In This Life (Sequel to 'In Another Life')

3 Colby's POV

Denise laughed nervously and sat down beside her, on her bed. "How are feeling T? Honestly?" I stood next to her head, letting them have their moment, but still being as close as I could. "I feel like I just woke up from a coma. How long was I out?" "A couple of months," Denise replied, taking her hand. "We weren't sure you were .." Neece's voice cracked and she stopped, lowering her head, as a silent sob wracked her body. Terra tried to lift her hand to place it on Denise's leg but all she could do was soft of flop it against her. Neece looked up at her, her cheeks stained with tears, and took her hand. "I would never leave you guys Neece. Not ever." T looked up at me, a fire igniting in her eyes. "Not any of you. I love you guys," she finished, still staring into my eyes. I didn't know what to do, and even as I wiped the tears from my cheeks, they continued to rain down from my eyes. I couldn't stop them. "Colby, you're crying," she said softly. Again, she tried to lift her hand but it didn't work and I could see her getting frustrated. "I'm okay T. You just scared me is all. I knew you would come back to us though. I told Sam before I left the house that today was the day, and for once, I was right," I said, giving her a small smile. Denise laughed a little and shook her head. "He's been saying that every day for two months. He had to be right eventually. We never gave up hope T." "Oh, I love you guys," Terra sobbed out, her own eyes filling and then spilling over her cheeks. "Someone please wipe my eyes for fuck's sake!" she sobbed out, laughing a little. I grabbed the little box of kleenex that was next to her bed on the little table and pulled some out. As I gently wiped her cheeks, her eyes met mine. "Thank you," she said quietly. I nodded, and set the box back down. "I think you need to use some of those yourself...and Neece too," she joked, referring to the fact that both Denise and I had tears still streaming down our faces. I smiled at her and shook my head. "These are happy tears so I'm okay with them." "Guys, seriously, thank you for never giving up on me. Thank you for believing in me. I don't remember much from the accident. I remember that I was with Justin. Do either of you know what happened?" she asked. Denise inhaled sharply, and closed her eyes. I just watched T, taking in her expressions. I couldn't look away from her. I felt like, if I did, this would all be a dream, and I would wake up and she wouldn't be here. "Neece, what happened?" Denise shook her head, keeping her eyes closed, the tears still streaming down her face. Terra looked at me. "Colby, do you know?" I nodded slowly, unsure of what to say. "I do. Justin told me..but I don't know if it's my place to tell you," I answered. "Where is he? Where's Justin?" She asked, her eyes getting a little frantic. "Is he okay? Oh my God, Colby, is he okay? Was he hurt?" I shook my head, and sat down in the small space beside her, so that I could lay my hands over both of hers. "Shhh, T, he's okay. Justin is fine. He had his arm broken and he was bruised up a little but he's fine. He's actually at work right now." Her breathing slowed as she kept her eyes on mine, and took in my words. As much as my heart broke with how much she cared for him, I just wanted her to be okay and happy. "Good," she replied, licking her dry lips. Denise got up and grabbed the thermos of water for her again, letting her drink her fill, before putting it away. "Please tell me Colby. I can't wait for him to get off of work. I need to know. Why can't I remember?" Her voice paired with her begging eyes had me going under. I couldn't refuse her. "The doctor said that things might be blurry at first but that's okay. It'll come back to you, unless you completely block it out. It's a good sign that you remember us. Hopefully, you remember everyone else too," Denise answered her. T nodded, but kept her begging eyes on me, waiting for the answer to the question that she had asked. I sighed, and held her gaze. "T, you and Justin were headed home from getting something to eat. He saw that you had been texting me, so he got angry and hurt because you lied. Then you admitted that you had kissed me. He took his attention away for one second, and lost control of the car. It started to hydroplane, and he couldn't regain control. Another car crashed into your side, and totaled it out. You took most of the force, your head getting hit very badly in the process. Justin tried to protect you, causing his arm to get broken. It was just an unfortunate accident that almost took you from us," I answered. Right then, I knew that I was leaving her decision completely up to her and her heart. I wasn't going to play devil's advocate and talk about how fucked up it was that Justin had wrecked the car, because he hadn't been driving correctly, or because he should've pulled over when he got that angry. No, that wasn't me. I didn't want her love for me to be circumstantial. I wanted it freely, and deeply, not because she felt coerced. I couldn't do that. "It was an accident T. Justin was and is very worried about you. He's been here almost every day, but he went back to work as soon as he was able. He texts Denise every day if he can't make it, and he always calls the nurses station to check up on you. He loves you," I replied, my voice cracking a little. Terra's brow furrowed as she looked at me in confusion. "Are you taking up for Justin? Is this real? Or did I die and I'm actually in some warped version of heaven right now?"