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“Dad? What’s happened?”
“It’s Sam.”
It feels as if I’m suddenly zapped with a trillion volts of electricity. Every hair on my body stands on end and an overwhelming heaviness takes residence within my soul.
“What about Sam?” I beg.
His silence butchers away at my last tether to this plane, and just as I’m about to scream, demand he answer, he whispers, “He’s awake.”
I peer over at Saxon, who nods slowly. Whether he heard my dad, or his random onset was brought on by Sam, I’ll never know.
Somehow, it seems like we’ve looked into the same crystal ball and have both seen the future. In this moment, something shifts between us. I don’t know what, but I can feel it—the planets have somehow all aligned.
When the noise abruptly becomes still and the bedlam twinkles to tranquility, I know—I can feel it. I can feelhim.
* * * * *
He’s awake.
Those two words have been playing on a loop the entire drive to the hospital. It appears the last few days, my world has been blanketed with words I had no idea could take on so many different meanings.
We leap out of the car, both unsteady on our feet. Saxon nurses his Gatorade while I cradle my coffee. Thankfully, I had the presence of mind to change out of my pajamas and into a pair of jeans. I still look a fright and it’s no surprise when I stampede into the hospital, people shift away from the crazy woman.
We enter the elevator, both a ball of nervous energy. The moment we reach Sam’s floor, I bolt out the doors, my sneakers skidding on the floor as I run towards Sam’s room. My mom and dad are standing outside, both looking relieved, but also a little baffled.
“Lucy!” my mom says, meeting me halfway. We embrace tightly. She strokes my hair.
“Sweetheart, are you all right?” my dad asks, his eyes warm as he approaches.
“I am. I just want to see Sam.”
I can feel Saxon behind me, waiting quietly and not demanding he see Samuel first. He has every right to see him…hell, if anything he has more right than me…but I know he won’t go in before me.
“Can I see him?”
When my mother lowers her eyes, and my dad tenderly rubs my arm, I know something is very wrong. “What’s the matter?”
“Lucy…”
“What?” My heart ascends to a deafening staccato.
“Sam…” my father falters. My dad has always worn his heart on his sleeve. This time is no exception.
“Dad, what?”
He pushes up his silver framed glasses, a sure sign that he’s worried. “Maybe it’s best you wait out here until you speak to Dr. Kepler.”
Everything is too much. I need answers, and I need them now.
Pushing past my parents, I dart into Sam’s room, my impatience overtaking my good sense. I come to a screeching halt when I see Dr. Kepler talking to Gregory and Kellie, while two nurses stand around Sam’s bed. They’re chuckling quietly while writing something down.
The already small room feels like a shoebox and I take three deep breaths before willing my feet to move. I can’t see the bed as five people stand in my way, but the moment Dr. Kepler turns to face me, I see it—I see my Samuel.
He’s sitting up and his eyes, his enchanting eyes, are open and vibrant. A smile paints his face as he chats with the nurses, laughing at something one of them said. He looks tired, a little rugged, but he looks well. He looks alive.
I have so many things I want to say, but I don’t know where to start. But maybe in this circumstance, actions speak louder than words. Exhaling deeply, I take one step and then two, only to be stopped when Greg lightly takes a hold of my arm.
Why is everyone trying to stop me from seeing Sam? I understand he’s still not fully recovered, but surely I’m able to give him a quick kiss and say hello.
