Forgetting the Apocalypse

Bonus Chapter: Clean Slate pt. 1

*Fredi's Pov

Two months.

That's how long it's been since I burned my old house to the ground and moved here. It's also how long it's been since Mara got into her car wreck. Every day that passed was excruciating, I didn't even want to know how Roone felt.

I hate to admit that after the first month, I started waiting for the call from the hospital telling me that she's finally passed. That her brain has ceased all activity and that I have the choice on whether or not to pull the plug.

I end up working myself into a panic until I'm sitting on the floor trying to catch my breath.

The only thing that helped was finally being able to talk to the boys. They still haven't gone to the hospital to see her, but I've kept them updated on her condition. I still hadn't told  Roone what the doctor said. At the time, I didn't see the reason. If she wakes up and remembers, then I cause him to worry. If she wakes and doesn't remember, then it's not like he has something that will magically cause her to remember. If she doesn't wake...

Nope, we're not going there. 

I was tempted to laugh at the way I so easily found myself going in an almost endless cycle about it.

As I pulled into the visitor's parking lot, I thought about what the hospital staff thought about me. For two months, I've been coming in on my days off and reading her to her. I hope that the sound of my voice is enough to wake her.

Did they think I was a fool? A lost cause?

Well, I guess it didn't matter. Nothing would stop me from being by her side.

*******

"Jaxon took me to the point in which you had just found out that you were dealing with a vampire.." I stopped reading when I heard an uptick in her monitor.

I stared at it for a full minute before going back to the book. 

"..could you continue where he left off'

I'm not sure that you are authorized to receive that information.

I was trying to think..."

I heard it again. Closing the book, I moved the seat a bit so I could stare down the monitor. It's almost as if daring it to continue playing tricks on me. But it wasn't.

This time, I saw the monitor give an extra beep. Then another. And then another until it started rapidly beating. For a moment, I thought I was going to have to shout for a doctor like they do in movies and shows, but a nurse was already coming in and checking her.

It was two hours later that I was able to see her. I swear you'd think I was walking into a police station for a confession with the way I was sweating.

However, unlike the station, the relief I felt when I finally looked at the person on the other side of the door was enough to almost bring me to my knees. It was small and weak, but her smile was the best thing I'd seen in a long time.

The doctor was finishing up with her as he wrote down in her chart. "Hello there Fredi, I just finished telling Miss Soles here that despite napping for two months straight, she needs to rest. So, no overdoing any reunions, celebrations, moving around, and even conversations. The last thing we want to do is send your body into shock."

"You got it, sir." Even though his tone was light, you could tell he was very serious.

And he was right. The last thing I wanted was to get her too excited or overwhelmed that she ended up in a critical condition.

Once he was done with her, I couldn't help myself anymore and rushed in to hug her. Of course, I was gentle with all her cords and her sore body.  Still, I finally felt that cuteness aggression that people talk about because I just wanted to squeeze her  tight and never let her go. 

When I pulled away, I finally asked, "Tigress, just what in the hell were you doing driving?" I tried to keep the scolding tone out but failed.

I hated seeing the way she winced, but at least she still remembered.

"Have you heard of that rash that's been going around?" she asked, I nodded.

"Well, Mama thought it was just a human thing. Actually, we all did. I kinda still do, anyways, you know how Mama is. She flies off the handle, going batshit crazy one moment, and the next, she's giving you everything you've ever wanted. She had one of those moments, and this time, her apology came in the form of a puppy.

Like always, I got suckered in and forgot what the hell she had done in the first place to hurt me. I was just so happy to see the little thing. Everything was going great. No one  bothered my puppy and I."

I don't like the way she was starting to talk in the past tense.

"I was training him the way you would any other dog. But then, he started acting weird. Not aggressive or anything, not like the animals that have been on the news. Just weird, kinda like a horse before a storm. He  got clingy, licking me every chance he got. I didn't think anything of it until I started getting sick.

It started out as simple fatigue. But then, I was having trouble holding anything down. Of course, that didn't  go over well with Mama. It took everything in me to convince her that Puppy wasn't to blame. However, the rash started appearing.  Especially in the places that he had licked. My neck, arms, hands, and legs."

She broke down sobbing. It didn't  take a genius to know the fate of  Puppy. Unintentionally or accidentally, he "hurt" Mara. Therefore, he was a threat to her. Mama can kill someone and go make  a sandwich right over your dead body. Puppy wouldn't have even taken more than a flick of her wrist.

"Shh, shh. I'm so sorry, sweetie." There was nothing else I could say. It  was such a typical thing for Mama to do. Especially to Mara. Hurt her, giver her something so nice, almost caring, then rip it away from her. Leaving Mama the one thing that is  centered or constant in Mara's life.

It won't take away the pain, but it might be a start. "Mara, what if I  told you that you never had to go back? That you never had to see Mama and those crazy fuckers again?"

She looked at me like I had grown a second head but there was no denying the smile and hope in her eyes.