Walking Through the Time Capsule

Chapter 59

Walking Through the Time Capsule

Chapter 59

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Niall...

My footsteps seemed to echo through the empty halls of the intensive care unit. Blood was pounding in my ears with each step. The adrenaline of finding her had long worn off in the many hours we'd been waiting. The shock of finding her was abandoned in that damned house. With the craziness of everything going on, I never really got to let the extent of her injuries sink in. I was too focused on other things, like finding her, than worrying about her physical appearance. I knew the minute I stepped foot into her hospital room, the only thing I would have to focus on, the only thing that would sear pain through my heart, was her broken body.

As I placed my hand on the cold metal of the handle, that thought paralyzed me. I couldn't bare to see her in pain again. Not like this.

I took a deep breath and convinced myself I had to go in there.

It's okay, Niall. You can do this.

The low creak of the door seemed so much louder in my ears than it probably actually was.

The first thing that caught my eye was all the large machines in the room. It was all very similar to the first night back in Ireland when she was put in the hospital. All the same wires, tubes, and devices were attached to her. The same IV's, the same oxygen mask, the same heart monitor. It just reminded me again of my mistakes, and how easily I let history repeat itself.

I let my feet carry me closer to her bed, at a painfully slow pace. Standing over her, I let my eyes hover on her dainty little hands. Slowly picking it up with my own, I examined some of the cuts and bruises that littered her hand and forearm. There were harsh marks all on her wrist, probably from the rope I saw in the first polaroid. My eyes drifted further up her arm, only to see more bruises lining her flesh. It was in that moment where I was thankful she had a hospital gown on, for I couldn't even imagine how terrible the damage to her torso was.

Still holding onto her hand, I moved my vision up to her neck, covered in bruises, just as I expected. Knowing I had no other choice but to finally look at her face, I moved my gaze.

The tears I was holding in, up until now, cascaded down my cheeks in whimpers. My free hand reached up to caress her bruised cheek. Now that the blood had been cleaned away, I could clearly see how much damage was done to her angelic face. I started to cry harder, knowing this was my fault.

"I'm so sorry, Annabelle." I wept. "I'm so sorry I let this happen to you, again. I never meant for you to get hurt." If it wasn't for the chair behind me, I would've collapsed onto the floor. "I don't know if you can hear me like last time, but I love you so much. I'll forever be sorry for the life I let you live."

Tucking my face into her stomach, I sobbed and sobbed. After about fifteen minutes, I heard the door creak open, causing me to shoot up and quickly wipe my tears.

"No need to hide it, Niall. We all feel the same." Harry sniffled as he stepped into the room. "How is she?" He asked as he rounded the corner of the bed, sitting opposite of me.

"I don't know. I'm just going off what the doctor told us." I asked. "She doesn't look very good though." I choked out a cry.

He grabbed her other hand, while wiping a tear of his own. "We did it though." He slightly smiled. "We found her."

"We did." I barely smiled back. "I just hope we weren't too late."

"You heard the doctor. She is going to wake up from this." He assured me.