I Believe in You

Six Months Later

I walked through the hallways of the hospital on Halloween, six months after my sister fell into her coma and my mother was diagnosed with cancer lost in thought.
Roughly, six weeks after my mom began treatment with Dr. Lane Hunter I was walking through the parking garage off Chastain after work one night towards my car when I was grabbed from behind. I lashed out against the hands that held me.
"Meghan. Meghan. Calm down. Calm down." Brianna Wolf's voice said as she stepped out from behind a vehicle.
I stopped struggling and the hands released me.
I turned to find Seth Adams behind me.
"What is going on? You guys just stopped showing up?" I asked incredulously.
"We didn't just stop. Dr. Bell got us fired and got our licenses revoked because of what I told you about him." She told me.
"We heard that Lane is treating your mother for pancreatic cancer." He said watching me.
"Yes?" I said looking between them.
"You need to be careful. She's not to be trusted." Brianna said.
"What are you talking about?" I shook my head.
"We think that she's been giving people larger doses of chemotherapy than they need. Just keep an eye on your mom. Don't let her become the next victim." Seth added.
"Wait. I don't understand." I called after them as they walked away.
My father called me on the fifteenth of October to tell me that Alec Norwood was sentenced to fifteen years in prison for the attempted murder of my sister.
Need you in your sister's room. She's awake. Irving texted me at around noon, roughly halfway through my shift.
I rushed to her room and nearly cried seeing her eyes open. She reached out for me carefully.
"Hey, baby sister." I sighed walking into the room to take her hand.
"Hey." She whispered her voice scratchy.
"You don't need to talk hun. You still need to rest." I whispered.
She nodded a tear fell from her eye.
"Alec was convicted on the first and he was sentenced to fifteen years on the fifteenth." I told her.
She nodded.
"I did leave, Meghan. I did." She insisted.
"I know, Elena. We know." I assured her.
"Dr. Feldman is going to take care of you while I finish my shift, okay?" I tilted my head towards her.
She nodded.
"Rest, Elena. I'll call mom and dad to let them know you're awake." I kissed her forehead.
"Thank you, Irving." I touched his shoulder.
He nodded.
"Meghan? What's wrong?" My dad answered on the first ring.
"Nothing's wrong, dad. She's awake." I answered my heart lifted.
"Mom and I will be right there." He hung up.
I leaned my head against the wall in the hallway and sighed before making my rounds.
"Meghan, can you help me out with this file?" Nic asked me as I walked up to the nurses station.
"Sure. What've you got?" I asked looking at her.
"You look better today." She smiled at me.
"My sister's awake." I answered smiling for what was probably the first time in six months.
"I just don't understand what this means." She pointed out a line on the file.
"Oh. That's just your observations. What do you see? What do you hear? What do you smell? What do you feel? It just gives the doctors and other nurses a baseline." I explained.
"Then this here?" She pointed to another line.
"Meghan." Irving said my name.
"Hold on a second." I muttered continuing to help Nic with the file she brought me.
"No. Meghan. Look." He said again.
"What?" I sighed angrily looking up at him.
He pointed down the main hallway.
I followed his finger to look where he pointed.
My boyfriend stood at the end of the hallway watching me work with a large smile on his face, dressed in a pair of blue jeans a black tshirt and a grey hoodie.
"Conrad?" I breathed his name the moment I saw him.
Without a second thought I ran towards him down the hallway. I'd never ran that fast in my life. I flung myself into his arms. He spun me around before setting me on my feet and kissing me. My tears flowed freely at that point. His fingers in my hair. He pulled away slightly to press his forehead to mine.
"Meghan. Look at me." He whispered wiping one of the tears from my cheek.
I opened my eyes to his and he smiled at me. He took a step back and dropped to one knee.
I cried harder doubling over as he took both of my hands in his.
"Meghan Dawn Bishop. I've thought about this moment since the moment I laid eyes on you that night two full years ago. When the marine corps told me I'd have to deploy, it tore me apart to tell you I was leaving. If you'd asked me to stay I would have but you knew me so thoroughly. I saw your overwhelming strength in that moment. You told me to go and I watched it shatter you. I knew then that I can't do this without you. This life. I love you with all my heart. You are my soul; my life. Will you marry me?"
I simultaneously couldn't speak and couldn't wait for him to finish speaking so I could answer.
"Yes." I nodded tears still falling from my eyes.
He stood back up and kissed me again.
He took a loose ring out of his pocket and slid it effortlessly onto the ring finger of my left hand.
The ring was a platinum band with diamond crusted bands split from it and nested under a large clear diamond.

He kissed me again and the hospital hallway exploded in applause.
Conrad pulled back so he could hold me with my head tucked under.
"I've missed you so much." I sighed holding onto him.
"I know, baby. I've missed you too. I talked to your dad." He whispered squeezing me.
"I don't know what I'm going to do."
"WE are going to figure it out. Together. I'm in this. I'm all in." He kissed my head.