Sparks Reignited

30 | Fear

This is the second time I'm waking up in a hospital bed.

My surroundings are dimly lit and I soon realize it's because they drew the curtains around my bed. I shift in bed, trying to pull the thick covers off me. The events before I passed out flashes in my head; the voice of a screaming woman in my head and the sheer impact of the car crash.

Panic rises within me. "Kyle?" I croak, my voice coming out, dry and raspy.

I hear a flurry of movement beside me and a warm hand takes mine. His face soon comes into view. "I'm right here."

His voice fills me with great relief. "Are you alright?"

He gives me a look of disbelief. "I am, but you're not."

"But I thought—" Was I imagining the crash? There's not a single scratch on him or me, so I assume it's all in my head. "Never mind. How did we get here?"

He shoots me a worried frown and helps me to shift into a sitting position. "You fainted for no reason and scared the hell out of me. I drove you to the hospital immediately and called your aunt. She's on her way."

My face falls. I never want her to worry about me, not when she's already busy with her family and the cafe, but I did anyway. "She's probably freaking out right now."

"So am I." Kyle sits on the edge of my bed and his hand brushes my fringe aside. "What happened earlier? The doctor ran some tests on you, but they said there's nothing out of the ordinary. Maybe a little exhaustion."

I gnaw on my bottom lip, hesitating. "I think... Some memories came to my mind from the crash."

"What?"

His body stills with shock as I reveal the details of him. "I heard a woman's scream. I remember the crash and the car flipping over... It was getting too much."

A tremor rocks through my body. A second later, Kyle folds me into his embrace and my hands automatically wrap around him. He presses a quick kiss on my forehead. "Shh, it's over. You're fine. Safe with me."

I nod stiffly. The sound of patients snoring from the other beds tells me I'm most probably in the assessment ward. "Can I go home?"

He releases me and stands up. "Wait here. I'll check with the nurses."

Ten minutes later, he returns to my side. His face doesn't look happy. "They want to observe you until the morning arrives," he says. "I want to stay overnight, but they told me I'm not allowed to. It's stupid. They said I'm underage and not your guardian, plus it's a school night." He rolls his eyes, his expression annoyed. "Does a boyfriend not count as a guardian? And please, I'm turning eighteen this year."

I chuckle and pat his arm lightly. "Kyle, it's okay. You should go home and rest. You're tired. I'll be fine."

"You really think I can sleep in peace while you're staying here?"

"Well... At least try to get some sleep? For my sake?" I reach up to pat his cheek once. "A lack of sleep will ruin a handsome face like yours."

He playfully nips my palm. After a couple of minutes of me persuading him, he finally relents and promises to visit me tomorrow. He waits until Aunt Abbie arrives at the hospital before leaving the ward. I wave at him as he shoots me one last worried frown, his figure vanishing into the corridor.

As for my aunt, she, of course, fusses over me like the very first day I met her. She runs her hands over my face worriedly, checking my skin for bruises. It's only when I tell her I'm fine for the twentieth time does she finally collapses onto the chair beside me. When I ask her about Judy, she tells me Uncle Dave has it covered for the night; he would feed her and put her to bed.