A Good Man
Copyright© 2011 by Marc Nobbs
Chapter 44: Awakening
The sky was a vast, azure expanse, stretching into the distance as far as I could see, with only a few wisps of clouds scattered across it. The sun hovered directly overhead, its relentless heat undiluted by any of those barely there clouds.
It was a perfect summer’s day.
Almost too perfect.
I was standing in the shade of a grand old oak tree in a lush, green meadow, with daisies, buttercups, and a myriad other wildflowers poking up between the blades of grass, gently swaying in the barely there breeze.
A perfect English county meadow.
Almost too perfect.
The meadow was perched on the edge of a cliff, overlooking the sea. Far below, the waves crashed against the rocks at the foot of the cliff. High above, seagulls circled, cawing as seagulls do. They were the only sounds in the peaceful air around me.
I took a deep breath and closed my eyes, inhaling the scent of the salt, the fish, the flowers, and the grass.
This was a lovely place. A peaceful place. A perfect sanctuary.
Almost too peaceful. Too perfect.
That was when I felt her breath on my neck.
“I love you,” she whispered, before kissing my ear.
She put her hands on my hips, then slid them around my waist to hug me from behind.
“I love you, too,” I said, putting my hands on top of hers.
“No, Paul. I mean, I really love you. It’s not like anything I’ve ever felt for anyone else. Not even close.”
I gently pulled her hands away from my body so I could turn around to face her. To gaze directly into those big, beautiful blue eyes. So full of love.
But also filled with unshed tears.
“It’s as if you’re a part of me,” she said. “And you’ll always be a part of me. I feel whole when I’m with you. Complete.”
“I know, Riss. I feel the same.”
She smiled. “You do?” Do you really?”
“You know I do.”
“So ... I’ll always be a part of you?”
“Yes. That’s it exactly.”
“Good. That’s what I wanted to hear.” She closed her eyes and leaned in to kiss me. As her lips touched mine, I closed my eyes, too. Our lips locked for what felt like forever. Not in passion. In tenderness. Just her lips pressed against mine.
It felt right.
It felt like it was the way things were meant to be.
It felt perfect.
Almost too perfect.
“I’ll always be with you, Paul,” she whispered in my ear, even though we were still kissing. How could she be talking with her lips still pressed against mine? “I’ll always be with you.”
“And I with you.” How was I speaking? Was I speaking? Was it just in my head? “Always and forever, Riss.”
“Always and forever.” She paused. Her lips were still pressed against mine. But now her voice wasn’t by my ear. It was in my head. She was projecting her voice right into my head. “The way it’s meant to be.”
“The way it’s meant to be,” I replied, the words not filling the air, just filling my head.
And then I could no longer feel her lips pressed against mine or her hips in my hands.
I opened my eyes.
She wasn’t there. I glanced around, left, right, behind me. She wasn’t there. And then her voice came from nowhere, filling my head.
“I love you, Paul Robertson. Always and forever. I love you. And I always will.”
And everything faded to black.
My eyes fluttered open as I came to my senses.
It was dark. The room cold and unfamiliar.
I lay on my back, which was unusual—I usually slept on my side. Recently, I’d been sleeping spooned up behind Clarissa, which was heavenly. Perfect.
But not this time. This time, I was on my back, staring at the ceiling through the dark.
I turned my head to the side slightly, and that’s when the pain hit me. Everywhere, and I mean everywhere screamed its agony, overloading my brain until all it could do was shut down.
And everything went black.
My eyes fluttered open as I came to my senses.
It was dark. Although not as dark as last time. The room was still cold and unfamiliar, and I was still lying on my back.
It still hurt all over, but not as badly as last time.
I rolled my head to the right and saw that the curtains were drawn across the window, but it was daylight outside, and a few shafts of light forced their way past the blackout at the edges and in the middle where the curtains met.
I rolled my head to the left to look around.
My body didn’t scream in protest. Which was good.
I was clearly in a hospital, but this was a separate room, not a ward. Thank God for private medical insurance. It had been Will’s idea for me to take that out. I’d have to remember to thank him when I saw him next.
I tried to recall what had happened, but beyond seeing the car coming towards us, feeling the impact, and hearing Emily’s scream, there was nothing.
Emily’s scream. I could still hear it.
Clarissa!
Clarissa had been slumped over the wheel. She must have passed out, too. Was she okay? I had to find out.
But I could still hear Emily’s scream.
And I’d rather not.
I tipped my back onto the pillow, closed my eyes and waited for everything to fade to black.
My eyes fluttered open as I came to my senses.
It was still dark.
I rolled my head towards the window and saw that the daylight creeping at the edges of the curtains, the last time I’d woken, was gone.
“Paul?”
I rolled my head to the left and saw Will sitting in a chair by my bed. “Will, what...? How long have you been here?”
“A while. Vicky and I have been taking turns to sit with you.” He closed the file he had in his lap and set it on the floor beside him.
“Where were you before?”
“You’ve woken before now?”
I tried to nod and instantly regretted it as pain shot through me. “Twice. But not for very long. And I was alone both times.”
“Just bad timing, I guess. Perhaps whoever was ‘on duty,’ so to speak, was with the doctor.”
“Or on the toilet.”
He chuckled. “Yes, or on the toilet.” After a pause, he said, “How are you feeling?”
“Like I’ve been in a car accident.”
He gave me a tight smile. “Always ready with the witty line. Just like your father.” His eyes looked sad. So very sad.
Had he sat beside my dad after ... Before he...
I didn’t want to think about that.
“Seriously, though, how do you feel?” he asked. “Any specific pains?”
I shook my head. “Ow. Well, that hurt for a start.”
“Not surprising. Anything else?”
“I feel ... I don’t know. Hungover, I guess. I’ve got a dull headache that’s more annoying than painful, and I feel a bit sick. And my mouth feels like I’ve been chewing cotton wool for days.”
“The headache and sickness are probably due to the drugs they used to keep you sedated and out of pain. I’ll check with the doctors to see if there’s anything they can do. The cotton wool mouth probably means you need some water. I’ll get the nurse shortly.” He paused again. “How much do you remember about what happened?”
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