delicate

32

I fought harder to keep my breathing steady the closer I got to her. I froze at the end of the hallway, catching myself on the wall. I could see the chords connected to her, the IV in her arm, the oxygen they were giving her. There was a frail look to her, but it was a facade. The strength she had to have to go through what she did was unfathomable.

Seeing her is almost unbelievable.

The presence of someone behind me made me breathe out slowly. They walked closer.

"She'll be out of here in no time. She'll recover in three days tops. It's what she does." I could feel Damon's eyes move to me as he kept talking. "You have to watch her, but if you watch too closely, she'll shut you out. Don't leave, though. That's the last thing she wants. No matter what she says, she's not okay."

I didn't take my eyes away from her. "I'm the last thing she wants. I'm the reason she's here. If I had just stayed away-"

"You're kidding, right?"

I glanced at him for only a second before returning my attention to Evelyn. "She was the one taken because she was connected to me. If I had left her alone, she wouldn't be where she is right now."

"They would've taken her anyway. Hurting her, or getting anywhere close to it, makes you go ballistic. She's the only thing that makes you feel something. She's the reason you feel anything at all."

I watched as her head shifted to the side. There was a pained look on her face. I was ready to throw myself across the floor before she relaxed again.

"You should go home."

I shook my head once, "No."

"She's okay. She has ten doctors watching her at all times. If anything happens, they're here for her. You can feel her, you know she's fine. And she knows how you feel, so if you aren't okay, neither is she. You need to go to sleep. Or at least wash the blood off. If she wakes up and sees you covered in blood, she'll freak out."

Guilt consumed me if I even thought about leaving.

"She wouldn't want you to stay here. You know that better than anyone."

I didn't move. I kept staring at her to make sure she's still alive.

I felt his hand on my shoulder. "Come on."

"I can't leave her."

He sighed and dropped his hand. He stepped in front of me. A sudden panic enveloped my mind. He tilted his head. "She's not dying. She's gone to hell and back, and I doubt she's giving up now. Let her do what she does best; let her come back stronger than the last time."

She wouldn't want me to be here. He's right about that. Leaving her feels like abandoning her. I reminded myself that we're not together. Which only made me think more about what they did to her and how I should've stopped it.

I need to find them.

I looked at her one last time before going away from Damon. I ignored his question about where I was going.

-

Caroline

-

I watched her breathe slowly, finally without the oxygen tube. Three days here, and she's recovering faster than anyone knew. Remembering Stefan having to pull me out of the hospital made me feel guilty. I abandoned her. She would've wanted me to leave, but I didn't want to.

I looked at Kai, who was still sitting in the exact same position from when I walked in five hours ago. Once he came back from wherever he ran off to, he never left her side. He hasn't taken his eyes off her.