Wonderland

❅H33❅ Everyone Leaves

Chapter Thirty-Three

Heather's POV

Everyone Leaves

My eyelids felt as if they each weighed a ton. I couldn't open them at first, although with time, I was able to do it. The first thing I saw were lights; lights and a white ceiling. I think I also heard someone calling my name, and someone gripping my hand, but I was still too under the anesthesia to have noticed for sure. I could feel a slight discomfort over the area where they had done surgery on me. My abdomen no longer hurt as much as it had earlier this morning. I hope it'll be this way for a while.

"Heather?" That voice again. Ugh. Who is it?

I turned my head slowly towards the source of sound. At first, I couldn't make out the person sitting beside me. But then, after my eyes had focused in on the figure, I realized that it was Brayden. My heart immediately kicked into overdrive, and somewhere in the distance, I could hear the sound of furious beeps. I found myself unable to tear my eyes away from his. Those warm brown eyes that I love so much...

Wait. That beeping sound. It's beeping to the rhythm of my heart, isn't it? Oh god, is that a heart monitor?

"Oh, you're finally awake," Brayden said, relieved. He sounded happy, too. "How are you?" He laced his fingers through my hand, but I pulled them back from him. A look of confusion and hurt crossed over his facial features.

The gears in my head churned as I tried to process why I was here in the first place. I just had it, and now I forgot it. Fudgeries. I tried to get myself into a sitting position, but failed. My lower abdomen started screaming in pain and I had to lie back down, wincing.

"Easy there, Heather," I heard him murmur.

I blinked back tears. Why can't I remember why I'm here in the first place? This sucks. Stupid brain. I sniffled.

"What's wrong, Heather?" Brayden looked at me with concern.

"I can't remember why I'm here," I whimpered. "My abdomen hurts and I can't remember why I'm here. I just had it a few minutes ago; why can't I recall it?" I flinched when I lifted my right arm to reveal an IV attached to it. God, just how screwed up am I?

"You just had surgery. The anesthesia probably hasn't worn off yet." He leaned towards me and brushed a few strands of hair from my face. His fingers left my skin scalding. My eyelids fluttered shut, and I wrapped a hand weakly around his wrist, holding it there against my cheek.

"That feels good," I murmured.

"I know. Your skin feels cold," he said.

If I weren't still under the anesthesia, I would've been embarrassed by what I had just said. It seemed like the state of sedateness I was in was making me bold...

And upset.

"On a scale of one to ten, how ugly do I look right now? One being hideous and ten being extremely repulsive." I opened my eyes again and was astonished to find hot, wet tears sitting on the edge of my eyes.

"None," Brayden answered. "You look normal and beautiful."

"No, I don't, and it sucks," I sniveled. "I look hideous all the time. Not even make up or plastic surgery can fix this face of mine." Before I knew it, tears were rolling out of my eyes, trickling down the sides of my face and splattering onto the pillow below.

"Hey, don't cry. You're overreacting," Brayden soothed. "You're not hideous. I think you look beautiful right now. Your hair's like the color of hazelnuts, your eyes are like a warm chestnut color, and your smile lights up the room. Don't worry about it, Heather. I find you pretty."

"Then why are you still with her?" I blurted, without realizing it. Too caught up in my emotional rant, I continued, "Why do the people I love never love me back? Maybe if I were prettier, it wouldn't be like this. I'd be popular and loved, and I'd have a family." I turned around so that my back was to him and cried. It was soundless, just like most of my other cries. I wiped my nose with my hand, and cleaned my hand off with the hospital gown I was somehow wearing. I felt lightheaded and tired.

"That's not true. I...love you," I heard Brayden say, awkwardly.

"No, you don't," I sobbed. "You love Berkeley, and I hate it when every time you're with her, you forget about me. I hate her. She's so mean to me, just like my dad. I tried so hard to get him to love me, but I just can't. I wish he would stop looking at me with such disgust in his eyes, and I wish Berkeley would treat me nicer. No one cares about me. If I died right now, no one would even be at my funeral. They'll all be happy I'm gone."

"Heather, you know that's not true," Brayden said, softly, touching my arm. "You're overthinking things. You'd be missed—a lot. I don't even know what I'd do if you weren't here."

I felt the bed shift in weight, and then his arms wrapping around me, pulling me to him. I turned around so that I could bury my face into his chest. "I care for you a lot, Heather," Brayden murmured. "And I do love you. You're my best friend, and I've known you for so long. No matter what happens, I'll be here for you. Always."

For some reason, I believed him, even though internally, I was having doubts. People never mean what they say. I know that. We all change at one point. Our opinions now won't be the same in a few years or months or even days from now.

I closed my eyes and curled my fingers into his chest, savoring this moment for a little longer. I don't think I can ever find another person like him for as long as I live, and it pained me to know that some time from now, he won't be here anymore. He'll leave me, just like every other person has in my life.

❅❄❅❄❅❄❅❄❅❄❅❄❅❄❅❄❅❄❅❄❅❄❅❄❅❄❅❄❅❄❅❄

Can I just say that when I heard this song (that I linked above) a while back, my mouth totally dropped open, because it was as if Demi Lovato wrote that song for Heather? I dunno, but I thought that this song described Heather perfectly, and I wanted to share it with you guys. :)

PS

I did a little research on anesthesia, and apparently, a lot of people cry when they wake up from it. That's so interesting. Explains all those YouTube videos on it...