My summer holiday is well planned out. Spending one month at a fancy guest house with my five cousins to prepare for Aunt Medrine's wedding.
The unexpected happens when Aunt Medrine tells us that we are spending the month with her fiancé's two nephe...
Ellie doesn't wake up the rest of the day and Trent lets me say the night again. It is 11pm and I am staring at her face, willing her to wake up when she speaks. "Are you always this creepy?"
"Ellie!" I rush to her side that second. " How are you feeling?" I scrutinize her for any sighs of pain and find none. I help her sit up.
"I'm fine Col. My throat just feels weird."
"I'll get the doctor." I start to leave.
"No. Stay. I'm fine." She says. I sit back down and stare at her in silence. Thanking God that she's fine.
"I'm sorry." I tuck a loose strand of her hair behind her ear.
"Col." She whispers my name.
"You don't know how much I regret leaving you there when you called me to pull you out."
She leans forward till her forehead is pressing against mine. "You didn't mean to. I understand."
"Will you forgive?" I whisper in her face. She sighs and leans back.
"On one condition."
"Anything."
"You have to stop apologizing and acting like you commited murder."She rolls her eyes.
"Fine. We have a deal then." I agree and she smiles.
"When you were asleep I sat there realizing that the future instead promised like in one moment you were teasing me and the next you were being wheeled into the ambulance. " I look into her eyes before I continue.
"That's why I have decided that I won't hold back anymore. If want something, I'll go for it."
I run my fingers along her jawline. I've wanted to kiss her for a long time. lean forward till I can feel her breath against my face. I look into her eyes, seeking permission. I'm not taking her first kiss without her approval. I respect her way too much to do that.
She nods and very slowly, I brush my lips against hers. The instant my lips touch hers, I feel breathless. Her lips are soft warm. Almost silken against mine. I can feel the soft tickle of her breath beneath my nose as her fingers run through my hair. I move my hands round her waist to pull her closer and she leans into me. I let our lips linger a little bit longer, surveying the feel of her lips against mine.
I pull back and lean my forehead against hers.
"Thank you. For letting me have your first kiss." A blush appears on her cheeks.
That is the exact position the doctor finds us in when he walks in. He clears his throat and I pull back but a smile creeps on his face as he walks over to check on Ellie.
"How are you feeling?" He asks her.
"Fine. Thank you." She smiles at him.
"That's good." He nods." Now that your breathing is steady, we will do a few tests on you and I think you can go home tomorrow."
"I would like that." She responds. The doctor looks at both of us.
"Now that you are wake." He informs Ellie." He can finally sleep."
"He hasn't slept since you arrived .and he's been here every minute." The doctor shakes his head in disbelief as he walks out." Young love."
"You haven't slept?" Ellie scolds.
"It's no big deal."
"Yes it is. Col, your eyes look so exhausted. You should have gone home and slept." She adds, her face burning with worry. I sigh.
"I can't sleep." I confess but she looks even more confused. I sigh again. It won't kill me if I tell her.
"I can't sleep when I'm in a hospital. My mom..." I sigh again. This is going to be hard but regardless I look into her eyes and press on.
"My mom died when I was eight." I have told her before but not the details and right now, I needed her to know." All I remember is that she was having a premature baby. I don't know what happened during her surgery but when I saw her again, she was in a comma, with all these tubes attached to her."
I can feel the lump on my throat growing so I swallow. I hate reliving this. Ellie must sense my discomfort because she reaches for my hand and holds it.
"I refused to go to school. I was very stubborn." I smile sadly." So I slept off in one of the chairs next to her as my dad took my siblings to school."
The next part is the hardest.
"When I woke up, the line on the ECG machine...it was flat." I don't realize the tears running down my cheeks till Ellie leans in and kisses my tears.
"I'm sorry. I'm really sorry."
"You know what the worst part was?" I add and she looks at me, listening. "The baby didn't make it either."
Ellie gasps and tears fill her beautiful eyes.
"That must have been so hard for you." She states. "That's why you couldn't sleep."
The sobs blocking my throat keep quiet.
"Can I ask you something?" She curiously asks. I nod.
"Your stepmom. How's she like? Why don't you like her?" I chuckle at her question.
"Well. She is not a Cinderella kind of stepmom if that's what you are thinking." I joke and she laughs a little.
"Honestly. She is great. She is very strict. Her word is her word. When she says her boys don't drink then we don't drink. No questions asked but she is the most loving person I know. " I close my eyes as I think of Jo." She's never missed any of my games. Whether it means cancelling a business meeting or flying out for my games she'll do it."
The confusion on Ellie's face is exactly what I expected. Then why don't I like her?
" I don't understand." Ellie frowns. " Then why do you hate her?"
"I don't hate her." I gaze into Ellie's eyes and whisper." I just can't do it all over again. Jo is a replica of my mother. I can't take the risk again. If I opened up to Jo and something happened to her, it would kill me."
"You are afraid of loving her." Ellie adds as understanding dawns on her.
"The fact that she's pregnant makes it harder for me. I can't see her without seeing my mom lying dead on that bed."
Ellie wraps her arms around my neck and hugs me as I hold onto her.
Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
