Skyler’s POV
It has been four weeks since she went into a coma, and doctors are unsure when she will awaken. They tried everything, but she was still responding , my heart felt like it was going to burst into a million tiny little pieces as I sat here waiting for her to wake up. I didn’t know what I would do if I lost her as well, she grew on me, and I wasn’t ready to let go.
Arcado has been a shambles ever since, he wouldn’t eat, sleep, or walk unless we forced him to. He would sit by her side, just watching her, and when we weren’t there, he would beg her to wake up and tell him she was fine. Everyday, I see him breaking little by little and I beg the gods above that they will wake her up soon.
As time passes, the machines connected to her beep louder and louder, almost giving us a heart attack. The doctor told us not to worry because her body is fine, but Arcado gets nervous whenever the voice is made. Brittany was unable to sleep well at first, but Sophia made sure to stay with her whenever she became anxious.
When I heard a shuffle beside me, I turned to look at Eli. He looked even worse than before; his eyes were bloodshot, indicating that he had been drinking, he hadn’t been getting enough sleep, but how could he when his younger sister was in a coma?
“How is she getting along?” “, I asked, scratching my beard.
“The doctors told us she’s doing well, but they don’t know when she’ll wake up,” He responded by taking a deep breath to calm himself.
Swallowing hard, I closed my eyes and leaned against the wall. I didn’t want anything to happen to her, I’m not sure what I would do; she was an incredible woman who deserved everything in the world. Arcado loves her unconditionally, and if something happened to her, he would completely lose himself.
“Please, Griselda, pull through this for Arcado and Brittany,” I mumbled, rubbing my aching temple.
“I’ll be right back.” “, I said before leaving without hearing his response.
I closed my eyes and willed myself to calm down once I was out of earshot, but my rage seemed to get the best of me. My fists clenched, and before I knew it, there was a hole in the wall. My chest heaved up and down, and tears streamed from my eyes as I slid down to the floor.
“Why, why does everything bad have to happen to good people?” I mumbled angrily as tears streamed down my cheeks.
“Please, God, let her wake up,” I said as I took a deep breath and looked up at the ceiling.
Footsteps jolted my head upright, and my blurry vision focused on Dexter, who was approaching me. As he sat down beside me, he said nothing. After a few seconds, I felt his hands on my shoulder, that’s when I realized I’d lost it.
“She’s a strong woman; she’ll make it,” He hugged me even more tightly.
Nodding my head, I wiped my tears away and drew myself away from him; whenever one of us was in pain, we would comfort each other until we calmed down and then laugh about it.
“Uncle”, Hearing a squeal, my gaze shifted from Dexter’s to Brittany’s baby blues.
“Yes, little munchkin?” I asked, trying to sound cheerful.
She yanked at my jeans as she ran towards me, and I knelt to her level, her baby blues glistening with tears, and her little hands wrapped around me. I opened my mouth to say something, anything, but the words were stuck in my throat as I rubbed her back up and down gently.
“I don’t want my mother to die, uncle.” “, She muttered under her breath and buried her face in my neck.
“She won’t, little munchkin; she’s a strong woman.” I smiled softly as I drew away from her.
“Promise?” she asked, holding out her little pinkie.
“Promise,” I said as I intertwined my pinkie with hers.
“Now, go play with your auntie Sophia,” I said as she walked away.
Sighing, I shrugged off my suit and loosened my tie. Dexter watched me with a thoughtful expression, not saying anything, patting my back comfortingly, nodding at me, and leaving to attend to his duties.
“Doctor,” Arcado yelled, and I dashed to the doctor’s quarters.
I froze on the spot, wide-eyed, as her heart monitor beeped erratically. A nurse entered the room with a machine, quickly connecting it to power, warming it up, and handing it to the doctor.
“She is developing V-Fib.” “The doctor yelled and activated the defibrillator.
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Arcado’s POV
The nurses and doctor were frantically trying to save her, but I couldn’t do anything because no matter how hard I tried to move a limb, it refused to cooperate. Even if I let out a breath, my heart felt like it would burst out of my chest. Closing my eyes, I took a deep breath and forced myself to calm down.
“Mama, mama, please be fine,” hearing Brittany’s voice my eyes immediately opened in response.
Her widening and terrified eyes were fixed on Griselda, and I knew I had to be strong for our daughter in this moment. I dashed to Brittany, quickly putting the horrible thoughts behind and knelt to pick her up. Her whimpers became painful to bear as tears rushed out of my eyes as she nuzzled her head against my shoulder.
“Sh, sh, it’s okay, mommy will be fine,” I said in hushed tones.
“Charge it to 200,” the doctor instructed.
Turning around with Brittany in my arms, I tucked her head into my shoulder so she wouldn’t see what was going on in front of her. My pulse quickened as soon as I laid eyes on Griselda’s form devoid of life. She was just lying there, motionless, and no matter what the doctor tried, the heart monitor refused to return to normal.
Skyler approached my side and extended his arms, saying, “Let me hold her.”
I could still hear the heart monitor beeping erratically as I handed Brittany over to him. I rushed over to Griselda, swallowing the lump in my throat. Against the doctor’s protests, I gently squeezed her hand in mine.
“Come on, Mi Amore, you can’t leave us,” I sobbed as I stared at her pale face.
I closed my eyes as I brought her hand to my lips and kissed her gently. All of the times we spent together flashed before my eyes, the happiness, sadness, and minor disagreements we had suddenly becoming unforgettable memories.
“Her heartbeat has returned,” exclaimed the doctor, and I turned to face him.
My heartbeat quickened as I looked down to where Griselda was. The heart monitor beeped normally, and I took a deep breath before a small smile appeared on my lips. I willed myself together and wiped my tears away as I kissed her forehead.
