Open When...(Paul Walker Fanfiction)

Letter #8: Open When...You Can't Sleep

Song: I Promise You (With Everything I Am) by Backstreet Boys {I promise you, from the bottom of my heart, I will love you till death do us part}
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December 27th, 2013 (11 weeks, 4 days)

When I wake from my dreamless sleep, the first thing I see is The Walking Dead on the TV. The next thing I see is my smiling husband looking at me. I have to pinch myself to make sure that this isn't a dream. While Paul was in a coma, everyone else's world kept turning and mine seemed to stop. Now that he's awake, everything is starting to go back to normal. Well, mostly to normal again.

"Good morning, beautiful," he says, opening his arms. I anxiously get up from my chair and lay in his arms. We would've slept like this, but the nurses didn't want any wires of tubes to be disrupted. Although I would like to sleep next to him, I'm just glad he is awake. "Did you sleep well?" he asks, kissing the top of my head.

"Okay, I guess." I don't feel rejuvenated like I should, but I'll keep going.

Paul sighs and I look up at him. "I know that you want to stay here all the time, and I love you for that. But you need to go home and get some rest. That chair is not comfortable to sleep in, especially when I don't know how much longer I'm going to be here."

He's right, we don't know how long his hospital stay is going to last. From where he was in a coma for twenty-four days, his muscles have to readjust to start working again. Of course, he will get back to 100% eventually, but to get there he needs physical therapy. In my opinion, he might need another type of therapy too. The night before last, he started screaming in his sleep, and trying to rip his IVs and monitors out. He didn't have to tell me what he was dreaming about, because I know it was about the crash. We haven't talked about it yet, and I'm not sure when or if he will be open to talk about it.

I dismiss his concerns. "I'll be fine. I don't want to miss a minute with you." My eyes tear up, thinking about how I came so close to losing him. "God, I can't believe that we almost ended on a fight. That haunted me everyday that you were in that coma. I couldn't possibly live with myself knowing-"

"Shh, it's okay, baby. I'm here now, we're together again and that's all that matters." Paul holds me tightly in his arms. It's a feeling that I've missed terribly, and a feeling that I recognize that I took for granted before the crash. Paul begins to chuckle. "It's visiting hours time. Wonder when Meadow is going to come running through the door?"

I smile, remembering how she reacted when she came through that door three days ago.

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Flashback

December 24th, 2013 (three days ago)

It's been a couple of hours since Paul has woken up. I haven't been able to take my eyes off of him, let alone my hands. My husband is finally awake and has come back to me and everyone. This could qualify for the best Christmas ever, and it's just the day before. My holiday season has already been made.

Cody has called everyone in the family, while I let Paul call Vin, Tyrese, and the rest of the Fast family on my phone. He put them on speaker. I can only imagine all of their reactions. Every single one of them cried, but out of happiness. Today is definitely a happy day; our favorite person is back with us. However, one reaction that I know will be my favorite is Meadow's. I called Callie to tell her the good news, and she literally screamed through the phone. It made me laugh, but it also almost busted my eardrum. She told me she would go pick up Meadow for me.

We have this little plan of not telling her so she can see for herself. Callie is going to bring her to the hospital so she can see her father and I, and Cody is going to film the whole thing. I just hope that my heart can take all of the emotions. Andrew will bring in Aubree and Luke soon after. This all feels like the family get together that would be happening tomorrow, but now I know that it will be much happier now that Paul is awake.