Part 20 (2/2)

The doctor nodded in apology, ”It means that there was an acc.u.mulation of blood in the lungs due to the gunshot wound. This caused severe respiratory distress, and the patient presented shallow rapid breathing and oxygen desaturation. We placed a large bore needle in the interpleural s.p.a.ce and removed an excess of air and blood. A Heimlich valve was also inserted to evacuate the air from the lung. There was a lot of blood lost, but it was not severe enough to cause hypovolemic shock. So that was a good thing.”

”Can we see her?” Jeremy asked.

”Not all of you at the moment. One can stay with her for now, but other than that, we want to keep a close eye on her for the next twenty-four hours. She was sedated, so she won't be awake for another few hours, maybe not even until the morning.”

All heads turned to me. ”Can I go in and stay with her?” I finally spoke.

”Are you the husband?”

”Fiance.”

”Yes, follow me.” He nodded as everyone thanked him.

”Give her a kiss for me.” Sara said as she quickly hugged me.

”For us too.” Megan added as she reached and grabbed Jeremy's hand. I nodded at them and followed behind the surgeon.

A chill rushed through me as I walked quickly behind him through the cold hospital hallway. We stopped by a door numbered 1020. ”She's in here. Please remember she won't wake up anytime soon because she's heavily sedated. Also, be careful with the tubes in her chest.”

I nodded. He turned and walked down the hall. I took in a few deep breaths before going through the doors. Not certain what to expect as I entered, my heart clenched as I saw her lying on a small hospital bed, pale and fragile. She looked peaceful but pained as she lay there with her hair disheveled on the pillow.

The sound of the machines beeping forced me back to reality. I swallowed the lump in my throat as I carried myself to her.

After I had reached her side and had seen all the wires and tubes going through her, my entire body winced. I held back the urge to pull her into me. My poor baby. I reached my hand out and grazed my fingers along her pale cheek, down her gentle jawline, and across her soft plump lips. I couldn't hold it in any longer. How much stronger could I be? I stood there and watched the one person who had trusted me with everything, even her life, and I had betrayed her. Collapsing, I kneeled down beside her and cradled her hand along the side of my face.

”I'm so sorry, baby.” I whispered through a cracked tone. I pulled her hand around and placed her palm along my lips. I patted gentle kisses along her skin and stared at her closed eyes, wis.h.i.+ng she'd flash them open and forgive me. I rocked back and forth desperately trying not to break, but as I continued to stare at the only woman I'd ever loved, images of her gasping for her last breath invaded my mind, and I broke down.

I broke down in a way I didn't know a man ever could.

I broke down and cradled her in my arms and kissed her hands, her fingers, her face, her lips, her eyelids, and her jawline. And with each kiss, I begged and prayed for her to wake up and forgive me.

I broke down, and I didn't care how much less of a man it made me, because I wasn't a man at all without her in my life. She made me more of a man than I could ever be. She was the reason that I wanted to start over again and become a better man.

”Marcus, honey.” At the sound of my mother's voice, I lifted my head from the crook of my arm. I looked around and realized that I was still in the hospital room. My eyes scanned to my side and found that Mia was still asleep. I must have drifted off sometime in the early morning. Yawning, I ran a hand down my face and squeezed my eyes shut. The pounding headache and burning eyes were killing me.

”What time is it?”

”Just past noon. I went home and brought you some things so that you can change out of those b.l.o.o.d.y clothes.”

I looked down at my wardrobe and realized that I was still wearing the same clothing. I hadn't noticed anything that had gone on for the past twenty-four hours. I had been focusing entirely on making sure that Mia was alright before stopping to worry about myself.

”I need coffee.” I mumbled.

”I have that too.” She lifted her right hand, which held a cup. ”Won't you go into the bathroom, freshen up, and come back out and have a good old strong cup?” She nodded. ”I even brought you a toothbrush and toothpaste.” Hesitant to leave Mia's side, I glanced over at her. ”Marcus, she'll be fine. I'll watch her. You'll only be a few feet away.”

Taking her advice, I stood from the chair that I had spent the entire night in, lifted Mia's hand that I hadn't let go of yet, and brushed my lips along her knuckles. Then I gently placed her arm back down on the bed. I grabbed the bag my mother had brought for me and entered the bathroom.

