Open Heart

50: I Got You

              MY EYES HURT, AND my head is pounding. It's so dark in here that I can't see anything. Where am I?

"Fatima?"

As if that was enough to have my common sense return to me, I opened my eyes by squinting them slowly until they adjusted to the bright lights. It's been dark for so long.

"Fatima?" The voice I knew all too well repeated. But it wasn't the voice that caught my attention but rather how it was said with clarity. It had my tummy in knots.

Maybe this was a dream, but the "Thank God you're awake" proved otherwise. Slowly—because if I moved any faster than I did, the pain in the back of my head would've worsened—I tilted my head toward the direction of Samuel's voice.

"How are you feeling?" he asked.

I didn't answer immediately. Instead, I properly took in my surrounding. I was in a hospital room with Samuel peering at me as if he had almost lost me, and Kunle was seated at the corner of the room. It seemed as if he, too, had just woken.

When he caught me staring at him, he threw me a smile. "Welcome back to reality, Fa."

I waved at him and asked Samuel, "How long was I out?"

"Just a few hours. Everyone's worried." Samuel looked back at Kunle. "Can you-"

"Way ahead of you. They'll be here first thing in the morning. I'll go call the nurse."

We watched Kunle leave, and then I asked, "What happened?"

"As soon as Callum knocked you out with a lamp, Kunle was about to make a move for the gun. Callum got to it first since he was closer, but thankfully before he could pull the trigger, the detectives arrived and shot Callum."

"Is he—?"

Samuel rubbed my hand and nodded regrettably.

"And Luna?"

"She got arrested for murder and attempted murder. Everything happened so fast. I'm just so grateful you're awake."

Hearing this had me stuck between feeling relieved and sorry for Luna. I felt stupid for feeling pitiful for someone who wanted me dead.

I closed my eyes as I silently mourned a lost friend. Samuel joined me on the bed to comfort me.

"I'm here now, N'kem. I got you."

At this point, there was no need to confirm whether Samuel had regained his memory. The fact that he called me by his pet name for me twice tonight was enough proof. Besides that, I felt the difference.

I saw the difference.

It's crazy because he looked the exact same way he did before I had left to go to Luna's, but his aura and the way he carried himself was different than amnesiac Samuel.

Where amnesiac Samuel was timid, normal Samuel was confident. Even through his fear back at the trailer, he still managed to exude a level of confidence.

Even when he said I got you, his voice cracked, and I felt the shakiness of his breath on my skin. "I'm here now," he reiterated, his words muffled as his mouth was on my head.

Still, that confidence remained. Samuel meant every word. And whatever the future had in store for us, we'd get through it together.

My Samuel was back.

"You're back!" I sobbed into his chest. "You're really back. I've missed you so much, Sammy."

Samuel kissed my forehead. Again and again and again. And then he whispered, "I don't want this to be why we break up."

"What?"

"That was what I was about to tell you before the accident. If celibacy is what you want, I can wait. I don't want that to be the reason we break up."

I knew he had already come to terms with me wanting to be celibate when he mentioned how he wondered how many cold showers he would take, but it was good to hear him say it—to confirm that we were on the same page.

Feeling giddy and laughing through my tears, I wiggled comfortably into him.

I love this man.

God knows how much I've missed him.

My person is back.

And with that thought, my mood soured. As much as I was elated about having Samuel back, the reality of Luna's betrayal was too raw.

This meant that Luna could've poisoned me if she wanted, and no one would have expected that it was her.

As much as I knew I wasn't to blame, I still like felt this was all my fault. I should've been more careful. I should've read the signs. I should've listened to Claire. Heck, I should've listened to Luna!

"It's not that I don't like Samuel. I don't like him for Fatima."

How could I be so stupid?

Why didn't I-

"Oh my gosh, you're awake!" Claire squealed as she walked in, followed by Kunle. "How are you feeling, hun?"

Stupid, tired, relieved.

"My head hurts."

"That was a hard hit, so you had a concussion. You'll be under observation for the rest of the day, and then you can go home. There were no damages, and you both will be alright."

"Excuse me?" Samuel asked before I could.

Claire retrieved from our hug and held her clipboard to her chest apologetically. "I'm so sorry. I got carried away. Congratulations! You're three months pregnant."

Almost instantly, Samuel cradled my stomach. I placed my hand over his in shock.

Claire and I shared a knowing look. "That handsome bastard's hunch was right all along."

"But taking only one pregnancy test wasn't enough to confirm it," I finished.

"Handsome bastard?" Kunle cleared his throat. "Hunch?"

"Kai," I answered. "He's our friend and a doctor here. He suspected I was possibly pregnant and had me take a pregnancy test, but I only took one, which came out negative."

I covered my mouth to choke back a sob. "I was on the phone telling Sam about the result when he got in the accident."

Samuel hugged me. "How do you feel about the pregnancy?"

"Sam, our baby could've died!" I wept. "It's crazy that none of this was just a dream. It happened. I almost lost you, and we could've lost our child too."

"But you didn't lose me, and we didn't lose him."

"Or her," Kunle butted in. Samuel shot him a quick look of annoyance, so Kunle pretended to zip his lips and throw away the key.

"Sam, did you know?"

"Know what?"

"Did you know that Luna likes you—no—that she's in love with you?"

"Whoah, whoah, hold up," Claire broke in. "You know what. I'm going to go. I'll check back with you to see how you're doing, and we'll discuss this when you're no longer in a hospital bed. Congrats once again."

And with that, she left.

"Honestly, I knew as much as you did. I thought she hated me." Samuel recoiled back. "You don't think-"

"No, I believe you. She did hide her feelings well. I can't believe-"

"Don't think about it right now. Shhh, I'm here now. I got you, baby."

🤍    🤍

It's the fact that I wanted to end on chapter 50 to make it even as if that's important 🤦🏾‍♀️😂. Ending on chapter 51 feels so uneven, Kml, but I still have one more chapter before this book is done.

Question: How do you feel about this back and forth regarding Fatima's feelings towards Luna?