Motion (Sequel to "Collide")

CHAPTER ONE

I looked into space for many long seconds, not able to say a word or even move a muscle as I couldn't cope with the news. For seven months, my relatives had to live with the fear that I might never wake up again, that this gift of mine got the best of me, once for all. For seven months, I wasn't able to see Faraji grow, nor hold him in my arms and tell him everything would be okay. And for seven months, I wasn't able to be with Michael after we got engaged.

Thinking about all the things I missed saddened me to the point where I couldn't process anymore. I was just there, sitting on my hospital bed, tears falling freely from my eyes without me being able to stop them. I held Faraji closer to me, and laid a kiss on his frizzy hair. I couldn't let go of him, as I was too scared that if I would, he would be taken away from me again, and I would go back to this lonely, cold world I was stuck in.

"We came to see you everyday. There wasn't a day that went by where you were alone," Carl told me, as Alice was rubbing my shin gently in comfort. "Michael called everyday, too. We put the phone over your ear when he did, and he spoke to you."

"W—Where is he? Did someone call him yet?" I wondered, finally finding the ability to speak back.

"He's um, he's getting ready for the Superbowl Halftime Show," he let me know, and I frowned. "Apparently the NFL asked him to perform for it. He's the first superstar who's ever done it."

"Is the tour over?" I frowned, confused at that point. "Is he even in California?"

"He's been on a hiatus since December, until August. He wanted to come home and be closer to you in case you woke up," Al explained, and my heart broke st her words, thinking about how helpless Michael must have felt. "So yes, he is in California. In Pasadena, to be exact."

I simply nodded, as my eyes landed on my left hand where the magnificent diamond ring I saw during my trip to my alternative reality was. I looked at my two best friends for explanations, and they exchanged knowing smiles.

"Michael wanted to propose for weeks before you passed out," Al explained, as she sat on the opposite side of the bed. "He kept this ring with him, no matter where he went, waiting for the right time to propose. He explained what happened. How you surprised him in his room, and how you told him about the news for the little one, and how you proposed to him."

"He said this day was the happiest and worst day of his life all at the same time," Carl added. "But he's never lost hope. When we did, he was always the one who told us you'd wake up. Everybody from the Jackson family visited you, which explains this," he motioned to the many flowers and other gifts all around the room.

"What about Grams? A—And Hayden?"

"Martha came everyday, just like us," Alice told me, giving me a faint smile. "Hayden tried to find something in the books he brought from the time he went to Tibet. He was looking for answers, but he never found any," she explained, as she looked at Carl with an expression that worried me.

"What? What happened?" I asked, concerned.

Carl sighed heavily, as if he was about to tell me something bad. "He... He started to feel guilty, and he became very upset and frustrated about it. He stopped coming here at some point, and we started to worry about him."

"B—But is he alright?"

"He's probably on his way here, so he'll feel better when he sees you," Al answered, but I frowned. There was something they were not telling me.

"You didn't answer my question," I pointed out, and they both looked at each other again.

"We went to see him in Montecito one day, because we were worried," Carl narrated, as he looked down for a couple of seconds. "And that's when we realized he was back to his old habits."