Chivalry

         Wiping off the blood from my face, I manage to barely stand while leaning on the car behind me. I look at the back of my hand, now flashing crimson in the moon’s light, and I push off the car. I take a wide swing at my opponent, who easily sways back out of reach after anticipating my move. He quickly closes the gap between the two of us and delivers a solid blow to my gut, where I promptly let out a grunt of pain and fall to my knees. Spitting blood from my mouth, I try as hard as I can to stand but lose all of my strength and fall to one knee.
         Looking at me with equal parts hatred and pity my opponent reaches out to lend me a hand. I barely manage to lift my hand past my shoulder’s height as I grasp his hand loosely with my own. While fighting to maintain my grip through the blood, he pulls me up. This would have been a nice gesture had he not sent his other fist right into my face shattering what was left of my nose. My hands cover my mouth and nose trying simultaneously to stop the bleeding and deafen the shout of pain while I fly back and hit my head on the ground.
         Remarkably, I am still conscious. The incredible amount of blood loss and blunt trauma should have had me out five minutes ago but I am still aware of my surroundings. My legs and arms are shooting pain throughout my body with the slightest movements, preventing me from trying to move away from his last strike. A boot to my gut sends me into a shock of pain.
         My entire body is pulsating, causing blood to leave faster than my heart was beating and leaving my heart screaming for help. Before I passed out from the loss of blood, the guy leaned over me and whispered something. Too bad the frightfully loud ringing in my ears prevented me from hearing it.
         
         I woke up feeling nothing but intense pain. Not the best way to wake up, but there are worse things to wake up to than this. After blinking a few extra times to enjoy the only movement that didn’t cause me pain, I took a look around the room. Other than the bed itself there were only two tables and two chairs. I had a nice view of the overcrowded parking lot through the window with that signature smell of smog only Jersey could produce. On the one table was a vase with a few roses in it with what looked to be a note, though I can’t tell from the way I am laying. The chair had a sweatshirt on it, so someone must be around here and ducked out of the room to take care of something briefly.
         Taking a quick assessment of my body, I feel like I was hit by a truck. My left arm is in a full cast and in one of those funny little slings that keep it hanging midair, while my right hand is all wrapped up like a mummy. Both of my legs would barely move in part of the casts on both from thigh to toes. My chest hurt the most out of anything, becoming apparent to me when I realized how hard it was to breathe while laying down. Realizing that I have utterly failed this assessment, I attempt to shimmy up from my prone position on the bed in hopes of finding a more comfortable position to be in.
         After managing to get about halfway up the back of the headboard, a nurse walks in. Apparently if a patient wakes up and asks for some help, it is her job to run out of the room. Another painful five minutes go by and I am up against the headboard and still all alone. Maybe my face is all messed up and the nurse thought I was a zombie. I was straining to see if there was a mirror anywhere in the room when she walked in.
         Ariel. I couldn’t help but wonder why she was here, and if the flowers were from her. It is known that she is one of the most attractive girls in our school and would never be seen with me outside of a class unless we were partnered up for some project. Watching her walk in, I got to thinking that she may be here as an envoy from our school. She was always good with school activities. She not only organized our prom but also won queen. It was sheer coincidence that this girl happened to share her name with the mermaid from the disney flick as well as her gorgeous looks. Her slightly tanned skin and bright blue eyes really stood out against that bright red hair of hers. It gently brushed up against her body, reaching just past her shoulders, flowing slightly from the weak breeze wafting in from the busy world outside. She is carrying a cup of coffee and a book and seems to be in her own world, because she has not noticed me awake yet. She sits down in the chair that looks like it was ten times more comfortable than any bed in the entire hospital and flips open her book. I didn’t want to interrupt her, so I just sat there and watched her mouth the words she was reading. She had a quick eye so she moved faster than I could interpret especially without my glasses, so after a few more minutes I finally decided to make my presence known.
         “Hey, do you think you could grab the nurse for me? She kinda ran out as soon as she saw me moving and I didn’t get to ask her for a glass of water.” Well, that certainly got her attention.
         “Max! You’re awake! Thank god!” She tosses her book on to the table and scrambles to the door. “I’ll go get Nurse Roberts for you!” And with that, she was gone. That was not the fastest a woman has ever run away from me but it was sure up there. When I got her attention and after a small jump from the shock of me being awake her face did light up like the fourth of july so at least I can safely assume she is happy to see me. A minute later she came back into the room followed by an African American nurse. This woman is a bit on the heavy side, but so am I so I can say that and not feel bad about it. Thankfully, she was carrying a glass of water in her left hand, which she promptly placed in my outstretched mummy hand.
