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“Which reminds me… she got into a catfight with some girls that night. Ms. Perez had to break it up.”
“She should have been crowneddrama queen of the class of 2013.”
The two of them laughed and summarized whatever they could, praying that it would trigger their friend enough to regain consciousness. But sadly, that moment never came. Ryan left Aria’s hospital room with a heavy heart and a mind filled with doubt instead of faith.
??
An hour had passed when Evan visited the hospital to see his niece. Her friends had left, and he was alone with her. Aria’s iPod played in the background while he sat next to the woman of his dreams, admiring her in silence. Noah was not aware of Evan’s secret visits. Even though he had warned him to stay away from her, Evan refused to listen. It killed him inside to think that she might not wake up, but he had promised to see her every day, no matter how long it would take; days, weeks, months, years… he would be there for her until she would wake up. Pulling the plug was not an option.
Gemma Hayes was singing “Wicked Game” while Evan held Aria’s hand. Her energy put him at ease, even though she was unconscious. Turning his head toward the door, he noticed Jessica step inside.
“Sorry.” She looked flustered. “I don’t mean to disturb you, but I’ve been going crazy looking for my cellphone.”
Greeting her with a smile, he pointed to a table in the corner.
“Thank God!” She sighed in relief. “Do you want me to get you anything—a coffee?”
“I’m good, sweetheart.” Evan replied in his charming British accent. “Thank you.”
“Anytime.” She smiled shyly, turning to leave when she recognized the vocalist. “Oh, my God… what a crazy synchronicity! Aria loves this song—it was played at my prom.”
“Is that right?”
“Yeah, I made her a prom-playlist.” Jess paused and frowned. “I still can’t believe she’s in here like this.”
“She’ll wake up.” Evan sounded confident. “You’ll see.”
“I pray she does.”
The quirky teen lingered near the doorway before she said goodbye and left.
Evan had lost his train of thought, but he didn’t want to talk anymore. Pulling his chair in closer, he brushed his fingers through Aria’s hair and imagined her beautiful eyes staring back at him. Drawing his lips to her ear, he whispered, “I would be honored if you had this dance with me. Wherever you are… I’m with you, love. You’re not alone.”
Walking down memory lane, he reminisced about how he had ditched his prom and gone off to party with his friends at his family’s lake house. Gazing at Aria’s angelic face, he softly said, “I miss you so much. I have something to confess.” He hesitated.
“Throughout my life, I’ve often felt so left out. I hated not being biologically related to my family. My adoption was more like a source of shame, knowing my biological parents rejected and abandoned me. I can’t tell you how many times I sabotaged myself because of this. But right now, being here with you… it’s made me realize how grateful I am to not share the same DNA. You and I… we have something.
“From the moment I saw you…” He let down his guard and told her how he truly felt about her, hoping she could hear him. But sadly, his confessions did not have the desired effect for which he was hoping.
CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT
Parallels: Realities Collide
June 4, 2013
Hospitals had always been a place Noah wanted to avoid ever since his grandmother had died in one. He hated that sterile “hospital smell”—it only reminded him of sickness and death, as well as other unpleasant memories. He still felt horrible about the way he had walked out on Natalie when Aria was born. But for the past five weeks, Noah had been visiting her hospital room every day, to where all the nurses on the floor were familiar with him.
Carrying a dozen white roses, he walked into his daughter’s room with a smile.
“I’m here to relieve you from your shift,” he said to Natalie.
She put on a wistful smile as she looked up at him. “This place is gonna turn into a botanical garden by the time our baby wakes up.”
“You should head back to the house and get some sleep. You look like hell.”
“Not as bad as you look.” Natalie stood up and stretched before she took Noah’s roses and arranged them in a vase.
“I hate seeing her intubated like this.”
