Looking For You

Chapter 44 - Alter Ego

Chapter 44 - Alter Ego

I am woken by the sound of soft voices, increasing in volume as my body begins to wake from my deep sleep. Warmth is all I feel, and I want to stay in this position forever. But I know I have to wake up to the people wanting me to wake up, not even knowing where I am, completely forgetting my whereabouts and what happened yesterday.

Slowly opening my eyes, I rise from my position, fluttering my eyelids wide open to clear my vision. My mind recalls yesterdays events; seeing Tibby in hospital and sleeping here overnight. My train of thought is back, and I look around myself, seeing Tibby asleep beside me and two nurses looking down on us with confused expressions. I swallow, tasting the stale saliva go down my throat, careful not to open my mouth too wide in fear of poisoning the nurses. Tibby hasn’t moved from her spot at all; wow, she must really be in a lot of pain.

“Miss, you must leave. Visiting hours are over…” One of the nurses speaks with a shaky voice, once I look alive. I nod, lifting myself from the bed to step back onto the ground with my two feet. I realise they want me to leave now by their awkward stares and equipment in hand, telling me that they must be doing a checkup on Tibby. I nod, taking one last glance at Tibby before taking my bag and scurrying away, closing the door behind me.

I feel like I’ve become closer to Tibby, just from this one visit — even though it was a one way conversation. I felt good inside, just being next to her. Her presence brought back many memories of us being so close together, it almost felt like we never fought. I even dreamt of our past and our future together. I wish I could bring back those days sooner rather than later.

I keep quiet as I make my way through the halls and into the elevator, retracing my steps from yesterdays journey. The lobby is quieter, obviously being early in the morning. I don’t even know what time it is — oh, I just remembered that I promised Mason we would hang out at the mall today. I completely forgot, and I suddenly become more alive as I pick up the speed of my feet to get to my car quicker. Once I step outside, the sun has just come up — it must be quarter to seven then. Pulling out my phone, I check the time. Yep, quarter to seven. And I also have loads of messages from Christian, and one from Mason, hiding under the load of messages from my boyfriend.

Once I get to my car, I hop in, sitting in the comfort of my own space. The air is cold and the steering wheel brings goosebumps to my fingertips. But before I start driving, I check Mason’s message and see that he sent it yesterday. Oh crap. I hope he doesn’t think that I’m ignoring him or anything. I unlock my phone to Mason’s message, reading over the words that make me feel guilty.

Mason: Hey, are we still going out tomorrow?

We made plans on Friday to go out to the mall for lunch and a bit of a walk around. I bet he was thinking about that all weekend since he asked me out as a romantic way. I felt bad to reject him, but Christian is my one and only; I’m not reliving the past. I get back onto the message and produce an answer that will hopefully cheer him up.

Aimee: Sorry for my late reply, I had some issues to take care of. And yeah, we’re still going out today! I’ll meet you there at ten.

I then get onto Christian’s messages, laughing at almost every one of them. He knew where I was, but he didn’t know I’d be sleeping there overnight. He probably thought I got into a car crash while driving home or someone kidnapped me. I just shake my head and send him one message to prove that I’m still alive.

Aimee: I’ll be back in half an hour. I just slept over at the hospital.

Putting my phone on standby, I start the engine, the radio automatically turning on to a laid back song. It puts me in the mood for driving and it lifts my spirits. I hit the road, reeling my mind back into reality and my usual routine for everyday. Then I think about what I’m going to wear for this outing with Mason. Pfft, first world problems, eh?