Andi
Panic and fear gripped me.
Ethan was shot. I heard the paramedics say. They arrived right behind the police.
There was blood all over him. His face was covered in blood and cuts.
"Help him! Help Ethan," I said frantically, as one of Ethan's men was freeing me from my restraints.
"Miss Andi, you have to calm down."
I was crying... Sobbing.
I was terrified.
"Is he?" I asked tentatively.
Drew remained silent.
Once I was free I rushed to Ethan's side.
"We have to move quickly, he's losing a lot of blood.
"Ethan?" I cried. "I'm going with him. Please let me go with him," I begged, while I held Ethan's hands.
He was quickly moved inside the ambulance and I followed.
I continued to hold his hand.
"I'm so sorry," I whispered brokenly. "I'm sorry..."
"You're going to be okay... You have to be okay," I forced through my tears. "Please, Ethan don't leave me. Baby please. I need you. We need you..."
Oh god... Our baby...
I wrapped my free hand around my belly in a protective gesture. I don't know how, but I knew our baby was safe, and I wish I could say the same thing about Ethan.
He took a beating. For me. Just to show me and prove to me that he loves me. And that lunatic shot him.
He's losing too much blood. He was going to die. I was going to lose the only man I have ever loved. The man who loves me. I know he does. I've known it all along. But I refused to acknowledge it. Not when he showed me in every way. Not when I saw it in his eyes, or felt it every time he held me. Not when I saw it with the way he loves and care for our daughter.
Faith... Our little princess.
Oh god... Ethan can't die. He can't leave us...
We reached the hospital in record time, but everything after that was a blur.
I was brought inside an examination room to make sure everything was okay.
I didn't want to leave Ethan, but he was rolled straight into the emergency room, and I had to make sure our baby is okay too.
Our family and friends were right behind us when we arrived.
After everything checked out with me, I went back to the waiting room.
The girls quickly walked towards me.
I burst into tears and they wrapped their arms around me.
"This is all my fault," I said.
"Shh... This wasn't your fault," Ally said.
"I can't lose him. I just can't," I cried out.
"Shh... You need to be strong. You need to calm down."
"Faith... Oh god, Faith. I need to see her, oh god my baby."
"Mom is with her," Ally said. "Adam called her and she went straight to your place."
"Here, drink some water," Luke said.
"I'm sorry," I broke off in sobs again.
Luke's eyes softened and wrapped his arms around me.
"Shh... You have nothing to apologize for."
"It's my fault," I insisted. "Ti-tI-Tiffany just wa-wanted Ethan to say that he loved her, if he-he-he sa-said that then she would have... Oh god," I hiccuped. "She beat him. She b-beat him with a piece of wood and metal ch-chain."
"It's going to be okay. My brother is strong. He's going to make it."
I cried and Luke simply held me in his arms.
When I was finally in control of my emotion. I pushed away from Luke and said, "He said he didn't want to betray me. That's why he wouldn't say what Tiffany wanted him to. He didn't want to hurt me," I sobbed anew. "He was showing me that he meant it when he said he loved me, and if I just listened to you guys and stopped fighting how I really feel, then Ethan would know that I know and believe that he loves me. I wasted so much time," I cried again.
"Shh..." Luke said. "You're going to make yourself sick, crying like that. Ethan needs us to be strong. We have to be strong for him."
"He's going to make it right? Tell me," I begged. "Tell me he's going to be okay. Please," I pleaded as I cried against his chest, while grabbing his shirt tightly in my hands.
"He's strong. He loves you and Faith more than anything in this world. He won't leave you. He made a promise to you, didn't he?" He asked.
I nodded against him.
"He won't break his promise to you, Andi. Not this time," Luke said.
"I named our daughter Faith because I lost faith when Ethan left," I said tearfully. "Finding out I was pregnant gave me faith to believe that everything will be okay. That same faith is the only thing that's keeping me sane. I need to believe that he'll make it," I choked out. "You didn't see it... The way they... Oh god... The sounds... When the wood... The metal hit him... I... I..."
"Thinking about that over and over again is not going to help, Ethan. He would want you to be strong for Faith. He'll be okay," Luke said.
"Luke is right little sister," Jason said, as he rested his hand on my back in a comforting manner.
Waiting for the doctor to come out was brutal. Every second that past was killing me. Then finally the doctor came out.
"We managed to stop the bleeding. He has lost a lot of blood and we're going to need more than we have."
"I'll do it," Jason said immediately, no hesitation. "We have the same blood type."
The doctor nodded. "Follow me and let's get you ready."
"Wait!" I said. "He's going to be okay right?"
The doctor's expression didn't give anything away. "We're doing everything that we can. The beating he took was exceedingly brutal. We're going to run a few more test, but I'm more worried about his blood loss right now," the doctor said.
I nodded. "Please..." I whispered. "Please do everything you can."
The doctor nodded and disappeared along with Jason.
"Here. Why don't you sit," Ellie said. "I got you something to eat."
I was about to shake my head and say I don't want to eat, but I realized I'm eating for two now. So I accepted what she had to offer.
"Thanks," I murmured.
"I got you some water," Ara said, as she sat next to me.
"Thanks," I said again.
