You Before Me [dave east]

| nineteen

Xiomara;

Dave had slipped into a coma but I guess it was better than being dead.

I gently caress his cheek with the back of my finger and wipe my tears with my freehand. I lay in the hospital bed with him, just wishing he would wake up and hold me already. There's been a lump in the back of my throat since sitting in that waiting room with Latoya yesterday. I'm just so tired.

"David?" I whisper, knowing he can hear me because the doctor said so. "Remember when I told you that thing? Me llevará toda una vida poder olvidarte? You asked me what I said and I told you that I'll tell you later. Well what I said is that it'll take me a lifetime to be able to forget you, because how does a person forget somebody who gave them so much to remember?"

I sigh, not knowing what to say next. "And then when I said I love you? That definitely wasn't impulsive. I really do, David. I guess it's just sad that it took you to get shot for me to realize it."

The room falls silent again. The only noise I can really here is whatever is going on outside past the door and the constant beeping from the monitor which never lets me forget the sad circumstances of still being in a hospital room with my unconscious friend.

David's mom walks in with food after about 10 more minutes caressing his face. I met her earlier this morning before I headed home to check on Alonzo and to also get freshened up. I came right back to the hospital then but I'm about to leave again in about half an hour since visiting hours are over soon.

I learnt that David's mom speaks Spanish too so we were speaking it all morning, although Dominican Spanish is a little different to Mexican. She speaks a lot faster.

"You hungry, baby?" She asks me as I sit up, not wanting to look like I can't detach myself from laying up with her son although I'm pretty sure she's already figured that I basically cling to him all the time.

"I'm fine, thank you." I sigh, rubbing my face.

"Well I got you some food anyway." She hands me the Chipotle bag and then walks over to look outside the window. "Damn, Los Angeles really is beautiful. Why the hell we ain't got none of these palm trees in Harlem?" She says jokingly.

I manage to crack a smile only because she makes everything seem okay. "You don't really seem to be worried about everything going on." I point out.

She turns around and tilts her head to the side. "Listen sweetie, the longer you spend worrying, the more you convince yourself that worst case scenarios gon' happen so the more you lose faith. I know my son. He's been through a lot, he ain't giving up here just when he got his life back. He know I'm gon' whoop his ass if he try dying on anybody."

I laugh softly, continuing to caress Dave's face. His mom really knows how to light up a room and not just with her beauty. She looks incredibly young for her age and I also learnt she had Dave at 16, making her at least 40.

After eating and chatting it up with her, she leaves the hospital room to head back to her hotel since it's been a long day for her. She only flew in this morning.

"Wake up, my love." I whisper to Dave with my head resting on his chest again.

"I'm sorry, ma'am but visiting hours are now over." A nurse tells me as she strolls into the room to check on Dave's vitals.