         “Thank you for getting me sweetheart. I bet it would have been another hour before he realized he has a button to call the nurses.” Quickly glancing to my left, I spy the intercom device she just alluded to. Mental note to remember where that is.
         After ignoring the delightful giggle Ariel produced by Nurse Roberts’ joke and quickly chugging the entire glass of water, I pass the glass back to her. “Would it be alright if I got another glass of water? I have never been this thirsty before in my entire life.”
         Nurse Roberts takes the glass from my hand and heads for the door. “Of course you can. I’ll be right back.” She leaves the room, and my attention turns to Ariel.
         “Max I am so glad you are awake! I overheard some of the doctors say that you might be in a coma for months! I got really worried and decided I would come to see you whenever I could to see if you were doing better. Everyone in school has been asking about you and they are all proud of what you did.” While she is talking she moved the lesser of the two chairs next to my bed and sat down, putting me above her slightly and making it much easier to talk to.
         “That sounds really nice.” Pausing to think about why I am in the bed, I draw a major blank. “Uh, what did I do, exactly?”
         A look of shock creeps across Ariel’s face. “Max, do you remember who I am?”
         “Of course. You’re Scarlett Johansson and I am Chris Evans and we are on set for Captain America three. Although I may have trouble shooting the next few scenes in my casts…”
         The color drained from her face and panic was clear in her voice when she said, “Max! Are you serious right now? Do I really look like Scarlett Johansson- I mean that’s not it! Your name is Max and we’re not actors.”
         “Well, that is legitimately disappointing. I always wanted to be a superhero. How are things at school, Ariel?” I am usually opposed to messing with people, but how often does a chance like this come in a lifetime?
         Sighing with relief, Ariel slinks back into her chair and makes herself more comfortable. “Geez, you really had me worried for a minute there.” She hits my shoulder, sending a searing pain like a wave crashing all throughout my body. I tried to fight yelling out but to no avail. When she realized she caused the pain that swept across my face, she looked frightened again. “Oh my gosh, I’m so sorry!” She gently rubbed the spot she punched. “So, you remember who we are but you can’t remember what happened three weeks ago?”
         When I heard her say three weeks, I stopped trying to flex my fingers. That got my undivided attention. “I’ve been out for almost a month!?!”
         “Yeah, and I have come by to see if you have been up yet or not. It has been pretty crazy.” Well, other than the wonderful fact that she has been by to see me all the time she could, I couldn't believe I’ve been out for three weeks. Oh no! I missed three episodes of Game of Thrones!
         “Wow. I can’t believe it’s been that long.” A few seconds later Nurse Roberts walks back in with another full glass of water and hands it to me, where I precede to do the same as last time.
         “Honey, when you came in here, you were bleeding more than a Zack Snyder movie. You are lucky we managed to stop the bleeding when we did. Any more and you could’ve lost some brain functionality. This girl not only made the call to the police who got you here but has been here ever day waiting for you to wake up. I have to tell the doctor you are awake, but I will give you some time to catch up. Bye kids.” Nurse Roberts turns to walk out, stops at the door and spins to catch my gaze. She winks, and then disappears out of the doorway, pulling the door to a close behind her. My attention again goes right back to Ariel.
         “So you don’t remember the fight with Jack? It was pretty bad.” Oh right, that whole blurb in the beginning where I got pummeled. That makes more sense now.
         “Wait, I sort of remember the fight itself. I can’t for the life of me remember anything that happened before that though.”
         Ariel shifts nervously in her chair. “Well it went a little something like this: Prom was just ending up and Jack and I were leaving a little early because I had a headache from all the music. What I didn’t know was that Jack had not only been drinking all through the dance with his buddies as well as shooting up some heroin, but also had planned on taking me to his car to, well, to “park.” We were walking out to his car, which was parked on the outskirts of the lot, when he suddenly grabbed me and kissed me. I didn’t resist at first, but once I tasted the alcohol I pushed him back and asked him if he had been drinking. His eyes looked like the eyes of a predator who cornered his prey. He knows he could just play with his catch until he finally decides to end its suffering. He grabbed me and dragged me over to his car. I was shouting and hitting him, but everyone was in the dance and couldn’t hear me yelling. Everyone except you. I know you didn’t go to the dance because I didn’t see you in there so you must have been waiting to pick some people up from the dance.”
