Memories of You

Chapter 30 - Too Late

This has been such an amazing year.  I can't believe how much has happened this year.  I have made so many friends through this site, and I am so thankful for everyone.  Thank you for everyone that is reading, voting, following and commenting.  You have pushed me to be a better writer and storyteller.  I can't wait to see what this coming year has in store for us.  

Thank you Depecher and BarbaraK2U I can't thank you enough for everything you do.  

Tobias' POV

I feel as if I'm trudging through some kind of thick muck. Everywhere around me, there's a sticky blackness I can't get off me. Anytime I think it's beginning to lift and things start to come into focus, I feel excruciating pain everywhere. But I know it's no worse than what I endured with Marcus.

I need to get past whatever has me trapped in this darkened abyss. I need to find my way back to Tris. I just don't know where to start to look. Everywhere I look, there is nothingness.

I hear her voice from far away, pleading in a soft tone, "Tobias. It's me, again. Can you open your eyes for me this time?" Her voice quivers with emotion. I feel a light touch on my cheek and in my hair. Electricity seems to flow into my skin, helping me clear some of what is holding me down.

I know where she is now. She is to the right of me, and I pour my strength into getting to her. My eyes are the last thing to comply with my will, and I wrench them open slowly. Blinking at the blinding light, I look over and see the one person in the world that I crave to be with.

"Hey," I croak, my voice raspy. I try not to groan from the pain. My brain feels fuzzy, almost as if it is filled with cotton, or as if I'm drunk. My head is sore, and the lights seem to make my headache that much worse. I feel like I have hardly any control over my body, because right now I desperately want to sit up and hold her to me, but I can't seem to move.

Her smile is beautiful, but she has tears streaming down her face. "Oh, Tobias. I was so worried about you. I love you so much." She leans forward and gently presses her soft lips to mine, and I swear all my pain melts away under the warmth of her lips.

I try lifting my hand to touch her face, but she quickly pulls back, placing my hand back on the mattress. "No, Tobias. Don't move. You're hurt. You need to rest."

I feel flames of anger lick through me at her words. I will not be told what to do, not even by her. But I try to calm myself, to shake it off. Why am I angry at her? She touches my face, and the anger disappears as quickly as it came. "I love you, Tris. I can't begin to tell you how much I missed you." I lean into her hand to press more of myself into her touch.

She smiles, leaning forward to kiss me again, and I sigh against her lips. I have wanted to kiss her for so long, and I've finally gotten my wish to be with her, even if it means dealing with this unrelenting pain.

I look around when she pulls away, trying to get the world around me to come into focus. All I can see is a white curtain that has been drawn around my bed, several tubes that are sticking out of my arm, a lone chair, and a small table with stacks of letters on top. They give me no idea of where we are or what day it is.

I vaguely remember the ambush, the onslaught of German soldiers and how we eventually got the upper hand, but then someone threw a grenade. I remember yelling at Private Weber to take cover, but then everything gets fuzzy, making my head hurt even more.

I look back at Tris as she sits on the edge of the bed next to me, taking my hand in hers and squeezing it gently. "Where are we? Did they move me all the way back to the States?"