Life Is (Mostly) Beautiful

10. Heartbreaks and Heartaches

"Brik?" I asked, staring at the tired face of the man I hadn't seen in over two months. He looked beat down, exausted and worried. I'd almost feel sorry for him if I wasn't so confused. "What are you doing here?"

"God, it is you," he said, rushing to my side and hugging me. "Are you ok? How are you feeling? Are you hurt?"

"Brik, what are you doing here?"

"I came to find you. I've been looking everywhere for you Alena," he said, gripping my arms.

"But how did you find me?" I asked, pulling back.

A look of hurt flashed on his face, but he stepped forward again and gently held my hand. "When you left,  I thought I should give you some space, so I did. But then I kept getting this nagging feeling that I shouldn't have let you go, and that I needed to find you. I looked all over LA for you: motels, hotels, people we knew in college. I even looked all over social media and got nothing until about a week ago..." I looked away in shame. "I saw that the post was from Minneapolis, so I came here. It wasn't until early this morning that I heard the news, and I heard your mom's name. I thought you might be here."

As he talked, my eyes welled up with tears. Only Brik would scour the city and travel halfway across the country for me. I couldn't deny that I still loved him, but after everything that had happened, it was hard to trust anyone at this point.

"I just want to see my mom," I said finally.

Right away, Brik determinedly walked up to the reception desk. "What room is Mae Parker in? That is her daughter, and she needs to see her!"

The woman at the desk immediantly looked through her files until she found it. "She's in critical care, room 234. Wait, you need to check in!"

Brik and I walked quickly to the floor and room number supplied, dodging all the gurneys and medical equipment moving through. My stomach queazed at the sight because I absoluelty hated hospitals.

When we reached the room, a doctor nurse was speaking softly to a nurse in the room. My mother's body lay still on the hospital bed next to them.

"Mom!" I said bursting in. "Is she okay? Please tell me she's okay!" I cried to the doctor.

The nurse quietly left the room, and the doctor silently lead me and Brik into the hallway. "Her head was severly hit during the accident and sustained some pretty serious damages," she said gently. My heart sank in my chest as she did. "She's been drifting in and out of consciousness, which is better than complete comatose...but there's no telling what will happen yet."

"So she's alive? She still has a chance?"

"As of right now, yes. But I must warn you, Ms. Parker, head injuries are the hardest to recover from." She gave me a gentle squeeze on the shoulder before walking down to the opposite end of the hallway. I slowly entered the room.

"Mama?" I whispered softly. Her head was all bandaged and bruised worse than mine was, and the sight alone made my stomach knot. "Mama, I'm so sorry," I cried over her, holding her hand gently. I sat in the chair next to her bed, and leaned my head softly on her shoulder.

Above me, Brik rubbed my back in soothing circles. "We're gonna be here for a while. I'll get go us a coffee," he said. I knew he just wanted to give me some time with my mother, and I was grateful for that. When he left, I looked my mother over again, taking in her every feature. She seemed so peaceful and so fragile...not at all the way I remembered her growing up.

"I am so sorry I ever hurt you Mama. I forgive you for everything: all the times you weren't there, all the times you kept me down, I forgive you. I just pray to God that you wake up and can forgive me too. I love you Mama," I whispered, giving her a soft kiss on her cheek. "I love you so much."