Romantic Short Stories

11. Worthy To Be Saved?

Brendan Hart.

He didn't come from a particularly wealthy family. Heck, he didn't even come from a well off family.

But to him, money wasn't something that mattered.

The only thing that mattered to Brendan was his family, life, and living in the moment. To him, a bus ticket held more value than the only meal he'd be able to afford for the next two days. A bus ticket held life long memories, food provided temporary nourishment. He would do anything for anyone. Whether it be simply helping a lady with her groceries, painting a house, or taking care of a child.

Or at least that's what she heard.

Amelia Lane knew nothing about Brendan other than the stories that were told by the people who knew him. Although she could describe what he looked like with precise perfection. All the way from his raven black hair, the freckle on the edge of his nose, to his perfectly scarred hands. It seemed all she had been doing lately was studying the way he looked but she couldn't bring herself to leave. Not until she had the chance to hear his smooth, velvety voice and see his deep blue eyes without the panic they previously held.

She sighed and let out a long shaky breath as she got up from the chair beside his hospital bed. She wandered down the hall and through an elevator until she made it to the hospital cafeteria of which she had been eating at for the past month and a half. The only time she went home was for sleep. At first, her parents were concerned but realized very quickly she would not be leaving until he opened his eyes again.

They guessed loyalty like that could only spawn for the person who saved her life.

Amelia wished he hadn't.

She was grateful, more than anything but she didn't deserve it.

What had she done to deserve such a great person to risk his own life for hers? She wasn't the kind to put others before herself. She never went on adventures to tell the world about. No, she was the opposite of Brendan Hart. She spent her days locked up in her room listening to whatever song came on her playlist that day, she'd rather do a project alone then help anybody else, and worst of all she hated herself.

How did he even notice her walk onto that crosswalk a tad too slowly?

In her mind, nobody ever noticed her. Before she thought she could walk straight into traffic get hit and no one would notice until she had bled out to the point of no return. Instead, she mistakenly crossed the road when the light said it was clear to go and didn't bother to notice the bus ignoring a very obvious red light. In an instant, she was on the ground facing widened blue eyes staring at her in panic. She kept replaying the look on his face at initial impact.

For some reason though, it didn't matter how many times she lived that moment over and over. Every single time she couldn't seem to understand how he could look so content when faced with death. His eyes showed no fear nor regret. Instead, they showed completeness. She wanted to see those eyes again and understand them. Waking up on the wrong side of the bed in the morning made her upset... death, how could that not affect him?

When the girl came back from the cafeteria she walked in on panicked eyes. He was the same as every other day she walked into his room. He was in the same position, same broken bones, same cuts. Though this time his eyes held panic and his heart were increased dramatically. Nurses flood in right away and although she had waited for this moment all she could do was panic. So she did the only thing that she could think of and ran as fast as possible.

She was terrified, utterly confused, and aching in her very own heart. Why did she wait so long for some on that might not even be the same person as he was before. It kept her up for two weeks until her pain got the best of her. She could no longer avoid the questions that had been plaguing her.