Damien's POV
Present Time
"So, I guess that's the end of our love story... up to now" I whispered to Nova so only she'd be able to hear me.
I didn't have to look at her to know she was smiling. "You were really that worried about me?" Nova smiled.
"Mm" I murmured, kissing the top of her head. "Of course. You mean so much to me"
"I can see that now" she replied.
Just about twelve hours ago she had woken up from her brief coma. Although she had woken up, the incident left a lot of side effects.
As soon as her monitor started beeping, more than just two nurses and just one doctor came rushing in. They all pushed Kyle and I to the side. No matter how much we screamed at them to let us through or how much we tried to push through, we somehow ended up out of the room.
I banged outside the door, screaming threats at them to save her or I'd come for their family or that I'd throw the hospital in flames. Kyle watched over me, letting me take all my rage out. All I remember was continuously kicking and banging on the door while I screamed like a crazy person. I was crying and yelling. It was all an absolute mess. Hearing the shouts for different medical tools inside the room didn't help calm me down either.
Eventually, Martin came out of the room looking very flabbergasted. "She's awake" He said to me.
Even after she had awoken, I wasn't allowed to immediately see her. They took about five hours running different tests on her. Two hours bringing in a speech therapy doctor to get her to talk and make sure she was fully functional to speak and move once again. She picked up on things very quickly but it still took two hours to make sure she had it mastered down. She spent a hour attempting to eat and then she took different types of medication. Afterwards, she somehow ended up falling asleep for four hours.
When she had awoken from her brief nap I was allowed to go in because she had been asking for me from the start. I was once again an emotional mess. So was she.
Now, we were lying together in her hospital room's couch. I had been here for hours, recalling the first time we had met.
We sat in comfortable silence after I had finished telling the last but recent part of our love story.
Moments after, Nova sighed and slowly scooted closer to me. She let out a groan indicating the movement had hurt her a bit.
Immediately concerned I got closer to her so she wouldn't have to move. She smiled weakly at me then looked up at the ceiling. "Damien?"
I looked at her "Yeah?"
"I don't want to-" She interrupted herself by letting out a huge sigh. I could see tears welling up in her eyes so I sat up, looking down at her. I reached down to hold her hand "I don't want to die" she choked out as she started to cry.
My heart broke at her words. I hated how much the idea of death controlled her.
"You won't" I reassured.
I tried to reassure her but I knew the state she was in. She didn't know the exact state she was in but Nova's smart. She had figured it out.
"I could feel myself dying. Although the doctors haven't said anything about it and they keep telling me that I'm doing good, I know that I'm dying. I just know. Don't lie to me, Damien. All I am asking is for you not to let me die. Please. Don't" She gasped for air. "Don't let me die, please. I am not ready" Her tears came rushing down like a waterfall now. It seemed as if the more she thought about her death the more it hurt her.
I reached for her hand, holding it tight. I didn't know what to say to her. She was begging me not to let her die. How could I prevent something like death? Something so natural? I knew I couldn't possibly promise her that she wouldn't die but her big round brown eyes were staring up at me with so much hope and desperation...
"You won't" I said, attempting to sound convincing. I looked into her eyes. She didn't look convinced. She was doubtful. "Nova, I won't let you die" I promised.
I wasn't sure how I was going to do it but I knew that I was going to try. I needed to at least give it a shot because I couldn't stand the feeling of having disappointed Nova.
She was still crying but she managed to force a smile. "Okay" she smiled bigger.
I sighed and managed a smile as well, leaning down to kiss her hand. I didn't want her to pass away, she didn't want to either. So, she was not going to.
She wiped her tears with the sleeve of a sweatshirt I had let her borrow. "I know you can't do anything about it but it warms my heart to know you care and you're actually trying to make an effort here" She sniffled and shrugged. Tear stains were spotted all over her face as she looked up at me "I'm technically supposed to be dead anyway, so maybe it's my time to go"
"Don't say that, Nova" I pushed all my emotions to the side, realizing I couldn't seem weak in front of her. I was supposed to be the strong one. "I'm promising you you're not dying anytime soon"
"Don't make empty promises, Damien. It's not good for the both of us. I love you. It's my time. Let's just enjoy the time we have together, alright?" She whispered. She cupped my cheek with her hand. I leaned down to give her a kiss.
She was the first one to pull away. We looked at each other. Nothing but sadness was all I could see in her eyes. Sadness and exhaustion.
She had giant bags under her eyes, her lips were chapped and had lost their bright pink color. She looked lifeless. She didn't look like herself but she still managed to look completely beautiful.
I let out a small laugh.
"What?" she questioned, quickly smiling.
"I don't know" I shrugged. She raised her eyebrow, her smile becoming wider.
"Everything, I guess. Our life" I continued to laugh. "Criminals hiding in the private hospital of a doctor who has great respect around here" I shook my head. I was having a mental breakdown. I seriously had no idea how I was going to save my dying girlfriend. Why did I promise her such a difficult task to complete?. She seemed confused at first but soon after she began to laugh. I knew she didn't know why I was laughing but Nova's laugh was mostly always ignited by someone else's. The room was filled with loud laughs and smiles.
