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A chorus of beeping machines rouses me from a dreamless slumber.
It's been days since I slept. The room I'm in smells like a hospital. The last thing I remember is Mick raising the knife, ready to stab me. Anything after that is a dark hole. Safe to assume he ended up stabbing me, assuming that I'm in a hospital. Now that I'm a bit more lucid, I can hear the hushed whispers of two people. One is frantic, while the other is trying their best to be comforting, with a matter-of-fact undertone to it. I force my eyes open to be met with stark white walls. I glance over at the two figures, neither of which are facing me. Hudson's face is blotchy, like he's been crying, while the doctor he's talking to does her best to reassure him. He looks like he hasn't slept in hours. Maybe they should have sedated him instead of me. That's a funny thought, watching Hudson come off of anesthesia.
"She's going to be just fine, sir. I can't tell you why she hasn't woken up yet, but I can assure you that she's not in a coma. She's just sleeping." The doctor places her hand on his shoulder, but he brushes her off.
"You've been saying that for three days. You have to know some reason for why she hasn't gotten up. You told us that there's no major brain injury, So why won't she wake up?"
The doctor sighs. "I don't think a brain injury is what's kept her asleep for so long. She could be recovering her energy or it might be the strain of healing from multiple injuries. Maybe both."
"How many injuries does she have?" he asks warily.
"Quite a few," she flips to a page on her clipboard. "They were all easy for us to tend to, but I imagine that they were incredibly traumatic to receive and endure."
Hudson's trembling at this point. It takes everything I have not to get out of this bed and wrap my arms around him. But I don't, at least not yet. "What happened to her?"
"Well...she has the obvious stab wound to the stomach, then she has bruises all over her body from beatings, significant bruising to the pelvic regio—"
"Pelvic region?" I'm not sure what happened to Mick, but Hudson looks like he could kill him. I honestly think that he would if he could.
The doctor nods solemnly. "I'm sorry to inform you that she was sexually assaulted. We've collected as much evidence as possible and turned it over to the police, but when she wakes up, she'll have to give them a statement."
Hudson sinks into a nearby chair and puts his head in his hands. "This is all my fault, I should have protected her."
The doctor says nothing in respond. She simply walks out of the room, quietly shutting the door behind her. For the first time in days, the reality of the situation sets in and I weep. Not from sadness, or from pain, not even from anger. But relief that I've survived Mick once again. I really thought that I was going to die on the sidewalk, yet here I am. Hudson must have heard me crying, because he's at my side in an instant. I hate to be rude but he looks awful. His hair's a mess and he's got these dark bruises under his eyes. The way he's carrying himself tells me that he's probably exhausted. I wonder if he's been eating properly.
"What happened to Mick?" It's the first thing I've said to him in days. I expected my first words to him to be something a little more heartfelt, a little more sincere, but that's all I want to know right now.
"I'd decided to call the cops on my way over, something told me that it wasn't going to go well. When he uh, when he stabbed you, I tackled him before he could do it again and held him until the cops got there. They arrested him...he's gone for good, Water Lily."
My nickname. It feels so good to hear my nickname again. I scoot over in the bed and pat the spot beside me. Hudson hesitates for a second before crawling into bed beside me. "I really missed you," I tell him.
He smiles at me. "I really missed you too."
We stay silent for a long while, just enjoying each other's presence. There's so many things I want to say to him, but none of the words want to come out, at least not now. Every night that I was there, no matter what was happening, my thoughts traveled back to him. Deep down inside, I knew that I would make it back to him. I think I knew it subconsciously, even when I thought I was going to die. My subconscious knocked me out so I wouldn't have to be awake and endure the pain. I feel like if I saw Hudson's reaction in that moment, it would have made the sting of death hurt even more.
"When I get out, I want to go to Chicago as soon as possible."
Hudson nods. "They said you can go home tomorrow if you woke up and everything looked good. I'll book a flight for all of us as soon as you're discharged. How's that sound?"
"Sounds like a deal," I reply and lay my head on his shoulder.
This is what safety feels like. Sitting in a room with someone you care about without fearing that someone is going to burst in and try to kill you at any moment. The sound of doors opening and closing no longer mean that Mick's coming to make my life hell. Instead, it's friendly doctors checking my vitals and ensuring that I'll make a full recovery. When Hudson touches me, I don't feel like leeches are crawling against my skin. Instead, it's bliss. For the first time since I was 17 years olds, I am rid of Heath. No more disturbing gifts on my birthday, or text messages meant to incite fear in me. I can finally live my life to the fullest without worrying if it'll be the last time I can enjoy my freedom.
"I know it's a bad time, but this entire situation made me realize that I should say what I'm thinking just in case it's too late," Hudson takes my hand in his, and it feels so natural that I don't pull away.
I glance up at him and it looks like he's questioning if he really wants to go through with this. He runs his free hand through his hair and sighs. "Like I said this is a horrible time, but I really care about you, and I'll hate myself if I don't ask so...do you want to...will you...be...my girlfriend?"
"What took you so long?" I tease.
Hudson rolls his eyes. "You've got me out here all nervous and shit, worried you'll chastise me for asking while you're in the hospital, but then you hit me with that? My heart, man."
I can't help but laugh. "I'll be your girlfriend on one condition."
He raises his eyebrow. "Which is?"
"Write me another song."
"Yes ma'am." He kisses me and I swear it feels like I could reach out and hold onto the stars.
Hudson pulls away and kisses my forehead. "I should probably let you know what to expect when we get back tomorrow."
What to expect? What the hell is that supposed to mean? "Which is?"
"After you were kidnapped, my parents and eventually your dad ended up coming to my house. They're all there right now, just waiting for you to get home. You're obviously used to your dad, but mine can be...a lot at times, and my mom is really excited to meet you. I've been telling her about you everyday since I got down here, says she wants to meet the girl who got me to calm down.
"I wouldn't say you're calm," I joke.
Hudson rolls his eyes and kisses me again. I laugh a little, but return the kiss eagerly. There's so much more that I want to say to Hudson, but the doctor from earlier comes in and inform us that visitation hours are over. If they let me, I would have kept him here with me and held onto him all night. It's a quick goodbye and Hudson promises to be back first thing tomorrow morning. I watch him until the door shuts behind him and I can see him no longer, but I swear that if I'm quiet enough I can hear his faint footsteps.
Now that he's gone, reality finally settles. No more Mick. He's in jail. Sure, I might have to testify if he doesn't confess, but I don't care. All I care is that he can't hurt me or anyone else ever again. That's enough to get me through anything from here on out.
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