"I know you miss her."
"Yeah. I do," I said as I continued to stare at the gravestone in front of me. "She would have loved you, you know."
"I would have loved to meet her. You want me to give you some alone time?"
"No," I answered, finally turning around. I wrapped one arm around Jess's waist and leaned into her. I rested my head against her shoulder gently as I felt her squeeze me slightly in her hold. "This is all the closure I need."
"I love you, Elena."
"I love you too, Jess."
Pain. That was all I could register when I was suddenly blinded by bright lights. The sudden sensory overload did nothing but send a jolt of pain through my skull as I suddenly gained awareness. It was like everything was happening all at once. I could feel. I could hear. I could even see, blurry as my vision was at that moment. It was honestly a bit too much as I felt my chest rise and fall at an increased rate. Was I going into shock? The horrible, searing pain I felt in my shoulder and chest was enough to warrant that.
I squeezed my eyes shut for a few moments and slowly opened them again, hoping that it would help. It did to a degree, and when I finally opened my eyes again I found that I was staring at a bright white ceiling. I turned my head, feeling the stiffness in my neck for the first time. There were machines everywhere making various noises and flashing lights. Obviously I was in a hospital, but for what I couldn't recall. I was surprised I could even remember my own name.
When I looked in the other direction, I saw a sight that made my heart nearly skip a beat.
Jess.
She was seated in a chair next to me. She wasn't looking in my direction. All her attention seemed to be focused on the television across the room where a movie was playing. She was turned slightly away from me with her elbow resting on my bed, head propped on her closed fist.
I attempted to move my left arm and I realized immediately that I shouldn't have. I didn't know it was possible for me to hurt anymore but the additional pain that shot up my arm all the way to my chest nearly made me scream.
It turned out that I had a lot more luck with my right arm as I slowly inched my hand closer to Jess, finally touching her arm. She jumped violently as I did, obviously not expecting it, and when her eyes darted over to me I heard her cry out.
"Oh my god," she nearly sobbed, standing up quickly and standing over me. Her hands moved over me, nearly touching me but not as if she was afraid she'd break me. Honestly, with the way I was feeling I think it was completely possible for her to break me. "Elena, I- Oh god, don't move. Let me call the doctor," she said frantically as she pushed the call button.
"Jess?" I croaked, my voice struggled to even leave my throat.
"Shhh, don't talk. Just please focus on staying with me, okay?" she said frantically. "I just need you to stay awake."
I listened and just laid there, staring up at her. She was slightly pale and the dark circles under her eyes were extremely prominent. She looked beat down and exhausted. I scowled a bit in confusion. What the hell happened?
When the doctor came in, he looked genuinely surprised to see me awake. I mean, really surprised. He looked over whatever data the machines were giving him and shook his head seemingly in wonder.
"Miss Elena, do you remember anything prior to waking up today?" he asked curiously.
"No," I answered weakly. I could already feel sleep tugging at the back of my mind but I focused on staying alert. I wasn't going to let go of this shred of consciousness any time soon if I could help it. That's when something seemed to click. "Wait," I corrected myself. "I was...with Jess. Something happened...."
