He needs you.
The white leather seat beneath me that’s now stained crimson.
Tell him you love him. If he knows, then he won’t die.
My lips move, but I can’t hear myself. Or anything else, for that matter. Everything closes in.
Then nothing.
THIRTY-SEVEN
AIDEN
Please don’t cryfor me, pretty girl.
My eyes close on their own. When I open them, I immediately find Nova. She’s blurry, but it’s hard to miss the flash of pink hair as she’s carried away from me.
White light swallows her shape and blinds me from seeing anything else. My body becomes lighter, like I’m floating and leaving my physical form.
Don’t ever cry for me.
My only regret is not telling Nova how I feel about her when she cried over me, more worried about me than the wound in her shoulder.
Maybe in another life we can be together, and I won’t fuck up by not saying how much I love you.
THIRTY-EIGHT
NOVA
My skin buzzeswith anticipation as I follow the nurse through the maze of hallways in the hospital wing. She checks on me every few seconds, ensuring that I’m still behind her.
“We had to strap him to the bed,” she warns as she slows her strides to walk beside me. “It’s keeping him from pulling out his IV. He may be a little loopy from the pain meds, too.”
I nod, hearing but not listening.
I’ve waited too long for this moment, to be at his side again. My vision is tunneled, and I’ve got a one-track mind.
Get to Aiden.
It’s already been two weeks since the gunshot wound in my shoulder. The surgeon told me the bullet went straight through, thankfully causing very little damage. She warned that I’ll have scars, as if that matters to me. All I care about is being alive and needing Aiden.
It’s been pure hell, wondering if he’s okay.
Madison, Olivia, and Dahlia passed on anything they learned while I was in recovery. Unfortunately, the words they chose worried me more than dampening my concern.
“They’re doing the best they can for him.”
“They took him back into surgery because of some complications.”
“They gave him another blood transfusion.”
“He’s been sleeping a lot.”
“Aiden’s been calling for you.”
The nurse stops outside a closed room and turns her head toward me, her features pinching with worry. “Just keep him calm, okay? We don’t want to restitch him.”
“Okay,” I say.
