Secrets of the Past

Chapter 56

Brian sat down in the chair next to her bed and took her hand in his.

"How do you really feel?" he asked. "Are you in a lot of pain?"

"Not really. My head hurts but it's like a dull ache. The morphine must be working overtime."

"Tell me if it stops working and I'll get a nurse."

"I will."

"I'm glad you're here," she said as her fingers grazed the top of his hand.

"I'm not going anywhere. You're stuck with me."

He leaned over and kissed her cheek. There was a knock on the door and Brian turned around to find a doctor standing there. He immediately stood up and pushed the chair aside.

"You're awake!," the doctor said. "Fantastic!"

He was a cheery, older man with a big smile.

"Are you the husband?" the doctor asked Brian.

"No, boyfriend."

"Well, boyfriend, I'm Dr. Abrams," he said, holding out his hand.

"Brian," he said, shaking it.

"I'll be taking care of this young lady while she's here." He turned to face Giovanna. "How are you feeling?"

"Ok," Giovanna said. "Sore. And I my head hurts."

"Yes, I imagine so. That was quite an accident I hear."

He checked her over and asked her some questions to test her memory before leaving the room.

Brian sat back down beside her.

"Do you remember the accident?" he asked.

"No. I just remember driving home."

"Where were you coming from?"

"Chloe's." She closed her eyes for a minute, the memory coming back to her. He could tell it had not gone well, and while he wanted to know what had happened, now was not the time.

"Get some rest. I'll be here when you wake up."

He gently kissed her lips and she closed her eyes. She was back out almost immediately. He sat back in the chair and watched her sleep for a while. When he felt himself getting drowsy he got up and went out into the hall to call his friend Bryan.

"Hello?"

"Hey man."

"Hey Q. What's going on?"

"I just wanted to let you know Giovanna was in a car accident," Brian said.

"Is she ok?"

"Yes and no. She's pretty beat up but she's been awake and she doesn't seem to have any serious head trauma."

"I'm sorry to hear this man. When did it happen?" Bryan asked.

"Last night. I've been here since about 11:00 last night."

"And she's ok with you being there?"

"Yeah, things are ok. I know she talked to her sister but I don't know the extent of the conversation. Not really a good time to be diving into that."

"Yeah, I guess not," Bryan said. "Well do you need anything? Do you want me to come up there?"

"Nah, you don't need to do that. I don't think I'm going to make it down to do the podcast next week, though."