Leah Archer was just 12 years old when she hit her head on a rock and fell into a coma, one that doctors weren't sure she'd ever come back from. But when she wakes up four years later, she faces the struggle of recovery and fights to regain any hint...
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5 months ago
The first time I stepped outside in four years was one of the happiest moments in my life.
There was absolutely nothing more beautiful than the way that the sky was painted blue and the way that the birds sang like nobody was listening. My hospital room felt suffocating, no matter how many flower vases and items from home that my parents brought in. It wasn't the same as being able to go outside.
But that was about to change, and it was all thanks to Noah.
He had somehow managed to convince my father that it was a good idea to let him take me outside and into the garden of the hospital. Despite having spent so much time here growing up with my dad as a doctor, I had never been in the garden.
I was excited, though I wasn't sure if the greenery was completely responsible for those emotions.
From what I could remember, Noah was a close friend of my brother, and someone I had a crush on at some point when I was younger, but I didn't know the extent of his role in my past life. I could ask someone, but there was a pretty good chance that would bring up some negative memories for some people, and that's not what I wanted.
A knock at the door surprised me, bringing me out of my thoughts. I turned my head, looking away from the window and towards the front of the room where Noah peeked in. He smiled when his eyes found my form, and I gave him a small grin back. "Are you ready?" He asked.
I looked back at the window before realizing it would only be a few minutes before I could see it all up close from outside. "Yeah."
He walked over to where I was sitting, flipping up the breaks on my wheelchair and pushing me towards the door. He closed it behind him before the two of us headed into the hallway together. We didn't talk on the way downstairs, the two of us wallowing in a comfortable silence. I'm sure we both had more on our minds than what was happening in these halls.
The elevator dinged as it reached the ground floor, but Noah lead us left instead of right, which leads to the front doors. These corridors are unfamiliar to me, despite the numerous hours I spent exploring these halls as a child. Vague memories flashed back to me every time I found myself wandering around in the hospital, but nothing came to me then. It was new.
We take a few turns through the labyrinth of rooms before coming up to a large door with no windows. Noah reached past my chair to push the door open, and light immediately hit my eyes.
As we moved into the garden, the sight in front of me took my breath away. Despite the heat of summer, all the plants were flourishing. The flowers lining the walkway were bright and colorful, all plants I wish I knew the name of. The trees hung down over what looked like a small pond, and the sight of movement below the water sparked excitement within me.
Noah pushed me far enough that we were next to the pond, and he parked my chair next to a stone bench where he took a seat.
We didn't say anything, much like on the walk to the garden. We sat side by side, coexisting but not interacting. My eyes traveled all through the greenery around us; across the branches of the trees, over the ripples in the koi pond, to the luscious grass beneath my chair. I longed to feel the blades on my fingers and toes, my heart clenching at the idea that I would be confined to a wheelchair for even longer.
It's almost as if Noah sensed my thought. I saw out of the corner of my eye when he stood up, turning towards me. "What are you doing?" I ask, caught off guard when one of his hands slipped behind my back and the other under my knees.
He didn't answer, instead lifting me out of the chair, squatting down to place me on the grass next to it with my back leaning up against the bench.
I was frozen for a few seconds before I relaxed, realizing when he had done. My fingers reached down to my sides, weaving through the blades of grass and digging into the dirt. The texture was familiar, yet foreign. Something I definitely missed.
"Have you been here before?" I asked Noah, breaking the silence surrounding us.
I looked over in time to see him nod. "When I first had surgery on my leg I used to hate going to therapy, so I would try to get out of it by getting lost in the hospital. I came across it one day, and I've been here a few times since then. I thought you'd like it."
I smiled at him. "I do. Thanks."
We fell back into silence, but it wasn't uncomfortable by any means. I breathed in the fresh air, listening to the birds and the city sounds. For the first time since I woke up, it didn't feel like anything was wrong in my life.
It felt amazing.
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Short chapter, because...
We're nearly at the end! One chapter will be posted each day for the next few days. They'll be short, like less than a page each, and will lead up to the end of the book, so keep your eyes open for them.
