Alex had been in her Mandala for days. This was the longest in fact. Her parents had decided to stay the week because seemingly, they were just having so much fun, so Alex had stayed in her Mandala for 4 straight days now. She didn't know if there was really any kind of side effects to that but she didn't really care much about that. However, she was starting to miss it. She wanted to be back in the world and fully enjoy everything as is. Then again, what is she going to go back to? Already, even within her Mandala, the guilt is still pretty pronounced every time she talks to her sister. This was definitely a first, feeling like she misses living and starting to feel the negative emotions that a Mandala is supposed to be a shield for that kind of stuff.
It didn't help that Matt was still not back. In fact, she was really worried about him. Every time she called his cell, it was off. Ever since that first night, she still hasn't talked to him. This only added to her anxiety all together. Resolved, Alex decided to call her doctor and see him as soon as possible. Perhaps, this may be a good idea to escape her Mandala and her family all together. She went into her phonebook. She found the doctor's name, called and took an appointment for the following day with the receptionist. Now, she just needed to wait until tomorrow to get this problem sorted out.
It was 2pm and just like clockwork, her parents were taking their nap time, but her sister was awake. She was in the pool, waiting for Alex. Alex had said she had to go up to make an important call before she could join her there. She put on her swimsuit as she continued to ponder this dilemma. Before she exited her room, she switched over to her Mandala, hoping this time it would seriously protect her, as it always should.
"Alex! What took you so long! Come on woman!"
Maddy yelled from the poolside. She had a beer in hand and held a beer out for Alex. This part definitely confused Alex. This was so unlike her sister. Maddy never drinks.
"Hey yeah sorry. I spoke to my secretary and had to make some arrangements for the next few days since I will be going in late or working from home. And then I got a call from my doctor confirming my appointment for tomorrow. It totally slipped my mind."
Maddy handed the beer to Alex and asked: "doctor? why? Is everything okay?" She looked genuinely concerned.
Alex smiled gently. "Oh no it's just a routine check up. No worries. So...what's with the beer?"
Maddy raised her shoulders as a sign to show: "no idea". She then put her beer down, took off her dress, revealing her bikini and jumped in the pool, causing water to be splashed towards Alex who laughed. She also took off her dress and joined Maddy in the pool. They started swimming laps back to back and after a few rounds, they finally stopped. Maddy sat up on the side of the pool and took off her swimming goggles breathlessly. Alex joined her in as well. She was really nauseous at this point.
"Sis, are you ok?" Maddy asked.
Alex smiled weakly and said not to worry. Maddy got up and took the two beers back and handed Alex's back to her. After a few minutes of silence of drinking their beers, Maddy broke down.
Alex was surprised. "Hey what's wrong?" But she didn't push it. She just waited expectantly, for Maddy to recover."
Maddy curled up her legs and hugged them to her chest. She wasn't even trying to stop the tears. Alex got up and opened the cabinet next to the pool and took out the box of tissues and brought them over to Maddy. Then she sat next to her again. She didn't try to comfort her as she would've if it were her. Alex's Mandala knew that this was exactly not what Maddy needed then. After a few minutes, Maddy finally calmed down and took a few tissues out of the box and wiped her tears and blew her nose.
"Thanks. I'm sorry...I don't know what's gotten into me. The pain...it's just too much."
Alex waited for her to continue and when she didn't she responded: "I know. You don't have to be sorry sis. It's hard to go through that. I can't even imagine what you've been through these two years."
Maddy quickly responded to that: "no you don't understand. All this time, I thought Fred was going to come to his senses and put his gambling ways behind him and come to restart our marriage. But just last week, I received the divorce papers, which means, it's over. It's really over. I didn't expect that. I was willing to overlook everything as soon as he returned. I was even willing to overlook what happened, all the girls, all the gambling." Maddy turned to Alex and implored: "I was even willing to accept him in his Mandala! I had decided I would do the surgery and get the Mandala in me...for him you know? I wanted so badly for us to be okay again. All this time....I still had hope. But when I saw the papers, I just...everything...all my hope was torn apart right in front of my eyes." Maddy broke down again. This time, without Alex doing anything, Maddy cried into her arms. With that, Alex hugged her sister back, and cried with her.
