Autumn came out of the restroom, still not meeting eyes with Zyler's eyes. He stared at her with longing in his eyes. She grabbed her blanket and a pillow. "Where are you going?" he crossed his arms.
"I am not sleeping next to you," she turned to the mirror and started braiding her hair, not looking at him.
"You are," he rounded to her side and stood behind her.
"Then I am not sleeping at all," She pivoted, now facing him.
"Atty, don't be stubborn," he reached out to grab her, but the girl didn't want to be touched, which pissed him more, but he didn't show it on his face as he had already messed up.
"Please, Atty," he sighed.
"I want to be alone. I hope you can respect that," now crossing him, she reached to go down the steps when Zyler stopped her. He picked her up, and she began protesting. "How long will you force me?" she asked as he carried her to their bed. He was hurt, and so was she.
"Until the day you realize you are mine and there is no escape from me," he gazed into her eyes, putting her on the bed.
"And you wonder why I dislike you," she turned around, pulling the blanket onto her body. She didn't have the energy to fight him anymore. Letting God decide her face, she closed her eyes, falling into a deep slumber. While Autumn was asleep, Zyler didn't have a wink of sleep. He stared at the Borealis that had now disappeared. It was as if the heavens didn't want to be with him if she wasn't.
"You are one stubborn girl, baby," he wheeled his head around, facing her. He brushed his knuckles on her cheeks, feeling her warm breath on his wrists. "I know how to make this right," kissing her on her forehead, he pulled her closer.
"Heaven and earth may fall. My enemies might end me, but my breath is yours, and I will never let you go," Autumn sighed in her sleep, crossing her arms on her chest in protest. Feeling content and hopeful, he closed his eyes and fell asleep.
They awoke and boarded the jet back to the States the following day. Autumn rose before him, but she was uncharacteristically quiet and withdrawn. She didn't listen to her music and sat there looking gloomy and exhausted. He didn't like it, but he didn't disturb her.
The jet landed in the States, but he didn't take her home. Instead, the car took a different route. He noticed her face change from usual to worried, but she didn't ask him where he was taking her.
When she was in the bathroom, Zyler received a call from Joel informing him that Elaine had fainted again and been taken to the hospital. Typically, Zyler would have insisted on being there with his mother, but given her condition, he didn't dare disturb her. He was determined, however, to have Elaine and Autumn meet. No matter what had happened between him and his mother or whether she remembered him, he wanted her to know Autumn. Maybe this would ease his guilt a bit.
When the car stopped, Autumn peered out the window, curious to see where they were. Zyler chuckled at her curiosity. "You will see," he opened the door for her, and she stepped out.
He scanned the surroundings and walked inside. "Are you planning to kidnap me and hide me here?" she elbowed him and moved out of his arms.
"Come on, baby girl. I'm anything but predictable." He noticed her rolling her eyes, a habit she had developed in recent days. They reached a room on the top floor, away from everything. He opened the door and stepped inside with her. Autumn wasn't sure what was happening, but she followed him, her gaze drawn to the frame lying on the bed.
A man in his 70s immediately got up and walked up to Zyler. "Hello, Mr. Stone. I am Dr. Chen," he greeted Zyler, but the man ignored the doctor.
"How is she?" Autumn noticed how rude Zyler was to people around him.
Dr. Chen picked up the chart attached to the bed and shook his head. "This isn't good." He flipped to the next page and made a note on his clipboard. "I'm going to be honest with you, Mr. Stone. This headache was worse than her last one." He adjusted his glasses and sighed. "I've been reviewing her case files. Her headaches are progressing rapidly, and her pain tolerance is decreasing. She may not have much time."
Zyler closed his eyes, feeling anger and helplessness seep in. "Then I might have to take her somewhere else to be treated," he opened his eyes and argued.
"I have been doing this for 40 years, Mr. Stone. I know a lost cause when I see one. The best you can do for her is to take care of her and make her days as peaceful as possible." The old man didn't take offense to Zyler's words. Maybe this profession teaches people to be peaceful. Autumn hoped she could be as patient and kind as that doctor was.
Autumn was curious to know who this woman was and why Zyler was so concerned about her. A light groan grabbed their attention. The woman was opening her eyes. As soon as she did, she looked around, confused and delirious. "Where am I?" she asked to the room.
The doctor put his clipboard on and grabbed his light. "How are you feeling, Elaine?". He flashed the light in her eyes to see how she was doing.
"I feel okay, but my head is still pounding, and where is Joel?" her gaze shifted to Zyler, and anger clouded her senses. "What is he doing here?" Even in her dazed state, she was angry at Zyler, breaking his already broken heart to pieces that no one could ever piece together.
