Page 57 of Dark Notes, Volume Two

He hands me a phone, clearly realizing I don’t have mine since I didn’t leave rehab under normal circumstances.

“Thank you. Are you coming back?”

He nods, “Yeah later. McKinley will insist on it. She’s a goddamn mess.”

Jagger squeezes my shoulder and leaves me alone with Mia.

Carefully, I slip my hand under hers.

“Angel, I need you to fucking hear me, okay? I can’t survive without you. Hell, I don’t even want to. So you do whatever you have to in order to get better. I’ll give you time but I’m going to need you to wake the fuck up and come back to me.”

What the hell are you supposed to do when someone is in a coma? Do they even hear you? Can they somehow sense you being there? Or are they truly not there and everything you say falls on deaf ears?

I hum the song that always reminds me of her before I start singing the words I know by heart.

Angel by Aerosmith.

I sing the chorus quietly three times before realizing I’ve never sang to her before. If I lose her, I’ll just add that to my long list of regrets.

“You once asked me why I call you Angel. I wasn’t completely honest because the truth involves drugs and I know you don’t like it. The first night I saw you, I was high as a kite. You didn’t know I was there. Hell, you didn’t know I existed. I was at a fashion show with this girl I was kind of seeing at the time. Anyway, I saw you walk down the runway. You were wearing this gold dress, it was layered and flowed all around you. Your hair was pinned up, and I remember sitting there thinking to myself, she’s a fucking angel. It wasn’t until the next day when I asked Jagger who you were that I realized you were real. I had never seen anything so beautiful. The way you moved with such graceful precision, and I was convinced you looked at me. That’s when my obsession with you began. Then of course, you shot me down at least a thousand times through the years. So, you see Angel, maybe you haven’t been truly mine for long, but for me it’s been years. Please don’t tell me I finally had you only for you to be ripped away from me. I’ll do anything you want me to except live without you. That’s the only thing, I know for sure, I can’t do.”

I turn to the sound of a clearing throat.

“Hi, Mr. Black. I’m Dr. Perdue. I wanted to make sure if you have any questions they get answered.”

I tilt my head at him.

“You can do that? With privacy laws?”

He nods and says, “McKinley Wild gave permission. She will be making medical decisions for Ms. Montgomery.”

Okay, that’s definitely news to me but also makes sense.

“Is she going to live?”

He walks over to the computer on a small desk, scans his badge and reads what I imagine is her medical chart, leaving me wondering if the answer was there the entire time.

“Had you asked me last night when she came in, I would’ve said it was unlikely. However, today, things look a little better. I expect her to need time to heal and physical therapy may be necessary. The more serious injuries are the metal she took to her chest as well as the head wound. I think they will heal, but things can always change.”

“When will she wake up?”

He closes the medical chart and says, “Tomorrow. She’s in a medically induced coma because of the initial swelling in her brain. However, now we need to have her awake so we can check on her cognitive abilities.”

The doctor speaks matter of factly as if this woman isn’t my entire world.

“We did a lot of tests last night and her brain function does seem good, but we need to take this next step to be sure.”

I clench my jaw when I realize he’s suggesting my angel could have brain damage.

The doctor nods as he flashes me that weird smile people give you when someone has died.

I’m seething. I know he’s doing his job, but I don’t want him talking like that around her. What if she can hear us?

I rub her palm as I speak to her in a calm and reassuring tone.

“We’re ignoring that asshole, sweet Angel. Your brain is fine. You’re going to wake up and be the same Mia I know and love. Do you know why? Because you don’t have a choice.”

I know how upset she is going to be with cuts on her face, but I’m not mentioning them because I don’t want to give her reasons to not come back to me. We will deal with that. I’ll make her see that she’s the most beautiful woman in the entire damn world, no matter what scars she may have. I will pay for everything. If she needs or wants plastic surgery, Mia won’t have to worry about any medical bills.