In Her Sleep

Somewhere Peaceful

Layla squeezes her hands yet again, her nerves are getting worse. She has been up for hours wondering what today will bring. His words were so casual but she can't help being nervous about it.

She glances at the phone he gave her yesterday. She had decided to put it away from her because she is afraid she might just end up calling him or something.

"Stop it Layla!" Her mind screams at her.
"What about Simon?"

"Simon...yes"

She picks up her phone and decides to call her fiancèe. Maybe he will distract her. She laughs when she thinks about it. Up until today she thought she had been so taken with Simon. She wouldn't have imagined that she would use him as a distraction. But before she can press any digit a message comes through and it's from Caleb. Her first instinct after seeing the message is to drop the phone and it lands softly on the bed. She spends a few minutes just looking at it afraid of seeing what the message says. But her curiosity gets the better of her and she picks it up again. She takes a deep breath before clicking the message open.

"Sleep Layla"

Just those two words and she can't breathe. The butterflies in her stomach have just been awakened and they are going crazy. A smile forms on her lips as she decides to text him back.

"I can't, you are keeping me awake. So you go to sleep."

She looks at it before pressing the send button. She can't help think about how true her reply is. A beep on her phone a second later makes her sweat a little bit.

"I can't, I have to watch over my favourite patient. So you go to sleep."

She closes her eyes, afraid to play this game that she is terribly losing.

"Good night Caleb." She hits send and switches off the phone. She regrets getting it now. She is a grown woman and she knows what is going on. And her problem is, why she is going along with it. In her defence though, it feels so right. Something she had never felt in her relationship with Simon.

"Simon..." she whispers his name. She can't believe how torn she is feeling right now. Never in a million years did she think she would find herself in such a position. She closes her eyes as she forces herself to sleep, determined to get even a few minutes of sleep before she gets a headache.

....

"Hi"

"Hey... what are you and what did you do to my patient?"

Caleb is looking her over and she smiles nervously.
Knowing she might go out of this room she had asked for Mavis's help earlier to get ready. So she had ditched her hospital gown for a peach floral dress and tied her hair in a ponytail. She just didn't want to look like a helpless human outside of this room.

"Uh..."
She is still looking for what to say when he comes and stands before her.

"I love it, you sure do look beautiful."

"You need to stop doing that." She looks away from him to the beautiful garden outside her window. She is completely at his mercy and she knows he knows it.

"Am sorry" his breath fans her neck as he whispers those words to her and she knows she is in trouble.

"Can we uh...just go please."

She looks up at him and finds him studying her.

"Caleb?"

"Oh yeah right."

He first gets the door open and comes back round her wheel chair and they go out.

"So where are we going? And please don't say its a surprise"
They are now in the long corridors and he is pushing her wheel chair gently avoiding hitting into anyone.

"I was gonna say its a surprise but for your sake I won't."

"Well?"

"Somewhere peaceful."

"That doesn't say much you know?"

"It's the only thing I can say."

She hears him laugh behind her and she smiles. This is the first time she has heard him laugh and as weird as it maybe she finds the sound of his laughter beautiful.

They walk in comfortable silence each lost in their own thoughts. Layla's own confusion with her feelings is getting worse. She puts up a smile on her face for the people watching her being wheeled away.

"So favourite patient huh?" Layla speaks first.

"Yep..."

She can tell he is smiling.

"Why?"

"Isn't it obvious?"

She turns back a little to face him. He has a glint of mischief in his eyes and she just furrows her eye brows.

"Because you my dear are the first patient to ever listen to me."

"Is that right?"

Her heart feels a little disappointment and she wonders why. Was she expecting something else? She finally turns away from him with a slight smile.

"Are you sure? I really doubt it's entirely true." She looks ahead at a little boy being hugged by his mother. Her heart warms up and she can imagine that being her someday.

"Oh it's very true."

They are now outside the hospital and he stops and comes in front. He crouches before her and looks straight at her with his hands resting on either side of the arms for the wheel chair. She feels totally trapped by him and looks anywhere but him.

"I have been in the E.R many times and there has never been a time when a patient only responded to my voice ever."

Layla is stunned. She can't believe what she is hearing or maybe she has misunderstood him.

"What does that even mean?"

"Remember you said you could only hear my voice when you were in your coma?"

"Yes but..."

"Well then, there is your answer and proof. "
He gets up and goes back to pushing the wheel chair.

"Does that mean...."

"It definitely does."

This is weird and she can't believe it.
"How is it even possible?" She mumbles to herself still stunned by his words.

"How far is our destination again?"

She decides to change the subject. It's too early to be thinking too much for her and that is what she was beginning to do.

"Almost there."

She laughs when she hears the enthusiasm in his voice. She is sure there will be a lot of laughter on this trip and she loves it already.