“Mina…Open your eyes, Sunshine.”
His voice is clear. Clearer than it’s been since floating in this void. Open my eyes? I thought my eyes were open…
I can feel something cool touch my lips. Cold water drips into my mouth, and my body shudders. My mouth is so dry. My lips feel cracked. I can feel my facial muscles flexing as I try to open my eyes. When I do, it burns. A blinding light is above me and I quickly shut my eyes again.
“Turn the light off. What the hell are you doing?” I hear a woman’s voice…Who the fuck is here with him?!
“Try opening them again, Sunshine. The curtains are closed, and the lights are off now.”
I try again and this time there’s only a mild burning sensation. My eyes feel dry even though they’ve been closed. It’s blurry like trying to see through fogged up glass.
“Can you hear me, Mina? My name’s Doctor Rhyton.”
My eyes try to focus, but I can’t. I lift my hands to wipe them, but my arms feel too heavy. They tingle like they’re asleep. My body hasn’t gotten the memo to wake the fuck up yet.
“Here, let me help you,” a man’s voice says. A warmcloth is wiped gently across both of my eyes. “There, that should help.”
“What was that?” I can hear Myles again.
“It was an ointment we used to make sure her eyes didn’t dry out. It was just the residual left that might have been causing her issues. Can you try blinking a few more times, Mina?”
I try. With each blink, the world around me becomes clearer. Colors build into shapes, then shapes into figures. The beeping of my heart rate monitor begins to spike as my eyes finally focus on the man in front of me.
Those hauntingly dark copper brown eyes. His shaggy hair is now a lot longer, and it’s tousled like he’s been sleeping on a couch for weeks. His lips are half tilted in a smirk as he looks from me to my heart monitor.
“My…” My voice cracks. I can’t even get his name out.
He quickly sits on the edge of the bed. His hands cradle my face, running his thumbs along my cheeks. Tears fill his eyes as he looks me over.
“I thought I was going to lose you, Sunshine.” His fingers run through my hair and brush it behind my shoulder.
I take in the room around me. My eyes lazily drift around the room until I land on the tall, stunning blonde sitting in the chair in the corner.
“Who…” I try to croak out, but she stops me.
“You only met me the one time at Badlands. I’m Alexandria. I work for Myles.” She walks over to the opposite side of the bed from Myles. She’s stunning. I glance at Myles to see if he’s looking at her, but no, his eyes are locked on me.
“How are you feeling, Miss Warner?” an older man says as he is going over my vitals.
“Umm.” Fuck. Why does it feel like my throat has been scraped raw?
I lift my hand to my throat. The pins and needles still linger in my fingertips. I touch the front of my throat, and he nods.
“Your throat will most likely feel raw for a few days at least. It’s from the ET tube.”
ET? It reminds me of that little alien. I can’t help but smirk at the memory of watching it at one of the nicer foster homes. I hold up my finger at Myles. He touches the tip of his finger to mine, then laughs when he realizes exactly what I mean. Tears are forming at the corners of his eyes.
"The Endotracheal tube,” the doctor laughs as well before continuing. “Good to see your prefrontal cortex is working. Your sense of humor is still intact. Do you remember what happened?”
The air around me seems to be sucked out instantly. My chest tightens, and my heart rate begins to spike again.
“Hey. It’s okay. You're safe, Sunshine. Breathe, Mina.” Myles runs his hands gently over my arms, but even his touch feels suffocating right now.
My body flinches back. His hands are frozen, suspended, and hovering just over my skin. I can feel the electric current bouncing between us, and it’s making my body feel like small needles are being run along every nerve. He sits back and rests his hands on his lap. The pain in his eyes twists a knife deep into my heart.
“You’re safe here, Miss Warner. Your friends have beenhere the entire time with you. Take some time and relax. I’ll be back in a few hours to check on you. Don’t strain yourself trying to force any memories to the surface. Press the button if you need anything, and a nurse will be right in.” He nods at me, then Myles and Alexandria before walking out of the room.
“I’m going to run to the cafeteria. I’m glad you’re awake.” She gestures to Myles with her thumb and laughs. “Myles here was going bat shit crazy without you.”
