A Life of Shy

The recovery ward was like any other unit. A harmony of beeps, nurses on standby at their stations, and occasional rings from the phones. It was quiet this morning.

“Doctor Richard, R7 is waking up!” the nurse doing checks shouted. Richard quickly got up and ran towards Recovery Unit 7, along with several nurses. I was talk of the entire ward.

“Michael, can you hear me?” Doctor Richard asked. I let out a yawn, stretched, and tried to let my eyes adjust to the light.

“Wh-where am I?” I asked, unsure of my surroundings and still adjusting to the bright room.

“You’re in Massachusetts General Hospital. You took a helluva lot of damage from a vehicle that lost control,” Doctor Richard said. “Don’t worry; you did suffer some damage to your head, but nothing a little surgery couldn’t fix up.”

“How long was I out for?” I asked.

“About twenty hours. You were in a coma,” Richard stated.

“Wait, where’s Fluttershy?!” I panicked suddenly.

“Relax, she’s right in your arm,” Richard assured. “She seemed important to you, so we made sure you held onto her the entire time.” Confused, I looked down at my arms, and sure enough, my plush of Fluttershy laid there in my left arm. I wrapped my hand around one of her hooves. “I’d like to keep you here until at least tomorrow. I want to be sure you’re stable before I release you. You may experience migraines, so I sent in a prescription for Amitriptyline to CVS for you.”

“Thank you, Doctor. Can I please change into some new clothes? I feel icky.”

“Sure thing,” Richard said. “Your suitcase is right there.” He pointed to the chair next to me. Doctor Richard and all the nurses left, closing the door to give me some privacy.

I got up carefully and went to my suitcase. I opened up the main compartment, noticing three items that I never put in there. However, I immediately recognized the first item. It was the bible I borrowed from Twilight, with the horseshoe print and cross. The other two items were the other books I borrowed. I put the bible on my bed and grabbed a change of clothes. I changed into the clean clothes, closed my suitcase and went to lie back down in the bed.

I studied the book and noticed a bulge on the inside behind the front cover. Turning to it, I noticed a folded-up sheet of paper. I took it out and read it.

“Dear Mikey, thank you for everything. You have brought me so much joy in the short time you were here. I already miss you and wish you could’ve stayed. I will never forget you.

“I asked Twilight if she can let you keep the book you borrowed, and she had no problem with it. Each time you see those books, please remember me.

“I will always love you, and I will think about you each day. Please don’t ever forget about me.

“With love, Fluttershy.”

Reading that letter brought me happy tears. I then remembered the scripture I flipped to. “Your sadness will turn to joy.” I was sad because I had to leave, and now I feel joyful knowing that what I had when I was in Equestria came with me. Shortly after, there was a knock at the door. I folded the letter back up, put it back where I discovered it and closed my bible.

“Come in,” I said. The door opened and a nurse came in with a tray of food.

“Thought you might be hungry,” the nurse said, lowering the tray to my lap.

“Thank you,” I said.

“Are you okay?” she asked. “You look like you’ve been crying.”

“Never better,” I assured her. The nurse walked off, leaving the door open. I bowed my head and said grace, giving thanks for the food. After I did my prayer, I looked up and saw four ghost-like figures standing by the doorway. I wasn’t sure if I was seeing things, but it looked too real. The ghosts staring back at me were Fluttershy, Twilight Sparkle, Celestia, and Luna. All of them were smiling at me, happy to see me back home. I smiled back, tears rolling down my face. Twilight put her arm around Fluttershy, indicating to her that I am alright. Fluttershy cried happy tears with me.

A hospital card rolled by and suddenly they disappeared. It felt good to know that their spirits are still with me.

The next day I was discharged. A local church donated a tent and some food for me after the accident that occurred. Doctor Richard advised me that my medical provider was terminated for hate speech and that I’d be expecting a settlement from the hospital soon.

I also had company from Metro Boston Police, wanting to know if I wanted to press charges against the driver. I declined, considering it was just an accident and that I am still alive.

As I sat in my new tent, I reminisced on all the memories I had in Equestria, some bad and some good. I’m happy to still be alive, even though in the eyes of society, I’m no one.

I’m just glad to know that I’m important to someone in another world.