Into the Sunset

Chapter 18

Six hours later, the surgent comes out with a tired look on his face. I stand up as soon as I see him. He grins and says,

- You need to thank St. Charbel, as I will. He sure guided my hands. It was a very delicate operation, but it was like someone was actually guiding my hands. If you have an extra of anything from this St., I'd really appreciate it. Mr. Conrad is in stable condition; we will keep him in an induced coma for now. We need 48 hours to be sure all went well, so the first 24 hours are critical.
- Im not worried anymore since you said St. Charbel guided your hands. Im sure he will have a full recovery. I will be sending you some things about St. Charbel so you can get to know him better.
I say this while giving him a teary smile.

48 hours later, Grayson was moved from the ICU to a VIP suite. John was already discharged and left to take care of business while Lawra went to Grayson's house to get me some clothes since I refused to leave. Grayson is not awake yet after the effects of the induced coma; they told us it would take up to 24 hours or less, depending on the patient. John and Lawra were back in the room with me; we were all sitting on the couch working when the door opened and a striking, model-looking woman about my age walked in. I turn to John to see if he knows who she is. I see his expression hardening, and he stands up, ready for battle. I figured this must be Stacy. I stand up and say:
- Can I help you?
- Who the fuck are you? I am Grayson's fiancee.
I laugh sarcastically and say:
- Im sorry, your Grayson's what now? Fiancee? really? If you really were, then where the fuck were you all this time he's been here?
I look at her from top to bottom with disgust in my eyes and continue:
- You mean you're his has been? That's right. I heard all about you, and well, let me introduce myself. Im Yazmin, his current girlfriend. What the fuck are you doing here?
John stands between us with his back to me and says:
- Tracy, what are you doing here? He told you he never wanted to see you again.
- He's not awake yet? Man, I need to talk to him; my card is not working, and the fucking bank won't issue me another one without his signature.
As soon as I heard that, I was livid.
- Are you fucking kidding me? He is in a serious condition, and all you care about is fucking money? What kind of person are you? Are you even human? He is not a walking ATM machine. I swear, if you don't get the hell out of here right now, I will commit a crime today.
I move to grab her, but John and Lawra hold me back. I think Tracy was on something because she wasn't fazed in the slightest and says:
- Well, when he wakes up, he better call me.
- Or what, bitch, huh? or what?
I was really fuming.
John then grabbed her by her wrist and pulled her outside. Lawra was trying to calm me down.
- Yaz, you need to calm down, please.
- I don't understand how Graysson can be with a conniving bitch in the first place. I get that she is drop-dead gorgeous, but there is nothing else about her. I swear, if I see her again, I will kill her.
- Look, I know she's a bitch, but you need to calm down, Yaz.
- Lawra I honestly don't know why he is still in touch with her.
- I don't know either, but that will be something to ask him about.
John walks in, apologizes, and says that he took care of the situation.
Two hours later, the door opens and a couple of men enter, looking slightly alike, so I presumed they were his dad's best friend's sons. After introductions, they stay for a while. Graysson was right; they were very sweet, so I say:
- Thank you so much for coming. Im sure Grayson will be happy to know that you came by.
- We'll come back again when he is awake; in the meantime,  if you need anything, please let us know. Here is my card.
One of them says it while the other one pulls his card as well, and they both hand them to me.
- Thank you so much. Graysson considers you both his brothers and his family.
They both get teary-eyed, hug me, and leave.
Later on, the door opens again, and this time in walks a very tired looking handsome and friendly looking man. I look at him and say:
- You must be Jasson.
He looks surprised, then gives me a weak smile and says:
- Yes, and you must be Graysson's girlfriend.
- I am, Im Yaz. Nice to meet you, Jason.
- Like Wise, please tell me how he is.
He goes and stands next to Grayson's bed, tears rolling down his face.
- He is out of danger and stable; we are just waiting for him to wake up.
Jaysson grabs Graysson's hand and says:
- Hey man, it's Jasson; you need to wake up, buddy.
Jasson looked like a broken man; my heart went out to him. I invite him to come and sit down with me. Lawra and John went to grab some dinner and have some alone time.
- Tracy came by today.
I say, and his jaw clenches, and he looks at me with pain in his eyes.
- Now that I've met her, I understand you better. She came to check if he was awake so he could tell the bank to issue her a new card. I told that bitch that if she showed up again, I was going to commit a crime. She had the nerve to introduce herself as his fiancee.
- She is the devil himself.
- She even said he better call her once he wakes up or else.
Jasson kept his head down. I take a deep breath and say:
- Jasson, I know we just met, but can I be frank with you?
- Of course
- Look, Graysson told me what happened; yes, it is none of my business, but I can't see a broken man and not say anything. Yes, what you did is unforgivable; yes, you broke his trust, but you can't walk around looking like a shell of a man. It's been over a year now, so please, Jasson, you need to snap out of it. You manned up and apologized, and Im sure Graysson appreciates it, but please, I need you to make an effort to feel happy and to look happy. Life is too short, and Im sure Grayson wants the best for you. You think you can do that? He told me he forgave you, but he was still working on the second chance part.
Tears start rolling down his face, and he says:
- I miss him so much; he was the brother I never had. She conned me, got me real drunk, and got me into bed. That bitch is like poison. I don't even remember what happened that night. She wanted to blackmail me with pictures of us in bed, but Graysson walked in before she got the chance to take the pictures. I don't even know if we had sex that night.
- More reason to get yourself together; I know you'll be friends again.
- I hope so, God, I really hope so, and I promise you'll see a new man soon.
- I sure hope so, because you meant a lot to him.

