Hidden Under Perfection

Chapter 12: Claire

When I come to the first thing that I notice is the searing pain in my stomach. I try to sit up but I can't without crying out. I call for Doran, John and my dad and they all rush into the room, their footsteps pounding on the stairs. I notice that my shirt is different than before and that there is a small trail of blood that leads from by bed to the door. Doran opens the door and smiles at me with a genuine happiness as the smile reaches his eyes. He walks over to me ans brushes my hare from my face and I feel my cheeks heating up, then I notice my brother and dad standing in the doorway.

"How are you feeling?" My dad's voice carries from the door.

"Okay, other than the pain in my side I'm fine. Speaking of, what happened?"

"Well, we don't exactly know seeing that none of us are doctors but you ripped open your skin on your side, where the scar was." Doran explains.

"Okay... But what happened after, all I remember is being carried down stairs and being in so much pain that I couldn't see anything until I finally passed out."

"Doran stiched up your wound," John intervenes. I look up at Doran and he grabs my hand and squeezes it. I look back at my family and see all of their worried faces.

"What happens now?" I ask, looking from Doran to my father to John.

"We let you heal and then resume our plan." Doran says matter of factly.

A few weeks have passed and I am finally able to sit up and walk around, the boys take turns dressing my wound to make sure it isn't infected and every once in a while Jennifer will come into my room and sit on the bed with me so I can read her a story. Doran has been extra careful with me and won't let be go anywhere alone, except the bathroom. He removed my stitched the other day, and it hurt a lot but not as much as when he was sewing me shut. I really miss Nadia, I just want to see her again. It takes all of my will power not to message her, but I think that she can be trusted.

It is warm under the covers and I don't want to get up but it is good for me to walk around every now and again so that my muscles don't atrophy. I use my elbows to sit up grimacing when I push myself from the bed so that I am standing. I grab the makeshift cane that John made me from beside my bed and walk towards the door so that the left side of my body doesn't scrunch up. I walk to the edge of the stairs and call for Doran, just to make sure that if I slip then I won't fall down the stairs. He comes up from downstairs and wraps his arm around my waist and I look over at him and stare into those pretty hazel eyes, he kisses me quickly and says, "Are you ready?" and with a steeling breath, I nod and we make our way slowly downstairs into the kitchen.

My feet hit the first floor and Doran moves his hand from my waist and entertwines my fingers through his. I sit at the counter and ask, "Doran can you make me mac and cheese?"

"Mac and cheese... I think so."

"That would be the greatest, the boxes are in the pantry." He goes to fetch them and I sit there, dying for my wound to heal, it hasn't given me any trouble since the incident and I don't know what that means because back outside the wall it would give me problems almost everyday. Doran walks back into the kitchen with a box of kraft mac and cheese and it brings me out of my thoughts. "Have I told you about Nadia?" I ask.

"No, who's Nadia?"

"She is my best friend, I have known her since I was four. I really miss her, and I trust her with my life. I would be really nice to see her." At that moment John walks into the kitchen.