“Keep talking to her, it looks to be working,” Before leaving, the doctor patted my shoulder and double-checked her vitals.
When I heard the door close, my shoulders slumped and the tears flowed once more. As I rested my head on her hand, I burst into tears. I thank the gods above for saving her; if something had happened just now, I wouldn’t know what I’d do without my lifeline.
“Mi Amore, I miss you so much, please just wake up soon,” I said as my gaze moved to her face.
As she lay motionless, my lips sagged, the heart monitor beeped rhythmically, and her chest heaved up and down with each deep calming breath. My attention was drawn to a door opening, and as soon as I saw who it was, my arms opened. Brittany ran towards me, I picked her up, she laid her head on my chest.
“Papa?”, A yawn escaped her lips as she mumbled.
“Yes, sweetheart?” I tucked a fallen curl behind her ear while softly rubbing her back.
“I miss her,” she said, her baby blues shining with tears.
“Me too,” I sighed, hugging her close to my chest.
“May I speak with her?” I nodded in response to her question.
Her gaze shifted away from mine and onto Griselda’s form. “Mama, please wake up if you can hear me; I miss playing, laughing, and making fun of Papa with you.”
I let out a painful chuckle when she said the last thing. Whenever I dressed up as a princess, Griselda and Brittany would laugh themselves silly and take embarrassing pictures, even when I told them not to.
“Papa, papa, her finger moved!” she exclaimed, her bright eyes meeting mine.
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Amira’s POV
I rolled over in bed, groaning, and looked at the bedside clock. 8:25 PM. My energy has been so low lately that I couldn’t do anything, I couldn’t even get out of bed without the assistance of Chloe or Donald. Wild thoughts have been swarming in my mind since he called, making it difficult for me to sleep. When I closed my eyes, the sensation of his fingers running through my body engulfed me so completely that I felt like I was going to die.
Closing my eyes, I sighed deeply and pushed the covers off of me. I knew Chloe was going to come in and bother me to eat dinner at any moment. I tried, believe me, but every time I tried, I just puked and felt so embarrassed when Donald and Chloe cleaned up. They assured me that everything was fine, but I knew it wasn’t.
My attention was drawn to Chloe when a door opened, and my gaze followed her as she placed the sandwich on my desk. She gave me a small smile as she sat down next to me and looped her arm around mine. We fell into a comfortable silence for a few moments.
“Are you hungry?” she asked, softly rubbing my back.
“No”, I sighed and rested my head on her shoulder.
“What do you think he’ll do when he gets here?” I gulped, fearful of what she’d say.
“Hopefully, he won’t discover where you live.” She drew away from me and looked into my eyes.
I could now clearly see the hidden terror in those green orbs that had previously radiated pure happiness. My mind and body were tired of being afraid for so long, and all I wanted to do was sleep peacefully, but no matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t. Even when I was awake, those nightmares haunted me.
“Has he contacted you since then?” Her brows were drawn together in worry.
When deciding whether or not to respond, I chose the former option. “I’m not sure, I haven’t checked the phone yet.”
Before she could finish her sentence, a sharp pain stabbed my chest, causing me to recline backwards. My ears began to ring, so I closed my eyes to relieve the pain. A scream tore through my lips as another jab caused my chest to explode in pain. Warm hands tightly clasped my arms and sat me down on the floor.
My hazy vision was once again drawn to Chloe. “Amira, Amira, everything will be fine; just take as many deep breaths as you can.”
“It-it huts so bad,” I stuttered as another jab pushed me forward.
My body was used to the discomfort, but I wasn’t. Since the doctor diagnosed me with anxiety and depression, it has gotten worse, despite the fact that I take pills every day to relieve the pain; the pills worked wonderfully, but the anxiety has returned since he called.
Silence enveloped us in its warm embrace, and I relished it as my heart seemed to calm and the pain faded. Chloe continued to whisper gentle words into my ears, which completely soothed me.
When the phone rang, I flinched and my eyes widened as I panickedly looked at Chloe. She stood up and took slow, deliberate steps, her gaze returning to the phone. As she got closer, I noticed her hands shaking, and to be honest, mine did as well.
I gathered my strength and approached her, placing my hand on her shoulders. I gave her a small smile and nodded my head in assurance, swallowing the fear that was growing inside of me. As my eyes moved in and out of focus, the phone rang seemed so far away.
I opened my mouth to speak, blinking back the darkness that was slowly enveloping me. “It’s fine, just answer it; he won’t leave us alone unless we do.”
Her gaze paused for a moment between me and the phone. Her fingers pressed the green button without giving it much thought. An awkward silence made me squirm, and I gulped when I heard him laugh wickedly.
“Why aren’t you saying anything, Baby?” His venomous voice caused goosebumps to appear on my arms.
“What do you want?” Chloe asked before I could respond.
I took a deep calming breath as my mind went blank for a second after hearing a shuffle. “It is not I who desires something; it is our son.”
My eyes widened as soon as those words left his mouth. It felt like knives were being thrown at me all the time, and no matter how hard I tried to defend myself, it just kept stabbing me. My vision became blurry as tears streamed from my eyes.
“Mommy?”, A small voice answered the phone.
Oh, his voice, his voice. It sounded like an angel was speaking to me, and I yanked the phone from Chloe’s grasp to hear his voice again. As images of him playing in the backyard flashed before my eyes, my mind and body couldn’t relax.
Wiping away my tears, I silently begged him to call me mom again. I knew I was being selfish, but I needed to hear his voice again, even if it was selfish.
“Mommy, I miss you; when will you return?”
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Wait a minute, Amira has a child? OMG
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