IN A HEARTBEAT ⊳ PAUL LAHOTE

f i r s t

C H A P T E R T W E N T Y

. . .

The sound of the ICU monitor echoed endlessly throughout the white room. The female's ward suprisingly empty as the patient slowly opened her eyes yet she closed them back after seeing the blinding light.

Trying to open them again, she blinked numerous times as she adjusted her line of sight. She looked around and studied the room, beside her is a small desk - on top of it were unread letters.

She was about to sit up and read it for herself when her room door opened, there - two adults and a child came in. Their faces lightening upon seeing her awake, they then ran towards her direction.

❝ Zara! Oh my god, you're awake! ❞ Her mother beamed as she hugged her daughter, followed by her father and her brother with smiles on their faces. She sat up quite confused, what happened?

Her parents excused themselves as they went out to call the doctor, while her little brother sat with her with a sad smile on his face. ❝ Sis! I was really waiting for you to wake up! I had no one to talk to and no one to play with! ❞

His pout made her heart clench as she opened her arms for him, only making the bed bounce once he landed on top of her with a huge hug. Both giggling,
❝ It's been a year, Zara. He's been looking for you, ❞

A year?

She looked at her little brother in confusion, too still for his brother to like. He detached himself from her as he sat opposite of her direction - legs crossed as he held his toys of different heroes.

❝ You have been sleeping for a year, sis! ❞

Heart racing,

she couldn't believe it.

❝ And Alex couldn't stop blaming himself, he took different jobs so he could pay the hospital bills for you, ❞

Alex? Paul, that's right.

Paul looked exactly like Alex, but Alex wasn't treating her in ways that Paul did.

Suddenly her room door opened once again, her parents along with a doctor came with smiles on their faces. Taking their seats except for the doctor who stood just beside her bed, examining through the ICU monitor at the same time writing results down.

❝ Zara, you have been diagnosed of comatose for a year. I know it's a lot to take in, but as your parents had elaborated - you were caught in an accident with your fiancé. ❞ The doctor stopped talking when she saw tears leaking from her eyes,

They didn't know what to do, why was she crying? Maybe because the news was too bad to be handled?

❝ Paul. . ❞

Confusion crossed their faces, who was Paul?

She was pondering of La Push, the school she went that held memories of him. The conversations they had, the wonderful scenery from the cliff. The moments when they went to the park as he chased her with their laughs echoing throughout the place, the bike experience and her love.

Her love for paul,

Was it true?

It was just a dream.

❝ I. . I'm confused, ❞