“Lyubimaya, are you still in there? Squeeze my hand, if you can hear me.” Now I’m positive it’s Ivan’s voice that I hear. He’s the only one who calls melyubimaya.
I let out another whimper and squeeze his hand again. I hear him let out a heavy sigh.
“Mikhail, get the doctor in here now. She’s waking up!” he yells. Is there someone else here with us, wherever we are?
“Emma, try to open your eyes for me,” I hear Ivan say. I can also feel him brushing my hair away from my forehead. “Please.”
I have to concentrate harder than usual for my eyes to open. When they finally do, my favorite pair of blue eyes is staring back at me, rimmed in red like he’s been crying or not sleeping.
“Don’t…cry…” I say slowly. My mouth feels so completely dry and scratchy. I hear a door open and someone comes in. I assume it’s the doctor that Ivan was yelling for.
“She’s awake,” Ivan says.
“Let’s take a look,” the second voice says. “Emma, my name is Doctor Paggan. Do you know where you are?”
“Hospital,” I say weakly. The beeping of machines gives it away.
“Good,” the doctor replies as he uses a stethoscope to check my lungs. “Do you know why you’re in the hospital?”
“Thirsty,” I squeak. Ivan holds a straw to my lips so I can take a drink of water.
“Your family brought you in with some pretty serious injuries. Do you remember getting them?” Doctor Paggan asks.
“Not… sure…” I reply.
“That’s okay for now. I’m going to send the nurse in to record your vitals and check your meds. Tomorrow we’ll do an evaluation and see where we go from there.” Doctor Paggan pats my arm before leaving the room.
“You came back to me,” Ivan says as he takes my hand in his and laces our fingers together. “I was ready to make a deal with the devil to bring you back.”
“No deals. Just love,” I tell him. I don’t think my brain is fully understanding why he’s so emotional.
“Knock, knock,” a cheery voice says. “May I come in?” A nurse pokes her head into my room. “My name is Taylor. How are you feeling, Emma?”
“Like I was hit by a truck,” I tell her, chuckling. Ivan gives me a small smile at my laughter.
“I’m going to check your vitals, and then we’ll get you something for the pain,” Taylor says.
“Thank you,” I reply.
It doesn’t take long for Taylor to check my vitals and ensure that I’m still connected to everything I’m supposed to be. She gives me meds through my IV before telling me she’ll be back in the morning and leaving the room.
“Will you hold me?” I ask Ivan.
Ivan doesn’t hesitate. He kicks off his shoes and slowly climbs into the hospital bed next to me. He pulls me close to cradle me in his arms, being careful to mind the wires and cords I’m attached to.
“Thank you for coming back to me,” I hear Ivan say before my eyelids flutter closed.
“How long have I been gone?” I ask him. I’m not awake long enough to hear Ivan’s answer.
The next morning, I wake up when Taylor comes in to check my vitals. Ivan is still in my hospital bed, holding me in his arms. I nudge him awake, and he lets me go so Taylor can do her job.
“Good morning, Emma. Good morning, Mr. Kiselyov. Emma, how are you feeling today?” Taylor asks.
“Tired and sore,” I tell her.
“That’s to be expected. Your body has been through a lot in the last week or so,” she replies. She takes my temperature and listens to my lungs while a machine takes my blood pressure. “Everything looks good. I’ll make sure the doctor sees this, and he should be in shortly.”
“Okay,” I tell her before she leaves. Ivan pulls up a chair next to me and holds my hand.
