TILL WE MEET AGAIN

Chapter 20

Col

It's 2pm in the afternoon when Ellie opens her eyes. I am sitting on the bed beside her from last night.

Trent, Marissa, Blake, Nova and the twins are standing around her bed, talking.

I hear Nova gasp and everyone turns to look at Ellie as she struggles to open her eyes. I feel my world fall back into place.

"She's awake." I mummer as Blake runs out to call the doctor. Trent instantly sits on the other side of her bed.

"Hi." Trent greets her, reaching for her hand. Ellie looks at him then looks around at everyone then her eyes halt when she looks at me.

"Baby." I whisper not caring about who's listening. What matters right now is that Ellie is awake.

Ellie slowly raises her hand to pull the oxygen mask off her face just as the doctor walks in with Blake.

"How are you feeling?" The doctor walks over and asks Ellie.
She opens her mouth to speak but no sound comes out and she turns to Trent, desperately.

"You are fine. Give your throat time to recover. Don't force it, okay?" He warns Ellie and she nods." You just need rest right now. Your oxygen level now is better."

Ellie nods again and the doctor places the oxygen mask back onto her face. Ellie's eyes drift and she sleeps off.

When we are sure that she is asleep, Trent stays in the room with me as the rest go to eat at the cafeteria.

"You need to eat something." Trent sighs and looks at me, his expression reading seriousness. I go silent for a minute.

"I'm sorry." I face the floor with my hands folded in front of me." I didn't mean to put her in any harm." I can feel my own voice breaking.

When Trent doesn't say anything, I look up to him and find his staring at me.

"I didn't know she couldn't swim. I would never have left her there if I did." I genuinely add. Trent sighs and faces the ceiling then back at me.

"I know." He sighs.

"It's not your fault so stop killing yourself over it." He adds but he is wrong. It is my fault. All night I kept playing the memory of Ellie asking me to help her out of the pool and me laughing it off.

"You are in love with her, aren't you?" When Trent says that I quickly turn and face him.

It's not a question. It's a statement.

"Yeah." I look down and let out a sad chuckle." But look at me. The girl I'm in love with is lying on a hospital bed because of me."

I face Trent again and add." If I were in your shoes, I would kill me."

"You think I don't want to?" Trent questions." I spent the whole of last night listing down reasons justifying why I shouldn't kill you."

I chuckle at that.

Trent leans his head back in his chair as he talks." The time Ellie came back from India, she was five. She didn't know how to ride a bike, she didn't know how to defend herself because...she hadn't had a big brother to teach her. That was the moment I knew that she was my responsibility. That I was her big brother so it was my job to protect her so I've spent all my life making sure that she is off limits for anybody. Her and Marissa."

"But I have also spent all my life noticing all the guys that want her." Trent turns to me." None of them has looked at her the way you do. Like she is the center of your universe."

Quiet fills the room for minutes as I wonder if that is a sign of his approval.

"If she says yes and she doesn't move to Africa, will you let her be my girlfriend?" I take the leap of faith and ask. My heart misses a beat at the idea of Ellie leaving.

"For that my friend, you will have to wait till she's eighteen." He answers straight forward. At least he didn't say 35.

"Dude, you are sentencing me to a whole year of sitting down and pretending that she is not more than a friend to me." I complain.

" You would do the same for Nova." And that shuts me up.