Carlie's Miracle: A Fictional Heartwarming Short

 Carlie looked outside her second story window and sighed loudly. Every surface was covered in a fresh blanket of snow. More snow! As if the four feet already on the ground wasn’t enough. Snow meant cold and she did not like the cold. She despised it. She idly thought of what it would be like to live in a topical paradise. No coldness or snow to ruin her day. The sun was just starting to peek over the horizon, casting pink and yellow rays against the sky. Another lovely morning, except for the snow.

Carlie was soon pulled out of her wonderings by her father’s voice, “Carlie, breakfast is ready and the cows need milking. Get down here.” He knew she was up. She was always the first one awake in the family, not the typical teenager. Carlie groaned as her father yelled at her brothers to wake up. They were typical teenagers. She sighed again. She missed her mother, deeply. She was the middle child and only girl in her family.

“I’ll be down in a second. Make Johnny, Mickey, and Danny save some pancakes for me!” She yelled as she pulled on her jeans and flannel shirt. She heard three distinct laughs coming from the kitchen as she raced down the hall. John and Michael Lane and Daniel Coy were the hired help on her father’s ranch. Carlie liked them all, but longed for another girl to talk to. Michael’s girlfriend, would come by now and again, was nice enough, but Carlie wanted a real friend. Carlie raced passed her brothers’ rooms, Tyler and Andrew were still sleeping. “Lazy Bums.” She muttered under her breath.

She jumped up onto the railing of the stairs and slid down. She has been doing the same all her life. She never actually walked down the stairs at home. She jumped off the railing and bounded towards the kitchen, tripping on the way. Suddenly a strong arm caught her from around the waist; her face was barely a foot from the floor. Danny and Mickey burst out laughing. Carlie did not even blush over her trip. She whipped her head to see the worried face, “Thanks, Johnny. Guess I should, you know, slow down.” She kissed his cheek lightly and he set her on her feet.

Her chair was pulled out and a big plate of pancakes was placed before her. She smiled toward the short stack of golden brown goodness dripping with butter and syrup. If cowboys couldn’t do anything else, they could cook. Every cowboy Carlie had ever known, her daddy included, knew how to cook. After about two seconds Mickey broke in, “Alright Carlie, cows need milking and your mare will be foaling pretty soon. Better get started.”

Carlie stared at him in disbelief. It was barely five in the morning. They started chores in fifteen minutes. Plenty of time to savor her pancakes. She then growled at him, “I am eating!” All three of the ranch hands laughed. Tyler and Andrew still had not stirred. This annoyed Carlie to no ends. She woke up every morning, why wouldn’t they?

Then Danny and Johnny suddenly got mischievous smiles and both grabbed an empty, clean slop bucket. They filled them up with ice water and quickly disappeared up the stairs. Carlie washed her plate swiftly, knowing that she would have to make a run for it in a second. Yelps and screams rang throughout the house and in the same instant two very wet boys can barreling after the two ranch hands. Carlie and Mickey took off towards the barn after them. When Tyler and Andrew felt how cold it was, they ran back inside, huffing all the way.

Carlie was still barefoot when she got out to the barn and Danny looked about ready to hit the roof. He grabbed an extra pair of rubber work boots from the shelf on the inside of the barn and threw them at her. “What Carlie? Are you trying to get yourself sick? Jeez, if you got sick you’d probably die. None of us knows how to take care of a sick girl. Is that what you want?” He was only halfway teasing.

Carlie pulled on the boots and shrugged, “As a matter of fact, yes.” She grinned and then stalked off toward her mare. Nope, not foaling time yet. Close, though. Carlie then started the milking process. They got that done in record time and decided to have a snowball fight while they waited for the bus. Tyler, Andrew, and Mickey on one team. Danny, Johnny, and Carlie on the other.

The school bus showed before long and Carlie had to run to catch it. She almost didn’t. She now had a nicer cotton shirt with a jacket and her boots on. She was somewhat of a loner. She was the only almost seventeen-year-old in the senior class and she was a cowgirl. She barely fit in being a cowgirl, being smart didn’t help. Carlie had learned to dread school. Between being mocked or ignored by the other students and being called “Charlotte” all the time, Carlie was not fond of her almost daily activity.

School passed quickly and before she knew it, Carlie was back on Copper Ranch. She went straight to her mare. Still not time to foal! Goodness, the wait was killing her. There was about two hours before other chores and her homework was done at school, so Carlie decided to go ice-skating. She found her skates and went out towards the pond. She was quickly doing figure eights and barrel rolls. She was actually really good at ice-skating in spite of her loathing of the cold.

Carlie whipped around gracefully but suddenly heard and felt the ice crack. It should have been frozen solid. She had gone skating every day that week. She panicked. What seemed to be slow motion, she fell down into the cold water. Her whole body immerged under the freezing black water. It gushed into her ears, nose, and mouth. So this is what it felt like to drown? It was a weird feeling. She was trapped, with no air, under the ice. She fought against the ice and the freezing water, but she was too weak.

