Chapter Sixty-One-3

"Whatever it takes, Ivory," he says. "You need to heal. You've been through so much and I'm sure this is barely the start. But whatever is next, we can do it together. Us two." Suddenly, the image of my father flashes through my head. "Brent. Wait, where's our father?" I start trying to make sense of everyone and where they could be, now that I'm out of my own head. "Where's Lee? Madam Jin?" Brent sighs. "First of all, we don't even know if this dude is our father. I know you trust Lee and you trust these people that you've literally just met, but so much is happening that I need to be cautious. We need to be cautious." He pinches between his eyebrows trying to bring his thoughts together. "We're on our own now," he adds in a defeated voice. "Yes, of course," I agree. "But I've known these people and they truly have been so supportive while I've been on my own. We should be cautious, but what if he is our dad? What else could explain all of this craziness?" Brent's face doesn't shift at all. It's still and serious and I can tell he's waging a war in his head on what to do—what's the right thing to do? "Okay, but we'll worry about that after you're healed. Let's not jump that high yet." An alarm starts ringing from his phone. Brent peers at his phone, eyebrows furrowing. "Okay, I have to go meet with an accountant really quick to see what needs to happen next as of right now." "Do you need me to do anything?" I ask. He grabs his coat from a chair. "Stay here. Do not get up and do not push your body, okay?" I nod. He pauses at the door. "By the way, the entire floor is blocked off from the public so if you need anything, there's a team here to help you and only you. I still don't trust Lee or everyone involved, but I guess he's useful. One less thing to stress about." My eyebrows raise. "And...where is he?" I try to not sound too eager. "He's outside. He kind of has a broken hand or something because he punched that dude who had you. Glad he got some punches in," Brent says calmly. "But stay here, okay? That idiot has been here since you've been here and I bet he'll be here when you leave too." I have so many questions. Is Lee okay? What else am I missing? "Call your friends, they've all been trying to reach you or see you, but again, we're not letting anyone in because of what happened. Just let them know you're okay." "Yes, okay," I say, though my mind is spinning trying to organize what to do. I think of Daniel. Fuck. I think of Giselle, Tanner, and Candy. "Don't worry about me. And thank you." "No problem, kid," Brent says, shutting the door behind him. For a second as the door shuts, I see two security guards standing outside of my door. Shit. I'll never understand how Lee just can hire people to do anything. With the door shut, I already know I'm not going to listen to Brent. I find myself annoying for not being more careful about my own body, but I just slept and I am wide awake. Also, I haven't seen anyone in days, not even including when I was held hostage. I just want to share my gratitude and thank Lee. I rip the blanket off of me. I am careful not to move too fast, eyes watching the IV in my arm and not stressing my ribs or fractured wrist. The fractured wrist is in a sling and I am dressed in a typical, hideous hospital gown. There is no mirror in the room and I can't imagine what I must look or smell like. Despite this, I find my feet and land on the ground. The landing causes pain to strike through my body. I squeeze my eyes and count to ten. Guess Doctor Holman taught me a new trick to ease my pain. When the pain dissipates, I use my open arm to wheel my IV bag with me. I feel like an old woman and not like a young woman as I wheel the IV bag and walk slowly towards the door. The guards both eye me when I open the door. "I'm fine," I say before they can speak. "Don't alarm anyone." They look skeptical but I am already hobbling away. I imagined them just accepting my words, but instead, they speak into their ear piece and four guards stand in front of me. "We're sorry, miss. We were ordered to not let you out or let anyone but family and doctors in," a tall man with a beard says. "Yes, but I'm fine! I just want to walk around. Is that a crime?" I ask. "Isn't the floor empty?" Ah, yes, I sound like a child. "Sorry, mam. You must return to your bed." Yes, now I feel like a child too. I peak and look around. The hallway leads somewhere behind me too. "Fine," I say. "I'll go." "Thank you." I turn around, but instead of going sideways into my room, I start running down the hallway. In reality, I think I barely make it two steps before the guards surround me. I hobbled as fast as I could, but it seems it led me nowhere. "Miss, please," the guard says. "Leave her be." For some reason, my heart squeezes in absolute fear and anxiety. It's Lee, but I can't turn around. I can't function. I stand, frozen and unsure what to do. "Yes, sir." The guards stand back and return to their formal positions on the floor. I still haven't turned. I hear steps across the sterile hospital floor. Before I see him, I smell his cologne and the smell transports me to a million memories before this moment. "Ivory, what do you think you're doing?" And then, he's in front of me. Every time I see him, it feels so different. There's just so much of my heart coming out before me, spilling everywhere, when I see him. Every time, so much time has passed and so much has changed. My life seems to drastically change from every interval we've met. We both feel so different as well. I recognize him and he's a stranger altogether. Lee stands tall in front of me. He's not wearing a suit. He's in a dark blue knit sweater and his arm is in a sling as well. There's a purple bruise and cut on the side of his bottom lip. His hair is free from the usual slick, messy and hanging on his forehead, a bit curly. "Ivory?" he asks and my name fits so fucking well when he says it. I can't think, I don't think—I just run right into him and hug him. My IV pole falls.