More Than Just My Weekend Lover

Epilogue

For a while I wondered if I was dead. I waited for the bright light to come or something like that. There was nothing, and just an all-consuming darkness.

And then I was standing in wet grass surrounded by fog. I walked around blindly. I couldn't remember how I had got there. As I walked forward the fog began to clear.

I wondered where Devereaux was as my hands went to my flat stomach. Soon it became clear that I was in a graveyard. The fog cleared and I could see the gravestones now. The moment I saw the gravestones I could hear people talking.

"We are gathered here today to celebrate a beautiful soul taken from us all too soon," a man said.

As he went on, I came upon the crowd. Even though I was still a ways away I recognized my parents right away. My heart started beating faster. I crept closer to the scene unfolding before me but I didn't want it to be true. The closer I got the more people I recognized. Femise and Viveka were in the front row crying their eyes out. I knew it. I was dead and my friends were burying me. I frantically searched the crowd for Devereaux while I was avidly trying to avoid the open casket.

The scene changed and I found myself in Devereaux's apartment. He and Travis were partying. There were girls and drugs everywhere. The music was blasting something about fuck the world. My heart broke as I watched the man, I loved shoot heroin with some groupie bitch all over him. Travis didn't even bat an eye as he turned and did a line of coke.

I moved forward and the scene changed again. This time I saw my parents... My dad was packing his things and my mom was yelling and crying. My mom's sister was standing with my mom trying to calm her down. My dad seemed to have aged so much since I had last saw him. My mom had lost weight and had chopped her hair off.

I called out to them but I found myself swirling in a sea of images. First of which was Femi and Cody. The image of them stayed clear just long enough to see him hit her. For the first time I felt angry. The last image showed to me was of V, heavy with child and Max telling her there was no way it was his baby.

My chest felt like it was caving in. My life ending caused a negative ripple effect on everyone I care about. I began to scream wordlessly. This wasn't fair, things were just starting to really go right all of us. I screamed soundlessly. I fought my hardest to see them all again. I prayed harder than I'd ever prayed before. This couldn't be how it all ends...

My eyes shot open and I tried to take a breath, but there was something stopping me. I tried to look around but whatever was stopping me from breathing kept me also kept me from moving my head. From what I could see I was in a hospital room. I tried to move my hands up to but my arms wouldn't move. I tried to move any part of my body but was unsuccessful.

"I need those numbers in front of me ASAP, or I will have your job," a male voice said from somewhere just outside of my peripheral. "It's feeding time," the same voice said.

Finally, I was able to flex my fingers. Suddenly a man came into my view, feeding a baby. The familiarity of the man hit me like a ton of bricks.

Devereaux! I wanted to cry out for him but the tube down my throat kept me silent.

"You see your mommy," Devereaux was saying to the baby.

He finally looked down at me and saw that my eyes were open. He dropped the bottle while simultaneously clutching the baby to his chest.

"NURSE!!! NURSE," Devereaux yelled, causing the baby to begin crying.

"What is it," the nurse asked, skidding into the room.

"She's awake," Devereaux said.

The woman came over and looked down at me. She startled at the sight of my open eyes and questioning stare. She began to remove the breathing tube immediately, which hurt like hell. Once it was out, I struggled to breathe on my own. All the while Devereaux stood back and held the baby close to his chest. He was making small noises to soothe the child.

The nurse helped me sit up in the hospital bed. Only when she had left the room did Devereaux approach my bed side. I looked up into his face trying to read him.

"Mackenzie Hollis, you don't know how long I been waitin for you to open them eyes of yours," he said, sitting on the end of the bed.

"How...long," I managed to croak out.

He looked at me for a second and then turned the baby to face me before saying, "This is our son Jordan. He's 6 months old, delivered via C-section. Born at 40 weeks and 3 days. You been in a coma for 14 months."

His words didn't register at first and all I could do was stare at the small boy in his arms. His skin was the color of coffee with a splash of milk in it and his hair was dark and curly but his eyes were a greenish grey color and I couldn't help but wonder what color they would actually settle on. He looked at me with the same curiosity that I had as I looked at him.

"This is our child," I asked, my voice still rough.

"Yup."

Tear began running down my face.

"Do you think I could hold him," I asked.

"Yeah, here let me help you," he said and came to sit next to me.

He gently laid the baby in my arms and wrapped his arms around us to help me support him. My heart ached at the thought that I had already missed so much time with my baby. As tears ran down my face I silently thanked God for giving me a second chance.

"What happened," I asked, quietly.

"After we got to the hospital and it was clear that you weren't waking up tonight, Unk and T showed up and we went lookin for Jonathan but we found Shelly. I kinda lost it on her especially after the doctors told me you were 6 weeks pregnant. And it was the news that you were pregnant that broke her. She told us everything. Jonathan was behind the drive by that almost killed Travis. He had also hired the fuckin thugs that attacked us, at her request. She was jealous of what me and you have, shit you in general. She thought with you out the picture she would fit in with us better," he said.

"Sounds like something she would come up with."

Our son was now asleep peacefully in my arms and it was one of the best feelings in the world. Devereaux placed a gentle kiss on my neck. I briefly wondered if I had really woken up from the coma or if this was all a dream.

"Your dad tried to throw me in jail," he said quickly.

"What?! Why," I asked.

"Because I was supposed to protect you from stuff like this," he said.

"Devereaux, you did everything you could to protect me. We're just lucky we both didn't lose our lives that night. I will talk to my daddy. What about my mom, my friends," I asked.

It had been over a year. I needed updates on everything. I just hoped none of the things from my coma dream were real.

"Your parents are fine now. Femi was actually just here before you woke up. Her and that David guy are pretty serious. They've been together since the incident. V and Max are expecting their first child in 2 months. It's a girl. By the way. So, they're both doing good."

"And you my love," I asked.

He moved so that he was looking directly at me.

"It's been rough, ma. I won't lie. Our son gave me hope that one day you would come back to us so I went ahead and quit dealing. I've been working for my uncle Aneurin since before Jordan was born. I took the apartment too. It's still empty though. I've been waiting for you and now that you're awake, I want our real life together to begin. Mackenzie Hollis will you marry me," Devereaux asked.

Even though he didn't have a ring and we had a long road until I would be fully recovered but I said, "Of course I'll marry you."