I switched the light on and dumped the bag on top of a small table by the sink. Glancing into the mirror, I looked at the man staring back at me. f.u.c.k. He looked like he had been run over by a train and then smashed into a concrete wall.

He looked like s.h.i.+t.

CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN.

MIA.

As I breathed in through my lungs, the air burned against the sensitive muscle. The pain was excruciating, which caused my eyes to flash open and me to wince. Through blurry vision, I glanced around my surroundings. I was in a hospital room. My throat was completely dry. I tried to swallow, but it was a scorching discomfort. The beeping from the machines became clearer as my mind struggled to register it all. After a few seconds, I remembered the reason why I was there and who I was looking for at the time it had all occurred.

Marcus.

Gasping, I forced my body to sit up, but every muscle ached, and my own body fought against every urge to do so. h.e.l.l, it hurt to move an inch. Maybe I should start off slowly. I carefully lifted my left hand and saw an IV p.r.i.c.ked through a vein. Weakly, my hand dropped back down on the bed; it was difficult to do anything. But I needed to know where Marcus was. I needed to get to him. If anything had happened to him, I'd be lost.

A familiar soft face hovered over me as she gasped, ”Oh my, Mia, you're awake. How are you feeling, honey?”

I opened my mouth to speak, but nothing would come out. A slight squeak was all that came out as my voice cracked. Frustrated, I slammed my head back against the pillow. Theresa continued to stare at me with concern filling her eyes. I wanted to ask about Marcus. I wanted to know if he was alright or if he was hurt too. When I tried to ask again, the sound of a door creaking open forced me to tilt my head.

There he was, safe and sound. Our eyes locked, and every emotion p.r.i.c.kled through me as my heart swelled with relief that he was still here, still with me. His eyes clouded over as he slowly stepped closer toward me. Theresa was in the background mumbling something about going to tell a nurse that I was awake. I may have nodded. I wasn't sure. My focus was solely on Marcus.

The last time I saw him was the night at Club21 when we left on unsettled terms. I remembered going home that night and regretted not pulling him in and holding him tight. I regretted not kissing him or telling him that I loved him before we went our separate ways. I never imagined that the next day could have been my last and I would've never had the chance to hold or kiss him one last time. An overwhelming ache coursed through me. Breaking down, I burst into sobs. He was by my side instantly. Pressing his hand along my cheek, he hushed me. ”Don't cry, baby. I'm here.” I closed my eyes and leaned my face into his hand. The feeling of his warm touch felt like home as he wiped away my hot tears.

Even though he tried to soothe the pain away, the comfort of having him so close and the thought of ever losing him forced me into a trembling teary frenzy. My body shook uncontrollably. Marcus leaned down and wrapped his arms around me. He was careful not to pull me in too tightly, but the embrace allowed me to go weak in his arms. ”I'm so sorry, baby. I will never be able to take away the pain of what you went through, but if you let me, I will try every single day.” He whispered into my hair.

Still unable to speak, I nodded into the crook of his neck and continued to allow hot tears to stream down my face.

He held me close until the nurse appeared, and even then, I didn't want to pull away from him. She waited patiently until we were done. Marcus held my hand the entire time as she asked me a few questions and checked my vitals. After she scribbled a few things down, she smiled and informed me that the doctor would be in shortly.

After the nurse had left me alone with Marcus, he pulled a chair up beside me and framed my face. ”Do you need me to get you anything? I can stop by your apartment. I can grab you food or water or anything you like.” There was nothing I needed but him at that moment. Gently tightening my grip on his hand, I shook my head. ”Your throat is sore, huh?” I nodded in response. ”Want some ice? Maybe it'll soothe your throat?” I thought it might be a good idea, so I nodded, and he was out the door and back instantly with a cup of ice.

It felt like when I had a terrible sore throat and I tried cough medicine, hot tea, or water to soothe the itching, burning, and rawness. But this was ten times worse. The ice chip helped soothe the pain for about a second until it came back. After a few minutes, I was able to clear my throat and actually speak.

”Better?”

”A little.” My voice was barely above a whisper. ”It hurts when I breathe.”

”Oh, baby, it's going hurt for a while. The bullet grazed your lung.”

Wincing at the memory, I leaned back into the pillow. ”What happened afterwards?”

”Some people died; some were arrested.”

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