HIDDEN IN THE CLOSET

Chapter 22 I "She's allergic to aspirin."

Let's talk about Deja-vu.

Half a year ago, I woke up in a room that I have never seen before, staring at a foreign ceiling, being in an unknown bed, in an unknown place, not knowing where I was in the world. I woke up in Simon's mansion in France.

About a month ago, I woke up in a room that I have also never seen before, in a bed that I knew was Simon's in and apartment that could only be his home. I woke up in Simon's apartment in France.

What do both of these situations have in common? Both times, I woke up after I fell unconscious. The first time it was due to some drug a stranger gave me and the second time it was a drug called alcohol that I don't seem to handle really well.

What's the difference between these situations? The first time, I was scared for my life, thinking I was kidnapped and about to die. The second time, I felt weirdly comfortable and at home, knowing that Simon was close and took care of me.

The second time I experienced a Deja-vu. I didn't know how I have gotten in Simon's bed and what exactly happened after Simon and his men showed up, but I knew I was safe. My body was warm, I wasn't experiencing any pain, the blanket tugged me in and the mattress was perfectly comfortable. Apart from my hangover headache, I was feeling great. I wish I could say the same again.

The second Deja-vu in my life sadly wasn't as pleasant as the first one. Instead of feeling great, I was in pain. My whole body felt like I was hit by a car and as I swallowed, I winced at the pain that followed. My stomach was aching in a way that I have never felt it ache before and as I moved my head, I felt a sting at the side of my face. Overall I was in pain and I wasn't sure if the pain killers in my cabinet will be enough to help me. Slowly I open my eyes and look up at the white ceiling. The scent of disinfection filled my noise and I just closed my eyes only to open them again, to see where I was. From the scent and the with ceiling I would have guessed I was in the hospital, but there was no hospital in this world with a patient room looking like this. When my eyes were finally opened properly, my vision was still a little blurry so I moved my head to the side to see more of the room I was in. I was surrounded by huge white blankets and pillows, so I saw mostly them, so wanted to sit up.

My body still felt cold and I was thankful for all the blanket covering me, but I pushed them off of me and did my best to sit up. Immediately as I moved, I winced at the pain that shoots through my body and I close my eyes, waiting for it to go away. "Wait, don't move." Two arms come to my body, supporting me to lay down again and make the pain vanish. After my head was placed on the pillow again, I open my eyes again and see Simon sitting at the edge of my bed next to me. "Hi." His voice was so gentle like he didn't wanted to scare me away. He looked extremely tired like he hasn't slept in days and has been worried sick. I wanted to say something, but stopped when I felt my throat hurt. "Don't try to speak, it's going to hurt for some time." He says and then reaches out to grab a glass of water with a straw from the bed side table. "Do you want to drink something?" I nod as an answer and he brings the straw to my lips. Swallowing the water hurt, but it was also good for my dry throat and the cool water felt nice. I drank most of the water and after I was done, he put the glass back.

Images of what happened come back rushing into my head. I remember being kidnapped and driven to the warehouse where Fred slapped and choked me for not obeying him. I remember laying on the ice cold ground until Simon and his men came rushing inside the warehouse and got me out of there. I had no idea how long I have been asleep for, but seeing how bad the pain was, it couldn't be longer than a few hours. Now that I saw Simon sitting here on the edge of the bed, I suddenly realize where I was. This room wasn't unknown to me, quiet the opposite actually. I was in the bed on Simon's yacht, the bed that I slept many nights in before. The curtains were half closed, allowing only a little of the sun to come inside the room, but I still caught a glimpse of the water beneath us.