Little Did I Know (unedited)

Chapter 19

   I woke up in the hospital a day later. The doctors had been giving me medicine to keep me asleep until their other medicines took effect, and I was so tired I slept a long time after that. They said I needed my rest; nobody knew how I was still alive, how I came back from the dead. It was a miracle.

I hadn't seen Cole yet; the doctor said I had to wait until noon today to have visitors because he wanted me to focus on resting and healing. I hated having to make Cole wait this long, but I knew he understood. I thought of how he drove me here. He didn't even have a license. I hoped he wouldn't get in trouble for it. Shaking my head, I pushed that thought away. We would both be fine once everything got back on track.

A knock on the door interrupted my thoughts. "Come in," I called. The door opened, and in walked Cole, with a smile on his face. My face lit up. "Cole!" I grinned from ear to ear, so happy to see him. "It's noon," he grinned back. I looked at the clock; he was right. He walked over to me, and immediately hugged me, being careful not to hurt me.

"How are you feeling?" He murmured in my ear. "Better. It barely hurts now, they have me on so many pain pills." I laughed. He let me go, and smiled. "We did it, Cole. We won." He grimaced. "Nobody really won, though. There was all so much pain, too much for us to call it winning." "True," I acknowledged.

"There's something you should know." Cole told me, shifting his weight to the other side. He continued, "my parents are dead. They were dead when I got home with you. He took them from me, somehow." His face fell, and I wished I could get up and hug him. "Oh, Cole.... I'm so sorry. Ashley and Lance were great people." He nodded. "Hey, we'll have a proper funeral once I get to go home, alright?" I said, trying to console him. He smiled a little. "Okay."

We were quiet then, me not knowing what to say. Cole broke the silence. "I'm so glad you're alright, Sadie. When I thought I lost you, that you were...gone, I didn't know what to do. You're the light of my life, and I never want to live without you again. I won't." "I know, you proved that." I said. "And for what it's worth, I wouldn't live without you either. I love you, Cole."

"I love you too, Sadie." With that, he closed the distance between us and leaned down so our foreheads were touching. "What are you doing?" I whispered, hoping I knew the answer already. "What I should have done a long time ago." He kissed me, our lips melding together in a passionate, loving way, making me tremble. I felt his love, his fierce desire and vow to always be there for me, the way he cared for me, the way he clung to me gently, but firmly, like he would never let go again. And as the tears flowed freely down my face, all I thought about was how I would never let him go either.