The two sisters cried in each other's arms for a few minutes. When they started to calm down and Alex opened her eyes, she was herself again. Her Mandala was just...gone. She got up suddenly.
"What's wrong sis?" Maddy asked, sniffing.
Alex ran to the bathroom, without answering. She threw up in the toilet. Maddy ran after her. She saw that the door was open and knocked on the door gently.
"Sis, are you okay? What's wrong?" She heard Alex throwing up in the toilet and decided to wait outside for her to give her some privacy. After a few minutes, Maddy heard the toilet flush and the faucet turn on. Inside, Alex washed her face and turned the water off. Her eyes were still teary in the mirror. She wondered what had happened. She took out a paper towel and wiped her face and mouth. She had noticed that her vomit was a bit bloody but she decided not to give it too much thought. With that, she opened the door.
"Sis, what happened? Are you okay? What happened?" Alex didn't respond. She went over to the pool side to take her towel. She wrapped herself in her towel for a bit and shivered into it. Maddy was still asking her something. Alex couldn't hear her. She could tell Maddy was saying something but her body was cold as ice. She looked towards her sister and then everything went black.
---------
An hour and forty five minutes later, Alex opened her eyes in the hospital. Her parents were sitting by her bed, worried.
"Do you remember what happened?" A man asked and Alex turned toward the voice, to see a man with a white gown look down at him, who could only be the doctor.
Alex responded: "yes." She was feeling faint and tried to get up. The doctor put his hand on her shoulder to stop her. "You still need to rest," the doctor implored.
Alex looked towards her parents. Maddy took her hand. "We were so worried about you," and smiled at her.
Alex faintly smiled back.
"I need to speak with Alex alone for a bit. Can you please step out for a few minutes?" The doctor asked everyone. Her parents complied along with Maddy who finally released Alex's hand and walked out with her parents.
When they closed the door, the doctor turned to Alex:
"It looks like you've used up your Mandala."
Alex was surprised to hear the doctor say that. She turned to him, shocked.
"I'm your doctor; in terms of emergency, it is mandatory to talk about it." the doctor responded to Alex's shocked face. Alex nodded in response, to let the doctor continue.
"I checked your records and it seems like you have been using up your Mandala limits. The body can't handle the Mandala intrusion for so long. We've had a lot of cases like yours exactly the past few months. Patients went hours and sometimes even days with their Mandalas without switching for more than an hour awake time."
Alex replied, faintly: "But what's wrong with that? I mean...what could happen? Why is that a problem?"
The doctor grimaced and responded: "It could be deadly Alex. We had a patient just a month back, who went one straight month with his Mandala without switching over once and had a brain aneurysm while asleep, causing a stroke that immediately killed him in his sleep. Now, I didn't want to speak about this in front of your family due to patient confidentiality. In any case, I am going to have to prescribe you to stay away from your Mandala for at least a month. And when you do start to even contact your Mandala, you have to make sure you do it once a week and then slowly if you want to switch over to your Mandala, start small. Just make sure you are only in your Mandala for an hour maximum or if you are in your Mandala for longer, you have to make sure you are away from it for twice that long."
Alex was shocked to hear this. "But doctor. You don't understand. I can't deal with my parents. I just...they're visiting this entire week. You've got to give me something....maybe some pills? Something that really works!"
"Alex, I can't just prescribe you pills. You have to see your own regular physician first and get recommended to a psychotherapist and..."
Alex raised her voice this time: "Bullshit! What the hell is a Mandala good for? If I can't use it exactly in this time that I need it so much? What the fuck?"
Her parents suddenly were back in the room, asking what's wrong?? Alex stayed quiet. She did not want her parents to find her out. The doctor responded this time: "It's nothing. It was a minor dehydration. I was just recommending Alex to take a few days off from work."
Alex nodded in unison and turned to her parents: "That's right. We were just arguing about another matter...political if you will! Anyway, thanks so much for bringing me here guys. I think I'm ready to go." Alex tried to get up again, this time the doctor didn't try to stop her, but she fell back on her own, and she started to have a nose bleed. She tried to wipe her nose but Maddy rushed to give her a tissue, noticing the blood.
