts through the thin layer of the crowd, only to find his son in a critical condition. He muttered, "Adrian- ?", confused, reaching towards him, "What happened to you, son?" sobbed Samuel — looking at the crowd, while the drizzling water did little to keep Adrian conscious. The crowd started to disperse, while a few stood back, trying to contact emergency services.
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Marianne not finding her son in or around the car, she ran back to the scene, seeing her son in Samuel's hands. The rain started getting heavier, and the sky screamed with thunder. She rushed towards them, "What happened, Samuel? He said he'd wait in the car! Adrian, wake up, wake up, baby—" Marianne yelled — breaking down to tears, as the rain began to deafen them from the surroundings, washing the blood from the Injury, "I just heard-," paused Samuel, glancing at his son, "-a Truck, collided into him- he flew- the height of Zgrada,"
Zgrada
It means, A Building, in several South Slavic languages, including Croatian, Bosnian, and Serbian. It refers to any structure such as an apartment building, multi-storey building, or a communal building
Present time
"…and soon an ambulance arrived, and here we are." Marianne concluded — while the thoughts of her son's recovery were lingering in her head. "The traffic on the way only made us late" added Samuel. There was a sudden push on the physician's door, which startled the three. "Doctor Daniel, Doctor Mikhail needs you in the theater. Right now." urged the nurse, who had called out Samuel and Marianne, "Yes, I will be there," Daniel assured, and placed the file down on the table. He wore his coat and took a surgical mask and cap, "We will inform you about the condition, do not leave the room, unless it's urgent" said Daniel, and left the cabin. Samuel turned towards Marianne, held her, and patted her on the back. Samuel grabbed a glass, poured water, and handed it to Marianne.
As they waited, "I am not able to imagine, He's already 17 years old, soon an adult." Marianne was talking about the university when the door opened.
She stopped mid-sentence.
Daniel exhaled before he spoke, and in that exhale, Samuel already knew.
"I am sorry, we tried our best, we could not save your son," said Daniel — carrying a disappointed expression on his face. He placed Adrian's belongings on the table, hung his coat, and left the cabin, with the door open enough, which let the hum of conversations in the corridor reach them. Samuel and Marianne broke into tears. "Is he- really no longer with us- anymore?" sobbed Marianne, Samuel would only try to comfort her, not choosing to speak anything.
After a few minutes, Samuel and Marianne walked out of the cabin, with Adrian's belongings in their hands, only to spot Daniel, a fair-looking man, about 6 feet tall, with rimless aviators with clear lenses, standing beside a bearded man, who was about 5 feet tall, waiting near the end of the corridor. They walked towards them, "Samuel, this is Doctor Mikhail," Daniel introduced, and to his surprise, the couple were calm.
"Hello Doctor, I am Samuel, and this is my wife, Marianne," Samuel addressed — with a slight smile on his face, but deep down broken from the loss — "Nice to meet you," answered Mikhail — in a soothing and comforting tone, "I am so sorry... we did everything we could, but despite our best efforts, we weren’t able to save him." He paused, "We will give you time, and I will answer any questions you have when you’re ready," Mikhail concluded — in a supporting voice, "Thank you for the efforts, We..." Samuel looked at Marianne, while she was shaking her head slightly, "…do not have any questions. We are ready to... collect our son... and leave." choked Samuel, "Sure, as you wish for it. Thank you for your patience," conveyed Mikhail — handed over the files to Daniel, and led them to the reception,
The medical staff wheeled out the stretcher, gliding silently from the sterile hush of the hospital into the drizzling night, while the waiting ambulance's red lights pulsed in the rain. Samuel and Marianne got into the ambulance box, "Could you please drop us at August Cesarac Street?" asked Samuel to the paramedic as they left from the hospital.
The voice of the driver asking for directions slowly became muffled, a garbled echo. The pulsing red lights started to pulse like veins pumping blood. Adrian opens his eyes, finding himself floating in a void where only time and light raced, but he stood still. He looked around as everything turned into a light-filled void. He held his head, looked skyward, and losing balance, he toppled and started falling downwards. He heard a low, resonant voice — the kind that demanded to be heard, that felt heavier than silence — speak to him, "You have got 9 lives left. You will meet your fate once they come to an end."
