Never forget you

Chapter Two: A Spiral Into Darkness

A week had passed since the accident, and Mariah still hadn’t woken up. The doctors were worried—her condition was worsening, and the signs weren’t good. They spoke of complications, of the uncertainty that clouded her recovery, their faces grim as they relayed the news to Nick.

Nick sat in the hospital room, his heart heavy with dread. The constant hum of machines filled the silence, each beep of the monitor a painful reminder of Mariah’s fragile state. Her face was pale, her body motionless, and he felt helpless. It had been days, and nothing had changed. He watched her chest rise and fall with each shallow breath, the ventilator doing what her own body couldn’t.

The twins had been brought to the hospital earlier that day by Mariah’s mother. Moroccan and Monroe, barely over a year old, were confused and scared, their small faces filled with worry as they looked at their mother lying in the bed, unmoving. Monroe clung to her brother, her eyes wide as she looked at Nick, her small voice calling out for her mother.

“Daddy, Mommy?” she asked, her voice barely a whisper.

Nick’s heart broke at her words, his eyes stinging with tears as he knelt in front of them. He tried to force a smile, his hands trembling as he reached out to touch her cheek. “Mommy’s… Mommy’s sleeping, baby. She’s not feeling well, but she’s going to be okay,” he said, his voice cracking.

Monroe stared at her mother, her eyes filling with tears, and Nick could see the confusion, the fear in her small face. Moroccan held his sister’s hand, his eyes wide, his lips pressed tightly together as he watched. They were too young to understand what was happening, too young to bear the weight of this uncertainty.

Nick gathered them into his arms, holding them close as they began to cry, their small bodies trembling. He closed his eyes, his heart aching as he held them, his own tears slipping down his face. He didn’t know how to explain, how to tell them that he didn’t know if their mother would wake up, that he didn’t know what would happen next.

---

Outside the hospital, a storm was brewing. The news of Mariah’s accident had spread like wildfire, the media frenzy growing each day as reporters camped outside, hungry for any update on her condition. They had turned the hospital entrance into a circus—cameras flashed, questions were shouted, and speculation filled the airwaves.

The headlines were relentless. “Mariah Carey in Critical Condition,” “Marriage in Trouble Before Tragic Crash,” “Will She Wake Up?” They painted pictures of a crumbling family, of secrets and scandals, of a star who had lost her shine. Nick could barely stand to look at it, the tabloid stories filled with rumors, with lies that twisted the truth into something ugly.

He had barely left Mariah’s side, his face pale and drawn, exhaustion etched into every line. He knew what they were saying—that he had abandoned her, that he was to blame. And maybe, in some way, they were right. He had left her, and now she was here, her life hanging by a thread, and he had to live with that.

Janet, Toni, and Da Brat had been by almost every day, their faces filled with the same fear that gripped Nick’s heart. They spoke to Mariah, their voices soft as they tried to reach her, to pull her back from wherever she was.

“Come on, Mimi,” Janet whispered, her hand holding Mariah’s, her voice trembling. “You’ve always been a fighter. We need you to wake up. Your babies need you. We need you.”

Toni sat beside her, her eyes filled with tears as she watched Mariah’s face, her heart breaking at the sight of her friend so still, so vulnerable. “You’ve been through so much, Mariah,” she said softly. “You’ve survived so much. You have to fight now, for them.”

Da Brat stood by the window, her arms crossed, her eyes glistening with unshed tears. She hated this—the waiting, the not knowing. She hated that Mariah was lying here, fighting for her life, while the world outside twisted the story, made it into something it wasn’t.

---

The doctors came in, their expressions grave, their voices low as they spoke to Nick. They explained the complications—the head injury that wasn’t healing as they had hoped, the infections that were taking hold, weakening her already fragile body. They told him they were doing everything they could, but the words fell hollow, empty, as he watched Mariah, her face pale, her eyes closed.

Nick sat down heavily in the chair beside her bed, his hands covering his face as he tried to breathe, tried to hold himself together. He had promised the twins that she would be okay, but now, he wasn’t so sure. He didn’t know if she would ever wake up, if she would ever come back to them.

He looked up, his eyes falling on her face, the bruises slowly fading but still there, a reminder of the crash, of his failures. He reached out, his hand brushing over her fingers, his heart aching with the weight of everything he had done wrong.

“I’m sorry, Mariah,” he whispered, his voice breaking. “I’m so sorry. I should have been here. I should have fought harder for us, for you. Please… please come back to me.”

The machines continued their steady hum, the heart monitor beeping softly, and Nick closed his eyes, his tears slipping down his face. He didn’t know how to fix this, how to bring her back. All he could do was wait, hope that somehow, she would find her way back to them.

---

The days blurred into nights, the hospital room dim, the only light coming from the small lamp in the corner. The doctors came and went, their words filled with caution, with the uncertainty that weighed on everyone’s hearts. Mariah’s condition hadn’t improved—in fact, it seemed to be getting worse, her body weakening, her breath shallower, her skin paling.

The twins had been kept away from the hospital now, the sight of their mother lying unresponsive too much for them. Nick visited them at home, his heart breaking every time they asked for her, their small faces filled with confusion, with fear. He tried to be strong for them, but inside, he felt like he was falling apart.

The media continued their circus outside, the questions growing louder, the speculation more vicious. They wanted answers—answers that Nick didn’t have. He ignored them, his focus on Mariah, on the woman who had been his everything, who now lay so still, her future uncertain.

Janet, Toni, and Da Brat continued to visit, their hearts heavy as they watched Mariah’s still form, as they prayed for a miracle. They tried to stay strong, to keep their hope alive, but each day that passed without a change made it harder, made the fear grow.

“We need you, Mimi,” Da Brat whispered one night, her voice breaking as she stood by Mariah’s bed, her eyes filled with tears. “You can’t leave us like this. You’ve fought through so much—you can’t give up now.”

Toni nodded, her eyes filled with pain as she looked at her friend, her heart aching. “You’ve always been the strongest one, Mariah,” she said softly. “You’ve always found a way. Please… find your way back to us.”

Janet sat beside her, her hand resting on Mariah’s, her eyes closed as she fought back tears. “We’re not giving up on you, Mimi,” she whispered. “You have to fight. You have to come back.”

The room was silent, the only sound the steady beeping of the heart monitor, the sound that filled the emptiness, the fear that gripped them all. They waited, they hoped, but the uncertainty remained, the fear growing with each passing day.

And Mariah lay there, unmoving, her body still, her mind somewhere far away, the fight for her life continuing, the outcome unknown.