The Night We Met

Chapter 43

Thalia's POV:

"Is she okay?" I ask the nurses as I was sat on the chair beside Ri's hospital bed in the early hours of Sunday morning. I was more than stressed right now. Not even because I looked a mess but because I know exactly who did this to her. It was Aiden. Oliver was the first one to find Riley before he came over and told me. Devon was the one who drove both Michelle and Jess home but Oliver and I decided to stay with Ri. I'd texted Giselle so she was all caught up on the news and would be accompanying Michelle tonight to make sure she goes straight to bed and gets up to no antics. 

"We've run a few tests and scans," the nurse tells me, going through some files. "It seems the patient's been slightly dehydrated and that added onto the impact of the punches. There seems to be symptoms of stress and anxiety too. It doesn't look like she's been eating properly for days and her blood pressure has increased," she recites. I sigh and look down as I squeeze Riley's hand while it was linked together with mine. "We'll see if we can give her some Stress Relief vitamins and we'll prescribe her a few tablets to weaken the pain of her bruises. if you could please make sure she doesn't overwork her body for the next couple of days, it would be gladly appreciated but we may have to keep her here for the rest of the night," Oliver and I are told and we both nod our heads in understanding before the nurse smiles at us and leaves the room.

"What do you want me to do?" Oliver asks, placing his hand on my back. "Shall I call James? He deserves to know, right?" he questions but I shrug my shoulders, sighing. I had no idea how much James knew about Riley and Aiden. I didn't know if he knew anything at all, and when I look up at the clock on the wall, I find it was far too late to call him anyway. It's gone past 1 a.m. and I know for a fact Riley wouldn't want me to bother him about her. "I'll go and get us some water, I'll be back in a minute," he tells me, acknowledging my silence and I nod my head.

It's when he leaves that I get a text from Giselle asking what was happening but as I begin to text her back after letting go of Ri's hand, she shuffles around a little and squints her eyes. I immediately put my phone inside my handbag and then I shuffle closer to her as I hold her hand tighter.

"Thalia?" she asks, opening her eyes slightly. I smile at her and nod, trying not to cry. I can't believe the state she's in all because of one guy. A guy who should have left her life ages ago.

"Yeah, it's me. You're okay, Ri. You're in the hospital, okay," I inform her. She begins to sit up a little, shaking her head. She lets go of my hand to rub her eyes but after she does so and she looks at me, her lips begin to quiver. Tears brew in the sockets of her eyes and it makes my heart break for her. She doesn't deserve this. She really doesn't. 

"Aiden," she whispers, her body beginning to tremble. "Wh-Where is he?"

"He's not here, don't worry. You're safe."

"It hurts," she cries to me as a tear rolls down her cheek. "It hurts so much, Thal. So much."

"Riley," I begin but she shakes her head, looking down at her hands as she fiddled with them.

"I love you, Thalia," she tells me. "Really, I do. But all I really want to see and hear from right now is James," she whispers.

"Ri, I'm sorry but James isn't-"

"I'm here," a sudden voice says from the doorway. Both of us quickly turn our heads around to see him standing there, his tall, dark-haired self in his black leather jacket, jeans trousers and black t-shirt, his heart clearly breaking as his face contorts when his gaze meets Riley's.

"James," she whispers, her voice breaking. He doesn't smile. He doesn't frown. He doesn't say a single word until his feet carry him towards the bed Riley was sat on and he immediately sits down on it beside her, pulling her into his arms. Riley cries into his shoulder and I smile softly, picking up my bag as I get up to leave the two of them alone.

James's POV:

She looked broken. As if she'd been whacked right until she was nothing but skin and bones. As I held her, she felt light in my arms and she looked exhausted. There were plasters all over her, including one on her cheek. I rocked her in my arms, my hands petting her brown hair while she buried her head in my neck. Being here with her just felt right and I couldn't have decided to come back to her at a better time than now, when she needs me most.

"James," she cries again, whimpering and murmuring into my chest. I shush her and kiss her forehead multiple times, not letting her go. She needs me and that's exactly where I'm going to be for her. I pull away from her for a moment, holding her cheeks in my hands as tears roll down her face. Resting my forehead against hers, I use my thumbs to wipe away each droplet and I kiss the tip of her nose softly before pulling her into me again.

"I'm here, Riley," I whisper into her ear as I hold her. Sitting down properly on the bed, I pull her onto my lap and cradle her just like I had done the first time I witnessed her having a panic attack in her dorm room. "You're okay," I tell her but she shakes her head, wrapping her arms around my torso.

"I'm not okay, James. I'm not . . ."

"You will be," I say. I kiss the top of her head once again and close my eyes as I hug her. "I promise."

"You promised he wouldn't hurt me," she whimpers. "But he did."

"Riles, I promised you that I'd be here straight away if he did hurt you. And look where I am now," I say but even though it goes silent between us, I couldn't help but feel guilty. I never should have gone on that tour to Montreal in the first place. I should have stayed here with her. I should have seen this coming. She knew something bad was going to happen, yet I didn't listen to her. Not listening to her has got to be one of the biggest mistakes I've ever made.

"I love you," I whisper but when I look down, I notice her eyes were shut and she was hugging me like a sleeping koala hugging a tree branch. I press my lips to her head once more, allowing them to linger as I hold her close to me.

I don't break my promises. Especially promises I've made to people I love. But the one promise I'm going to have to break is not hurting Aiden. I'm coming for him.