without you¹ | derek morgan. ✓

28 | stairwell

derek's pov

My eyes flutter open, immediately landing on a figure sitting on the floor in the corner of the hospital room--her head tilted back, resting against the wall behind her.

"Charlotte?" I speak up, my tone a bit raspy.

She leans forward, her eyes meeting mine as she gets startled a bit, "You're awake..." She mumbles, smiling softly.

I look closely, her eyes red rimmed with tears conjoining within her waterline. I furrow my brow at her sudden sadness.

"What's wrong?" I ask.

She shakes her head, letting out a heavy sigh, "I'm so sorry, huckleberry. I didn't mean for any of this to happen." She mumbles in sorrow.

I furrow my brow in slight confusion--why the hell is she apologizing for this? I think for a moment, my eyes holding her gaze. Her longing eyes stay connected to mine as I search them distinctively.

"You think this your fault?" I ask.

She nods slightly glancing back down at her lap as she lets out a small sob, "I thought I lost you. I watched you seize in front me, Derek. I watched you cough up blood, and I felt so fucking helpless." She mutters.

I scoot over on the bed, wincing a bit in pain as I do. Once I scoot over enough, I pat down on the hospital bed, signalling for her to come sit next to me. Charlotte looks up to me, her brow furrowing in slight confusion.

I chuckle lightly at her confusion, "Come here. I don't want you sitting on that cold floor any longer." I mumble.

She nods, getting up off the ground and walking over to the hospital bed. She kicks off her shoes and climbs into the bed, but she doesn't lie beside me like I hoped she would--instead she sits at the edge of the hospital bed with her legs crossed.

I furrow my brow slightly, "Why don't you come lay next to me?" I ask.

She shakes her head, maintaining her focus on her hands placed in her lap, "You broke some of your ribs. I don't want to hurt you anymore than I already have." She mutters.

I sit up, wincing in a bit of pain. I let in a sharp exhale, ignoring the slight pain around my chest. I scoot closer to her, bringing my pointer finger beneath her chin, tilting her head up. She avoids eye contact--her red-rimmed, teary eyes looking at the corner of the room instead of at me.

"Hey, look at me." I mumble.

She rolls her eyes a bit, fighting back tears.

"Baby, please, look at me." I mutter.

My eyes widen once I realize what I called her. Suddenly, her eyes meet mine, her brow furrowing slightly at my words.

I shake my head, "I-I'm sorry, I didn't mean to call you that. I just- I-" I begin to ramble.

She giggles softly at my sudden regret, "It's okay, huckleberry." She states in a soft tone.

"It just slipped out." I mumble.

She giggles and nods at my words.

I hesitate before speaking again, "Anyways, uh, I wanted to tell you that this...this whole thing isn't your fault. You hear me? It's not your fault, newbie." I state, reassuringly.

She nods, looking down at her lap, "I know, I know. Spence told me the same thing. I just can't help but think that it is. I mean, I'm the one who distracted you. You were so worried about my past with the car accident that you took your eyes off the road." She mumbles, picking at her fingernails.