They Could Care Less

32: Dagger of Love

Thea lost the ability to breathe and felt how a knot formed in her chest and she tried to rememeber how to breathe again. This is just a dream, a nightmare. Thea waited for herself to wake up, but it never happened and she realized this was reality. It was very much real. She stood and watched her mother lying sleeping in the bed in front of her. Her life had reached rock bottom. It had gone from Mount Everest to the bottom of the sea in a few weeks.

Thea saw how Christina and Becca gave each other a glance and a silent small nod before they started to approach her. She saw how their lips moved, but she heard nothing. The only thing she could hear was her own heartbeat. And Thea for a split second wish she couldn't hear it, that it would stop beating, but the thought soon set fear into her and it disappeared.

"Mom?" Thea quietly whispered and walked closer to the hospital bed. "Mom?" she said louder and got down on her knees.

"Mom, no! Please wake up and be okay, please!" Thea screamed and the tears uncontrollably streamed out. "You can't leave me, mom!" Thea shook as she grabbed her mom's hand. "Please," she whispered quietly before she collapsed onto the floor, sobbing. Christina gently pulled Thea away from her mom as Thea pointlessly fought back. Christina looked nice, but she was stronger than most boys Thea knew.

"It's not fair," Thea weakly whispered and began to cry silent tears as she stared at her mom from the corner.

A knock on the door made Thea start to try to wipe away her tears, but they wouldn't stop coming. Thea looked away, hoping the person that knocked would leave soon. Christina opened the door and Thea's curiosity got the best of her, she needed to know who it was. A beyond shocked look took over Christina's tired face as her eyes fell upon the person by the door.

"Damon?" she exclaimed too loudly and everyone turned their heads to Christina by the door, but Christina only glanced at Maria, Thea's mom, before she looked back at Damon.

"Christina?" Damon exclaimed equally as shocked. He peaked in and saw Thea in the corner with her hands around herself and red puffy eyes.

"Did I forget anything?" Thea asked and quietly rose to her feet.

"Eh..." Damon cleared his throat and held up a blue bag. "You forgot your bag in my car," he answered and took a step forward. Thea watched as his eyes went to the hospital bed and saw Thea's mother lying there pale in the face. Damon turned equally as pale and grey in the face. Christina quickly grabbed Thea's bag.

"Thank you very much, we appreciate it. Bye," she said before she closed the door on him.

"Here you go," Christina said and put Thea's bag by her feet.

"Thanks," Thea answered grimly. She didn't even want to try to smile nicely.

"How do you know each other?" Thea asked and wiped her face with her palms as she looked up at Christina.

"We'll take it later, Thea," Christina answered in a bitter tone that told Thea it was the end of that discussion and looked at Thea with a clenched jaw.

"Thea, wake up," Thea heard aunt Becca say. She opened her eyes carefully and instantly recognized the sterile bright hospital room. She felt something cold against her hand and looked up to see her mom clutching onto her hand.

"Hey, s-sweetie," Thea's mom greeted her with a weak smile.

"Mom..." Thea whispered and bent forward to try to hug her mom, but soon stopped herself. She didn't want to injure her, she was in a fragile phase and Thea didn't want to cause any more pain than she was already going through.

"How are you feeling?" Thea asked and gently held her skinny pale hand with her own ones.

"I've had better days," she answered in true honesty and the smile faded as a face of pain took over. But when she saw Thea's worried look, she instantly put a smile back on. "What time is it?"