Sweat almost completely soaked Nicholasâ€™s forehead and back as he shifted in his seat, hands beginning to feel like they were sticking to the steering wheel. The scenery was really beginning to get to him and he was regretting agreeing to drive five hours just to make a few extra bucks. It was a typical hot summer afternoon, one of those lazy days where you just wanted to sit in the air conditioning all day and watch television, where nothing much was going on. After being on the road for nearly two hours he was regretting not getting the A/C fixed in the car when he had the money two weeks ago, he wouldnâ€™t be suffering in this heat. Only about three more hours to go before he reached his destination, he thought to himself as he checked his gas tank; he would need to stop for gas soon as well since he had less than one fourth a tank left.<br/><br/>For about five more miles he followed the road signs until he came across an exit that had a gas station as well a place to eat. Grabbing a bite to eat wouldnâ€™t be such a bad idea, five hours on the road in this heat and no air conditioning was exhausting.<br/><br/>When Nick got his chance he moved over onto the exitâ€™s lane. The gas station was literally right off the exit so he wouldnâ€™t have to drive two miles in one big circle just to find the damned thing. He liked this exit because it was convenient; there was even a hotel about a block away from the gas station and Wendyâ€™s. Ignoring his stomach he pulled into the gas station first and filled the tank, heading over to the Wendyâ€™s once he paid for his gas. Nick just ordered a burger with fries and a Dr Pepper to hold him over until he got to where he needed to be. Filling up on fast food was not appealing to him at all when he had a meal waiting for him, if only he were not an hour late at this point. His client probably felt like he was being stood up, he should probably give her a call.<br/><br/>Ever since he graduated college Nick has worked as a freelance photographer, doing anything from baby pictures to a heavy rainstorm. Today his client was a woman who wanted pictures of her wedding. Before and after shots, some during the party, nothing huge but she was paying him well. Of course the only downfall was whenever he had to travel a long distance. Since he did not usually travel a lot he was not always as prepared as he should be, even if he was warned ahead of time that it was a long trip. It was unprofessional but he was not a saint and couldnâ€™t always have things go the way he wanted as much as he wished he could. Hopefully she would understand, and much to his relief she was reasonable with him once he called her and apologized for the delay. That seemed to make both the distance and this horrid heat a little more bearable.<br/><br/>Unfortunately his day was about to take a turn for the worst. No sooner had he ended the call with his client, he heard police sirens blaring as a car speeding down the highway nearly ran into him. He had actually swerved a bit to avoid being hit by whatever idiot decided to go for a joy ride today. Damn. Nick was already late; he really didnâ€™t want to have to deal with some moron. But the number of morons on the road was not amounting to one today; another car was speeding down the road. Nick had caught sight of them in his rearview mirror at the last second and moved to avoid them. He had not seen that a truck had done the same and the next thing he knew, he felt his car jerk to the left and he was heading towards the guardrail. The seatbelt caught him before his face made contact the steering wheel and he was able to get his foot on the break to stop the car.<br/><br/>No sooner had he done so he suddenly felt something hit his vehicle from the back and the car jerked forward a bit, crashing into a stationary van a few feet in front of him. That time he had really felt the impact; his face slammed into the steering wheel and a sharp pain seemed to impale his leg. The windshield was almost completely shattered, a few cuts were on his face from the glass; he could feel the blood trickling down his cheek. His head hurt, his world felt like it was spinning. When he barely heard the sound of squealing tires heading his way he knew that the onslaught was not about to end there. The last thing he remembered was the sound of sirens, people shouting, and then the sound of metal impacting before everything went black.<br/><br/>He was not sure how long he had been out but when he came to, Nicholas was a bit disoriented and barely realized that he was in a hospital bed. Until he noticed he was in a hospital gown he thought he was in some sort of dream being experimented on. There was an IV stuck in his arm andâ€¦ to his surprise there was no cast on his leg. At least from what he could tell anyway since it still hurt too much to move his body. His memory was foggy and not much of the crash could be recalled aside from a few seconds before the blackout, his head was killing him, in spite of the few scrapes and bruises he was glad to be alive. This day has been absolutely perfect. First he was late, now he could barely move his body. For some reason these thoughts made him smile, followed by laughter soon after.<br/><br/>The laughter alerted a nurse, her footsteps announcing her presence as she hovered over him. â€œYouâ€™re awake?â€<br/><br/>â€œI think soâ€¦â€ Nick replied, groggy from his injuries and whatever drugs they had put in him.<br/><br/>â€œCould you give me your name?â€<br/><br/>Without thinking, he did just that, â€œNicholas Harlanâ€¦ where am I? I need to get goingâ€¦â€<br/><br/>â€œIâ€™m afraid youâ€™re not going anywhere.â€<br/><br/>â€œBut I needâ€¦â€<br/><br/>â€œYou need rest, Mister Harlan.â€ The nurse told him before she left him alone to work on another patient.<br/><br/>The light hurt his eyes a bit, but he did his best to stay awake. He managed to look at the hospital band they put around the patientâ€™s wrist. â€œSaving Grace Hospital? Not the most original name Iâ€™ve heardâ€¦ whoever thought of it must not be very creative.â€ He mused. Odd, there was no address to this hospital or anything that might help him figure out where he was. The thought didnâ€™t last long though for he could feel the drugs beginning to settle in and make him feel drowsy. Eventually he was unable to fight sleep.