Caden,
I don't know what to say anymore, and I'm starting to think that's okay. Maybe it's not about the perfect words, but ones that are honest.
I still love you. That's the truth. Inever stopped. Not when you left. Not when the letters stopped. Not when I found out you were hurt.
I know you're angry. I know you're scared. Me too. But you're not alone in this. Not if you don't want to be.
This baby kicks when I read your letters. I like to think that's their way of saying they know you too. And I read your letters to them every night.
I'm not asking for promises or perfection. Just you. However you come. Whatever pieces you have left.
Yours always,
Lucy
That night, I'm back in bed, the pain meds finally taking the edge off. I doze but don't sleep. Sleep is when the screaming starts again. The heat. The silence before the blast. The blood.
Jolting awake, I’m gasping, with sweat clinging to my skin.
There's movement at the door. Then a whisper.
"Caden?"
Lucy.
Slowly, she edges into the room. Her eyes are tired, her cheeks flushed, like she ran here.
"You okay?" she asks.
I don't answer.
"Noah let it slip you've been having nightmares. I was down the hall... in case."
I shift, groaning. "Why? Why would you still care?"
She walks to the chair beside the bed and sits without asking.
"Because you're still you. And I'm still me. And somewhere in all this mess, that still means something."
I stare at her.
"I'm not the man you fell in love with."
"Maybe not. But you're the man I'm still fighting for."
I don't have the energy to argue.
"Do you want me to leave?" she asks.
I shake my head.
She doesn't say anything else. Just moves slowly, gently, climbing into the bed beside me. Her body curves against mine without pressure, only warmth. Her hand finds mine. Our fingers tangle.
For the first time since I woke up in that damn hospital, I breathe deeply.
And let myself believe that maybe I didn't lose everything after all.
Chapter 7
