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Thoughtful(200)

By:S.C. Stephens


The nurse flushed as she touched my elbow. “No problem, Kellan. Anything I can do to help. If you have any more questions, you just come and find me, okay?” She winked as she left.

Denny shook his head. “Even looking like that, women still hit on you.” His eyes clouded and his smile faltered, like he suddenly remembered why he hated me. “How is she?” he asked.

“Same.”

We walked back into her room and Denny’s expression shifted again as he took in the slight form of Kiera’s still body. Now he looked like he was remembering why he hated himself. “I talked to Anna last night. She’s going to tell Kiera’s parents for me. She sounded pretty worried…and mad…” His voice trailed off as he stared at his comatose girlfriend. Well, ex-girlfriend.

Watching him closely, I asked, “When are you going to tell Kiera about…?”

He looked over at me. “About the job, or about the breakup?”

“Both.” I shrugged and looked back at Kiera on the bed. When was I going to tell her?

“I don’t know. Sooner is probably better than later. If I tell her now, then leave…yeah, she’ll be hurt, but I think she’ll get through it.” He gave me a meaningful glance, and I understood right away. I would help her through the pain, just like before…

As he studied me, his face changed again. “I am sorry, Kellan…for what I did to you. To her.”

Looking down, I shook my head. It wasn’t your fault…

He didn’t give me a chance to shift the blame though. Turning to face me, he said, “I want you to take care of her when I’m gone. And…if you hurt her…I’ll kill you. You know that, right?”

I laughed at the humor in his voice; it had been a while since I’d heard it. I considered telling him that I wasn’t going to date her…that I was breaking up with her too, but right at that moment, Kiera sat up straight on the bed and screamed, “No!” She immediately clutched her head and fell back to the pillows, gasping in pain.

Denny was closest to the bed. He stroked her face to calm her down, then twisted to me behind him. “Go get a nurse.”

She’s awake. Relief washed through me, and I didn’t even hesitate. “I’ll be right back.”

Spinning on my heel, I darted out the door. Spotting Kiera’s nurse, I sprinted over to her. “She’s awake! And she’s hurting. She needs you to do…something.”

Grabbing her arm, I tried pulling her to Kiera’s door, but she swatted me away. “Calm down. Let me finish up what I’m doing, then I’ll be right there.”

I inhaled a deep breath as excitement and anxiety coursed through me. She’s awake.

After the nurse was finished jotting down notes, she made her way to Kiera’s room. I waited in the open doorway while she stepped inside. “Good…she’s awake. Probably in a good dose of pain too.” Kiera tried to smile, but it was clearly forced. “My name is Susie and I’ll be taking good care of you today.”

She made Denny get off the bed, then added something to Kiera’s IV. Kiera looked a little nauseous when she noticed she was attached to one. After checking her vitals, Susie asked, “Do you need anything, sweetie?”

“Water…” she whispered.

“Of course. I’ll be right back.”

When Susie turned to leave, Kiera’s eyes drifted over to me. Her lips parted and her breath picked up. The machine tracking her heartbeat even started beeping faster. It warmed me that I still affected her. It also broke my heart a little. She made her choice, now I need to let her go…

Denny had moved around to sit on the other side of the bed. He looked my way when he noticed Kiera staring. He raised his eyebrows at me, then shifted his gaze to the hallway. I understood his silent message. Could you give us some privacy? Because I’m about to break her heart. A part of me wondered if maybe he should wait until she’d been awake for longer than twenty minutes, but I suppose it didn’t matter.

I moved into the hallway and found a spot by the door to lean against the wall and wait. It was time.

Denny and Kiera were talking softly, but I could hear a phrase every now and again. “Yes…I’m angry.” “I wish you’d just told me…” “I should have talked to you…” “I never thought you’d hurt me…” “Where do we go from here?”

That last one had been Kiera’s voice. Knowing what Denny’s answer was going to be made me slump against the wall. I almost walked farther away so I couldn’t hear his answer, but my heart stubbornly wouldn’t let me leave. “We go nowhere.” “But I was leaving him. I love you…”