Then *Poof* I'm Always There: Book 3 (Final) #Wattys2014

Chapter 18: Unexpected

It's just a bad day, not a bad life. -Unknown

~Lexi's P.O.V.~

They said he'd be okay. His wounds could have been fatal if they hadn't acted when they did. Thank god...I was scared. So scared. I didn't think he'd make it. There's still a small part of me that thinks he won't. But the beeping of the machine relieves my worries, if only a little. His chest moved up and down with each breath he took, the oxygen mask providing clean air for him.

Every once in a while I checked on his stitches, making sure they did not open up. With every clean check, my hopes of him waking up soon became higher and higher, but to no avail. How long does anesthesia last, anyway?

Even though it was still dark out, the early morning sun not too far from rising, I walked over to the blinds and closed them. Whether he woke up soon or later today, I don't think he'd like to strain his eyes and see the world outside just yet. I turned back around and returned to my seat next to his bedside. I gently pulled his sheets down a little and lifted his hospital gown to check on the patch covering his stitches. I'd been checking on them every hour on the dot. I don't know why, but I did. It was still secure, so I pulled the covers back over him and took hold of his resting hand again.

His mind must've been somewhere nice, since his face never showed any pain or discomfort; only peace. There were so many times while I waited for him to take his glasses off the counter on the other side of the room and balance them back onto the bridge of his straight nose, with eyes wide open and a smile so bright. But he stayed with the same facial expression.

I must've dosed off at some point, not having a wink of sleep since the previous night. My head woke up before my eyes did. It felt like I was back home in bed, waking up the the soft touch of Mark stroking my hair like he used to always do. He hadn't done that in a long time, and I wished the sensation would never leave. I forced myself to keep my subconscious like this for as long as possible. But even as I opened my eyes, I still felt fingers running through my hair. Rubbing my eyes to rid myself of the blurry vision, I raised my head expecting it to be my mind; to find Mark still asleep.

Instead, I found him awake, his hand on my head and that goofy smile of his plastered on his face.

"Morning, Dino."

"MARK!" I jumped up and poised to jump onto him, but retreated quickly and stopped myself. That would NOT be a good thing to jump on him so soon! Or even yelling for that matter. "Sorry. I'm just...ugh!" I gently leaned down and threw my arms around his neck, to which he reacted by putting his own around me. "I'm just so happy you're okay." I could feel the tears threatening to overflow.

"Don't worry. I'm not going anywhere." The threats became real. Drop after drop of tears fell onto my arms and his hospital attire, but I stood back and wiped them away.

"I'm so sorry I put you through that. You have no idea how bad I feel."

"Don't apologize. It isn't your fault."

"It is."

"Honey, please. Don't blame yourself for something you had no control over." He reached his hand out, asking to hold my hand. I obliged. "So...I guess we need to talk about...last night..." he said, massaging the side of my hand with his thumb.

"Oh. Um...yeah. I guess so." I really didn't want to be reminded of the events. The man who used to be my friend, my crush, my boyfriend, and my abuser...the one guy who had made a big difference in my life before and after Mark...he was gone. Forever. Yet I couldn't cry for him. I could only hope he was in a better place.