Till death do us part

Chapter 41: How is she doing? - Age 35

Cora's POV

Ever since the nurse left me with Rose, there was silence. Silence can be peaceful and relaxing, but right here, it was eerie. I wanted to talk to Rose, but I didn't know what to say. At some point, when you don't receive a response, you just stop trying.

Instead, I just sat here next to her bed, holding her hand. I found a little support in the fact her hand felt warm. It meant she was alive. It meant she was still here with me. If only I could feel her move...

I sniffled as more tears streamed down my face. I couldn't seem to stop crying. The tears were rolling down my cheek on their own. I felt an overwhelming sadness and, at the same time, I was terrified. Terrified of losing her, my wife... I didn't want to think about it but seeing her like that, I couldn't push the thought out of my mind.

I looked at the injuries on her head. They looked horrible, I wish I could take them away. My eyes went down, to her body. I couldn't see the rest of her injuries as they were either internal or plastered. My poor wife... She doesn't deserve this.

"Hey," A hand was suddenly on my shoulder. "How is she doing?" Andrea asked.

I sniffled more before shaking my head. "Nothing has changed."

I heard her sigh before she took a chair and sat down next to me. "Cora," She said, trying to gain my attention but failed. "I know this is hard and I can't even begin to imagine how you must be feeling," She paused a bit. "But I want you to know I'm here for you, ok?"

I slowly nodded.

She looked at Rose for a moment. She sighed again. "I've called all the people on your list," She said as she looked back at me. "I told them what happened and that the party was canceled."

I nodded again. "It's so unfair for Hope," I sniffled again. "It's her birthday, she should be celebrating and opening gifts and eating cake," I looked at Andrea. "It's so unfair."

Andrea reached for me and started gently caressing my back, trying to comfort me that way. "I know," She sighed. "Life can be so unfair."

I nodded.

She looked back at Rose while she was still caressing my back. It seemed she wanted to be here to show her support to me, I appreciated that. Yet, I could only seem to think about Rose and Hope.

"Where is Hope now?"

She looked at me. "Rose's fathers picked her up and took her to their house," She said, making me nod. "I don't know what they told her though."

I sighed deeply and looked back at Rose. "There's no good thing they can say..."

In the corner of my eye, I saw her nod and look back at Rose. Together, we just looked at Rose, as if that would suddenly wake her up.

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I opened the curtains and looked outside: nothing but walls and buildings... It's true that when you're in a hospital, you don't see anything from the outside world... "Is this ok, Rose?" I asked and looked at Rose. I knew she wouldn't answer, but I felt lonely if I didn't talk to her. "It's better than nothing, right?"

I walked back to her bed and looked at her. "I wonder if you're having dreams right now," I sighed. "I hope they're good dreams."

A gentle knock on the door gained my attention. When I looked up, I saw Dara and Naheed. They were both looking devastated.

I walked to them and hugged Dara, crying in her arms. It seemed this close contact was something I needed and missed.

I could hear Dara was crying as well, it seemed she needed this as well. After some time, she pulled back a bit. "How are you doing?"

I shrugged before looking at Naheed. He was standing in front of Rose's bed, he was just staring at her. The look on his face... I'll never forget it. He looked so devastated. He seemed to get really emotional.

I walked to him and pulled him in for a hug as well, which he immediately accepted. I patted his back during the hug, trying to support him that way.

When he pulled back, tears were in his eyes. "I'm so sorry," He said, barely above a whisper. "This shouldn't have happened to you," He looked at Rose then. "To Rose."

"I know," I gulped. "It's unfair."

He nodded.

"Have a seat," I said and motioned to the chairs in the room. As they were sitting down, I sat down at my regular spot next to Rose's bed. I looked from Rose to them. "Thank you for visiting."

"Of course," Dara said. "We wanted to check up on you and Rose," She looked at Rose then. "Any news yet?"

I slowly shook my head before looking at them again. "I heard Hope is at Rose's fathers' house."

They both nodded. "They called us right before we got here," Dara said, gaining my attention. "They're having a really hard time dealing with the news about Rose."

I slowly nodded and looked back at Rose.

"We told them we'd get Hope and take care of Hope for as long as you need us to," Dara said, gaining my attention immediately. "If you agree with us taking care of her, that is."

I looked from her to Naheed and saw how they were both looking at me with worries in their eyes. They really wanted to help me, they wanted to support me. I nodded. "Thank you."

Dara showed me a small smile. It was clear she was forcing it. "We'll do our best for her, we promise."

I slowly nodded and looked back at Rose. I sighed.

"How long will she be like this?" Naheed asked me, without taking his eyes from Rose.

I looked at him briefly before shrugging. "All I know is that it might take a while," I looked at Rose then, squeezing her hand a bit. "And I'll be by her side until she wakes up."

In the corner of my eyes, I could see Dara and Naheed looking at each other. They shared a thought but didn't say anything to me anymore. We just sat there, in silence.