From Dusk Till Dawn

Chapter Three

 Months passed and finally, we got married and had our honeymoon in Cuba. Everything was just peachy and I knew our love would always conquer all obstacles we face. Amy is all I have ever dreamed of and in my life, I can never ask for more. To me she is safety and comfort; the one I can rely on and lean on at rough times; and the one I'd always want to share all my laughs with. To me, Amy was home.

When we first got married, Amy and I made the decision of not having kids right away and each year we would decide that maybe we need one more year. Besides, we already had our dog, Peanut. It was not that we didn't want kids at all, but we merely were thinking that we had all the time in the world anyways. Unfortunately, we were wrong, though, and we have only realized it years later. But All in all, we had a great life together. Our house was a nice one that had enough rooms and is big enough to include our painting studio in it. Since Amy was the one mastering piano, she had taught me a little bit before I gave it up for I couldn't remember all the notes. Our financial position was what we have always wanted and more. We had one of those happy marriages you see in the movies. Despite our arguments and fights that sometimes take most of our energies, we still manage to come back to one another.

"I want to start our family," She had said to me one night while we were lying on the sofa watching a movie about a woman and her daughter as they try to make the right decisions to keep their relationship going strong despite the hardships they face. I tilted my head to look at her in disbelief, "It's like you just read my mind," I had whispered back and pulled her closer to me. A month later from that day and we found out she was two weeks pregnant. We eagerly made plans, then. The baby's room color, their bed, the toys we'll buy for them. We also started considering names. And we ended up settling for the name Alex. "It's suitable whether it's a boy or a girl," It was Amy's idea and I couldn't agree with her more. One thing I always loved about Amy is her quick way of finding solutions. Like her brain is always working full speed. Not just in situations like baby names, but nearly throughout our relationship, Amy is always the one who comes up with smart solutions. Another thing to add in our small list of dissimilarities; is that I'm the hot-tempered one and she is the calm collected one. Her patience enables her to think clearly unlike me.

Since the day I knew she was pregnant, I have wanted to take her out to our favorite restaurant to celebrate the news. In addition to making it up to her that we had been too busy to go on a date for a while too long. Which makes it somehow my fault. Even if it truly wasn't, my guilt will forever keep eating up at my heart. The thing is, when we were finally free to go on our date, I was in mum's company that day and told her we'll meet at the restaurant right away. She called me when she left home that night and called again when she was 'two minutes away'-quoting her words, and I was already at the restaurant. Excited to see her, I had left the table and went outside to wait for her. Right in front of me, I could see her champagne-colored car approaching. What I also saw, but she didn't, was the sports car speeding her way. The driver, clearly, didn't see Amy either. It all happened so fast that I had to blink many times to make sure it was not just a terrible nightmare. My brain stopped functioning but my body reacted quickly running towards the two crashing cars. The awful noise of the metal being bashed over the concrete was almost deafening. Glass was everywhere on the ground and the scene was horrifying. Tears welled up in my eyes as my heart sunk at the thought of losing Amy. My Amy.

People were everywhere and I could hear sirens and see lights flashing from the corner of my eyes but all I could think of was her. The sight was something I wish could be wiped from my memory forever. The airbags of Amy's car didn't pop out and that made the case worse. Her eyes were closed with blood covering her forehead from a clear wound and her nose was bleeding as well.

A strange numbness invaded my body and my brain stopped working. Only my legs were in charge of my body as I ran toward Amy's wrecked car and attempted to open the door but it was difficult to open. Through the noise around me and the gathering of people, a loud scream was echoing in my head and it took me seconds to realize it was my voice; it was me who was screaming.

People were trying to get me to calm down but my state of frenzy was not to be easily calmed down. When the door of Amy's car finally gave up to my pulling attempts, I kneeled down, scared. "Baby, please, wake up," I sobbed and shook her multiple times to wake up but she didn't. My tears made the scene a blur to me and my head started to throb in pain. The whole situation was overwhelming and too much for me to process. "Amy, baby, please,"

"Amy, wake up,"

And at last, everything looked blurry to me from the effect of the shock. I heard echoes of people around me and a throbbing pain at the back of my head and felt someone shake my body before I was completely and utterly unconscious. I woke up the next morning in a hospital bed. Before I opened my eyes, when I was just starting to regain my consciousness, I imagined myself at home sleeping peacefully. I even believed that when I open my eyes I will see Amy sleeping too beside me, but I was wrong. And only God knows the time I spent in the hospital that month was more than the time I have spent in hospitals in all my past years combined. The first thing I did when I was fully awake, was rushing out of my room to look for Amy. When I asked the nurse about her she guided me to her bed in the intensive care unit. As I was approaching her bed, the doctor was about to leave it at the same time. The name tag at his white coat said, Dr. Paul. I called for him and asked him how she was. He met my eyes apologetically as if pitying me before he spoke telling me she was in a coma "her brain lacks oxygen from the excessive blood loss," His voice was stable as if he was used to delivering bad news every day; which he indeed was. I almost flipped out knowing that comas may last for years. The doctor assured me that her case is not that dangerous and she may be awake in a few days, but it still didn't sink in. "and I am so sorry for your loss but we couldn't save the baby," He had added at last without meeting my eyes. With that, the doctor left the room. Step by step I marched closer to her bed. Her honey brown hair was spread on one side of the white hospital pillow. A small bandage was covering her forehead and a purple bruise was present at the right side of her lips. Her features were relaxed as if she didn't give a care in the whole world; which I wish was true. The pain of losing our child was making my heart ache but what made it worse was how devastated Amy would be when she knows about the tragic loss. Her chest was rising and lowering weakly as she breathed faintly. Even in the hospital gown, she still looked lovely to me. Knowing the loss of our child would break her heart when she awakes, brought tears to my eyes. I wanted to hold her and take all her pain away but the devices attached to her made it impossible. Warily, my hand touched hers in fear that I might hurt her. For some reason, I suddenly felt like she was made of glass and any wrong move would break her. Fighting my tears was painfully difficult while seeing her helpless like this, but I knew I had to.