Partly cloudy.

She looked about the room and wondered what time it was. The ache in her belly was a tell-tale sign she had slept too long. This was a habit she had slowly become accustomed to. The basement apartment had been converted by her daughter to provide comfort and accessibility. Unfortunately, the only thing it lacked was a window to the outside world. The old woman sighed and began the struggle of getting out of bed. Her worn Cotton pajamas offered no help as they clung to the sheets.

With one foot on the floor she reached for her walker. Her deformed hands had long since given up the battle against the arthritis. Her muscles rebelled and failed. Gingerly, she tried to scoot down the mattress to put her walker within reaching distance. She reached out again and yelped as her body slid off the edge of the bed and landed awkwardly on the floor. Panic clawed at her throat as an intense burning raged in her leg. The room around her swam and blurred and slowly faded to black.

She was unsure what time it was when the room once again came into focus. Her watch that was too small to read lay behind her on the nightstand and her alarm clock that was never used lay atop her dresser she was wedged against. She reached up to try and pull her blankets from the bed as the chill settled into her limbs. The more she tugged, the hotter the fire in her side grew. The blankets remained securely tucked unto their rightful place. With a sigh she gave up and slowly drifted in and out of sleep.

She awoke with a start. Where was she? Had someone had kidnapped her? What had happened? Why couldn't she move her leg? Where were her children? That's when she heard the voice on the other side of the door. Who was this man? She told the stranger to stop where he was and call the doctor. She was by no means decent for a man to be in her room! Despite her protests, the strange man gently lifted her tiny frame back onto the soft mattress. Even though he had been as gentle as he could, the pain returned causing her to cry out. She grasped the collar of his neatly pressed shirt as the pain ravaged on. She didn't know who this man was or why he was there, but she was grateful for the soft mattress and warm blankets.

Time was nothing but chaotic and confusing at this point. She knew two things, she was hungry and she hurt, everywhere. She could hear voices outside the door but her aging ears failed to decipher the conversation. The concentration was too much for her and she once again dozed off. This time much warmer and although not completely, comfortable enough to forget the pain long enough to fall into a deep sleep.

When she awoke, her daughter was there. How could she have been so late getting home from school?! She was going to have to ground her again. Why did her daughter insist on calling her Grams? She didn't have grandchildren! She berated her disobedient daughter and emphasized her point by not allowing her to go to the sleepover this weekend. Why wasn't she cleaning her room like she just told her to? And why on earth did her leg hurt so much? Her head spun with confusion. Nothing made sense and the pain just made concentrating that much more difficult. Her daughter was talking to her again. There was no mistake, the concern in her face was painful to see, but why? It was then she realized she had had an accident. Embarrassment swallowed her and made her empty stomach churn. Here she was, lying in a room she did not recognize surrounded by faces she did not recognize and a daughter that kept referring to her as grandma.

The terror only grew as she was strapped to a board and carried up the concrete stairway. Surely the doctor would know who these people were.