The moment was quickly interrupted as Kyle and Andrew stepped in. "Hey lovebirds" Andrew announced. I looked over my shoulder to confirm it was him once I heard his voice.
I rolled my eyes "Go away. You're not allowed back here" I threw a pillow at him. He caught it and threw it at Kyle. Kyle threw it back at me, almost hitting Nova.
"Hey! You're going to hit Nova"
"Sorry" Kyle muttered.
Nova sat up, her smile still lingering. She let out a nasty cough because of her abrupt movement but she acted as if nothing had happened. "Kyle actually apologizes?" She gasped. "Wow!"
Kyle looked surprised to see Nova talking to him. Nova quickly caught on, her smile fading as she remembered the car accident. She reached for my hand, holding it. "I don't hate you, Kyle" she said.
Kyle cleared his throat and nodded "You have every right to hate me but thank you. Besides, I don't care if you are or aren't upset with me" He fixed his posture so he'd be standing nice and tall, puffing out his chest in a very masculine way.
"Oh, shut up you were the one crying the most" I teased, rolling my eyes.
Nova broke out into a fit of laughter, contaminating the room with her laugh.
"Me? Crying the most? Please, you cried even in your sleep" Kyle fired back after laughing.
Andrew stood by Kyle in silence, occasionally smiling or laughing at our conversation.
I had been trying to ignore him to avoid an argument. Of course, Nova sensed the tension. She knew everything. She looked over at me, raising her eyebrow before looking over at Andrew from the corner of her eye.
I knew she wanted an explanation but I couldn't give it to her now so I did the best I could do. Acknowledge his presence.
"Look who decided to finally show up" I spat at him.
Andrew sighed, shoving his hands in his pockets. "Damien, we were all overwhelmed and we all deal with tragedy in a different way. It was my first time I had ever witnessed something so graphic especially with people I care about. I didn't know what to do so I ran away. I know it wasn't the right thing and I shouldve called but I knew you were upset so-" He started spitting out words as if he had recited them all day. He didn't dare to look me in the eyes though. He tried to make it seem as if he was but it was obvious he was staring at the top of my head.
I interrupted him "I forgive you."
I paused. "If Nova can forgive Kyle, I can forgive you"
Although Nova didn't know about the situation with Andrew until now, she looked over at me surprised that I was so easily forgiving him.
Andrew opened his mouth to question my forgiveness but Nova interrupted him "I'm proud of you, Damien" she kissed my cheek.
She pulled away as she began to cough. I rubbed her back "It's okay, you're fine"
Kyle and Andrew looked over at her, in concern. She didn't stop coughing. I quickly reached over for some tissues that were placed on the nightstand by her bed. She took them quickly and once her coughing slowed, she pulled the tissue away. We both looked down to see blood. I closed my eyes, pushing away the urge to cry. I could see how much the sight of the blood on the tissue hurt her but she acted as if it were nothing. "Just one of the symptoms of death" She said sarcastically.
"Nova, stop" I looked at her.
"Yeah, you aren't going to die. Don't you think you're over exageraring?" Kyle asked to try to make her feel better.
"No, actually. You know it's funny that you think so because you're not the one who's suffering. I've heard you've actually recovered quickly" She said, followed by a laugh. "But it's fine. If your phone isn't okay, then why should I be, right?"
"I thought you said you forgave him" Andrew quickly jumped in to defend Kyle.
Nova took another deep breath "I did. I have the right to be angry though." She shook her head. "I did" She said to herself. She looked in Kyle's direction. "I'm sorry, Kyle"
"It's okay. Your reaction is understandable" He shrugged. The atmosphere wasn't the same as before. It was uncomfortable and awkward, especially for Kyle. "I'm going out to see if they have anything edible in the cafeteria. I'll be back later. I hope you get better, okay?" He walked over and just as he was about to give her a side hug, settled on giving her a pat on the back.
"I think I'm going to join him. See you two later?" Andrew nodded, reaching for the door knob. Andrew opened the door wide enough for Kyle to walk out first. Andrew followed but just as he was about to close the door behind him, he blew a dramatic kiss towards Nova "Recover quickly"
I grabbed a pillow once again and threw it at him "Out, Adams!"
Nova laughed and continued to laugh even after he left. She layed back down, tugging at my shirt sleeve for me to lay down as well.
"I don't feel too good" she admitted.
"Yeah, you're not going to feel too peachy while you're in the process of recovering from a car crash" I chuckled.
"I don't think I'm recovering, Damien" she murmured. "I seriously don't feel good. I think I'm getting a migrane"
I sat up quickly, already starting to take action "I'll get the nurse"
"No, I'm fine" She grabbed my wrist attempting to pull me back.
"No. You're not. You just told me that you're not. I'm going to get the nurse"
"Please stay. I'm sure it's temporary" she said. I looked down at her and her pleading eyes. "Please" she repeated.
"I made you a promise. I'm doing anything I can to keep that promise". I looked away from her to avoid falling in her trance. "I'm sorry, I can't" I rushed out, going out the room to grab a nurse.
