Chapter 116

When the doctor finishes checking up and treating him, Aiden is still holding my hand.

He refused to let me go even if it was only briefly. He didn't want me out of his sight even for a second. He didn't even want to be treated in the hospital, and my parents decided to have our family doctor come over.

"You're lucky," Dr. Miles speaks to Aiden, who's now lying on the bed in one of the guestrooms while I'm sitting on a chair beside the bed. "A gash on your forehead and a strained elbow. It could have been so much worse."

I squeeze Aiden's hand, and it's more as an attempt to comfort myself because I remember how he could have lost his life to save me.

"I will give you the prescription so that you will get better. I don't think that it's necessary for you to be in the hospital, anyway."

"Thank you," Aiden says to Dr. Miles before he smiles at me.

Dr. Miles excuses himself, leaving me and Aiden alone in the room. He sighs when he sees my eyes water.

"Don't cry," he whispers.

"I just--" I sniff. "You saved my life. And I almost lost you because of that. Now I am extremely grateful, but it was still a very dangerous thing to do. What were you thinking?"

Aiden tightens his hold on my hand. "Losing you. When I saw you in the middle of the street and heard that car engine approaching, my body acted on impulse. Horrible thoughts consumed me, but I was already running to you." He suddenly frowns. "Did they find who was driving the car?"

I shake my head. "No. It would have been a hit and run if we hadn't made it." My body shivers at that thought.

"Fucking dumbass," Aiden curses.

Before I can say something else, the door opens, and Dad comes into view.

Aiden straightens himself up to sit against the headboard, wincing as he moves his strained elbow.

Dad walks toward the bed to see how Aiden is doing. Even though Aiden now has a bandage on his head and a cast for his elbow, it's really a miracle that both of us are okay.

I watch as Dad's adam apple bobs. It seems like he wants to say something important, but then Aiden breaks the silence.

"I know that you don't want me in your house. If you're telling me to leave--"

"No," Dad cuts him off. "Stay. You need to get better first. You can stay in my house."

Although it's common sense that Dad would say that, I still feel a huge relief. I wouldn't want to talk to Dad anymore if he still kicked Aiden out of this house after everything that happened.

Aiden nods. "Thank you, Sir."

Dad turns away and is about to leave when he suddenly halts. He looks back at Aiden, and Dad's expression is a mixture of respect and gratitude. "Thank you for saving Nevaeh." His voice holds pain, as though he can't imagine losing me.

With that said, Dad steps out of the room and closes the door behind him.

Hope fills my insides. I really wish that he wouldn't be against us anymore.

A few seconds after Dad leaves, someone opens the door again. It's Luna. Her head pops in.

"I called Mom and Dad," she tells Aiden. Before he can object, she says, "and I've already told them to not worry and that you're okay."

Aiden sighs in relief.

I get up from the chair, and when he doesn't let go of my hand, I smile softly at him. "I need to talk to my parents, and I think Luna wants to talk to you too. I'll be back."

Aiden might not notice it, but Luna might be traumatized by the sight of her brother almost being hit by a car and lying on the street with blood dripping from his head. I know that she really needs to talk to him right now.

Slowly, Aiden lets go of my hand and nods. I give Luna a soft smile when we pass each other, then I walk out of the room and close the door.

I hear the noises from the living room, where Uncle Vaughn, Aunt Melanie, Max, and Sienna are talking. Their voices let me know that all of them have been worried but also relieved that Aiden and I are okay.

Instead of going there, I head to the other hallway. My legs bring me to my parents' room. The closer I am to it, the faster my heart beats.

I finally stand in front of the door, and just as I'm about to knock, my Dad's voice echoes from inside the room, stopping me.

"I just can't believe that she's grown up so much." He sounds vulnerable.

"I know." Mom's calming voice fills the air. "She's our daughter, but she's not the same little girl anymore, is she?"

Silence falls, but then Dad's voice cracks. "I just want her to be happy."

"Of course." I can imagine Mom smiling when she says that. "You want to protect her. You want what's best for her."

"It's just--" Dad sounds like he's letting out all his frustration. "I realized how close I was to losing her today, and I was like...what the hell was I doing? We were fighting, and the last thing I said to her...I didn't want her to think that I didn't care about her feelings--"

His words stop short, and I know that Mom is hugging him now.

"She wouldn't think like that," she says, soothing him. "She knows how much you love her."

My heart breaks as Dad starts crying. "I never meant to suffocate her. I never realized that I was trying too hard to protect her to the point that she couldn't even breathe. She even had to lie to us."

Mom doesn't say anything this time. She's just letting him express his pent-up emotions.

"I can't stop worrying." Dad's voice is hoarse. "I can't stop this fear inside me that someone would hurt her. I don't want her to ever get hurt."

"That's too ideal and perfect for it to be real," Mom says softly. "You know it, don't you?"

When he doesn't answer, I know that he agrees with her. They can't always protect me from pain.

"She is in love," Mom says. "Isn't that a good thing? It's about time."

I can hear her sniffle, which means that she also has tears in her eyes.

"I know our Nevaeh," Mom speaks again. "She wouldn't just choose any man. Aiden must be a good man, and that's why she chose him."

"You think so?"

"I do." Her tone is playful now, as though she's trying to lighten the atmosphere. "She grew up watching us. You've already set the bar so high. Do you think that she would settle for less?"

I can picture her raising her eyebrows, and then I hear Dad sigh.

"Well, that's..."

"Comforting?" Mom asks. "Come on. You have to trust our daughter on this. Besides, I know that you've already seen the good in Aiden. You just don't want to admit it."

Dad doesn't respond for a while, but then he chuckles. "Oh, God."

"Oh God what?"

"You know me so well."

"I do, don't I?"

Mom is grinning. I just know it.

After another moment of silence, Mom breaks it again. "You know what? I said that she's not our little girl anymore. I take it back."

Dad doesn't say anything. He's waiting for her to say more.

"She is still, and she will always be our little girl. Nothing can change that," she says gently. "We just have to let her go into her own life, but we'll always be watching her. We won't ever love her any less. And we will always be there when she needs us."

I slump against the door as tears roll down my cheeks. I always know how much my parents love me, but to hear those words from them is everything.

I love you too, Mom and Dad.

And I make a note to say that to them when I talk to them again.