Living With Mr Mysterious

Chapter Twenty-One - Waking and Weeping (Part One)

Waking and Weeping
Part One

He was awake. A week and a half after Mason slipped into his coma, he slipped out of it and back into the waking world.

Mom pulled me out of school to tell me on the way to the hospital. When we got there, Mason's aunt, Barbara was at his bedside.

She and mom left the room to talk and I sat down beside Mason. "You're awake," I said breathlessly.

Mase smiled. "Yeah, I am." His expression turned serious. "And I'm so, so sorry. Lina, you have no idea-"

I cut him off as I gently wrapped my arms around him in a hug. "No," I whispered, voice shaking as my eyes filled with tears. "I'm the one who should be sorry. This was my fault, wasn't it?"

I pulled back and Mason opened his mouth to argue but instead he just nodded. "I don't blame you though," he added. "I promised I wouldn't cut again and I broke this promise. I was thinking of you when I did it, but it wasn't your fault."

The tears trickled down my cheeks. "I heard everything," I told him. "I was standing right on the other side of my bedroom door. I heard every word. And it broke my heart."

Mason's beautiful eyes filled with pain. "Why did you pull away, Lina?"

My automatic reaction was to make up some excuse and run. But Mason had shared his broken past with me, even when he'd made it obvious that he didn't want to. Now it was my turn to do the same.

I took a deep breath and sat in one of the plastic chairs beside his bed. "My dad had depression," I began. "I didn't know it, but he was self-harming. When I was fifteen, I came home to find that he'd overdosed on his antidepressants." The last word caught in my throat but I managed to get it out. I took another deep, shuddering breath before I continued. "He killed himself. After that, I couldn't see any point to life. Dad was one of my closest friends and now he was gone. Mom made me see a grief counsellor and I was diagnosed with depression." I didn't want to say the next words but I had to. "I cut for the first time on Father's Day."

Mason's reaction was typical. His eyes grew wider in shock and he stared at me. No one could ever believe it. "But I got better and after a while, I got a boyfriend. Except he had depression and anxiety. Mom warned me that his depression could trigger my own but I didn't think that would happen." I sighed. "Long story short, it happened. I ended up cutting again and mom made me promise I wouldn't date another guy with any kind of mental instability."

There it was. My sad, pathetic history laid out in the air between us. "That's why I pulled away," I finished.

Mase looked like he was about to say something but the door opened and mom and Barabara walked back inside. "We have something to tell you two," mom said and I could tell from the tone of her voice that we weren't going to like it.

Hey, guys! Only one more part to go! You probably know what's going to happen but if you don't, prepare to be surprised! I hope you've been enjoying the story, let me know in the comments and I love you all! <3