ENDS

39- Too

Third person p.o.v.

The two sat down on a nearby table not so far from where she lay.

By the two, Diane and Mrs. Adams.

It had been a long day and to say they deserved a meal was right enough.

A bowl of rice and tomato sauce was used to sate their hunger, Diane felt the hunger a lot more than anyone else. To her it seemed like she hadn’t eaten in months.

While the two were eating, Iris was slowly drifting somewhere between consciousness and unconsciousness.

A very dull headache struck the back of her head and she resisted the urge to sit up from her position. Though it didn’t stop her from opening her eyes and hearing the sounds of spoons scraping against ceramics.

A flashback of what happened before she passed out crossed her mind, and the sudden jerk of memory with how she collided with the dashboard slammed into her again and she squinted her eyes like she was reliving the experience.

An experience she never wants to feel again.

Her eyes roamed the room she found herself in, the wooden cabin looked like it planned on enclosing in with a slight shift in nature or a haste force.

The rumble her stomach produced indicated that she too was starving, but she had no idea who was in the room so she didn’t know who to call for help.

The fact she woke up to no one by her side was quite disappointing, but she didn’t want to dwell on it.

“ how did you meet Hunter? You guys seem quite fond of each other”

  It was only then that Iris realized a conversation was taking place in the room and she picked interest in it.

A strange voice she couldn’t pin point asked the question and she wondered if the question was directed at her.

Because if it was, she wasn’t sure she was going to reply.

“ A mission” a familiar voice replied, Diane.

The second voice laughed at her response but from where Iris lay, she didn’t quite understand what was amusing.

Possibly a facial expression she couldn’t see.

“ You guys met on a mission, that’s it?”

Now it was Diane’s turn to laugh.

“ We dated too” Diane continued and it definitely sparked everyone’s and by everyone’s, I mean everyone’s attention in the room.

Diane didn’t need to be asked to go ahead, she continued by freewill.

“ I was actually head over heels for him” she said and released a light chuckle “ but I couldn’t say same for him”

Mrs. Adams noticed the change in her mood and immediately sensed a sad tale behind her question.

She regretted asking already.

“Hunter took away my virginity you know? Yeah I was in a gang and all but I actually planned to save myself till the day I wore that white gown. Then came along this guy who I fell for before then and shattered my plans”

“ He convinced you to laying with him?” Mrs. Adams asked with full concern.

“ No, but he made me want to. I wouldn’t say he tricked me to it because it was mutual but I would say he deceived me to thinking it was more than just sex”

“Why would you say so?” the doctor in the room asked and Iris too was interested in the reply.

“ I was gone and he didn’t even bother looking for me or even reaching out and then I come back to a news of his marriage and kidnapped child. Yeah, he moved on really quick”

There was a moment of brief silence between all of them, like everyone was taking their time to absorb the new piece of information they had all just acquired.

“ How long has this been?” Mrs. Adams questioned again and Iris was silently praying she’ll stop asking questions before she discovers an information she doesn’t desire to know.

“ ten, eleven years… I can’t really tell anymore”

“ That’s been a lot of years” the conversation between the two continued with Iris as the eavesdropper.

“ Not long enough” Diane said as a whisper but it was loud enough and clear enough too.

There was a clatter of plates, Diane was packing up the plates as they were both done eating and she headed towards a tiny sink located at the far corner of the room.

“ When do you assume Iris would wake up? She should be starving, its been three days.” She questioned as she tossed the leftovers into the bin and proceeded to begin washing.

“ Soon” the doctor said as she spared a glance to Iris and Iris hoped it wasn’t obvious she’d been awake a while.

“ Do you still have feelings for Hunter?”

The question took the both by surprise, especially Iris. A deep feeling stirred at the pit of her stomach and she knew she didn’t want to have the slightest idea on what the answer was.

She feigned a cough and attracted the attention of the other two ladies in the room and they both rushed to her side.

“ I was beginning to wonder when you’ll get up. That was a really long break you took there” Diane said as she took a seat beside Iris who was still struggling to get up and granted her assistance.

“ How are you feeling dear? Any pains? Aches? Itches? You should feel those though, it ought to happen after such a scratch” the doctor asked as she approached her.

Mrs. Adams wore a lab coat that covered almost her entire outfit. She pulled out a stethoscope and placed directly atop Iris’s breast to check her heartbeat.

“ Just a little headache, asides that I think I’m good” Iris says as she turns her view to Diane and the both exchange a brief awkward look before Diane decided to speak up again.

“ Are you hungry? You should be”

At first Iris thought of saying no to the question but her stomach betrayed her.

The mention of having a meal alone had sent her stomach in a frenzy and it produced a rumble so loud the other two couldn’t help but smile at.

“ Yeah, I am” she finally said and Diane stood to her feet to fix up something for her to eat.

“ Hunter would be glad with the improvements so far, don’t you think?” Mrs. Adams said to Diane who was already setting a fire to the stove.

“ Yeah” that was all she said.

It may have been an answer to the doctor’s question.

But it also seemed like the answer to the Doctor’s question too.