A Week of Fame

Epilogue

When you opened your eyes again, you were surrounded by white walls. The dark décor of the dining room you had been laying in melted away to reveal the inside of a hospital room. There was a beeping in your left ear, that sounded like a slow alarm trying to help you wake up. You noticed Adrian and your mom sleeping in the chairs across from your bed. A man stood in the window of your room, but it was hard to make out any distinct features to tell who he was.

Your head turned towards the beeping, to see where it was coming from. You saw the monitor tracking your heart rate, but the small movement had the man turning his gaze to you. It was your dad, who looked like his whole world just filled with color again. It only took him two strides to come to your side.

"There's my girl," he took your hand.

Your throat felt like sandpaper, but you managed to say, "Daddy?"

He started to sniffle as he glanced down to the floor, gripping your hand tighter, "I was so afraid you wouldn't wake up." He pets the top of your head as you see the tears pooling in his eyes.

"How are you here? How long was I out?" The questions just came tumbling out.

He gives a wet snicker, "You've been here about 10 days, honey. Your mom and I flew out when Adrian called us."

"10 days?" The news alarmed you. "But school would have started already," you try to sit up, but the pain in your side where you were shot pulsed through you, causing you to lay back down.

"Don't move, you could bust your stitches. And don't worry about school sweetie, there's still time. It's only Christmas."

The word made you stop judging whether you'd be able to make it out of bed, "Christmas? That's not possible," you state.

"It's Christmas day, baby."

There was no way. If you were out for 10 days, that would mean Christmas was 10 days ago, right? Where was H/N? You need to talk to H/N. Then, as if the tv had heard your thoughts, they flashed a picture of him on the screen.

"Coming up next, we were able to catch an interview with H/N H/L/N on his upcoming movie. What we need to know about the release when we come back," an anchor reported.

He was at an interview? While you were in the hospital? He would never. He would be here. You look at your dad who caught your stare on the tv.

"Sorry, they've been talking about that guy all week. But they were doing a story on you, and I wanted to hear it."

"Dad, what happened?" Something wasn't right.

Your dad looked ashamed, as if he didn't really want to tell you, "You don't remember? You were shot honey. While Adrian was in a store, some guy thought you'd be an easy target. He made off with your wallet, and your phone. I'm so sorry, kiddo."

You closed your eyes, trying to separate reality from fantasy, when it all came back to you. Someone bumping into you, sending you into the alley. He stood over you, gun aimed, and pulled the trigger before you could plead to him. Feeling him pat you down and remove the loose belongings you had. Then him leaving you there. H/N wasn't real. At least not in the sense that you dreamt of him.

Sometimesdreams aren't real. They come and go, depending on what they are. You came toterms with the fact that you needed something to keep you from facing thereality of your trauma. Part of you wanted to go back into it. To find out whatyour wedding and your kids would have been like. But it just wasn't logical. However,that didn't take away the memory of his lips on yours. It didn't remove thelove in your heart for a man who loved you back. While your happy ever afterdidn't come true with him, yours was still out there somewhere. And when youfound it, this time you wouldn't be dreaming. At least now you had experienceda week of fame, and you continued to follow H/N, as just another fan.

Or, is there more in store for the two of you?