Beatrice & the Beast

Chapter 27.

Beatrice's POV:

This is harder than I thought it was going to be. I thought he would see me or feel my touch and remember. When his parents showed up, he was very distant from them. His mom was always the sweetest person to me and asked me to go home, so she could stay with him. I refused, obviously. I felt like I needed to stay with him and help him. Promises have been made and I need to keep them. The night of the accident, Claudia came to the hospital after Mikey called her. Apparently Luke was still in the lobby.

"He's still in there, Triss. He hasn't left at all." Claudia told me this on the 3rd day that Ash was hospitalized. They came and visited everyday and so did Ashton's parents.

Ashton asked a lot of questions for a boy who has memory loss. He told me that when he dreams, he sees blurry events. He told me that he sees me, as a kid, playing on the swings with pigtails and a big smile on my face. Then everything goes different... everything turns to a blur and he sees today's version of me. A lot of smiling but a lot of tears, he told me. I asked him if he could hear anything while he dreams, if his dreams had the audio to go with it. He told me, "No, I suppose not. I try and talk to you, but you only stare." When he told me that, it seemed as if he was holding something back. His face was troubled, but it switched back to the amused face he had before.

"What about us? I mean, our friends and everything?" Ashton was stands up from his bed and moves to the window. "Who's with who?"

I hesitate to answer at first. I mean, he already knows about everything and us dating but it's still hard to talk about. Maycee face timed me last night. She's staying with this guy that she works with until she can get her own apartment. When talking with her, she didn't even mention Calum, and I didn't mention him either. I guess they got in an argument before she left and it's not going too well.

You can definitely see it on both of their faces. Calum has these dark circles under his eyes and looks a bit thinner than usual. Maycee just looks tan, and tired but she is definitely distant.

I'm ready for them to get back together honestly. I miss Maycee and everything, but having Calum back to his old self would be nice.

"Well, we all knew each other since elementary school and grew to be the best of friends. Claudia and Michael have been together since middle school and are actually married now. They live together in an apartment across town. Maycee and Calum are... well. I don't really know what they are right now. Maycee is in Australia working for this fancy-ass hair styling place that I know nothing about. But, they'll probably get back together when Calum comes to his senses. You and I-"

"We're dating. Right?" He looks at me from under those curls and waits for an answer. He's wearing a tank top I got him from The Killers concert we went to a couple of years ago. He's wearing some pajama pants that his mom got him for Christmas around the same time. Ashton is nervous, I can tell. I take in a deep breath and stand up from my chair/bed. Ashton's leg is propped up on the window ledge so he's kind of sitting on the ledge.

The window is big, and it overlooks the hospital garden. The flowers in the garden are blooming and beautiful, but it kind of gives off a sense of false hope. When I look down from where I sit on the ledge, across from Ashton, I can see a woman crying. We're only on the 2nd floor of the hospital and the more I stare at the woman, the more I can tell that her mascara is streaming down her face. The answer to the question is yes. I can tell him that no, we are not dating. Our story would change immediately and he would never know about the things I put him and Luke through. Being the selfish person I am, I give in.

"Yes, we are... dating." I can feel his eyes on me. I don't dare to look, though. If I look at him, I will break down. I can't do that to him because he won't know what to do.