"I think it would beneficial for you to stay the night here. It seems like it was a mild state but it's still best for you to take time to heal." He turned to her parents when he said that. "I'm going to get the nurse here to clean that up for you." He said to Alex.
And with that, he walked out. Marilyn and Maximus followed the doctor out to ask more about the after-care, probably. Maddy stayed with Alex.
It didn't help that Matt was still not back. In fact, she was really worried about him. Every time she called his cell, it was off. Ever since that first night, she still hasn't talked to him. This only added to her anxiety all together. Resolved, Alex decided to call her doctor and see him as soon as possible. Perhaps, this may be a good idea to escape her Mandala and her family all together. She went into her phonebook. She found the doctor's name, called and took an appointment for the following day with the receptionist. Now, she just needed to wait until tomorrow to get this problem sorted out.
It was 2pm and just like clockwork, her parents were taking their nap time, but her sister was awake. She was in the pool, waiting for Alex. Alex had said she had to go up to make an important call before she could join her there. She put on her swimsuit as she continued to ponder this dilemma. Before she exited her room, she switched over to her Mandala, hoping this time it would seriously protect her, as it always should.
"Alex! What took you so long! Come on woman!"
Maddy yelled from the poolside. She had a beer in hand and held a beer out for Alex. This part definitely confused Alex. This was so unlike her sister. Maddy never drinks.
"Hey yeah sorry. I spoke to my secretary and had to make some arrangements for the next few days since I will be going in late or working from home. And then I got a call from my doctor confirming my appointment for tomorrow. It totally slipped my mind."
Maddy handed the beer to Alex and asked: "doctor? why? Is everything okay?" She looked genuinely concerned.
Alex smiled gently. "Oh no it's just a routine check up. No worries. So...what's with the beer?"
Maddy raised her shoulders as a sign to show: "no idea". She then put her beer down, took off her dress, revealing her bikini and jumped in the pool, causing water to be splashed towards Alex who laughed. She also took off her dress and joined Maddy in the pool. They started swimming laps back to back and after a few rounds, they finally stopped. Maddy sat up on the side of the pool and took off her swimming goggles breathlessly. Alex joined her in as well. She was really nauseous at this point.
"Sis, are you ok?" Maddy asked.
Alex smiled weakly and said not to worry. Maddy got up and took the two beers back and handed Alex's back to her. After a few minutes of silence of drinking their beers, Maddy broke down.
Alex was surprised. "Hey what's wrong?" But she didn't push it. She just waited expectantly, for Maddy to recover."
Maddy curled up her legs and hugged them to her chest. She wasn't even trying to stop the tears. Alex got up and opened the cabinet next to the pool and took out the box of tissues and brought them over to Maddy. Then she sat next to her again. She didn't try to comfort her as she would've if it were her. Alex's Mandala knew that this was exactly not what Maddy needed then. After a few minutes, Maddy finally calmed down and took a few tissues out of the box and wiped her tears and blew her nose.
"Thanks. I'm sorry...I don't know what's gotten into me. The pain...it's just too much."
Alex waited for her to continue and when she didn't she responded: "I know. You don't have to be sorry sis. It's hard to go through that. I can't even imagine what you've been through these two years."
Maddy quickly responded to that: "no you don't understand. All this time, I thought Fred was going to come to his senses and put his gambling ways behind him and come to restart our marriage. But just last week, I received the divorce papers, which means, it's over. It's really over. I didn't expect that. I was willing to overlook everything as soon as he returned. I was even willing to overlook what happened, all the girls, all the gambling." Maddy turned to Alex and implored: "I was even willing to accept him in his Mandala! I had decided I would do the surgery and get the Mandala in me...for him you know? I wanted so badly for us to be okay again. All this time....I still had hope. But when I saw the papers, I just...everything...all my hope was torn apart right in front of my eyes." Maddy broke down again. This time, without Alex doing anything, Maddy cried into her arms. With that, Alex hugged her sister back, and cried with her.
The two sisters cried in each other's arms for a few minutes. When they started to calm down and Alex opened her eyes, she was herself again. Her Mandala was just...gone. She got up suddenly.
"What's wrong sis?" Maddy asked, sniffing.
