Wonderland

❅H35❅ As If It Never Happened

Chapter Thirty-Five

Heather's POV

As If It Never Happened

November 27

I could hear them talking, Dr. Joel and my dad. I could hear Dr. Joel speaking, his voice only muffled by the wooden door that separated him and my dad from me.

I sunk into the sheets of the stiff hospital bed I was lying on and wished desperately that it would swallow me whole, put me out of my misery. After Brayden left yesterday, I'd been nothing but alone, sitting in my silence and melancholy. Life no longer held a specific appeal to me—not when it sucked so much.

I fiddled with a strand of my hair and waited dreadfully for the moment when my dad would come in. The first time he saw me here, his face revealed nothing. He was stoic. He didn't even ask how well I was doing. He only asked how long I had been here. Probably calculating the amount of money he has to pay once I'm discharged.

A few minutes later, the talking outside died. Then, almost immediately, the door burst open and my dad walked in. Dr. Joel wasn't with him. I hurriedly sat up, ignoring the sharp stab of pain where I had gotten surgery done.

"Way to go, Heather," my father said, unpleasantly, stopping beside my bed. He was glowering at me.

I flinched. "I'm sorry," I apologized. "I didn't mean to."

"You sure about that? Because I'm not buying it. Unless someone forced you to substitute cotton balls as a dietary supplement, then you did mean it. Do you not know the cost of being hospitalized? Dr. Joel just showed me the fucking bill—including your surgery, that's nearly twenty thousand dollars. How do you expect me to pay for this, Heather? How the fuck do you expect me to come up with twenty grand right now? As if I don't have enough problems right now!"

"I'm sorry, dad," I said, tears prickling my eyes. "It was an accident."

"Your entire existence was an accident!" he blurted, low and cold enough so that only I could hear. "You are the reason why I had to quit school when I was twenty. You are the reason why I had to spend two years caring for you when I could've been pursuing my dreams of being a lawyer! Instead, I had to spend my early years caring for an attention-seeking child that I wasn't even ready for, and now, I have to slug through work as a marketing manager!"

My lips slightly parted and my breathing slowed. My vision became blurry. Don't you dare, Heather. Don't you dare cry right now. Don't let him get to you.

I wanted to cry desperately, though. Never in my life had he ever addressed me like this before. I could practically hear the hate dripping from his voice.

"I'll pay off the medical bills," I said, swallowing the lump in my throat. "And I'll stay out of your life if that's what you want."

"Do you think that'll make up for all the things you've done?"

I didn't answer him. I mean, how could I? He was telling the truth.

"I heard from Dr. Joel you've been cutting," he said.

I swallowed again, unable to answer him.

"You're almost nineteen. I don't think I need to remind you of the repercussions of cutting. Do it at your own risk, but when you end up bleeding to death, don't even think about running to me, because I won't be paying for your medical bills again. You hear me?"

I nodded.

"Good. And tell Dr. Joel, when he comes back, that you don't need therapy. I'm not going to pay for shit that doesn't work. This is all a marketing scam to get money from me again. You don't need antidepressants either. You're not depressed; you're just being a rebellious fool." Too pissed to speak to me anymore, he stormed out of the hospital room, leaving me alone once again.