Exposed (#wattys2016)

chapter seventeen

I awoke in a hospital room, the sound of a steady beep filling my ears before anything else. My eyes were almost crusted shut and they felt a million times heavier than normal. As soon as I realized where I was, I heard a familiar voice.

"He's awake!" Someone exclaimed to my left.

When I was fully awake and aware, my eyes open and my surroundings feeling real, I saw all of my cousins sitting around my hospital bed. Balloons in one corner, flowers in the other.

"How long-"

Before I could finish my sentence, Lilly answered.

"18 hours."

I tried to nod my head, but the dizzy feeling came back and I had to close my eyes for a few moments before opening them again.

"Where's Caspian?"

Upon saying his name, Melanie and Joyce looked at each other and giggled.

"You mean, your boyfriend?"

I nodded because I was too tired to speak or care.

"He's right here, behind this curtain!" Melanie almost sang.

Levi quickly pulled the curtain back, and I desperately tried to turn my head to look at him but it seemed like the room was spinning horizontally. I was able to catch a glimpse of him. He was asleep, his whole head bandaged in white gauze.

"I checked on him about an hour ago, fast asleep. You woke up first."

Levi shrugged and tried to look at me, but I could tell my eyes were uncontrollably drooping closed while he talked.

"That's okay, you can sleep because we'll be right here when you wake up."

Eight hours later, but what seemed like only two seconds, I was able to open my eyes much easier than before. I tried turning my head again, and I was able to do that with almost no spinning or other annoying problems this time. I was disappointed to see that the curtain was closed, and I couldn't see Caspian. This felt like a dream.

The room was painted light blue, all the curtains closed to make it seem darker than it should be. One dim light was on in the corner of the room where my balloons still floated. I realized it was almost 9:00 pm the next day, and things should be dark.

I laughed at myself for not realizing it was night time. Who knows what time of day it is after being asleep for so long? Levi was asleep in the chair next to my bed.

I had to get his attention somehow, so I threw the hospital room's telephone towards him, and it hit his shoulder. He jolted awake immediately.

"Ow, what the fuck?" He rubbed his shoulder, sitting up in the chair.

"I had to get your attention. My voice feels too weak," I almost croaked.

Levi yawned and slicked his hair back with his fingers, studying my face with a serious expression. "How do you feel?"

"A lot better, I think these drugs are wearing off though."

I gently brought my hand up to my face, feeling where there was bandage and where there wasn't bandage.

"What about Caspian?"

I looked down at the IV tubes sticking out of my arm.

"He is okay, but I think he is still sleeping. I mean, he was up for about an hour, but I think he's knocked out again. Everyone went home with Gina but I said I'd stay as long as I needed to."

I smiled when Levi told me he was staying as long as I needed him. "You're a good brother," I told him, even if he wasn't my brother.

After three days in the hospital, my wounds were healed and my concussion was ruled minor enough to leave.

I got to communicate with Caspian through the curtain, but I never really got a good look at him. He told me he had to stay an extra day because he was scratching his bandages off in his sleep, possibly creating an infection.

"Are you going to miss me?" I jokingly asked him, still in my hospital bed as I jabbed at the jello they gave me with a spoon.

"Hell yeah, I'm gonna miss you," Caspian said in a pitchy tone, most likely from his injuries.

His response made me smile at my jello, which then made me chuckle because I was smiling at jello.

"What was that chuckle for, huh?"

I couldn't stop smiling.

"Just laughing because you make me smile and when you made me smile just now I was looking at my jello, so it was like the jello was making me smile."

It took a few seconds more than usual for a response.

"Hey, any chance you could smuggle that jello across the curtain, bad boy?"

I furrowed my eyebrows at his comment, jabbing my spoon in and out of the jello. Blue raspberry was my favorite flavor.

"Sorry, It's already got my spit on it."

"Big fuckin' deal, things worse than your spit have been inside my body."

I pondered his answer for a few seconds, making the executive decision to get out of my hospital bed and give him the jello myself.

I flung myself over the side of the bed. At first, I felt extremely weak and tired. My feet felt like they were in outer space. I've only gotten up to pee, which honestly hasn't been that often during my stay here.

"Better be hand delivering my jello, bitch."

I rolled my eyes at Caspian's comment. Be patient, I thought.

"What other things have been inside your body?" I suddenly asked curiously.

"Don't worry about it," he assured me with his normal tone.

I pushed the curtain back, smiling again once I saw Caspian's face, his wounds looking almost better than mine.

I set my jello, which was now his jello, on his sliding tray. I leaned down, kissing his lips gently.

"If only we weren't in a hospital," Caspian mumbled, a grin forming on his lips.

"Yeah right, I get to go home and you don't," I said happily, dancing as best I could back over to my bed, glancing behind my shoulder to see his reaction.

He flipped me the finger.

***
I know this may seem shorter than normal, i'm sorry! I hope you're enjoying this story! feedback, votes, comments, etc. appreciated! All of this was also unedited, but I did proofread.