 After Jasson left, I moved to Grayson's bed to check on him. I was fixing his bed covers when I heard him say:
- That was nice of you, baby girl. I hope he will listen to you.
- Graysson You're awake. Oh, thank God for that.

I start crying so hard and start kissing his face all over. I then rang the nurse to call in the doctor, and I sent Lawra and John a message to tell them that he was awake.

After the doctor checked on him, he officially said that Grayson is going to be OK; there will be a long rehab process, but he will be as good as new.

The truck driver passed by once he found out Grayson was awake. He went down on his knees to ask for forgiveness. He was of Korean origin, so Graysson started conversing with him in his mother tongue, which shoked the poor guy but made him happy. They talked for a while, then he excused himself, bowed again, and left.
- Sweet guy
- Yes, that is the second time he shows up.
Graysson's phone rings, so I hand it to him; it was Derek, his best friend, so more Korean, then Graysson switches to English while still talking to Derrek and turns the phone to me since it was a video call.
- Derek meet Yaz, Yaz meet Derek
- Hey Yaz, nice to meet you. I'll see you soon in person.
- Hey Derek I've heard so much about you that Im looking forward to it.
Derek was an amazing-looking and vibrant guy, and you could see the love and respect between him and Graysson.
- Ok, man, I guess John will pick you up from the airport, but again, I say you don't have to come.
- See you tomorrow, buddy, and he hangs up.
- I guess he's flying in tomorrow to see me.
- Well, I'd expect him to
- So what did I miss while in Coma?

I tell him about the brothers and that they will come to visit him again, then I fiddle with my fingers and say:
- I almost committed a crime.
John chokes on his water. I look at him, then turn to Graysson again and continue.
- Well, if it weren't for John and Lawra here, I would have been in jail.
Graysson frowned, and John was quick to tell him what happened, all the while Graysson was looking at me and not saying anything. I blushed as I listened to John tell the story, as I felt I sounded horrible.

After Lawra and John left, I sat next to Graysson. He grabbed my hand and said:
- Im sorry you had to meet Tracy and for her to introduce herself as my fiancee.
- Why are you still in contact with her? Graysson, I don't get it. I mean, to her, you're a walking ATM machine. How were you ever in love with a person like her?
I was so angry that I didn't see the look on Grayson's face. He got quiet, so I said:
- Im sorry, Graysson. I overstepped my bounderies, but just remembering her words and attitude drives me crazy.
- It's OK, I understand where you're coming from, and the reason why Im still in contact with her is because she has cancer and no insurance. I went to the doctor's with her, so I was helping her out. But that is no excuse for the way she behaved.
I felt so ashamed.
- Im sorry
- Hey baby girl, it's ok you didn't know, and to answer your question, yes, she is a great actress. She did dupe me, and I admit that I was head over heels in love with a fake. It took me a while to realize it, and catching her in bed with Jasson was the cherry on top, but for now I will keep helping her, but through John, I will make sure she Knows I mean it.
- You're too nice, Graysson; it is part of your charm, you know?
He looks me in the eyes and says:
- I missed you, baby girl.