         “So Jack manages to drag me all the way to his car. All the way he was telling me how he hated that we were the only couple he knew that wasn’t having sex and that he was getting tired of waiting and that prom night is all about scoring so it was going to happen whether I wanted it to or not. I was really scared that he was going to go through with this until I heard someone yell stop. We both turned around and saw you, running up as fast as you could. Jack panicked and pushed me away from him, yelling out that you had better not come any closer or he was going to kill you. Even though he was twice your size you came running anyway, and I started running towards you. You grabbed me and told me to go and get help, so I kicked off my heels and ran as fast as I could to the gym. We called 911 and got back outside as quickly as possible but by the time we got back you were laying on the ground in a huge puddle of blood and Jack’s car was gone.”
         Thinking to myself that this is just like me, running in to help someone without even a second of thought devoted to my well being, I silently applaud my quick response to this horrible situation. It is never cocky to applaud your own actions in your head.
         “I was horrified. I thought that you were dead, but the first aid team and police officer assured me that if they acted quickly you could be saved. I spent the entire night in the waiting room with your parents and they told us you could make it but you were in a coma from the blunt trauma that you suffered. Ever since then either me or your parents have been here, waiting for you to wake up.” Wow, so the fight I imagined in my head wasn’t a dream. Note to self: take a class in self defense.
         “So, what happened to Jack?” I almost felt bad to ask, knowing full well that he kicked my ass without much of a problem.
         “Well, he drove off after the fight and crashed his car into a tree by his house. He is fine, but the car was totaled. He then stumbled home where the police found him passed out on his bed. They are charging him with aggravated assault, disorderly conduct, and being under the influence of both alcohol and heroin. He is waiting in jail so I don’t think you will have to worry about him for a very long time.”
         That is very reassuring. Jack Steddman was never a very nice guy. Always the bully, he picked on kids all throughout high school for a multitude of reasons and since he was the ace quarterback that led the team to three consecutive state championships, who was going to say anything against him? I sure wasn’t. Those poor kids had to suffer because we glorified him to a point where it drove him into a realm of thinking that no man should go. No one is above reproach, not that he could spell reproach let alone knows what is means. I never understood what Ariel saw in him.
         “Man, so I got into a fight with Jack Steddman. No wonder I am in so much pain.” Trying to test my extremities, I couldn’t wiggle my toes in the cast and also couldn’t move my left fingers. On the plus side my right ones were flexing under wraps.
         Ariel touches my arm with her right hand. “I know, and it is all my fault.”
         “Come on, this is not your fault. There was no way you would have assumed that he intended on trying this and he was also out of his senses big time.” The look on her face showed that this was a bad path to go down right now. “Anyway, what has happened while I was out? Anything wild or life changing?”
         Thankfully, Ariel’s expression changed with the topic and we went on to discuss the new developments on her tennis team, how my best friend Sean took the top spot in his individuals for state swimming, and what happened on Game of Thrones. I quickly stopped her to avoid spoilers. After talking for another hour or so, the doctor came in with Nurse Roberts and he asked Ariel to leave. She promised to be by the next day with some way for us to watch the episodes of Game of Thrones I missed. She left me with the roses which she did indeed bring in, and off she went.
         After she was gone, Nurse Roberts pulled the chair back into place. “You know, that girl has been worried sick about you. She really feels like you getting hurt was all her fault. Whatever you do, do NOT hurt this child. Lord knows she doesn’t deserve to be hurt twice like she was.”
         The doctor promptly responded with “Laverne, please don’t patronize this kid. He almost died the other day.” Nurse Roberts murmured something about a q-tip and walked out of the room. I couldn’t help but wonder why she thought that the guy who almost died to stop Ariel from being hurt would in turn hurt her, but quickly got distracted by the doctor talking about my issues at hand. The doctor thinks that I shouldn’t leave the hospital for another week or so, and have to wear casts when I do leave. That really puts a wrench in my plans to practice my serves and scales, but I suppose part of it can’t be helped.
         The next day my folks came by to visit before Ariel got there, so we got to catch up for a little while. They agreed to bring me a few books from home to read while I was in the hospital, and for the next four days it was a mix of visits from them, Ariel, and the wonderful tales in the volumes from my personal library of books. In that period of four days, I managed to read ten books and watch four episodes of Game of Thrones, as well as have quality conversation with Ariel. Sean came to visit one day, but he didn’t stay long because he had a big Latin test to study for, and Ariel brought a few of her friends once and the whole time the constantly reminded me how much of a hero I was. Not that I didn’t appreciate the praise or anything but people acknowledging me as a hero was pretty weird. I am just the guy who keeps to himself, really. I’m no hero.

         The day of reckoning finally came, where I got to hobble up to school for the first time in a month. The first few days, people smiled at me and patted me on the back, and some even went so far as to say I was a hero. All the while Ariel was with me, helping me get around and helping me get back up to speed in my classes. She talked me into going to a few of her tennis matches (not that I needed much convincing) and I even got to give her a few pointers for her game. This goes on for two weeks, and eventually one day she comes with an odd request.