"This is his hospital. He is funding your treatment." Dr. Chen adjusted the IV drip. "You need to rest Elaine." He made her lie on the bed. Elaine nodded, lying on the bed and staring at the ceiling. "We need to give her some space," the doctor guided them out of the room. Autumn and Zyler followed him.
"If you don't want to take my suggestions. You are welcome to take her somewhere. But anywhere you take her, the answer is the same. She won't make it out." The doctor walked away. Autumn did not grasp what was happening there. But before she could ask, Zyler moved like an angry bull toward a man walking their way.
Slamming the man to the wall, he barked. "Where the fuck were you, Joel?"
Joel's eyes popped wide open in fear. "I wanted to get some coffee."
"My mother is dying, and you wanted to get some fucking coffee?" he demanded, slamming the man more into the wall.
Joel shut his eyes, hissing. "She is my wife, too. Not just your mother."
"The mother that you stole from me and made you your wife with false stories?" Zyler yelled into Joel's face, spit flying in all directions.
"You are the one that shot her," Joel clapped back, which snapped Zyler into reality. Zyler's anger dissipated, and pain took over. It is true. He shot his mother. He is responsible for her condition. Guilt took over him like a shadow, making him weak in the legs. He threw Joel onto the floor and kicked the wall with the force of a hammer that sent pieces of wood and plaster in all directions. He looked at her once and stormed out.
Autumn's mind reeled in shock and confusion. It was his mother. Her mind drifted back to the night he had revealed his past to her. Everything made sense to her. "But what if she was alive?" his words echoed in her mind like a broken record.
"Who are you?" Joel's question made her body react.
"I am a friend," she was quick to answer. Joel scoffed. "That monster has friends?" Joel was a coward. He wouldn't dare to say that before Zyler, but he had no problem saying it behind his back.
Autumn found herself grappling with an unexpected surge of anger, perplexed by the intensity of her emotions. Joel's derogatory remark about Zyler had unleashed a storm within her, causing her inner turmoil to seethe. She sternly said, "That 'monster' can snatch away your existence in a mere breath before you could even spell the word 'monster.' I would think twice before calling him that to his face." With measured resolve, she pushed open the door to Elaine's room, crossing its threshold in a contemplative stride.
The room was quiet. The only sounds that disturbed the silence were a sledgehammer pounding somewhere nearby and the occasional beeping of the monitors.
Elaine was still staring at the ceiling. "It hurts," she commented. Autumn longed to provide solace to Elaine, her heart aching with the desire to ease her burdens.
"I am sorry, Mrs. Sto....." she stopped at that. From what had happened there, she understood that Elaine had no recollection of the past, and she didn't even remember her own son. "Do you want me to do something for you?" she pitied the woman. No woman should endure such an ordeal.
"Umm. No. But who are you?" Elaine redirected her gaze from the ceiling to the girl.
Autumn struggled for words. "I am a friend," she extended her hand to Elaine. The woman suspiciously glanced between Autumn's hands and her face. Autumn withdrew her arms back, "never mind. You must be exhausted."
Elaine nodded. "I am. What are you doing with that criminal?"
Autumn understood who Elaine was referring to.
"He kills people. I hate him," Venom spat out of her tone. Autumn felt pity for Zyler. How unfortunate that his mother hates him. "You seem like a nice girl. A normal girl."
Autumn offered a gentle smile. "He's not as terrible as you think." She couldn't help but wonder why she found herself defending someone who stole her life away.
"Joel told me he was the one who brought me home when I fell, but I don't think that's true. That man kills people," Elaine tried sitting up, and Autumn got up and helped her. "If I were you, I wouldn't be within a mile of him."
"I don't think he is as bad as you think you think he is. Is it possible that you saw someone else?" She wanted to face-palm herself for saying good things about Zyler.
Elaine suddenly burst into tears, and Autumn appeared concerned. "I don't know who I am most days." She wailed into her palms, and Autumn immediately hugged Elaine. The woman clutched tight to Autumn. "I feel like I am missing chunks of my life. Major parts, the more I try to remember, the more it hurts. I don't know what happened to me."
Autumn stroked Elaine's back to comfort her. "I can tell I don't have much time. I can feel it in my bones." Elaine wiped her tears with the back of her hand. It had been ages since she hugged a woman-a comforting touch to ease her pain.
Elaine's tears flowed incessantly, prompting Autumn's heart to ache in sympathy. After some time, Elaine withdrew, and Autumn extended a glass of water with a comforting gesture. She took it and drowned in the liquid.
"If you know you have less time, why stress about the things we cannot control?"
