Mistaken Perception

Chapter 9

"What is that supposed to mean? Are we supposed to take your word for it?" questioned his brother.

"I might be a lot of things but I am not a liar. If you don't believe me ask Aisha. However, it's not my place to delve into and talk about someone's past...especially if she hasn't given me permission," he replied evenly. 

He knew what it felt like to lose a family member. That often times people's acts of kindness was something that truly hurt rather than helped. For example, that nurse had thought she had been nice, but what she had done was just open up an infectious wound that Aisha had been trying to close.

"You can't just expect..." Sebastian began but he was cut off by their mother.

"Alright, get some rest, Gabriel. I'm going to go talk to the doctor. Can you two wait outside for your grandparents and uncle," said their mother taking control.

Though Sebastian was itching to say something, he turned without a word and walked out of the room. Lucy was right behind him her small cane gently tapping aginst the floor.

"Didn't I tell you that she had a lot of pressure on her shoulders?" asked their mother looking at Gabriel with a disappointed look.

If looks could wound, his mother's look delivered a solid punch. Gabriel felt his heart take a twist with guilt and regret.

"I ...I didn't mean..." he shut his mouth and looked away, shame showering over him from head to toe. What excuse could he possibly give? Sure he hadn't known her past, but did that justify the way he had treated her.

"Mom, I'm sorry," he whispered.

"I'm not the one that needs to hear an apology," she replied before she walked out of the room.

He closed his eyes feeling a ton of bricks descending on his shoulders. What was he going to do?

He was sure of one thing, though, he wouldn't be able to erase her haunted eyes and broken tears from his memories.

~~~~~~~~

~Aisha's POV~

Aisha was breathing heavily as she leaned aginst the back seat of the taxi. It was a lucky break to find a waiting taxi car at the front of the hospital. She hadn't wanted someone else to see her crying. She gently touched her cheek remembering Gabriel's hand creasing her cheek. Her cheek was still warm as if he left behind an imprint of his hand. Her heart was beating frantically. She placed a hand aginst her chest trying to calm it down.

She hadn't meant to break down like that. She had thought she had it all under control. She had fooled herself into believing that she had gotten over her sadness. That the monster that represented her fear, anxiety, hurt and tears had been securely locked away at the recess of her brain.

A shaky breath escaped her lips as she closed her eyes. Why had he been that close? What did he mean by it? Her heartbeat began to increase as she remembered just how near he had been. How his eyes had bored into hers, swimming with emotions she had never seen before.

She didn't like this one bit? Everything had been easier to understand when he was mean to her. She could ignore him and they stayed away from each others path. She didn't like feeling confused and overwhelmed, yet that was exactly what he was doing to her.

Her phone began to ring, forcing Aisha to open her eyes and search for it in her bag. She picked it up after seeing the call was from Justine.

"Hello..." she said softly.

"Hello, darling...I had wanted to thank you...but you were gone when I got here," she said gently.

Aisha paused not really trusting her voice. She took a deep breath before she replied.