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“I am so sorry…” I sniffle. “I loved your poems.”
“I hoped you would,” he says, as a yawn stretches his face. “I am so tired… I don’t even know what has happened.”
“You should sleep some more, we can talk about it tomorrow.”
***
Sun rays wash over my face as I realize I am lying in a hospital bed next to Noah. Sudden crash of emotions shakes me to the core. I can’t fathom all of the things that I’m feeling. It’s like there’s a whole ocean of happiness mixed with anxiety swimming inside of my belly.
A knock on the door startles me, and I jump out of the bed so quickly I almost fall over. Noah stretches and groans before opening his eyes and smiling at me.
“I missed seeing you next to me in the mornings.”
My heart melts at his words, as the door opens, and the whole Lukovich family walks in with two police officers from two nights ago. His dad and brother each take a seat across from Noah’s bed, whilst Tiana stands with Webster on her hip next to me, and squeezes my hand.
“Good morning, sir. We are sorry to bother you this early in the morning, but we have some questions to ask. If you don’t mind, of course.” The older one nods his head politely, then continues, “I’m detective Santos, and this is my partner Kim.”
Noah coughs once, holding his chest, then straightens in the bed.
“Sure. How can I help, detectives?”
“Could you walk us through what happened two nights ago? All the things you remember, if there was anything unusual?”
“We had a busy day, and I was the one to lock up. There was this elderly couple playing the keyboard… And then I told my dad I’ll come visit, since I haven’t been home in a while.” He stops to take a sip of water. “I remember someone walking into my office, and I remember having a drink with them. It was whiskey, I think. I am so sorry if my details are vague, but I just woke up last night.”
“That’s okay, sir. Could you tell us if the person was male or female. We noticed you have no cameras in your office, may I ask why?”
“I use that office for…ummm…private matters,” Noah says, his eyes dancing over to me, and a younger detective tries his best to hide a giggle. “I don’t know, I think it was a woman, but I am really not sure. I feel like I knew the person, I mean, I must have, since I was drinking. And then they left. The next thing I remember I was on the floor, and it was hard for me to breathe. Like my lungs were set on fire, but my body was cold. And I couldn’t see anything. It was all black. After that I remember waking up to my dad staring at my face from an uncomfortably close distance.”
“Thank you, Noah. We had found a DNA sample, besides yours, of course, in one of the glasses. We are still looking for a match though. We’ll let you know if any updates come up,” the older detective says. “We are sorry to bother you whilst you are healing, but it’s really important we are headed in the right way. I hope you’ll heal in no time. Goodbye!”
“Goodbye!” the younger one adds.
“Thank you so much, detectives,” Marko adds, before closing the door behind them. “Your doctor said you’ll be good to go home in a few days, he wants to make sure you are completely stable and have no brain damage. You’ll be able to continue living your life normally.”
“You need to have a brain in the first place, so it could get damaged!” Matilda bursts through the door and goes straight to Noah, hugging him tightly.
“I called her! And the cat is at dad’s place and it will stay there until you recover. That thing is a devil, look at my hands!” Jensen exclaims, showing us the scratches Toma gave him. I see the way he looks at Matilda. His eyes are full of fondness and love, but it doesn’t seem like it’s the love you give someone who took care of you whilst you were growing up. Interesting.
Everyone laughs at her statement, and we chat around for a while. I notice Tiana checking her phone more than usual. Every few minutes, she glances at it, and each time she does, her mood changes from bad to worse. I hook my hand through hers, trying to get her mind off of whatever it is that’s hurting her, and she smiles at me, but I see the pain behind her eyes. Something is wrong.
***
The nurse pushes Noah’s wheelchair to my car, even though he tries his best to protest. She all but straps him down to the damn thing, explaining to him that she has to do it this way, since that’s what the protocol says. On our way over, we talk about skincare, since I complimented hers, and Noah shares how I have a ten-step routine, which makes us all chuckle. All she says about her skincare routine is that ‘black don’t crack’ and that she is a living, breathing proof of that.
Noah literally runs into my car, slamming the passenger side door closed, like he was afraid the nurse might wheel him back in. I round the car and put a bag of his stuff in the back seat.
“Where to?” I ask him, turning the key into the ignition.
“Where is home to you?”
“What?”
“Where does it feel like home to you?” he says. “Pick a place.”
“I…at your apartment? It smells like you.” I look away, hiding my already reddening cheeks.
“Then let’s go to my place.”