I'm so grateful to have all of them in my life. They've been there for me from the very beginning. They listened to me when I told them about my fears, anger, pain and resentment. They listened and didn't pass judgement. It helped that they have all been through similar situations. They know what it's like to be hurt by the one you love the most. I just wish I had listened to them. Especially Ara. She was right. People make mistakes, and we shouldn't be judged by those mistakes, we should be judged by the way me make amends. And Ethan has been trying to make amends. He has showed me how sorry he was, but he was right. I refused to acknowledge his efforts. I didn't look past the man who hurt me, to see the love he has for me. I chose to hold on to my pain and anger instead of choosing to let go and be happy. And now it might be too late.
An hour later the doctor came out to talk to us.
"How is he? And Jason?" I asked.
"Jason is fine. He's resting and he'll be ready to go in a while."
"And Ethan?" I was almost scared to ask.
"He has suffered from severe beating to the head and his body. His jaw was dislocated on both sides. He has cuts, bruising and swelling on his face. We managed to fix the damage on his jaw without using plates. We stitched up his cuts as well. He has multiple broken ribs. He has bruising and abrasions all over his body. He has lacerations across his abdomen area," the doctor continued. "The bullet missed his heart by an inch and passed through. I have to say, considering the beating the patient has endured, and the bullet he took, he's a very lucky man."
"So he's going to be okay?" I asked.
"I have to be very honest with you, I'm worried about the trauma his brain has endured due to the beating. There is some swelling of the brain and we have induced coma until the swelling has decreased and returned to normal. The next 48 hours will be critical. I have ordered close monitoring and observation," the doctor said sadly.
"If he makes it past 48 hours his chances will increase," the doctor explained. "I'm sorry, I wish I have more for you, but we've done everything we could medically, and we will continue to provide the best care, but it's up to the patient now."
"Thank you," I choked out. "Thank you for your honesty."
The doctor nodded.
"When will you bring him out of the induced coma?" I asked.
"I want to make sure the swelling of his brain has gone down, and his body has had time to recuperate, before we slowly take him out of his induced coma. His body will take some time to heal. It can be a week or two, maybe three from now. I'm sorry I can't give you an exact length of time," he said apologetically.
I nodded. "Can I see him?" I asked.
"A nurse will come and get you when everything is ready."
I nodded.
"He's going to be okay, Ands," Ally said, as she squeezed my hand comfortingly.
A few minutes later, a nurse came to us and informed us that it was okay to see Ethan.
Luke and I went in first, the rest of the family peeked in through the glass window.
A sob erupted from my throat at the sight of Ethan.
He was unrecognizable.
Luke had to hold me close, because my knees nearly gave out.
"It's okay," he said as he helped me to the chair.
I sat down, facing Ethan. I was afraid to touch him incase I hurt him.
"Hey little bro. Get some rest. We'll be waiting for you when you're ready to wake up," Luke said.
"Will you be okay if I give you a moment alone with him or would you like me to stay," Luke asked.
"I'd like a moment alone with him," I said.
Luke nodded and kissed my cheek before leaving me with him.
I looked over at Ethan.
I held his hand carefully.
"They say that sometimes even if you're unconscious, you can still hear the people you love talking to you, so I'm hoping that it's true," I broke off in a sob.
I held his hand to my face.
"Baby, I need you to wake up. Please," I cried. "I need you. I'm so sorry. Please don't leave me," I cried out. "I'm sorry for pushing you away. For not giving you the chance."
I caressed the top of his head with my free hand.
"You promised not to leave me again, and I need you to keep that promise. Faith and I need you. Our little bump needs you," I whispered tearfully.
"I promise, I'll be here when you wake up. I promise, I will never leave you," I said. "I forgive you..." I added brokenly.
Fresh new sobs erupted from my throat.
I buried my face in my arm and cried.
***
"You should go home and try to get some rest. He's in an induced coma, Ands, so you don't have to worry about him waking up any time soon," Ally said softly.
Instead of moving to get up and tell her that I didn't want to leave Ethan, I asked her instead, "Do you know what I realized?"
"What?" She asked.
"Loving someone is the hardest work there is."
Ally chuckled softly.
"I messed up plenty, and so did Ethan. We disappointed each other. We said a lot of things we regret and didn't mean," I started to sob again. "But I shouldn't have allowed that keep us apart."
"Andi you were hurting," Ally pointed out.
"But he came back. He came back," I let out in a tearful whisper. "I asked Ara how she was able to forgive Massimo, and do you know what she said?"
"What?"
"The fact that he came back... Came home to her was enough. And she was right. The fact that Ethan came back should have been enough. But I chose to deny what's been staring me in the face," I broke off. "He loves me. All these years, he loved me, just as much I loved him. I've known it, deep in my heart, but I was afraid. Turning him away and denying his love was safer. I didn't want to open myself up to another heartache," I snorted. "But isn't it ironic. By turning him away, I managed to do just that."
"Andi don't do this to yourself..."
"I wasted so much time being angry and hurt when I could have been happy. How much more selfish could I be? I denied all of us the chance to be happy."
"Andi you weren't ready."
"And Ethan had to nearly die for me to come to my senses," I said bitterly.
"When he wakes up, you'll get a second chance," Ally said. "You two love each other. And your love will get you through this. No matter how bad things may seem at times. Draw strength from your love for each other," Ally added.
I smiled at her tearfully.
"It wouldn't be true love if it came easy," Ally pointed out. "Because true love doesn't come easy, Ands. True love happens when two people work hard and overcome the biggest trial and obstacle they face. You have to fight for it."
I nodded. Ally was right.
There is no doubt in my mind that what Ethan and I have is true love.
Ethan has been fighting for that love all this time, and it's about time I fight with him.