Justifer: From the beginning

The Accident

Justin looked over at Jen who was fast asleep in the passenger seat. They were on the highway; heading to Virginia to visit his family. It was late and Jen had been working since very early that morning. Almost as soon as they had started on their trip she had lost the battle to keep her eyes open. She was curled up in her seat wearing black leggings, an oversized sweater and on her feet was the most ridiculous pair of socks Justin had ever seen. They were thick and grey with long ears and whiskers sewn on! Her 'sock bunnies', as she called them, were a gift from Lisa who had made them as a prop for their show. Jen loved the things so much that Lisa gave them to her as a gag gift on the night of their final episode. As silly as they were though, he thought they looked absolutely adorable on her.

"Jen?" he whispered, "can you hear me?"

No answer. He reached across and tickled her nose causing Jen to swat at her face in her sleep. He laughed quietly. She was so damned cute.

"Do you even know how gorgeous you are?" he asked very softly, being sure not to wake her. "Some days I still can't believe that you said yes to me. I hope you know how much I love you."

He smoothed the hair away from her face and smiled.

As Justin turned his attention back to the road, he saw the glare of the headlights out of the corner of his eye and he knew what was about to happen. He gripped the wheel and uttered Jennifer's name on the last breath he took before the oncoming car plowed into them.

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Justin awakened slowly. His entire body was in pain. He tried to lift his hand to massage his throbbing head but his arm felt like it was made of lead. He wanted to call out but found that his throat was too dry. Where was he? He wondered. Where was Jen? Justin begged his brain to recall what had happened after they had been hit but his mind was blank. All he could think about was finding Jen. He had to make sure she was okay.

He could make out the blurry form of someone standing over him. Whoever it was shined a bright light in his eyes making his head pound even more. He tried to speak again but all he could manage was a whisper.

"Jen. Where’s Jen? Is she okay? Where is she?"

The nurse looked at him solemnly as she checked his blood pressure and what she said next made his blood run like ice water.

"I'm very sorry Mr. Theroux but  ... she's in a coma. She hasn't woken up since the accident."

"No, no, no." he said over and over as if repeating it often enough would magically make her words untrue. Tears ran from his eyes and wet his hair. "I want to see her. Please. I need to see her. She needs me."

The nurse resisted at first, insisting that he needed to stay in bed and rest, but Justin didn't care. He pleaded with her until she gave in. She called for a wheelchair to take him to his fiancé.

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Jen was scared. She wasn't awake but she wasn't quite asleep either. She was stuck in some weird place in-between. Where was Justin? She felt alone and it made her want to cry. Just then she felt someone take her hand. 'Justin?' her mind called, though her lips made no sound.

Justin looked at Jen lying in the hospital bed. She looked so small and so fragile. One of her eyes was bruised and swollen and there was a long angry-looking gash that extended across her forehead from her hairline to just above her right brow. A thick cast encased her left arm and there was a tube going down her throat held in place by medical tape. How he wished it were him lying there instead. He took her hand in his, wanting to absorb all her pain, and he spoke to her.