Elaine took another sip, listening to Autumn. "I want to know who I was. I want to know my past. Did I have a family other than Joel? Did I have parents? A pet? A favorite book? A movie?"
"I understand," Autumn did. She knew better than anyone what a struggle it is to fit in and find your identity. She also knew Elaine's past was horrible and regaining that memory would only make her feel pathetic, even though she had no control over it.
" But what if the past is something that you don't want to know? What if it is a long string of horrific events that God wants us to forget?" Autumn saw Elaine thinking.
"What if knowing it would only make our lives worse? What if it would steal the joy that we have now?" Autumn did not wish to manipulate Elaine. All she wanted was to comfort Elaine and talk her out of trying to remember her past. There was no way she would regain her memories, and even if she did, she would try to blame herself for everything that happened in her life. So, the least she could do was ease her pain. Maybe she saw her April in Elaine. Maybe April lost her memories. Perhaps someone kind took her in and was taking care of her.
"You know," she continued. "I had a sister. We were best friends, and one day, she disappeared."
Elaine gasped. "Just like that?" she questioned like a baby.
"Just like that," Autumn chuckled. "Each day, I try to tell myself she is alive somewhere and living her life like she always wanted to." Autumn bit her lower lip, trying to control her tears.
"Maybe the past is something we are meant to cherish and not linger in. Even if we don't remember," she ruefully snickered. "What do I know?" she shrugged. "I am still learning to make peace with it," she noticed Elaine had already fallen asleep with the bottle in her hand. Autumn's features softened into a smile. She closed the door and stepped out, and as soon as she turned around, she was pulled into a tight hug. Zyler hugged her tighter than she had ever been hugged.
...................................................
I was inches away from my freedom, and suddenly, I was pulled back. Pulled into a warm body. The smell engulfed me. The scent I have been familiar with for the past ten years. The smell that clouded my senses forever. "No," tears escaped my eyes. The gates disappeared as he wheeled me around. No, no. I am caught again. "No, please, no," I kicked my feet as I was lifted.
"Let me go," I barked like a mad woman. "Let me go. YOU SON OF A BITCH," I screamed at the top of my lungs. The air in my lungs disappeared as he crushed me in his arms, but I did not stop screaming.
"April, calm down," he threw me over his shoulder while I rained punches on his back. I dug my hairpin into his neck, but he didn't budge. "You mother fucker. LET ME FUCKING GO. I WILL KILL YOU. I WILL END YOU." I repeated as he began taking me to my prison. "No, I won't go in there." I pushed the pin deeper into his neck, this time bleeding him.
"Enough," his shout reverberated, causing the entire structure to tremble. "ENOUGH APRIL."
I got up, pushing him back and running to the door again, but he caught me again, pinning me beneath him. "LET ME GO." I scratched his face.
"I will not," he wiped the blood from the back of his neck. Something changed, something changed with Liam. This is not him. He is not punishing me for pulling this stunt. Something is wrong here.
"April," calmly, he threw the tissue in the trash bin.
"Let me go, Liam," I sternly replied.
"Listen to me, April. I don't want to fight with you," he sat on the edge of the bed, sitting next to me. His calm demeanor made me angry. I grabbed the vase next to the bed and hurled it at him. He ducked. This man has quick refluxes. The vase hit the mirror, shattering it into a million pieces. "I want us to work this out." He rummaged through his hair and put it backward. I grabbed another vase and shattered it. "I promise not to hurt you." I picked up another vase and broke it.
Picking up the sharpest shard, I brought it to my neck. "Let me fucking go, Liam," I pushed it in, and Liam flinched. He did not expect me to pull this stunt. For some reason, he panicked. Blood drained from his face, and he looked like a ghost. I would've done it years ago if I knew this would grab his attention.
"April, baby. That will hurt you. Put it down," he raised his arms, signaling to me.
"Don't call me that," I hate that pet name. I will die if he doesn't let me go. This is the only way.
"April, please," he begged like I wanted him to beg. I want to see him begging like a dog. I want him on his knees.
"I won't give you time, Liam. I will slit my throat," I scraped the shared on my neck. Blood started to ooze out.
"April, you are bleeding," he started to lose his shit. I can tell. Oh, how much that eased the pain he caused me.
"I don't care. Suppose the bargain is my blood. So be it," were the last words I said before I stabbed myself in the stomach, not once, not twice, but repeatedly. Pain radiated through my entire body; the last thing I heard before losing consciousness was Liam running toward me.
Well, well, well. What do we think? This is the last update before October. I am going on a vacation for ten days. I won't be able to update until I return in October, as I will not have internet access. See you all when I come back. Take care y'all.