Beginning Again

Chapter 28 - Time Together.

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©Sapphiresamo 

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Chapter 28

Time Together.

It was only when we finally reached my mum’s room that I realised I hadn’t let go of Kayden’s hand. And for some reason he never let go either.

He steered me to the door and let me go in first, our hands finally unlocking as Kayden stayed behind.

“I’ll see you later.” He said when I glanced back at him.

“What? You can stay.” I said.

“I think you two need some time together, and I’ve got some stuff to do. So, I’ll talk to you later.” He said again and slowly slid the door shut before he walked away.

“You two?” I mumbled turning around. “Who is he talk-” My words caught in my throat when I saw someone else in the room. I was speechless when I registered that someone as Luca.

Hesitantly I made my way over to stand at the bed across him, as he watched me intensely.

“Hey.” He said finally.

I stared. The words didn’t seem to come to me.

“How bad is it?” He asked.

“Quite.” I stated eventually. “Broken wrist, tibia, ribs.” I named.

“Whoa.” He muttered. “What happened?”

“You don’t know.”

“Know what?”

“She crashed her car because she was driving drunk.” I explained.

Fixing his gaze on her again, Luca looked over mum slowly, “Oh.”

“She has to go to a rehab and her license has been revoked.” I said, reiterating what the police officer had told me earlier.

“That’s going to be rough.” Luca commented.

I didn’t say anything back, even though I really wanted to ask where he had been when the accident had occurred.

Luca looked around uncomfortable; his eyes shifting around nervously.

“So, um-” He started his gaze fixed on his shoes.

“What are you doing here?” I interrupted.

 Luca lifted his gaze from his shoes to me. “What do you-? I came to see Mum. What do you think I’m here for?”

“Find out about Mum, I meant. The hospital said they couldn’t get a hold of you and so they contacted me.”

“Oh.” He scratched his head and glanced down at Mum. “Kayden, your boyfriend or whatever, saw me walking-”

“My boyfriend?” I asked.

Luca shrugged and slouched in his chair.

“He’s not my boyfriend, Luca.” I told him, my cheeks flushing.

Luca shrugged. “Whatever. Anyway he saw me walking and picked me up. Told me that Kyra was looking for me to tell me what had happened, and then he brought me here.”

Kayden had brought him here? And they didn’t kill each other on the way?

Pushing the thoughts of Kayden and Luca fighting against, I said the only thing I could think of to say. “Why were you walking?”

Again he shrugged.

“I left it somewhere apparently when I was hi-” He stopped short, suddenly catching what he had said.

I felt myself shake, as I realised what he was about to say.

“Luca, you’ve got to stop doing that stuff!” I cried. “I mean, you’ve left your car somewhere and you’re in a hospital. Shouldn’t that make you think a little about what you’re doing?”

“Oh please!” He hissed with an eye roll. “Don’t give me some lecture on taking care of myself and my health and all that crap. I’m fine. Nothing has happened to me!”

“That’s probably what mom told herself.” I said my voice rising with each word. “Now look where she is; in a hospital with a broken body.”

Luca rolled his eyes again. “Please, I know what I’m doing Saffron. I can take care of myself.”

“Well, obviously. You left your car at some random place. Do you even know where it is?”  I questioned.

Luca threw his head back with a groan. “Does it matter? I’ll find it eventually, and if you haven’t noticed I’m not the one that’s hurt here.”

A soft grunting noise came to my ears as I continued to argue.

“Luca! Can’t you see it could be at some point?” My voice was definitely at screeching level. A small part of me knew this what getting out of hand, but I couldn’t stop myself.

Yet again, I heard a soft grunt. I glanced down at my Mum and saw she was struggling to open her eyes as another grumbled escaped her throat.

“Mum?” I whispered.

Instantly Luca quietened down and moved his gaze to look at Mum.

Her one eye finally opened and found its way to me. A wheezing sound came past her lips; a sound that vaguely sounded like, “please”.

“What Mum?” I leaned forward to hear her better.

She took a slow, loud breath. “Stop.” She wheezed.

I glanced over at Luca as he lifted his shoulders in a sort of shrug.

“Fighting.” She pushed out, both of her eyes now open looking at the both of us.

“Sorry Mum.” I apologised. “How are you? Do you need the nurse to give you some painkillers?”

Her head tilted to the side in an attempt to shake her head, but she winced and stopped. “Yes.” She choked out.

I quickly reached over and pressed the ‘help’ button next to the hospital bed.

Mum’s gaze lolled over to Luca. “Hi.” She whispered, a faint smile hidden in her chapped lips.

“Hi, Mum.” Luca replied.

“I looked over at him sharply to find that his eyes were watery. This was the first time in a long while that he hadn’t called her Katherine.

The room door opened and a nurse stepped in. “Did you need something?” She asked a sweet smile etched across her welcoming face.

I nodded. “Yes, my Mum is in a lot of pain. Is there something you can give her?” I asked.

“Oh, yes. It’s time for her medication anyway.” She said when she glanced at the clock. She stepped out of the room for a moment and came back with a bag of clear fluid and a syringe. With a calm carefulness she switched out the IV bags and administered whatever was in the syringe into the tube that went into my Mum’s arm.

“The morphine will knock her out, so you can go for a little while if you like.” The nurse told us, as Mum’s eyes fluttered, wanting to close.

I shook my head. “That’s okay. We’ll be here for her when she wakes up.”

The nurse nodded again, grabbed the clipboard at the end of the bed and wrote down something on it. I wanted to stay beside my mum and be able to spend as much time together, making up for the moments in the past where I hadn’t.

I watched as Mum’s eyes struggled to stay open, but the medicine had already started to kick in.

“I love you, Mum.” I told her, not bothering to look and see how Luca reacted.

“Love you.” I heard her whisper as her eyes finally closed.