Authors: Nicole Smith
“Wow,” i
s all I managed to
say.
That i
s a lot of t
ime that I will never get back.
“I’m so sorry Natalie. It’s unexplained by medical scienc
e as to why this happened
to you
. You
’re young and
perfectly healthy. I’m
just
so happy you
’
r
e awake,
”
she gushed. She must have
been assig
ned to me once I arrived here.
I smiled
up
at her
, appreciating her support, I jus
t wi
shed Hayden or Carlos c
ould have been here when I awoke, a familiar face m
ay have made this easier to handle
.
“
Thank you for taking care of me,
”
I said sincerely.
“Hayden helped take care of you too. He helped bathe you and he would read to you. You have had a number of other visitors as well. One in particular visitor, Carlos, would come in and relieve Hayden so he could go home
and wash, eat and change. You seemed very impor
tant to him
too
, I could tell by the gentle way he tended to you
. He would brush y
our hair and sing quietly while he held you close to him
,” she seemed to enjoy reliving
those glimpses of him with me.
“Would you like me to call him too?” she asked excitedly. I nodded.
“
Yes, please let him know, although I’m sure Hayden has called him
,
” I said, wishing he w
as here now. I
w
ished
either one of them would come walking through that door
.
“
Luiza
, c
ould you open the window please, I’d like to see the sunrise
and breathe
in
some fresh air
,” I asked her before she left the room.
She opened the blinds and
the window just a little. The locks on it would
n’t allow it to open much more.
I
felt
completely alone
as I looked out the window from the hospital bed. Tears began to fall as I thought of all the days that have
gone by. What kind of curse did Beth
put on me?
She i
s just a ghost like all the others I have met
,
wasn’t she?
Maybe Eli
zabeth i
s wrong? I laid my head
back down on the be
d and stared up at the ceiling.
I was lost in thought when Hayden slowly opened the door. I heard
Louisa
gasp as she entered behind him. I quickly turned my head an
d heard Hayden breathe a sigh of
r
elief. I guess I looked comatose again
by the
way I
stretched out
and stared
at nothing
. I tried to sit up as Hayden bent down to hold m
e, tears pouring from his eyes.
“I’ve missed you so much Natalie,” he cried as he held my face in his hands. I heard the door close as
Louisa
walked out, giving us our much needed privacy
. He kissed me so tenderly. H
e held my face in his hands
and
he kissed me again, like he had to breathe
me in and
still
not getting enough.
I pulled away slightly, needing a
ir. He smiled through his tears.
“I’m
so
sorry I
have put your life on hold wh
ile you waited for me
,” I
apologized, looking
up at him
.
“Please
Natalie
don’t apologiz
e for being in a coma
. My life is with you, I di
dn’t put anything on hold.
I have been
with you
every day
,” he
shook his head, trying
to explain, but I could tell h
e has been suffering. He looked thinner and he has
facial hair
that
I’ve never
seen on him
before.
His
dark
hair is longer
and disheveled
now too
.
He reminded me of the first time I met him, when he introduced himself as Joe.
He
appeared
rougher around the edges
somehow
.
I hoped time would bring back the Hayden I fell in love with.
“How are you feeling? Do you have any aches?” Hayden asked as he hop
p
ed up
o
n the bed beside me. He held
on to
me so tightly.
“I’m ok I think. I had trouble standing but the doctor said it will just take
some
time
before I’m back to normal
. Thank you for all the
leg massages
,
Louisa
said it
helped me a lot,” I told him.
“I have been her
e
everyday Nat
alie, waiting for you, I wante
d to do
everything I could to help you,
even if it just meant I rubbed your legs or told you stories,” he said looking away from me.
Once he com
posed himself, he turned and leaned over me, setting his heavy greyish blue eyes on me
.
“Natalie, did they tell you how long you’ve been here?” he asked carefull
y. I just nodded as I tried to hold back the tears that I knew were
comi
ng. He looked closely into my eyes, wanting to say or ask something but
he
held back.
“I have a lot to tell you but it will have to wait. I’ve brought you something,” he said as he walked over to his jacket. He held out a small box of chocolate truffles and a
nother
small b
ox. I smiled as
I opened the chocolates and popped one in my mouth quickly
, still feeling hungry
. Smiling
nervously
I slowly opened the
other
box. Inside held
the necklace
Cl
ive’s wife
had given me in Argentina
. It i
s the angel
I should have kept with me. I remember her telling me that I
ha
ve many angels watching over me, more than I knew at the time. She told me to keep it close to my
heart and in times of despair
to hold on to it and to call on my angels for support.
