Familiar Strangers

Chapter 17 - Haunted

Chapter 17 - Haunted

Something's gone terribly wrong, you're all I wanted. Come one, come on don't leave me like this.

Can't breathe whenever you're gone

Can't go back I'm haunted...

Louis

It's been three days, three whole days since I last saw those blue eyes that drive me crazy and feel like home. I haven't left the hospital but once each day to go shower and change into clean clothes. Other than that I've spent my hours sitting next to her either looking or talking to her. Sometimes I read to her, sometimes I sing, sometimes I just stare at her and cry. Cry because this is partly my fault. It was my fault she left in such a hurry and that she was crying unconsolably. And cry because I'm afraid she'll never wake up so I can tell her how I feel, so I can see those blue eyes and get lost in them, so we can move on. The tears won't come now as I stare at her tiny body so pale she gets lost in the white of the sheets. Her brown hair fans out on the pillow making a sharp contrast against her skin. Her colorless face highlighting the harsh red cuts and bruises. Every time I see her like this I feel like my lungs are being tightened by a noose and I can't breathe. The doctors say she should wake up but as the days pass I feel my hope falling. She was unconscious when she arrived but woke up a few times while they were working on her. They had to get her into surgery to repair her leg and stop the bleeding and after that they bandaged up her head and right shoulder. Apparently the force of the crash caused her right shoulder to pop out and her head to smash into what they guess was the window. Other than her leg and head there were no other serious injuries and I know she's lucky to have suffered no permanent damage let alone be alive. Its been utter chaos these last few days with calling Victoria to tell her about the accident, with Kiran's anxiety attack and just trying to hold it together. Victoria has been by her daughter's side and by mine since she arrived early yesterday morning. She's stayed strong through everything and I can't help but admire her. Victoria was so relieved and happy to see me that when she hugged me I broke down in her arms. Will had been like a second father and Victoria like a second mother so it felt safe. She calmed me down and told me Grace was going to be fine. Grace. I can't stop repeating her name in my head. Grace. Grace. Maybe if I say it long enough she'll wake up. Simon came by just a couple of hours ago to see how she was doing and to tell us that we didn't have to go into the studio for a while.

"Grace, can you hear me love? Please just come back to me. Come back to us. Stay with me. You can't leave me, I ...I love you." I sigh and brush my fingertips across her face. Her skin is so soft; I love touching her skin. "I forgive you for not saying anything. Your father wouldn't want us to be fighting and well neither does your mother. God I hadn't realized how much I missed her and how much I miss my own mother. She knows everything." I chuckle to myself. "She got it out of me. You know how she can be." I stay silent for a minute just staring at her. My heart beating painfully in my chest.

"Your mother told me Will left me his beloved piano. I haven't seen that thing in years and I can still picture it in my mind perfectly. We used to spend hours playing and singing with him and your mother. I remember Christmas eight years ago when both of our families sang christmas carols while Will played. We were so happy then. Everything seemed so simple and then you left the year after and it was awful. Those first months were horrible. I found myself walking to your house automatically and then my heart broke when I saw it dark and empty. I used to go to the park and sit on the swings and think about you. I still have it you know." I wrap my left hand around the metal key hanging just above my heart. "The key. I wear it around my neck as a reminder of our promise and a reminder of you. " I smile remembering all the times I felt it against my skin and felt like Grace was there with me.