“Thomas?”
“Mmm,” I answer. We must have slept hard last night because my entire body is stiff.
“You’re awake?”
“Yeah,” I grumble. My throat hurts, like I’ve been breathing with my mouth open all night. Hannah’s not usually this talkative in the mornings. Usually, I’m the one who has to pry her up out of bed.
“Oh, thank god,” she mumbles, her fingers fluttering down my cheeks.
Her words confuse me. I flick my eyes open again, this time blinking against the bright light instead of closing them. My surroundings flicker into view, and it’s then I notice the tube under my nose and the steady beeping of a heart monitor.Oh, fuck.
Everything rushes back into my memory. I was shot. I look down at my right thigh where blood was spewing out the last time I saw it. Now, it’s covered with a wrapped dressing around my thigh.
A hand pushes my hair back from my face. “Hannah,” I breathe. “You’re okay?”
“I’m the one who should be asking you that, you dummy.” She lets out a watery chuckle, tears streaming down her cheeks. “I’m fine. I got to the scene once they had it under control.”
“Thank god,” I murmur, dropping my head to the stiff, crinkly pillow. “I was so scared you would be walking into an active scene.”
She shakes her head. “No. How are you feeling?”
“Tired,” I reply.
“How is your pain?”
I shrug. “It hurts, but it’s not bad.”
Hannah drops her hand from my cheek. “I’ll go see when you can have more meds.”
I reach out, wrapping my fingers around her wrist. “No, I’m fine. Stay, please.”
“Thomas…”
“Please, Hannah.” I pull her closer to me until she has to sit on the edge of the bed. She relents, curling up into my side. Wetness seeps into my hospital gown from her tears. “I’m okay, baby.”
“I know,” she cries. “I was so scared. You were bleeding so much and I was trying so hard to stop it, but it wouldn’t stop. You were so pale.”
I lift my head to press a kiss to her forehead. “Thank you for saving me,” I whisper. Unfortunately, that makes her cry harder, so I have to come up with something to distract her.
“Who has Arson?” I ask. “And what time is it? What day is it?”
“It’s early morning. Your mom went to go get some coffee. You got done with surgery at about midnight last night. Arson is with Miles. He got him from your squad car. I’ll pick him up later, but he sent some pictures, do you want to see them?”
I shake my head. I need her close to me.
Is now the best time for a confession of love? Probably not, but if there’s anything that this has taught me is that I’m not waiting a second longer to tell her how I feel.
“I remember waking up for a second in that ambulance,” I say, and she tenses.
“You do?” she tentatively asks.
“Mhm. I need you, too, you know.”
Hannah nods into my chest. “I hoped you didn’t hear that.”
“Why?”
“I shouldn’t have waited to tell you. Then, I chose when you were unconscious to say it all. I was a chicken.”
