Stolen Treasure

Chapter 21

When we arrived on Montressor five days later, I was immediately taken to the nearest hospital so that my wounds could be taken care of properly.

I had to have stitches in my side and the doctors said there would be some scarring, but nothing major. My arm didn't need stitches and it hadn't gotten infected, so they just recommended I keep it bandaged tightly until it was healed. I did have to get a shot, though. I really hated needles, so I had to have Jim in the room with me when they did it. I squeezed his hand when they brought it into the room. The closer that needle came to me, the more panicked I became. But he whispered soothingly into my ear the whole time, which helped tremendously. It was over in less than a second, but the antibiotic stung quite a bit. They gave me lots of bandage rolls so I could change them on both my arm and abdomen every day. The scratches on my cheek were minor and would heal normally on their own within a week. They said I would have to try to move as little as possible while my side healed, but I figured that would be easy enough.

When we walked back through the door of the Inn, Mrs. Hawkins enveloped me in a long hug and B.E.N. started crying hysterically, rambling on about being afraid he'd never hear me sing again.

That night, Mrs. Hawkins threw a small "Welcome Home" party. She baked a cake and invited Delbert, Amelia, and their four children. I think it also doubled as a late birthday party, but it was never explicitly stated.

Things slowly returned to normal. As time went on, I regained my strength. Every day I was able to do a little bit more than the day before. I was even able to perform again after a month.

Summer was coming to an end. Jim and I would have to return to the Interstellar Academy soon, but I had one last summer event planned before we went back.

Jim finally consented to sing a song for the very last performance of the summer. So I prepared him a song and taught it to him. We worked on a duet too.

When I showed him the songs for the first time, he asked how I came up with so many. That's when I admitted to him that they were songs I used to listen to back on Earth. He still thought they were brilliant and told me he felt honored that I would share a piece of my old life with him. He really was an amazing boyfriend. I never should have been worried that he wouldn't accept me because of where I came from.

I placed my new music box on the night table beside my bed. I would listen to it every night before I went to sleep, admiring its beauty for a song or two. When I first placed it there, I immediately noticed that my sketchbook was gone. I freaked out a little, but Jim told me he had it and gave it back to me. He said he thought I was an amazing artist and that he would buy me more sketchbooks if I would draw more. I let him, since I needed a new sketchbook; I had filled the first one with drawings of him.

I was home and I felt safe, most of the time. But sometimes I would wake up at night from horrible nightmares, mostly about being shot and taken away from Jim.

After a particularly bad dream, I couldn't get back to sleep. So I got out of bed and crept out into the hall, making my way to Jim's room. The door was open slightly, so I quietly entered the room. I could just make him out in the moonlight streaming through the window. He was sleeping peacefully. I blushed slightly when I realized he didn't have a shirt on, which baffled me a little; I mean it wasn't like I'd never seen his bare chest before! I tiptoed over to his bed and slipped under the covers. I laid down so I was facing him. I knew he couldn't comfort me when he was asleep and I didn't want to wake him, but just being near him made me feel safer.

Just as I was starting to drift off, I felt Jim stir beside me. I didn't open my eyes, but I guessed that he was probably propped up on his arm and gazing down at me. I took deep even breaths and pretended I was asleep. Jim brushed some hair back from my cheek and traced a finger up and down the side of my face. I shivered at the delightful touch, but continued to pretend to be asleep. After a few minutes, he settled back down and wrapped an arm around me, pulling me against his warm chest. I cuddled up to him, moaning softly. He chuckled almost inaudibly and caressed my hair. I fell asleep listening to the steady beat of his heart.