I was confused
as to why Hayden
brought me this now
.
I must admit I kind of hoped for
something from him in the box
, not something I already owned
.
“Why have you brought me this
now
?” I asked.
“I found it with so
me of your other things that were removed
from you after you were taken
by Beth and Stella
. I want you to keep it close
,” he said
sullenly. I reached for his hands. He grabbe
d on to mine and squeezed them.
After lunch he placed my cell phone on the
nightstand and told me he needed
to go but
he would be back before dinner
.
I didn’t want him
to leave but I understood that he has
work to do.
I
wrapped my blanket around my shoulders
and looked out the window
again
. I
gazed out,
lost in thought when the phone ra
ng.
“Hel
lo?” I breathed into the phone.
“Natalie? Is that really you?”
I heard Carlos almost laughing.
“Hey Carlos, yes it
’
s really me, I’m awake,” I told him
, trying to sound casual
.
“I have missed you
Natalie. I’d come see you but I’m not in the country at the moment. There’s been lots of activity since you left us,” he informed me.
“
When are you coming back?” I
asked, hoping it would be soon.
“I’m not sure yet but I’ll stay in touch,” I heard hi
m sigh.
“A
re you ok?” I asked hesitantly.
“Natalie, darling, I am just so relieved and happy your back. I can’t wait to see you
. I’ve really missed you
,” he said, dodging my question. It seemed like he was hiding something
from me
.
“Call me when you get here, I may or may not be in here long. It depends on my progress, but I really want to get back to my life and out of this bed,” I told him.
“Just follow the doctor’s orders and I’m sure you’ll be out soon. Remember, you are still strong Natalie. See you soon,” he said before hanging up.
Hayden arrived just before
Louisa
brought me in my dinner. I had put in a special request for lasagna and cheese bread. I couldn’t believe my hunger. Hayden laughed as he watched me eat.
After a few days
passed I began to feel stronger. My muscles didn’t ache as much
when I walked the halls
. Carlos called me every morning, just to check that I awoke, I think. I demanded Hayden go home at night. He would stop i
n to see me after my breakfast.
“The doctor told
me I should be able to go home soon. She’s very pleased with my progress. I’m gaining back my strength quickly
I think. I’ve been w
orking with a
physiotherapist
who
is helping
me
immens
e
ly,” I told Hayden
.
“That’s great
Natalie. I can’t wait to bring you home,
” he said smiling. He seemed rather
distant the last few days
though
. I wondered w
ho he
’s
been hunting.
I have no idea how much he’s
be
en working and what he’s
capture
d
. I tried getting him t
o
talk to me about it but he
would just change
the subject, saying it wasn’t safe to talk about
it
here.
I thought about what Carlos said, how there has been a lot of activity. I wondered if Carlos is hunting here now.
I secretly wished he is because I knew he would bring me out with him.
It’s been seven
days since I woke up and the doctor
has finally told me I can leave as long as I promised to rest and not over exert myself. I’m
so excited
to finally be leaving. It’s time to put my life back together again
. I couldn’t wait to tell Hayden. I reached for the phone and called him
as soon as the doctor turned to leave
. I paced back and forth by the window, listening
to the rings. His voicemail
came on, which surprised me.
Hayden always answers
when I call. I tried again, still no
answer. I waited ten minutes the
n called again, still no answer. I left him a quick mes
sage and hung up, expecting him to call back immediately. Where is he?
I showered and put on my
clothes Hayde
n
brought me a few days ago
in preparation for my release.
The long flo
wing black dress fit perfectly. I put on my black boots and applied just a touch of color to my face. I wanted to look nice for Hayden. I combed my hair and put my bangs back with a clip.
“I’m going to have to go
visit
the doorman’s sister’s
boutique someday,” I said as I spun around.
I
gathered up what fe
w things I owned
and placed them in
a bag. I walked out to the nursing station.
Louisa
looked up
at me
smiling.
“All ready to go home Natalie?”
she asked, beaming. I am
going to miss her. “I’m
ready
Louisa
.
I just need a ride
now
,”
I said, trying to no
t sound as miserable as I began to feel.