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Inside the room, the first thing I saw was Omari. He was clinging to Onika like his life depended on it, arms wrapped tightly around her as he talked her ear off. His words were all jumbled together—he kept saying how happy he was that she finally woke up.
It damn near broke me watching it.
But Onika...
She looked confused. Like she didn't really know what was happening around her yet. Her eyes were half-lidded, blinking slow like she was trying to piece everything together.
I stood just inside the doorway, still, like my body didn't know whether to move forward or stay frozen in place.
Rylee turned and caught my eye, her face soft with a smile. She made her way over to me, her voice low so only I could hear.
"You were right," she whispered. "You bringing Omari here made her wake up."
I swallowed hard and nodded slowly, my eyes shifted right back to Onika.
A nurse came bustling in behind us with her chart in hand, heading straight for the bed.
Now it seemed like everybody was crowded around her bedside, making sure she was okay, talking to her.
And me?
I stood back.
Watching.
Like some outsider who didn't know if he had the right to step any closer.
Onika's aunt kept glancing between Onika and the nurse, her hand gently rubbing Onika's leg through the hospital blanket, her face filled with relief but also something heavy—like she'd been holding onto a prayer for too long and was scared to let go of it.
I caught the way her aunt looked over at me once briefly but said nothing, going right back to focusing on Onika.
And that's when it hit me even harder.
I didn't know what to say to her.
Didn't even know if she wanted to hear anything from me.
She hadn't looked at me once. Not even accidentally. It was like she didn't even know I was there.
I shifted my weight from one foot to the other, clenching and unclenching my hands as I watched her whisper something to Omari, her voice raspy and dry.
God, I missed her voice.
I wanted to rush over. Wanted to pull her into me and tell her how sorry I was, how much I needed her to be okay.