Alex ran to the bathroom, without answering. She threw up in the toilet. Maddy ran after her. She saw that the door was open and knocked on the door gently.
"Sis, are you okay? What's wrong?" She heard Alex throwing up in the toilet and decided to wait outside for her to give her some privacy. After a few minutes, Maddy heard the toilet flush and the faucet turn on. Inside, Alex washed her face and turned the water off. Her eyes were still teary in the mirror. She wondered what had happened. She took out a paper towel and wiped her face and mouth. She had noticed that her vomit was a bit bloody but she decided not to give it too much thought. With that, she opened the door.
"Sis, what happened? Are you okay? What happened?" Alex didn't respond. She went over to the pool side to take her towel. She wrapped herself in her towel for a bit and shivered into it. Maddy was still asking her something. Alex couldn't hear her. She could tell Maddy was saying something but her body was cold as ice. She looked towards her sister and then everything went black.
---------
An hour and forty five minutes later, Alex opened her eyes in the hospital. Her parents were sitting by her bed, worried.
"Do you remember what happened?" A man asked and Alex turned toward the voice, to see a man with a white gown look down at him, who could only be the doctor.
Alex responded: "yes." She was feeling faint and tried to get up. The doctor put his hand on her shoulder to stop her. "You still need to rest," the doctor implored.
Alex looked towards her parents. Maddy took her hand. "We were so worried about you," and smiled at her.
Alex faintly smiled back.
"I need to speak with Alex alone for a bit. Can you please step out for a few minutes?" The doctor asked everyone. Her parents complied along with Maddy who finally released Alex's hand and walked out with her parents.
When they closed the door, the doctor turned to Alex:
"It looks like you've used up your Mandala."
Alex was surprised to hear the doctor say that. She turned to him, shocked.
"I'm your doctor; in terms of emergency, it is mandatory to talk about it." the doctor responded to Alex's shocked face. Alex nodded in response, to let the doctor continue.
"I checked your records and it seems like you have been using up your Mandala limits. The body can't handle the Mandala intrusion for so long. We've had a lot of cases like yours exactly the past few months. Patients went hours and sometimes even days with their Mandalas without switching for more than an hour awake time."
Alex replied, faintly: "But what's wrong with that? I mean...what could happen? Why is that a problem?"
The doctor grimaced and responded: "It could be deadly Alex. We had a patient just a month back, who went one straight month with his Mandala without switching over once and had a brain aneurysm while asleep, causing a stroke that immediately killed him in his sleep. Now, I didn't want to speak about this in front of your family due to patient confidentiality. In any case, I am going to have to prescribe you to stay away from your Mandala for at least a month. And when you do start to even contact your Mandala, you have to make sure you do it once a week and then slowly if you want to switch over to your Mandala, start small. Just make sure you are only in your Mandala for an hour maximum or if you are in your Mandala for longer, you have to make sure you are away from it for twice that long."
Alex was shocked to hear this. "But doctor. You don't understand. I can't deal with my parents. I just...they're visiting this entire week. You've got to give me something....maybe some pills? Something that really works!"
"Alex, I can't just prescribe you pills. You have to see your own regular physician first and get recommended to a psychotherapist and..."
Alex raised her voice this time: "Bullshit! What the hell is a Mandala good for? If I can't use it exactly in this time that I need it so much? What the fuck?"
Her parents suddenly were back in the room, asking what's wrong?? Alex stayed quiet. She did not want her parents to find her out. The doctor responded this time: "It's nothing. It was a minor dehydration. I was just recommending Alex to take a few days off from work."
Alex nodded in unison and turned to her parents: "That's right. We were just arguing about another matter...political if you will! Anyway, thanks so much for bringing me here guys. I think I'm ready to go." Alex tried to get up again, this time the doctor didn't try to stop her, but she fell back on her own, and she started to have a nose bleed. She tried to wipe her nose but Maddy rushed to give her a tissue, noticing the blood.
"I think it would beneficial for you to stay the night here. It seems like it was a mild state but it's still best for you to take time to heal." He turned to her parents when he said that. "I'm going to get the nurse here to clean that up for you." He said to Alex.
And with that, he walked out. Marilyn and Maximus followed the doctor out to ask more about the after-care, probably. Maddy stayed with Alex.
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