"Damien!" She shouted after me, followed my some loud coughing.
After I had gotten the nurse, she checked up on her. It seemed as if everything went wrong as soon as the nurse came in.
Her migraine got worse.
Her migraine came with a lot more different symptoms. She was slowly losing her vision, felt very weak, and started to have a difficult time speaking once again.
Doctors and nurses once again flodded her room but this time, I was not going out.
I stood at the end of the room where I wouldn't be in their way and although I couldn't see her because they were all circling her, I tried to make out what was going on. I stood as they ran different tests and somewhere in between I heard the words "stroke", "transfer", and "deathbed". I didn't like the combination of those words and stepped a little closer to where they were to get a better sense of what was going on.
"Hey!" I shouted but they ignored me. I repeated myself, speaking louder. "Hey!"
Martin made eye contact with me and nodded at one of the nurses before turning back around to focus on Nova. "What's going on?" I questioned. The nurse that Martin had nodded at walked over at me. "Sir, you need to go" he said.
"What? No! That's my girlfriend right there!"
"Sir" he repeated sternly and somehow I ended up once again outside of the room.
Hours later, I ended up inside a different hospital room. It was now the next day.
This room was smaller. The walls were white and didn't have any decoration. Besides a small couch, another nightstand, and the bed Nova was lying in, it didn't have furniture either. Nova was transferred here because she was now in her deathbed.
Meaning she could die at any moment.
She could suffer from a stroke at any moment.
Luckily, her symptoms were weak and she had made it through the night but they were there. At any given moment they could rapidly increase and the stroke could occur.
However, on a happier note the symptoms could decrease enough so she'll be able to take a stronger medication. A stronger medication that could help her heal.
It was hard coming in here but both of us had sadly seen it coming. I wasn't angry anymore, oddly.
I was sad.
I was upset because this wasn't what her life was supposed to look like. I was supposed to give her so much more.
She deserves so much more.
I had been trying to distract her from all the pain she was in. She wasn't speaking much anymore, she had her eyes closed because she couldn't see that well anyway. She was able to listen to me so I talked whenever I could to try to make her feel better.
"I can't help but continue to think this is all my fault" I shook my head. She squeezed my hand to disagree. "Maybe it wasn't meant to be. Maybe you were destined to work at the coffee shop and meet some guy who's obssesed with warm coffee, rainy days, and photography. Not some guy who kills for a living." I joked, trying to keep her from thinking of her pain.
"Of course it was meant to be" She managed to get out.
I smiled at her, looking over at some roses Andrew had bought from some store in the hospital. I picked one up, examining it.
I stayed silent as I circled the rose round and round in my hand. "Roses are beautiful" I stated. She didn't reply. "But they never last" I frowned, setting it down on the nightstand. "Beautiful things never last" I sighed to myself, kissing her cheek. "Mainly my fault" I added on.
Nova once again squeezed my hand, a little harder this time to show strong disagreement. We stayed quiet and soon after she began to shift. She groaned, rubbing her temple.
"It was a beautiful life, Damien. Truly." She struggled to croak out. She licked her lips, continuing to rub her temple.
I gave her a weak smile. "Hey, are you okay?" I asked. She nodded and pointed at the water glass sitting on the nightstand beside the roses.
I looked over at it "Do you want some water?" I asked. I turned my back to reach over for the water.
I made the mistake of lying my elbow on the nightstand while grabbing the glass. A thorn of the rose I had lied down a couple minutes before, sunk into my skin.
"Fuck" I grumbled to myself, putting the cup back down to rub my arm. For such a small thorn, it had opened a big enough cut for blood to start dripping everywhere. I looked around the room for bandaids to avoid making a mess but the room was empty.
I sighed, trying to find a way to stop the bleeding.
I had gotten used to Nova's silence so I expected her to be resting. I pressed on the wound with my hand to attempt to stop the bleeding. Too focused on my cut, I forgot the water glass Nova wanted.
It hadn't been too long that I had been distracted. No more than five minutes. I reached over to grab it.
"Sorry about that, princess. Surprisingly, the thorns on a rose hurt like a bitch. Especially when they get real deep in your skin" I laughed with my back faced towards her.
I reached over to grab the glass. As soon as I picked it up, I heard the monitor beep widly and then let out a long beep. I was in the process of turning around with a smile on my face but as soon as I heard that monitor, I dropped the glass. I was too scared to turn around now.
It happened way too quickly.
Sooner than I expected.
Right away, I felt tears prickling at my eyes. I took a deep breath and tried to hope for the best but I know what I heard. I looked down to see the shattered glass and the water spilled all over the floor. I took a deep breath and looked up. I slowly turned back around as I heard multiple footsteps approaching the room.
"Nova?" I whimpered, turning around to completely face her. Her head was rolled to the side. I shook her, knowing it was not the best idea but I was desperate. "Nova! Wake up!" I shouted.
She didn't wake up, though.
She was still.
She wasn't breathing.
She was dead.
I had broke my promise.