Never Let Go

Chapter 45: You Still Love Me?

I stare through the window, watching the doctor talk to Maya. She's sat up in the hospital bed, not saying much. She looks so exhausted. For a second I really thought she was going to die. I'm so glad and relieved she's ok. I feel so emotional and I'm trying so hard not to cry. I'm still shaking slightly from the panic and fear of it all. The feeling I had when I saw her passed out on the floor was indescribable. I just felt panic and dread. It's something I never want to experience again. She means so much to me and the thought of possibly losing her like that breaks my heart. The thought of her dying... it's unfathomable and difficult to comprehend.

As the doctor heads towards the door to leave the room, he sees me looking inside. He exits the room and walks towards me.

"Hi, I'm Dr. Brown."

"Hi..." I say softly with my voice wrapped in concern. "Is she ok?"

"Yes, she seems to be at the moment."

I exhale and run my hands through my hair, looking back into the room. Maya glances out the window and we lock eye contact for a second before she looks away.

"Are you her boyfriend?"

"No." I shake my head.

"Oh, were you the one who found her?"

"Yeah, we're friends and we were at the same club."

"Does she have any family we can contact?"

"Uh, no." I shake my head.

"A partner?"

"Yeah, I have her boyfriend's number."

"We'll be keeping her over night, so it's probably best to let him know what's happened."

"Yeah, right..." I nod slowly.

"She had a lot of alcohol and ecstasy in her system. It was lucky you were there and found her, or things would be very different right now. She could have died."

Oh my god. I frown and rub my forehead, swallowing down the lump in my throat.

"Unfortunately, we see this happen too many times with young people who go out clubbing. A lot of people are unaware of the dangers of this drug. Taking it runs a high risk of becoming dehydrated or overheating - eventually causing the organs to stop functioning, but thankfully you were there at the right time and saved her. She's lucky, but very tired at the moment and not saying much, which is to be expected, but she's ok."

All I can do is nod slowly as I try to process everything. This is a lot to take in.

"Can I go in and see her?"

"Of course." He nods.

"Thank you."

I walk into the room, but Maya doesn't look at me. Her head is hanging down and she's hiding behind her curls while she plays with her fingers. I sit down slowly on a chair next to the bed and we both stay silent. I try my best to hold back my emotions and swallow down the lump in my throat before speaking up.

"Hey." I said softly.

Maya doesn't reply, but I see her shoulders start to shake slightly as she begins to sniffle. She's crying... I frown and get up from the chair to sit on the bed so I'm closer to her. I gently push her curls away from her face, seeing the tears run down her face. She keeps her eyes fixed on her hands and doesn't look at me.

I can't hold back anymore and now I'm crying. I wrap my arms around her and pull her into me. She wraps her arms around my back and hugs me tightly, gripping my shirt with her hands desperately as her sobs become a bit louder.