PERFECT

Chapter 22

Chapter 22 - Edited by Grammar_Nazi

I woke up with a major migraine. I took my pills out from my bag and lay back down on the bed; eyes shut to block out the light. My mind kept playing the entire incident that happened yesterday in spite this. I looked at my watch and it showed half-past eight. I wondered whether Nick has gone to office.

Why did I still think about him? I shouldn’t give a penny as to what he did, I scolded myself but I just couldn’t stop thinking about him. I recalled his conversation with Amy when I was walking down the stairs. He told her he has his own way to making me fall for him. I couldn’t help but wondering what he would to do to court me. Will I fall for him if he tried? Will I give him a chance to pursue me? I used to make myself hate him and started to open up myself to him when we were husband and wife. I never gave him a chance to tell me his true feelings instead I just bombarded him with accusations and nasty words just like I did yesterday.

I sighed. Is he really not part of this conspiracy? Is he really a victim just like me? He says he love me. I wonder how long he has harbored such feelings towards me. He never told me that but he did say he likes me a lot. Does that mean that he actually loves me?

I should talk to him and give him a chance. Listen to what he has to say. I’ve never given him a chance to show his feeling to me before and I think I owe him that much. Maybe he is a victim just like me. Maybe he really didn’t know about this conspiracy and I have been too caught up with my own feelings to see that yesterday.

I took my phone and turned it on with the intentions to call him. Once I turned on my phone, all the messages of missed calls kept coming in. There were dozens of missed calls from Amy; she still has the guts to call me after I’ve told her I hate her. Dozens more from my parents and his parents but only 5 missed calls from Nick.

I looked at my phone at all the messages that came in. Most of them were from my ex-best friend and our parents which I wasn't interested to read; but none from Nick.

I started to feel disappointed. I thought he said he loves me but he didn’t even bother to message me. Maybe he has given up on me. Yeah that’s possible after all the accusations and nasty words I threw at him. I’ll call him to ask for forgiveness.

I dialed his number but someone else answered it, “Ash,” it was Amy’s voice. I immediately turned off the phone. I’m still not talking to her. I don’t think I could forgive her for what she’s done to me.

My phone rang and the caller ID showed it’s from Nick. I immediately answered, “Hello, Nick?”

“Ashley, it me,” his father’s traveled through the speaker. Why is his phone with his father? I asked myself. I didn’t hang up the phone like I did to Amy. I couldn’t be rude to him even though he is part of the conspiracy. I couldn’t bring myself to disrespect him, after all said and done he is still older than me and a father figure.

“Where are you my dear?” he asked with his voice covered in concern, “We all are worried about you.”

“I’m somewhere,” I told him. Then I looked about the hotel room trying to figure out where I was, after the events yesterday I didn’t bother with the details of the hotel.

I heard him sigh, “I’m so sorry for what we have done to you and Nick. We just wanted you to realize that you both are perfect for each other. Please forgive us,” he apologized.

I could feel my tears rolling down my cheeks again and I didn’t want to talk to anyone of them about this. “I want to talk to Nick,” I told him instead.

“I’m sorry;” he said to me sadly, “Nick had an accident last night. He’s in the ICU right now. He’s in coma.”

“What?” I gasped.

“Yes, we’ve been trying to call you since last night but you switched off your phone,’ he explained.

“Where is he?” I urgently asked and once he told me the address I immediately disconnected the call, grabbed my bag and headed towards the door.

When I reached the hospital, daddy was waiting for me at the lobby. I immediately hugged him.

“I’m sorry, honey, sorry for the stupid things we have done to both of you,” he whispered as I sobbed.

“How is he, daddy?” I asked.

“He’s critical. He’s in the coma. Come on now,” he ushered me to the ICU waiting room where everyone is waiting patiently there.

When they saw me, his parents and mum came towards me but I immediately said, “I want to see him.” They all nodded while Amy glanced sadly at me. I just ignored her.

“You have to wear this to go in,” said his mom and put me the surgery mask, head gear and uniform, “You want me to accompany you?”

“No, I want to be alone with him,” I said without looking at her but staring at the glass window where I could see Nick’s body lying motionless on the bed.

She nodded and pressed the bell before a nurse opened the door, “She’s......” his mother started explaining to nurse but I cut her off.

“I’m his wife,” I told the nurse, “I want to see my husband.”

“Yes, you may come in,” she said and I went in with her.

Tears kept rolling down my eyes when I looked at his body wrapped in bandage with tubes coming out from his mouth, nose and body. There was a monitor observing and monitoring his heartbeat and pulse.

“How bad is he?” I asked the nurse.

“He has broken legs, ribs and hands. His head is severely injured and that’s the course of the coma,” she explained.

“Will he survive?’ I couldn’t help but asking.

“I think he will. He just had an operation last night and looking at the monitor, I think he’s doing well,” she sweetly said to me, “Who knows that now someone he loves is here, he will have the strength to recover? Try to talk to him. Who knows he might hear you,” she encourage me.

I wiped my tears and nodded my head. I went to him. His face is swollen and I couldn’t recognize it was him anymore. I kissed his cheek and I entwined my fingers with his before sitting besides him. I love this man, I realized now. I don’t think I want to live without him. He’s a perfect husband to me and I don’t think I could find anyone better than him. Even though we just “Married” for nearly two weeks but I felt loved by him. I kissed the back of his hand and cried.

“I’m sorry,” I sobbed, “I’m so sorry. Please don’t leave me, please stay.”

I could hear the loud monitoring machine beeping loudly behind me filling the silence; the machine assured me that he is fighting to live. I rubbed circles on his hands looking at the scratches there; I kissed each scratch.

I whispered bending my head down and closing my eyes, “I love you.”

Still no response; he lay there silent and unmoving.

I looked up at his face, bruised like a warrior’s. With more confidence I said, “I love you so much. I want to be your wife. I want you and only you to be my husband. Our wedding might have been fake but our marriage was honest and amazing. On the first day itself we learned to cooperate. Remember, the phone call to our parents, we both made a silent agreement to talk later. That’s a cooperation only a couple shows, like we did. You have to get up soon and bend down on your knees and propose to me, you better mister. I’ve wanted a fairytale love story, ours will only be reverse.” But he didn’t move a muscle.

“Dear God”, I prayed in my heart. “Please, don’t take him away from me. I need him in my life. I need his love. Please give me the chance to tell him I love him, please.”

I kissed his lips softly and sat down on the stool and played with his hair.