Three Thousand Miles(25)

“Michael, you don’t fool me; I know that you are hurting over him.” He sits down next me and he slides is arm over my shoulder, he pulls me close to him and whispers in my ear,

“Sweetheart, I am hurting but in a different way to you. I promise you that, I will always be here for you. I will never abandon you in the way he has.” I rest my head against his shoulder and I close my eyes. For a second, I pretend that everything is okay and that Michael is my one and only man.





Four





“Wonderful, I must thank you sincerely for looking after my daughter.” I hear my mom say as looks up at Dr James.

“It has been my pleasure and I have enjoyed getting to you know all of you.” He says beaming. I whistle gently while I finish my packing. My mom looks over and smiles to me.

“Happy my dear,” I glance over to my mom and flash a friendly smile.

“I will be glad to back to normal.” I admit. I throw my wash bags into my overnight bag and zip it up. I walk into the bathroom and switch on the light. I glance over the surfaces to see if I have forgotten anything. I catch a glimpse of my reflection in the mirror. My hair is hung freely down my back and is massively curly, my eyes are huge and I can see that despite the pain they still have their sparkle. My lips are full and are as red as rose. I have chosen to wear a loose-fitting sweat suit, my stomach area is still rather tender and I do not want to aggravate my stitches by wearing tight clothing. I have not looked fully at the extent of the scaring, although I know that it is prominent. I sigh and stare at my reflection, I am thrilled that I am leaving hospital however; I am very disappointed that Adrian will not be there when I get out. My life will be very different now and, I have come to realize, things will never be the same again.

“Alanna, are you ready?” My mom shouts. I look again at the girl staring back in the mirror; I exhale and switch off the light as I close the door behind me. I walk over to my bags and I see that my mom has already lifted them from the bed.

“Mom, let me help, give me one of the bags.” I say reaching my hand out to her. She quickly swats away my hand.

“No, Alanna I can manage.” I sigh, as I pout my lips at her and then I turn to Dr James. His deep brown eyes are wide and beaming, but somehow he still looks deeply saddened. I walk over to him and smile up at the six foot-two, dark haired doctor.

“James, are you, okay?” He nods his head quickly.

“Of course, I am fine.” I tilt my head to the side and narrow my eyes at him. “Really Alanna, I am good.” Somehow, I do not believe him. He looks very miserable and I am almost sure that it has something to do with Emma. I feel compassion towards him; I know how hard it is to love someone, who fights their feelings with everything they have. I understand how James feels about Emma, as it is similar to the way I feel, about Adrian. I get his emotions and I know the pain that he has to fight every day. Loving Emma is what defines him and I hate to see the despair in his eyes whilst love is not returned.

“Okay, I will miss our daily chats, we must stay in contact.” I say lovingly to him.

“Yes absolutely, I will call you, look after yourself.” He says.

“James, did you ever call Emma?” He looks down at the floor and then back to me again.

“I saw her the other day; things are still the same between us. She will not open up and tell me how she feels. I do not know what else I can do. I have told her repeatedly how I feel about her. She never responds and I never get the answer that I crave.” I feel sad at his words. He is hurting and I hate to see people in pain.

“I guess Emma has a lot in common with her brother.” James rolls his eyes and exhales very loudly.

“Has Mr Black still not contacted you?”

“He has, but what he said, I wish I never heard.” I feel the sting in my throat as I force out my words. A hot rush is flooding over me and I hate this feeling. Over the last few days, I have had to cope with this rush. My head starts to thump and my body temperature multiples, every time I think back on Adrian’s words. I take a deep breath and close my eyes, every time I get the feeling. It soon fades off until the next time Adrian enters my mind.

“He is an idiot to let you go.” I feel awkward hearing James slate Adrian. I know he means nothing in his words, but I still do not like to hear anything negative about him. He is my world and I love him.

“Never mind, I guess I better get going.” I say in a sweet voice. I look up at James who towers above me. I reach out my hand to shake his. However, I am surprised when James pulls me close to him and gives me a very tight hug. I stand in his grasp for a little while, but he holds on longer than I would like. I gently pat him on his shoulder and I push him back slightly. He notices my movement and pulls away from me.