Oculus | J. Todd ✔

[10]

The doorbell rang and along with it heavy knocks sounded shortly after. Evelyn stopped playing the piano and listened closely. When the knocks didn't fade, she carefully made her way out, "who's there?"

There was no reply just heavy breathing from the other side as if the person outside was having difficulty in speaking up.

"Who's..." But then her voice trailed off realizing that it could be Jason so she pulled open the door.

"Evelyn..." Jason almost collapsed forward and she struggled to hold him up straight. He was bleeding, his clothes were tattered as if he had just stepped out of an explosion and even though she couldn't see him, she knew he was extremely injured.

"Jason?" She tried to support him but it was no easy task. However, she placed his arm around her shoulder, holding on tightly as she dragged him inside. "What happened to you?"

He didn't reply but the exhaustion struck with full force when she helped him to the couch. Darkness swam in his vision and he couldn't even see her properly, pain stabbing him in every part of his body.

Evelyn was quite worried for him and the concern was evident in her voice, "Jason..."

He struggled to keep his eyes open but couldn't, "I'm... Going to be... Fine."

Her hands cupped his face, feeling the roughness of his skin and the blood trickling down his forehead. "Wait here. I'll ... I'll bring some water, okay? And then you clearly need to be patched up."

His hand reached out as if to stop her but she had already left, returning shortly afterwards with a glass of water that she carefully made him drink. But her words drowned as the darkness overpowered him and he slipped into unconsciousness.

"Jay? Jason, hey," she shook him slightly but got no response, making her concern increase. She grabbed his wrist, searching for the pulse and let out a sigh of relief when she felt the veins throbbing under her fingers.

He was alive but not conscious.

Knowing that she had to help him, she fetched a blanket and covered him up the best she could. Then softly feeling the injuries on his face and arms, she tried her level best to treat the cuts and bandage him where needed.

It took a lot of time but she sat there on the floor, working diligently and with great care not to hurt him more than he already was.

It was one of the few times that Evelyn felt her inability to see as a burden for she knew it would have been twice easier to patch him up otherwise.

However, she knew she couldn't so anything about that and willed herself to focus on treating him instead of having such thoughts. After she had bandaged him up, she gently interlaced her fingers through his, head resting close to his shoulder as she closed her eyes.

She couldn't bring herself to leave him there in such a state so she stayed there beside him, drifting off to sleep eventually.

***

Jason woke up when he felt her hand disentangle from his own. The light struck him and he had to blink twice to get himself adjusted to it. The first thing he saw was Evelyn's beautiful face as she came towards him, her hand checking his temperature and features evident of concern.

She seemed to have not realized that he was awake as she bent down, placing a delicate kiss on his forehead. But before she could pull apart, he wrapped his arms round her waist, pulling her close as he sat up.

She had not been expecting that but a relieved smile broke out on her face, "you're awake?" 

"Yeah."

"How are you feeling now?"

"Much better," he replied, "you bandaged me?"

"I tried," she took in a deep breath but he gently stroked her cheek, bluish green eyes taking in each feature of hers.

"Thank you," Jason pulled her closer, his forehead resting against hers, noticing the prominent red shade on her cheeks. 

And it was at that moment realization struck him hard; he had cheated death once again but if he hadn't, it would have been his fault for orchestrating his own demise and leaving behind a trail of bleeding hearts.

There were so many people like him who burning in the fire of revenge neglected their loved ones entirely, not thinking the effect it could have on them. There was a very low chance of his own survival in his plot of revenge even though he had thought the entire plan out thoroughly.

And right then his mind drifted off to what could have happened if he hadn't survived. 

"Jason," her voice shook him out of his wild train of thoughts and he felt glad that she spoke up or else the guilt was getting too much to bear. "Have you done what you were planning to?"

He recalled he had told her briefly that he had returned to fulfill a purpose and she was probably referring to that. "Yes. But I don't feel like it was the right thing to do now."

"And why is that?"

"Because all these years, I kept thinking about myself only. I never thought about all the people who were connected to me," his fingers weaved in through her light brown tresses, eyes focused on her, "people like you, Eve. I never thought what would happen to you if I never came back."

Her eyes had welled up with tears, "please don't say that. I found you after so long, I can't bear to lose you again."

"Yet I nearly made that happen. All over again," his voice had lowered from the guilt, "I'm sorry."

"But you survived," she spoke up as if trying to reassure him, "you came back and now you aren't going anywhere, right?"

"I would never dare do that again."

Relief shone on her face as a soft smile crept over her features, "I love you, Jason. I always have, always will."

Her hands cupped his face as she leaned closer, pressing her lips gently on to where she thought his lips would be, missing just by a fraction as she kissed the corner of his mouth. Though before she could correct her position, he titled his head himself and captured her lips with his own. 

Her fingers had woven into his dark hair, curling at the streak of white instinctively. And at that moment, despite all the things Jason had messed up in his life, he felt as if he was where he belonged at last after years of wandering alone.

When she pulled apart slightly, her cheeks were shaded a bright crimson but the smile on her face was the most beautiful of all, luring him in with an ethereal attraction.

"I love you too, Eve," he confessed though he had already done so the day before when he was leaving to execute his revenge. 

Though at that moment it had felt a necessity to confess since he had had no certainty of his own return. But right then while he was sitting in front of her, lips mere inches away from one another, it felt natural and twice more meaningful to tell her that. 

"I love you and I am not ever going to leave you again," he breathed before gently kissing her again, that once with the certainty that he won't have to abandon her ever.

***