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Bella just smiles from ear to ear and seems to understand what I'm trying to say without needing to explain.
CHAPTER FORTY-FOUR
ISABELLA
Irush in, stand next to Nathaniel's bed, and reach for his hands. "We're going to remove his breathing tube now and wean him off his medications. This should encourage him to wake up on his own.
"It usually takes between fifteen and forty-five minutes, and you may not see much of a change, but we'll know if it's working."
But he might as well be speaking some sort of dead language. Because the only thing that I heard was ‘him to wake up.’
He and the nurse begin, and I sit down patiently and wait. Ten minutes, fifteen minutes, no change. I start praying harder, using up every wish and hope I have, to get the love of my life to come back to me. Twenty minutes, thirty minutes, it's exhausting, just looking at the clock, praying for a miracle. Finally, at thirty-five minutes, I see his eyes flutter, and his finger starts to move. I hold my breath, scared that if I so much as breathe, I might realize this is a dream and not real life. A few minutes later, I hear a little cough.
"Nathaniel, it's okay. I'm right here," I say, squeezing his hands tighter. I feel like I’m waiting for my entire life to start, without him, everything will fall apart.
"Bel... Bella," Nate mumbles. His words are broken and dry.
I burst into tears and finally release the breath I didn't even know I was still holding, "Yeah, baby, it's me; I'm here."
Nate opens his eyes, and I quickly kiss him on the lips, unable to control my need to know this is really happening, before I realize I'm in public and Nate probably needs to catch his breath.
"What... happened?" Nate asks, still having trouble speaking. I watch as he tries to swallow, but he struggles, trying to force down the lump in his throat.
A nurse gives him a sip of water. "You were in an accident. You're in the hospital, but your wife here hasn't left your side."
I cringe as I remember the lie Ava told the hospital staff, so they wouldn't send me away from him.
Nate's eyes widen at the word wife. "Hmm, I like the sound of that," he says quietly, more to himself than anyone else. I decide to just pretend I didn't see or hear anything, but I’m sure my cheeks give it away, the way they always do for him.
"I love you, Bella," Nate says, squeezing my hand.
"I'm sorry, but we need to check him over. You'll have to leave for a moment." the doctors say.
"It will only take a minute," the nurse assures me as she guides me out of the room. Reluctantly, I leave. The fifteen-minute wait while they do whatever it is they're doing is like torture, but it gives me the chance to quickly update my grandparents.
"Nana, he’s awake!" I squeal, my heart thumping feverishly against my ribs. He’s finally awake, and I couldn’t be more ecstatic about it.
"Oh, dear, I’m so happy. He's awake George!" I hear her shout to my Pops." We've had the whole church praying for him around the clock. I’m so sorry we couldn’t be there sooner, our flight got delayed, but we’re on the way. We should be there within the next hour. Do you need us to bring anything?" Nana asks, and it's clear from her voice the relief she’s feeling.
"No Nana, I’ve got everything I need; just get here when you can, and drive safely." I reply.
"Have you spoken to your parents?" she asks hesitantly. I bite at the inside of my cheek, knowing I should have spoken to them.
"Kind of, mom has texted me a few times, but nothing from Dad. I’m so sorry I’ve got to go; the doctors are leaving his room." I say, barely even finishing my sentence before I’m hanging up the phone and making my way over to speak to the doctors.
"His vitals look good. You're welcome to go back in now. Call us if you need anything else." The nurse says as she walks away with the doctors.
"I'm so glad you're awake., I was so worried," I sob loudly, as I lay my head against his chest. I listen to his heartbeat, so I know this is real and not a dream that I'm about to be cruelly pulled out of.
"Hey, don’t cry, my little princess, I'll always come back to you," Nate says, trying to wipe away my tears. I lean on the bed and give him a big, fat, passionate, angst-filled kiss.
"Hmm, are we interrupting?" I hear someone say behind me.
"Yes." Nate’s words are rough; he’s still pulling air, but he sounds breathless..
"Ignore him. Come on in," I urge them to come in, excited to see them.
Everyone pours into the small room and starts talking at the same time. Gabe sits himself down in the chair on the opposite side of Nate.
