Someone Like You | Toni Kroos

Chapter 38 - Be My Light

Toni's POV

"What do you mean you can't see?" I asked, trying my best to not fall to the ground in a heap. "You can't see anything? Anything at all?"

"Are the lights on?" she sobbed.

"They are," I whispered, reaching over her to turn the lights up until they were at their brightest. "It's nine in the morning."

"But I can't see!" she yelled. "What's happening? What's wrong with me?"

"Shhhh," I pressed her tear-stained face into my shoulder. "Calm down, Gabi. Just calm down."

"I can't see," she repeated, her voice thick. "Toni, I can't see."

"What's wrong?" Gabi's mum, who I supposed had heard all the noise, popped her head around the door. "Gabi! You're awake!"

"Ma," she sobbed. "Ma, I can't see."

"I'll go get the doctor, okay?" I whispered. "Can you stay here yourself? I'll be right back."

I tried to stand up, but she tugged violently on my arm and made me sit back down. "No...no, don't leave me. I can't see anything. I don't want you to leave me."

I turned apologetically towards Mrs. Meiser, who nodded at me and went to get a doctor. I held on tightly to Gabi, who was shaking uncontrollably. She couldn't stop crying, and she grabbed fistfuls of the back of my shirt and pulled hard, her hands trembling.

"Gabi," I whispered into her ear. "Gabi, listen to me. It'll all be alright. I promise you, it'll all be alright. You're the strongest person I've ever known. You'll get through this. We'll get through this. I'll be with you. Every step of the way. You hear that? I'll always be here. Always."

"I love you so much," she quivered. "I'm so sorry. I'm so sorry I'm such a burden."

"No, baby, you're not. Don't ever say that."

Just then, Mrs. Meiser returned to the room with a doctor and a nurse, who proceeded to pry Gabi's arms off my body with a gentle apology. She lay Gabi back down on the bed and wound it up so she was halfway sitting up. Mrs. Meiser left the room to be with the twins.

"Okay, Gabriele," the doctor said softly with a little torch in his hand. "I'm going to need you to stop crying so we can take a look at your eyes, okay?"

"Okay," Gabi said, her hands clenched into fists, as I reached over and wiped her tears with my hands. The doctor went over to her, opened her eye wider with his fingers, and shone the torch directly into it.

Gabi didn't flinch at all. Not even a single bit. She just sat there, calmly but still shivering, as the doctor shone the torch into her eyes and wiggled it around for a little bit. After examining her other eye as well, he put the torch away and asked, "What do you see? Any light or shadows?"

"Light," Gabi whispered. "I can see light. But...it isn't exactly light. It's just...a bright round spot...but not really bright...it's like, a blurry spot."

"And everything else?" he asked. Gabi shook her head, and he held up three fingers. "Can you see how many fingers I'm holding up?"

"No," Gabi started sobbing again. "No, I can't."

He took out his torch again and slid a piece of paper over it so the beam of light wasn't round. "Can you tell the shape of the light?"

Gabi frantically wiped her tears. "It's...a square," she said correctly.

The doctor adjusted the torch so that it shone a red beam of light. "Colour?"

"Red," Gabi whispered.