Lisa
I could hear the sound of an electrocardiogram. It was faint, but you couldn't miss it. Maybe I had gotten used to the 'beeping' sound. It wasn't my first time hearing it.
I didn't need to open my eyes to figure out I was at the hospital. I could feel the needle piercing through my left hand, and the light gown touching my skin.
I was alive. Yet again, I had survived death.
I wasn't sure if I wanted to this time. It would have been easier if this had truly been the end. No explanation would need to be given, and there wouldn't be the need to repeat the same conversation with the same people over and over again.
I was tired of it all. I couldn't bring myself to recover from yet another trauma.
And so, I didn't.
Ten days later, I was still at the hospital recovering from my gunshot wound. Apprently, I was lucky to be alive. The bullet missed my left ventricle by a few inches. Lucky isn't the word I would use though.
Ben, Clark and surprisingly Torvi, visited everyday, hoping that one day I'd change my mind on my no visitors policy. That's right, I hadn't spoked to them yet. The only person I spoke to was officer Rogers for obvious reasons.
He tried to remain biased and neutral when I told him the truth of what had ensued. But I could tell he was surprised, or rather shocked, that Lydia was the mastermind behind it all.
Speaking of Lydia, she never got to tell her story. And I'd never be able to testify in court. Apparently she called 911 when I passed out. She then proceeded to commit suicide right there on the spot. Paramedics found two bodies on the floor that night. But only one of us survived.
Lydia's fingerprints were all over the hand gun she shot me with, so it was practically a given on what had happened. Further evidence on how she planned to attack me the night I was raped was also found, but I asked officer Rogers to spare me the details. They didn't matter anymore.
I heard a faint knock on the door. Joan, the head nurse of the ward came into view.
"Miss Dunn, you have a new visitor today".
I sat up straight and reached for my water. "As I said before, I'm not up for seeing anyone at the moment".
"I know", she sighed. "But he insisted, he said his name was Tom".
I took a deep breath and stared at her.
"I'll tell him you're not feeling well", she said as she was about to retreat.
"Tell him to come in", I said abruptly.
"Are you sure?"
"Yeah".
A few moments later, a very tired looking man entered the room. I hadn't seen Tom for a long time, but I knew it wasn't 'time' that changed his appearance. He looked broken and defeated.
But hell, so was I.
"Hey Lis", he said with his hands in his pockets. He looked at me, careful enough to avoid my eyes.
"How are you?", he asked when I didn't respond.
"What do you want?", I questioned.
Life thought me that it was too damn short not to get to the point.
"I-I", he stammered. "I'm not sure", he admitted. "I just needed to see you".
"Why?" I pushed. "Because your wife nearly killed me?".
I saw him gulp and look at the ground.
"I didn't know", he sobbed. "I didn't know she was capable of doing that to you".
"Well, now you know".
There was no emotion in my voice. Or my face for that matter. If he was looking for empathy, he wasn't going to get any from me.
"I'm sorry Lisa", he paused. "I'm so so sorry", he said before releasing a long cry.
A moment passed where all I could see was a man, a boy, crying over spilt milk.
"So is it true then?", I probed. "Where you in love with me whilst being with Lydia?".
"It's not that simple", he said as he shifted uncomfortably on his feet.
"Yes it is. Where you in love with me all this time?"
"Fuck", he yelled. "Yes ok, yes I was".
He ran a hand through his hair and walked closer to me.
"From the very first moment I laid eyes on you in biology class. I knew it was over for me. You had me under your spell."
He let out a small tear. "But while I was looking at you, you were looking at my best friend".
I furrowed my eyebrows. "Why didn't you tell me?".
He scrunched his nose and looked me right in the eye.
"He was Ben Martinez. How could I ever compete with that?".
And altough I hated myself for knowing it, I knew he was right. After I met Ben, I never glanced at another guy.
"But then why string Lydia along, if that's really how you felt?".
"I didn't mean to", he replied. "It was meant to be just a fling. She knew that. But she wanted more. She wanted the american dream. A faithful loving husband and two or three kids".
"I wanted it to", he continued. "I've always wanted a big family. My folks were practically begging us to make them grandparents when we got married".
I could see a hint of sadness in his eyes, or was it regret?
"It was like I was living a dream. Even though deep down I knew Lydia wasn't the one, I could still see a future with her".
I reached down for Tom's hand. I wanted him to acknowledge that I felt his pain.
"Then you and Ben got divorced and reality set in. I didn't love her, and she didn't love me. We both wanted the same thing and that was the only thing keeping us together".
We sat in a moment of silence. A comfortable silence allowing us to gather our thoughts.
I felt Tom's hand tense in my own. "If I had known that leaving her wou-", he paused and avoided my gaze once again.
"Would have caused all this I wouldn't have done it Lisa I swear - this is all my fault", he continued with flooded eyes.
"It's not anyone's fault", I said. "Lydia was battling demons we never knew about".
"I should have known about them though. I was her husband".
"And I was her best friend".
We squeezed each other's hands as a sign of consolation. But I knew I couldn't console him. Or him me. Not in the way he wanted to at least.
"I need to fix this, make this better somehow, I just don't know how or what to do", he said.
I let go of his hand and shifted upwards to a sitting position. "Well, I might know where you can start".
Tom looked at me confused, as I thought he would be.
"You said you wanted a family. Well you've got one right outside that door".
I gave him a half smile.
"I'm not following".
"You never told me about your fling with my sister", I stated.
"What? That was ages ago. Me and Lydia weren't even official yet".
"I'm not interested in the timeline of events".
"All I'm saying", I continued, "is that your second chance is right outside this door ....
And it starts with a little kid with bright blue eyes that will soon call you 'daddy'".