         She came walking into homeroom at the same time she always did, glowing, her hair flowing behind her while she walked. She had on jeans with a white shirt and a pair of red converse high tops. She said hello to our teacher, put her books down on her desk, and walked over to me. “Hey Max, what are you doing later?”
         “Nothing really. I can finally take off my cast on my left hand so I was going to take it off and start playing guitar again. Why, did you have something in mind?”
         “Yeah, I wanted to know if you had plans for dinner.”
         That was pretty straightforward. I feel like this is the first time we are hanging out and would seem like a date. “Uh, sure. I would love to.” If nothing else, the smile that spread on her face was so honest and perfect that I could have died right then and there and been happy with it.
         “All right then! Dinner is at seven, be prepared to have your mind blown.”
         The rest of the day was a bit slow in anticipation of the night’s event, but even with that increased sluggishness I still couldn’t stop thinking about Ariel. For some reason even during lit class I couldn't stop thinking about her, and my focus is unparalleled in lit. Leaving school I look to later that night.
         
         When I pulled up to her house, I noticed that her car was the only one in the driveway, so I park across the street to not block the way for anyone else. I ring the doorbell and hear Ariel yell she will be down in a minute so I sit on the porch and admire the view. She lives on the island by our school, so the drive over the bridge was a “fun” one with my casts. The view cannot be beaten though. Even from her porch, you could see the ocean for miles and not help but think how huge the world really can be.
         The door creaks open behind me, so I spin around to say hello but nothing comes out. My jaw scraping on the ground, I couldn’t take my eyes off of her. She had a purple gown on that shined with the light reflecting off of it when it shook and a purple ribbon in her hair. She is the most elegant person I have ever seen. Looking down at me in confusion, she asks, “Are you ok? You aren’t talking…”
         Quickly standing up as fast as I can with my hurt body, I manage to stammer out “S-s-s-sorry. You look b-b-beautiful.” A stuttering fool is what I am.
         She giggles and invites me in to her house. I take one step into the house and kick off my shoe. When I look up, I am hit with a barrage of the sea. The walls were styled like the beach, with a lighter sandy tone on the bottom that slowly blended into the sea-foam hue of the ocean. There were the occasional white specks painted near the ceiling to represent either seagulls or clouds, though I’m not sure which. All throughout the walls there were pictures of her family and shells with hand prints in them. The couch in the center of the room faced a TV so huge Weird Al wrote a song about it. The couch was a sandy brown color which worked with the motif quite nicely. And that was just the living room.
         We walked into the kitchen and again my mind was blown. There was a table fit to serve eight people in the far back with a view overlooking the ocean that just beat out the view from the porch. The rest of the room was more of a normal kitchen feel, with cabinets and a fridge and stove. After my eyes had enough stimulation, my nose finally caught up. It smelled like heaven. There is no other way to describe it. A hint of lilac and the smell of the meal Ariel prepared had me completely out of my wits.
         “So, are you hungry? I hope so because this is going to be wonderful!” Even with the overstimulation from the wonders of her house and cooking prowess, she still held my full attention. This girl is the most beautiful girl I have ever had the good fortune to see, let alone even imagine.
         “Of course I am. You told me to come hungry and after smelling what you made, I know I will leave happier than ever.” This brought that same smile from this morning to her face. After seeing this the second time, I decided to make it my goal to make her smile like that whenever I can. She can forget about any troubles she may have with a smile like that on her face.
         “Well I just made my famous fresh shrimp stir fry. My neighbor White caught them this morning. We also have a salad with lemon juice as a dressing, and what meal would be complete without lemonade?” She turns around and I can’t help but admire her figure. When she spins back with the drinks, I divert my gaze to the food which is not quite as wonderful but very high up there. This meal looks like the best thing I have ever been able to eat.

         Now after eating everything off my plate I can safely say that this meal is the best I have ever eaten. After a half hour of lovely conversation and heavenly food, I sit back in my chair and audibly show how much I loved the meal with an “Ahhh.” She has the smarts, the looks, and the skills that every guy could ever want. Forgetting about the casts and broken bones all throughout my body, I am the luckiest guy who has ever lived.
         “This is by far the best meal I have had since the hospital cafeteria.” I wink at her and she giggles, humoring my lousy joke even if she didn’t think it was funny.
         She shifted slightly in her seat and leaned over the table to grab a napkin from the centerpiece, an open clam shell that gently clamped on the napkins to hold them in place, and dabbed the side of her mouth. “So, when do you get to take off your casts? I am very much looking forward to the day I get to play you in tennis.”
