The Marine

The List

After what felt like an eternity but was most likely minutes, an ambulance and fire truck came speeding up. They rushed out and took over, putting Terry onto a stretcher and loading him into the back. 

"Miss, you going?" A paramedic quickly asked me. 

I nodded and got in. 

Help him God. Please. 

💋💋

The closest hospital was Adventist Health. It was a pretty nondescript white sprawling building nestled into the lush landscape in Kailua. The town over from Kaneohe. Terry was stabilized in the ambulance and was rushed into a room in the ER. I was left to sit alone in the waiting area. But not for long. 

"Where is he? Is he ok?" 

Terry's friend arrived through the double doors with Mrs. Mahaka. They were worried, as was I. 

"He's in a room with a doctor. They will come let us know if they move him or get more information. He was having a heart attack." I said. 

I began to cry, emotion needing to burst out. It was similar to the day I got called that my parents were involved in a car crash. Blindly driving to the hospital and waiting while they worked on my dad and mom. They both passed quickly though, leaving me to grieve alone in a similar room. I hoped today wouldn't be the same. It just couldn't. 

"We wait." Mrs. Mahaka announced, sitting next to me. 

She slid her slender aging hand into mine. We would wait. 

After an hour, a doctor in a white coat emerged from behind the ER doors and came over. He looked concerned. I sat up and braced for the worst. 

"Hello. Family of our patient?" 

"Yes, yes. We are his family." Mrs. Mahaka replied. 

"Terry had a massive heart attack. We can't see the extent of the blockage so we're taking him for surgery now. I'll get you an update as soon as I can." 

He hurried off, presumably to scrub in for the surgery. I felt better knowing they were taking all the needed measures to find out what was wrong. But still, I worried. My phone dinged so I took it out, absently looking at the screen. Lex. 

I fumbled with the passcode and clicked on the text. He was back. 

Hey Mila. I'm back for a bit. Had to escort a marine back for a surgical procedure. Couldn't be done in theatre. Are you available for a coffee or a water on the beach?

What a weird twist of fate. Luca didn't want to deal with me and Lex was back, asking to see me. I waited to hear from my dad. From his voice, telling me what I should do. But I heard nothing. Only silence. It seemed it was up to me. 

I'm in the hospital. . . 

My neighbor had a heart attack. 

Not even waiting a beat, he responded back. 

What hospital?

💋💋

Lex should've been the man I chose. He was single, he didn't hold back and he didn't have a complicated life. Luca, on the other hand, did. I could easily develop feelings for Lex. That much was certain. Except for one pesky fact. 

I was in love with Luca. 

"Hey!" 

Lex wrapped me in a warm hug, his muscles flexing as he lifted me up. I inhaled his scent and let the feeling sink in. It was nice to be comforted. And it was more than unexpected. 

"Is he ok?" He asked, putting me down. 

"He's in surgery now. We're just waiting." 

"I'm so sorry. I never would have imagined surgeries would bring us together again." 

I needed air so we walked outside the double doors, finding benches by some tropical plants. Exhaling, I looked at Lex. He was so utterly handsome. 

"Did you get with that other marine?" 

"Yes." I said, not surprised he'd asked that question. 

"Is he treating you well?" 

I shuffled my slippers on the cement, trying to gauge what to reveal. 

"He's a good guy. But I've messed things up. Well, he might not be able to juggle me and his. . . other responsibilities." 

"What rank is he?" 

"A gunnery sergeant." 

Lex exhaled this time. The air was weird now between us. I knew he wanted to say a lot of things. If I was in his shoes I sure would. 

"It's hard dating one of us. Not impossible. ." He laughed. "But hard."

"Yeah, I know." 

"Have you talked it out?" 

"No. . not really. He said he can't handle this right now, he has to focus on work. So I'm giving him space." 

"When a guy says he wants space, he's scared." 

Scared? Of what? Me? It was already confusing enough. 

"My offer still stands you know." Lex said, standing with his hand outstretched. "I'll be there if want or need me. And I'm coming back in about 10 months now." 

I smiled and took his hand. He pulled me in for another hug, which lasted longer than the last one. He was such a good guy, and a really great listener.  It was a wonder he was still single.

"Mila?" 

We broke our hug to see Luca standing there.  

"Hey. ." I said.

I took steps toward him but he didn't budge. 

"I'll talk to you later Mila, if you need me, let me know." Lex said, squeezing my shoulder as he walked by Luca towards the parking lot. 

"Is Terry ok?" Luca asked. His voice monotone. 

"We don't know yet. He's in surgery and we're still waiting. How did you know to come here?" 

"I drove to your house and one of your other neighbors told me where you were."

Neither of us said anything else. Birds chirped in the trees nearby and faint sounds from the hospital filtered out through the doors. 

"Luca. ." 

"Who was that? He was the same guy from that night at your house, wasn't he?" 

"His name is Lex. He's just a friend. A client from Terry's fishing business, and a fellow marine." 

"I know he's a marine." He said quickly, his eyes challenging mine. 

I desperately wanted him to just talk to me. Say how angry he was, get it out. Not back to this stoicism. That I couldn't handle.

"Luca we need to talk. I can't keep doing this, not knowing what you're thinking." 

"You can have anyone you want Mila. I'm not going to stop you." He softly said. 

"Luca. ."

His words echoed through my head and wouldn't quit. Did I really want a marine? My heart felt as though it was on a fishing line, just waiting to be gobbled up at any moment. 

He turned and walked away, towards his Jeep. I looked back at the hospital and then at Luca. Today's list just got a whole lot bigger.

**This story is only found on Wattpad. If found on another site, it was stolen. Thank you for reading.💋**