—30XX November—

A bright, cold, white ceiling greets my eyes. Light travels through the sheer green curtain in the window. Turning my head to see my Powered Wheelchair station does not take much effort but moving much else does. Near the head of my bed is another Power Wheelchair. Unfortunately, the battery is dead, so it doesn't work. It would be nice to have the arm strength to chuck it a few kilometers. Wait, who am I again? Oh yeah, a semi shut in, I rarely go beyond the front door unless it’s necessary. Almost forgot. I have been living here for 13 of my 25 years, but have passed through the front door fewer times than there are hours in a day since the time I arrived here. This place seems slightly better than the orphanage.

A family from Nattahnam decided to adopt me. I was not told, just carried into the van. I did not even find out why my legs refuse to work until I was 11, so it's no surprise that Silence followed every other aspect of my narrative. For as long as I can remember, I've always known my body was different, I just didn't know why.

My new family could not pronounce my actual name. I had to change my name to a foreign one. Learning a new way of communication was difficult and it took me a while to learn it. My new parents gave me the name of Hannah Sophia Dulitle.

From the moment I got home, I met my new siblings. I received the education of this strange land. I made plenty of good memories with this family, however, I always felt isolated from others, had learned the diagnosis that affects my body. I felt upset after hearing the news. I bottle up my emotions deep inside.

Continuing to struggle with my life, the years came and went. During these years, technology advanced rapidly. My parents spent a lot of money to modify the house. At present, I am twenty-five years old and living with my three older brothers. Mom and dad decided to be missionaries in another country.

Currently, I am waiting for my caregiver to arrive to assist me. One thing I forgot to mention is Siordna has replaced the majority of human workers. I was offered a few Siordna by my caregiving company. Siordna is a very innovative tech that resembles humans in every way. However, Siordna does not have emotional intelligence nor does it understand human connections. I declined the offer because I wanted a human to care for me. Due to my unique condition, I did not have to hire Siordna, even though the government expects people to have one.

While waiting for my caregiver to show up I pick up my UPhone which lay right next to my head. I held the phone with my left hand barely able to grasp it. I type my passcode to unlock the phone. I tap on the YouTube icon with my functional right hand. Scrolling through the video feed for a bit looking at the various titles. None of the videos caught my attention so I exited out. Feeling bored I turn on the story app and play one of the books I downloaded. Closing my eyes, I listen to the monotone voice reading the lines of the book. Time seems slow passing as I lay there. A while later, I would glance at my phone to check the time. I put my phone back down next to my head after checking. Placing the pillow on my eyes I became sleepy once again.

Unfortunately, hearing the creek of the door open woke me up. I move my pillow away to see a silhouette walking in. I squint my eyes when the light came on. It took a few minutes to adjust my eyes to the brightness. Having three light bulbs really illuminates my room. The orange wall paint somehow turns peach color when light shines on it. I look towards the silhouette standing next to my bed. I see a slim female with short blonde hair. She wore a blue tank top and blue jeans. Her appearance looks young and youthful. When others first see her, they assume she is younger than she is.

"Good morning Miss Sophie."

My hoarse voice responded back, "Good morning Beth."

I place the pillow on my eyes once more. I hear the sound clicks from my phone as Beth clocks in. I can sense Beth moving around even with a pillow still covering my eyes. For a while now Beth has been working for me. She became familiar with my typical routine. I let Beth do her task, getting my clothes from the open closet.

“What do you want to wear?” she asks.

“What’s the weather like?” I said with a dry and choppy tone.

“Look on your phone.”

Taking the pillow off my head, picking up my phone, I check the weather.

“Get me light long sleeves and long pants.”

“Alrighty then,” Beth responded as she continues to grab my clothes and come over to the bed.

Beth pulls back the multiple blankets that were placed on top of me that kept me warm through the cold night. Immediately I feel the cool air on my body even though I still have my clothes on from the previous day.

“Burr, is it cold in here, or is it just me?” I stated while rubbing my arms to warm up a bit.

“No, I think it’s just you.” She voiced plainly.

As Beth began to change my bottom half, I reach to my left to grab the bar to help turn my body. Once Beth puts on my pants, she begins to work on putting on my socks and shoes. However, the process takes a bit longer because my toes tend to curl up and need to be stretched out. Due to my diagnosis, my legs tend to shake involuntarily. When the bottom part is finished, she changes my shirt and puts a new one on.

My physical therapist, which happens to be a siordna, gave some exercises to help me loosen up my stiff muscles. At night I tend to move to the foot of the bed. Beth uses my legs to push me up higher and I help by pulling on the bars on each side. The bar on the right side is a walker which is screwed into my bed so that I can use it to stand up. Beth swings my legs over the side of the bed, grabs my left hand, and pulls me up to sit on the side of the bed. My hair blocks my view, so Beth pulls it back temporarily.

Grabbing the walker with both hands, I pull myself to a standing position on top of a disic that moves when I shift my weight to sit in my chair. Once in my chair, I feel worn out and relieved because it takes energy to stand even if it’s just for a little bit. Once settled, we go to the bathroom. Since the modifications, using the bathroom has been a lot easier. There are steel bars on each side of the toilet, a high sink has been replaced with a lower sink, there is a bath chair in the shower. Beth would assist me on and off the toilet and hand me my toothbrush so I could brush my own teeth.

When that was done, we would head back into my room. I would roll up to my desk, turn on my computer while Beth does my hair. Sensing the bristles of the brush running through my ebony long hair, cringing every time a knot was found as it ran through. Feeling the grease on my round face, I ask Beth for a washcloth and wiped my dark chocolate, almond-shaped eyes and across my slightly pink, not so full, lips. Although I have confidence in myself, the only aspect of my face that bothers me is the dimple on my chin. Every time I look at myself in the mirror, I feel like I have a little butt there.

Normally, Beth would pour fresh water into my clear glass cup that had a pink straw. She made my bed while I did my business on the laptop. Like most millennials’ internet is the first thing my mouse clicks on. I did a search on wuugle to entertain myself with Anime. Entertaining myself is a form of escape.

Wanting extra natural light, I asked Beth to open the curtain