"The Being" by Odessa S

 

The light of my phone caught my attention, with the first thing I saw being the date, which was January 11, 2023. Opening my notifications to figure out what the cause of my phone turning on was, I was puzzled to discover that it was a text message from my mom. Usually I wouldn’t pay any attention to my notifications during class, but my mother doesn’t regularly text me during school, so I figured it had to be something important. The voice of my French teacher faded in the background of my mind as my eyes shifted from left to right, scanning the message my mother sent to me. It read:

            Something happened to Grandma, and I drove her to the hospital with Grandpa.

After reading the vague message, worry gripped my throat, suffocating my airways, as my mind traveled to a dark place. No, no, no, it’s not her time yet. It can’t be. The school bell rang throughout my ears and my body clicked to autopilot. It took me out of the classroom and outside to walk to my next class. In the sea of students I caught sight of my friend, and she immediately knew a dark cloud had taken over my countenance. She was making her way towards me, but my body continued on its path, while my mind remained blank. She caught up to me.

“Are you okay?” her words echoed in my mind spurring me back to life. Those words, the cause of the river of tears that flooded from the depths of my eyes.

“My grandma. She has to be okay,” the only words I was able to choke out beneath the hysterical sobs escaping my mouth and finding their place in the embrace of my friend.

- - -

The rest of the school day passed as a blur, with my mind held captive by immense worry. By the time the last school bell rang, I braced myself for the bad news my mom would tell me when I would enter her car. The walk to the car always felt long, but it felt even longer today. The trees around me were as dead as a corpse, and the sky around me was a dark cloud of ash. Eventually, I arrived at the car and settled in the passenger seat.

“Grandma had a little episode earlier today, but she’s fine now. I just left the hospital not too long ago. Grandpa had said that he left her in the living room alone for a few minutes, and when he came back her body was paralyzed on the couch. He said her head was cocked back on the couch, looking up to the ceiling. He tried to shake her out of her trance, but nothing worked. He thought she was dead or possessed. Both Grandma and Grandpa are still at the hospital, and the doctors are going to have to keep Grandma overnight to run some tests and figure out exactly what happened, but they don’t think it’s anything serious,” my mother explained to me.

Relief overcame me, and I could finally breathe again. She’s okay, everything is okay.

            “I have to go back to the hospital to pick up Grandpa and take him back home. Do you want to come with me and see Grandma?” my mother inquired.

            “Yes,” the word escaped my mouth. Little did I know of the horrors I would soon witness at the hospital that night.

- - -

The moon illuminated the quiet hospital, as I stepped through the wide doors with my mother. The strong smell of soap and gloves attacked my senses once my feet crossed the threshold. I’ve always hated the smell of hospitals.

            My mother and I consulted the front desk and, soon enough, we were traversing the hallway leading to my Grandma’s room. The sound of nurses scurrying around the building was loud in my ears. Or was that my footsteps?

            We entered the cramped hospital room, and there she was. It’s difficult to put into words just how odd it felt, seeing my Grandma in that state; with different tubes and cords attached to her arms and chest. It felt like I was looking at a completely different person. Maybe I was.

            “Hi mom, how are you doing? I brought Odessa with me because she wanted to see you,” my mother told Grandma as she took hold of her hand.

My Grandma studied my face and a perplexed look overcame her countenance.

“She’s your granddaughter,” my mother informed her while pointing her finger at me.

            My own Grandma doesn’t remember who I am. It felt like a punch in the gut. Maybe we really have lost Grandma.

            “Is she with them?” my Grandma whispered to my mom, a look of fear spreading across her features.

            “With who?” my mother asked.

            “The people hiding. These people are here, hiding in this room. Ask Maria, she’s the housekeeper. She knows they are trying to kill me,” my grandma uttered, fearfully glancing about the room and gripping my mother’s hand.

            “Mom, there’s no one else here,” my mother reassured her.

            At that point, I didn’t know how to react. I was mostly scared as I stood there in that tiny hospital room, staring at this person wearing my Grandma’s skin. What happened to Grandma? My Grandma, the sweet, caring old lady I always knew was frantically trying to rip off the cords and tubes attached to her. My mom called for doctors, and they rushed in. It took 4 doctors to hold her down. I know not where all my Grandma’s strength came from, but it seemed to be enhanced by paranoia. She kept rambling about people trying to kill her and that she needed to fight the demons holding her down. As I watched the battle between the doctors and my Grandma, I just felt desolate.

- - -

            My Grandma had to stay at the hospital for two additional nights. By day, my Grandma was herself, but by night she became a different person. Each night her paranoia worsened and I was there to witness it all. When she got discharged from the hospital the Being that seemed to overtake her body faded away. My Grandma could remember who I was again. However, witnessing her episodes those nights at the hospital made me recognize the reality of aging. As my Grandma gets older, her mind only worsens. When will the time come when that Being comes back to permanently overtake her body and wear her skin? I wish it wasn’t inevitable, but she is already experiencing the onsets of dementia, and it will only proceed downhill from here. While my Grandma still recognizes me and those around her, I will go out of my way to make the most out of my time with her. I will tell her I love her everyday. I will hug her and laugh with her before the Being rips her away from me, never to return her.