Juliana Woodland and Nate Jacobs have been best friends for as long as they can remember.
They are now in their junior year at East Highland High School and things are starting to get complicated.
*Had this story up on my old account and it got dele...
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Juliana honestly wasn't sure how many days she had been at the hospital with Nate, who was still lying unconscious in the bed in front of her.
It felt like she could have been there for a week or for a month. She didn't know and she didn't particularly care; all she cared about was him.
The room was like a time warp, bathed in a harsh, fluorescent light, the beeping of the machines providing a break in the silence that had settled over him.
The sterile air was beginning to feel suffocating and although she was craving a breath of fresh, outside air, she still refused to leave his room.
She had seen him in many bad states: jealous, violent, lost- but she had never seen him like this. The bruises and cuts on his face and the tubes attached to his body were something she knew she would never forget.
She reached out and hesitated for a moment before brushing the hair from his forehead and gently caressing his cheek. The gesture was so familiar, yet in this environment, it felt foreign and out of place.
A nurse bustled in, the sudden movement jolting her out of her thoughts. "Hi honey," she greeted her, a kind smile on her face despite the gravity of the situation. "How are you doing? Do you need anything?"
Juliana shook her head, her eyes never leaving Nate. "I'm fine," she managed to say, her voice barely a whisper. When was the last time she even had a drink?
The silence grew heavier as she sat in the chair beside the bed, her thoughts growing more jumbled with guilt and confusion. She still couldn't wrap her head around everything that had happened.
They had been through so much together. She knew he had his demons, that he was haunted by secrets and pain, but she had always believed she could help him.
But now, as she held his hand, cold and lifeless, she wondered if she had been foolish for thinking she could save him.
Even though she said she was fine, the nurse returned with a cup of water. She thanked her and took a sip, the coolness doing little to quench the burning in her throat.
She set the cup down on the side table and leaned forward, resting her head on the bed beside Nate. She began to speak, her words a soft murmur meant for his ears alone.
She talked about their friendship, the endless amount of good times they had shared- and even the bad ones too, too.
She spoke of her love for him, the way he made her laugh when she felt like she couldn't go on, and her hope that he would find the strength to pull through and wake up soon.
