By Chance [On Hold]

Chapter 13

Unlike most mornings, I wake up before Nathalie this time. I stay still trying only to move the things that ache from sleep. Yesterday might have taken more of a toll than I thought on myself. My body feels weaker than it has the past few days. Nathalie had suggested I was making a steady recovery, or at least that’s what she said. Now I find myself hardly able to move without it feeling like moving huge weights. 

I feel myself quickly getting drowsy again before I remember what she said last night. What had she meant when she told ‘it was gone’? Nathalie told me she would tell me in the morning, but now she was still fast asleep while I felt wide awake trying to think of the possibilities. I didn’t know what she could’ve meant, the way she looked at me felt different from the previous times. I couldn’t piece it together, I found myself needing answers but the search was blind.

She slept peacefully, underneath me still as I struggled to come to any conclusion. I didn’t even have a guess as to what she had been referring to. Her restfulness didn’t clue me either, she laid content without a secret to hide- at least it appeared that way.

I look around the room, the sun hasn’t begun peeking through the curtains yet so I know it’s still late in the night. I rest my head back on her chest but my mind continues to race. As I try to think of the different probabilities, the pain that had subsided returned in a crashing wave.

I stand up, careful not to wake Nathalie. I’m pacing her room, my arms clutching my stomach in both pain and an anxious nausea. I’d do anything for the pain to stop again but it only seems to get worse as I continue walking around the room. Tears prick the back of my eyes but I don’t dare to let them spill, staying strong for at least this moment.

I hate my head most at this moment. It’s spinning while looking for answers and pounding fiercely like it might explode. My legs feel weaker as I continue to walk on them, my knees shaking with step and my ankles sometimes twisting out of place. My stomach churns like I’ve had nothing to eat for days instead of meer hours. 

I make my way over to the small couch that one of us used to sleep on. My knees buckle and it almost feels like they break when I lay down again. I didn’t want to go back to Nathalie’s bed and disturb her. I toss and turn trying to find a position without pain to no avail.

I try to stand up again but fall to the floor when I do. The fall is hard but surprisingly doesn’t make a loud crash. It hurts my hands and I suspect that some bruises might form on my knees. I put my hands on the nearby couch to help me balance myself as I get back onto my feet.

I can only focus on putting one foot in front of the other as I try making my way out of the room. The room feels foggy, I can’t see quite straight but I know what direction the door is in and I walk towards it. I almost feel like the world shifts with my weight but I know that’s impossible.

I finally make my way out of the room trying to distract myself from the pain although it’s no use. Rounds of it course through my body, endless shocks of pain that I can’t control or do anything about. I push on further away from all the bedrooms which are situated in the one corner of the mansion. There is one point where I do end up tripping, I want to blame uneven tile but in the Agreste manor that’s impossible. I make a hard thud on the marble but I look around quickly and it appears to not have disturbed anything or anyone.

~~~~~Gabriel’s POV~~~~~~

I had barely begun drifting off to sleep when I heard a loud thud outside my door. Usually sounds like these wouldn’t startle me but this is louder than the average creek of the house or other explainable sounds. 

I sit up from my bed and use some of the natural moonlight to see outside my half opened bedroom door. I see the silhouette of Chelsea. I rub my eyes trying to make sure this isn’t some dream instead but it proves to be real as the girl struggles to stand back up and continue walking.