The Best Part of Hello [sample]

08

dedicated to HopeYouRemember for her lovely comment on the previous chapter!

Chapter Eight

I MUST have fallen asleep again because my head feels heavy when I wake up. The room smells of soap, the lemon kind that reminds you of detergent, and of home. I blink mindlessly, focusing back on a figure beside me - Adam. He's got a thin needle in his hand and is trying to stick it into a small jar of something...morphine. It takes me a moment to focus on what it is.

"Where did you get that?" I cough out every syllable so I'm not even sure if he heard me. Adam spins around, his green eyes peering at me with a worried frown. He looks exhausted. Dark bags cloud under his eyes and I can tell from the number of times he blinks that he is trying to keep himself awake.

He forces a smile. "Rise and shine, you,"

He starts to lightly shake the bottle of morphine. "So, it turns out that the first aid kit was found conveniently under the sink, and it had this baby in it. I'm not a hundred percent sure this is the real deal, but it's worth the risk."

I pull a face. "So, my life is literally in the hands of a vial of could-be morphine?" I try to pull myself upright and it takes a couple of attempts. I feel like my entire body is heavy as if it's been weighed down. My leg feels numb and I groan as I try to move them.

"Yeah," Adam laughs, "basically."

I try to smile back at him but my back aches from lying down for so long and my neck is stiff and rigid. "How's the pain?" Adam asks worriedly.

"On a scale of one to ten, then right now about a seven," my eyes drift onto a piece of glass the size of my hand, covered in blood and lying on the kitchen worktop. "God, what is that?"

"That wasn't..." I trail off because I already know the answer. It was in my leg.

"Well, it was poking out of your leg," Adam says as if he can read my mind.

"Oh my god."

"It's healing well," Adam explains, sitting on the edge of the table. He's changed since the last time I saw him and is wearing a plain black t-shirt that has a pocket on the right side. I notice a pile of dirty clothing beside the shard and can't stop the feeling of guilt that crawls through my body for getting blood on his clothes.

"The morphine has helped loads and the fact that your brain has been slipping into unconsciousness isn't ideal but seems to have stopped the swelling."

"Oh," I say because nothing else feels right. Silence engulfs the room, but I can't stop looking at him. Adam blinks twice, his mouth twitching as if he is itching to say something. He's still fiddling with the needle and morphine.

"What is it?" I ask slowly.

"Hmm?"

"What are you desperate to say?" I repeat again.

He blushes from being caught out. It's only slight, but I catch it. "Nothing," he says shortly but later adds, "it's none of my business, I mean I barely even know you." He emphasizes what he says, and it sounds like it's more important from his accent.

I roll my eyes. "Adam, just spit it out already,"

"I heard that your boyfriend cheated on you and I was just gonna say—"

"Kayla!" Damon bursts through the room, arms wide and a bunch of something chocolaty under his arm. Three steps forward, then he reaches for me and wraps his arms around my neck. My back hurts with the strain but I make the effort to hug him back, but he pulls away soon after and I'm relieved.