         I flex my left hand slightly and feel a pain shoot up my arm. “Well, I could slip it off for a little while today if you want. I couldn’t play you at my best, but we could hit a little bit.” She seemed a bit upset at this idea, so I let it drop without further pursuing it.
         “I have an idea! Let’s take a walk on the beach!” Before even hearing my answer she shot up from the chair and dashed through the house, leaving me no way to protest against the sand that will get stuck in my boot cast. I gathered up the dishes from dinner and took them to the sink, where I proceeded to wash them off and throw some soap on them. When she walked back into the kitchen, she was wearing the same outfit from school earlier. She laughed when she saw me with my shirt sleeves rolled up and my hands all soapy from the dishes.
         “You don’t have to worry about that, I can wash them later!” She barely managed to get the last few words out through her laughter.
         “Well, you could come and help me!” As I finished that sentence I sent a handful of bubbles from the soap flying at her, which she gracefully dodged. She ran over, grabbed a handful of soapy bubbles of her own, and stuck them on my head like a hat of suds. Laughing, I grab her arm with my good hand gently and whisk them off my head, having them land right back in the sink. Our eyes meet for a moment and then she quickly turns towards the door.
         “Come on! We have to get moving if we are going to make it in time!” And with that, she is out the door.

         After wandering around the beach for about a half hour, she finds a good spot to post up at and plops right down on the sand. With me not being in peak physical condition, I collapse face first into the sand and just lay there. She giggles again. Something about that pure laugh is just so captivating.
         “So, want to know why we are all the way out here?”
         I look over, a bit puzzled, and swing myself so I am laying on my back with my head facing her. “Sure.”
         “Well, we are here to see a sunset silly!” Ariel replies in a very matter-of-factly tone. I feel like I could have guessed that but I am too exhausted from the walk to even think.
         “I haven’t gotten to see one of those in more than a month! My room in the hospital had a wonderful view of the cars but it was always on the wrong side to get a good view of the sun coming and going each day.” I sling myself up so I am leaning on my arms outstretched behind my back, just like Ariel is sitting. I look over at her and she seems upset again. “You know what happened really wasn’t your fault. You can’t blame yourself for it because I was the one who ran into the situation of my own free will.”
         She turned her head away from me. “Do you really believe that? That you had a choice in saving me or not?”
         “I don’t understand what you mean.”
         “I mean, do you really think that you had the choice to save me or let me suffer put in front of you, or that you were not given a choice in the matter at all?” She turned back to me, her eyes welling up with tears. “I feel like this was meant to happen. I mean, we have known each other for years but I never really thought of you in a romantic way until this happened. I just thought you were a nice guy who really kept to himself all the time, who knew we had so much in common? I never knew that you wrote music or even played for that matter. I never knew that you love reading poetry and stories, and that you even write some yourself. I never knew that you had the nastiest flat serve in the state, or that you can sink a putt from thirty yards away. I never knew that there was a person out there who still believed in honor, and that chivalry still thrives to this day. I know it is a horrible thing to say that you were meant to feel such immense pain, but this brought us close together! Doesn’t that mean anything?”
         Wow, this conversation is getting deep. “Of course it does, but I have never really felt like Fate controls me. I made all of the decisions in my life based on what I feel and not the other way around. And to answer your question: I don’t think I had a choice in the matter. I saw someone in trouble and knew that I needed to help. It is just ten times as fulfilling that I got to help you.”
         Ariel looks up at me, tears running down her cheeks. “Do you really mean it?” Her eyes were filled with innocence and adorable as a puppy’s. She was shaking slightly, as was I, because I have never talked like this with anyone before in my life.
         “Of course.” I reach for her left hand with my right, and gently grasp it. “This past month has been the best time of my life because I got to spend every day with the most amazing girl I have ever met. A girl who I think might even be the girl of my dreams.” When I finished that sentence, she looked right into my eyes and that is when I felt sparks truly fly for the first time. “I have never been so happy to be beaten up in my entire life.”
         She laughs a little, though it comes out a bit of a jumbled mess between the tears and laughter. We lean in towards one another and our lips meet for the first time. As we continue to kiss, the only thing that comes to my mind is the Princess Bride’s conclusion, and how if there truly were a list of the best embraces in history this would beat out Wesley and Buttercup. After a few more minutes of this passion, she pulls back from me.
         “You know, we should really take a look at the sunset since thats why we came-“
         I cut her off by putting my finger over her mouth. I know cutting her off mid sentence is not a very polite thing to do, but after what I have been through I feel a slight amount of wiggle room is allowed here. As I lean back in to kiss her again, I say “There will be other sunsets.”