Just when she was about to give up and slip into death, a strong hand hauled her out of under the water. She was wrapped tightly into a parka and carried into the house. “So you are trying to get sick and die.” The voice said. She barely heard it. She was drifting in and out of conciseness.

“Carlie? Charlotte! Hello?” The worried voice of her father tried to break through her barriers. The ranch hands and her brothers were hovering around her, worried and even frightened. All of them loved their little Carlie. At almost seventeen-years-old, she was too young to die. She felt hot, but her clothes were freezing. She tried to open her eyes or speak, but she could not fight the blackness that was closing around her. She was so afraid. The darkness would not lift; she fought at it as hard as she could manage.

Her family brought her to the Hospital. She was slipping away. Into the emergency room they ran. Carlie was changed into a gown by a few nurses and placed on the monitor. Her brain activity was not dormant, luckily enough. Yet, it was not awake or in a sleeping state. Her breathing and heartbeat, at least, were relatively normal. The doctor examined her. After asking what had happened and being told the story, the doctor said Carlie was in a coma.

On a general rule, cowboys never cry. When they heard this news, not one eye was dry. Carlie could hear the sobbing and she tried harder to fight the blackness. She made no progress and then she fell asleep, exhausted. While she was sleeping, the monitor picked up on her dreams. Hope flickered across everyone’s minds. She never did wake though.

No improvement. No worse. Carlie was at a stalemate within herself. Her family begged her to wake up. The nurses doted on the pretty, sleeping brunette. They refused to admit that she was in a coma. She was just sleeping beauty, waiting for her prince in their eyes. The doctors were not as hopeful-nor as imaginative-as the nurses were.

After several weeks, idly one of the nurses wondered what the little beauty’s eye color was. She decided to talk to one of the ranch hands. “So, this little girl, you knew her well?” She asked. Obviously, he was the one person who never left. Ever.

“Knew her and loved her.” He laughed bitterly.

“You love her?” She failed at hiding the judgment in her voice.

“Carlie is special to me. She is a year and a half younger than I am. We kind of grew up together. I watched the child turn into the beauty. The duckling into a swan. Although, I would never call her ugly, she never was. I’m like her big brother, except she already has one of those.” Tears choked up his voice. Then a short pause followed by an afterthought, “Her mare foaled-you know, had a foal-she is going be upset she missed it. The colt is a real beauty too. Mother and baby are doing great, but Carlie wanted to be there. She even begged to be excused from school the last couple of days before the accident. Silly little girl, too bad she didn’t get to witness her foal being born.”

“Oh.” The nurse was shocked. She then remembered what she was going to ask, “What color are her eyes? Carlie’s I mean.”

“Emerald green, with a hint of gold-when the sun shined just right. Her eyes used to dance. They are very interesting, you can get lost in them.” He answered.

“Sounds lovely. I’m Lana, you are?” The nurse extended her hand. He took it.

“Danny, ma’am.” He answered politely. Carlie was lost in thought. Her mare had foaled, which was to be expected. Danny admitted that she was like his family; he was an orphan so Carlie was pleased to hear that. And…her eyes had gold in them?

After hearing Danny’s words, Carlie finally decided to try to fight again. She used all her strength, but it just wasn’t enough. Slowly she decided it would be better to die than to have to hear her crying family. She tried to give up. A force much stronger than her own had a different plan. Just as she had started to give up, energy surged through her body. With a jerk and a gasp, Carlie sat straight up. She looked around the room. It was the middle of the night and her family, along with the ranch hands, was sleeping in various positions. The conversation between Danny and the nurse must have happened hours ago.

Carlie crept out of bed. She felt weak and stiff. She walked over to the window. She could not see very well, but she could tell that there was not any snow on the ground. How long had she been …gone? She looked around dazed. She smiled at her sleeping family and almost woke them all up.

Suddenly nurses and doctors burst through the doors. Her family was up in an instant and everyone stared at the girl in the middle of the room. She looked around as everyone stared at her wide-eyed. She smiled. “What season is it and how long have I been asleep?” Her voice was soft, but she had a playful accusatory tone to it.

Danny was the first to snap out of the shock. He walked up and hugged her; tears filled his eyes. “It’s your favorite season, Carlie. Spring has come again. You were out of it for two and a half months.”

“Wow! I guess I thought I needed a good, long nap. I have always hated the snow.” She tried to joke, no one caught on. Their senses of humor had obviously disappeared. She tried a different approach, “So, my mare foaled. I have a colt now? Should I name him Black Beauty?”

“He ain’t black, Carlie. He’s a chestnut color, but not quite. You’ll have to see him.” Tyler answered her this time.

“I cannot believe this. I was just about to give up on you waking up, ever. You had decreased so much, and then I find you standing, alert. Carlie you are a miracle. There is no other explanation. A miracle.” The doctor finally stammered. 

All the cowboys bowed their heads at the mention of a miracle. Carlie had been returned to them, perfectly healthy. Just as sweet and witty as she was before her fall through the ice. They were so very thankful that they did not lose her. Carlie, they all knew, had always been a blessing. They had been blessed once again by Carlie’s Miracle.