Chapter 95 Recovery isn't forgiveness
Chapter 095
RAVENNA
Two weeks had passed, though I had no way of knowing that when I finally opened my eyes fully for the first time. Everything felt heavy and strange, like my body belonged to someone else and I was just borrowing it temporarily.
The hospital room slowly came into focus around me. White walls. Beeping machines. Fluorescent lights that were far too bright and made my head ache.
And beside me on the bed, taking up the small space next to where I lay, was Samantha. She was asleep, her dark hair scattered messily across the mattress, one hand still clutching mine even in unconsciousness.
I tried to remember what had happened to land me here. Tried to piece together the events that led to this moment. But my head was completely blank except for a pounding headache that made thinking difficult. Fragments of memories floated just out of reach, refusing to solidify into anything coherent.
My hand felt like it weighed a thousand pounds, but I managed to lift it slightly and touch Samantha's arm. The small movement was enough to wake her immediately.
Her eyes snapped open and landed on my face. For a moment, she just stared at me like she could not believe what she was seeing. Then she started crying and laughing at the same time whilst jumping around the room with so much energy it made my headache worse.
"You are awake," she sobbed out between laughs. "You are actually awake. Oh my God, Ravenna. You are awake."
I tried to smile at her enthusiasm, though my face felt stiff and uncooperative. "You are overreacting a bit, Sam."
"Overreacting?" she repeated incredulously, stopping her jumping to stare at me with tears streaming down her face. "Shush up right now. We all thought you were dead. The doctors had completely given up on you. They said you were not going to make it. But here you are. Alive and awake and talking to me."
The seriousness in her voice made something twist in my chest. I had come that close to dying? "I promised you I was never going to leave you, remember? I am not about to break that promise now. Not even an accident could take me away from you."
Samantha cried harder at my words and leaned down to hug me carefully, mindful of all the tubes and wires attached to my body. "I love you so much. Do not ever scare me like that again."
"I will try my best," I promised quietly.
She pulled back and wiped her face with her sleeve. "I need to go get the doctor. He needs to know you are awake. Do not move or do anything whilst I am gone."
She rushed out of the room before I could respond, leaving me alone with the beeping machines and my fragmented thoughts.
A few minutes later, she returned with a middle-aged doctor who looked genuinely surprised to see me conscious. He approached my bed with a professional but warm expression.
"Miss Ravenna, it is good to see you awake," he greeted whilst pulling out a small torch. "I am Doctor Harrison. I have been overseeing your care since you were admitted. Can you follow this light with your eyes for me please?"
I did as instruct whilst he checked my pupils and reactions. Then he began asking me a series of questions. What was my name? Where was I? What year was it? Did I remember what happened to me?
I answered what I could, though my memory of the accident itself remained frustratingly blank. I knew my name was Ravenna Casmir. I knew I was at City General Hospital. I could tell him the current year. But the actual events leading up to this moment were lost somewhere in the fog.
"That is quite normal," Doctor Harrison assured me when I expressed frustration about not remembering. "Memory loss surrounding traumatic events is common. It may come back gradually, or it may not. Either way, the important thing is that you are awake and responsive now."
He continued his examination, checking various vitals and making notes on his clipboard. I still felt pain throughout my body, a dull ache that seemed to radiate from everywhere at once. When I tried to move my arms or legs properly, nothing responded the way it should.
"Why can I not move properly?" I asked, panic starting to creep into my voice.
"Your body has been shut down for two weeks," the doctor explained gently. "Your muscles have weakened significantly from lack of use. It is completely normal at this stage. We will be registering you for physiotherapy sessions starting as soon as possible. A physiotherapist will work with you daily to help rebuild your strength and mobility. With consistent therapy, most patients recover full function, though it does take time and dedication."
"How long until I can leave?" I needed to know. Being stuck in this hospital bed made me feel trapped and helpless.
"That depends entirely on how quickly your body heals and responds to the physiotherapy," Doctor Harrison replied honestly. "It could be a few weeks. It could be longer. We will monitor your progress closely and make that determination when the time comes."
After he finished his examination and left the room, I turned to Samantha. "What has been happening at the school whilst I have been here? Tell me everything."
Samantha settled into the chair beside my bed, clearly preparing for a long explanation. "The news about your accident spread incredibly fast. Within hours, everyone at the academy knew what had happened. A lot of people felt genuinely terrible about it. Students you have never even spoken to sent gifts and cards and flowers. So many flowers, Ravenna. This room was completely filled with them at one point."
She gestured around the now mostly empty space. "Some of the flowers died after the first week, so I had to throw them away to make room for the new ones that kept arriving. But then your sister came one day and threw an absolute tantrum. She grabbed all the cards and gifts people had sent and threw them in the bin. Said you did not need sympathy from people who did not truly care about you."
I sighed heavily. "That sounds exactly like Asteria. Do not take it personally. She has always been protective in her own twisted way."
"I tried to stop her, but she would not listen," Samantha continued. "She was so angry. I have never seen anyone that furious before."
My chest tightened thinking about my younger sister and whatever emotions had driven her to react so violently. "What about Dorian and Darius? Have they visited at all?"
Something shifted in Samantha's expression. She looked down at her hands, clearly uncomfortable with whatever she was about to tell me. "Dorian has sneaked in three times to see you. He was not supposed to because visiting hours are restricted, but he bribed one of the nurses to let him in after dark. He sat with you for hours each time, talking to you even though you could not respond. He brought you books and read to you. It was really sweet actually."
She paused, and I knew what was coming before she said it.
"But Darius never came. Not once in these two weeks. No visits. No letters. No gifts sent. Nothing at all."
The words should not have hurt as much as they did. I had no claim on Darius. He was engaged to someone else. He had made his choice clear when his father announced that engagement at the festival. But knowing he had not even checked to see if I was alive still felt like a knife twisting in an already open wound.
"Thank you for staying with me all these weeks," I managed to say, pushing past the pain. "I know it could not have been easy."
"Of course I stayed," Samantha replied immediately. "Where else would I be? You are my best friend, Ravenna. I was not going to leave you alone in here."
Her expression brightened slightly. "Oh, I almost forgot. There were a man and a young boy who visited almost every single day. They always brought gifts for you. Really expensive gifts too. The man said you would know who they were from when you saw the names."
She reached under the bed and pulled out a box filled with various items. Cards. Chocolates. Books. Flowers that were still fresh. She handed me one of the cards, and I immediately recognized my father's handwriting on the envelope.
Inside, his message was simple but heartfelt. "Stay strong, daughter. Theodore and I are thinking of you always. We will visit again soon."
Tears pricked at my eyes. My father had been here. Had visited me repeatedly whilst I was unconscious. The knowledge made warmth spread through my chest despite everything else.
Later that afternoon, Samantha went out to get some food and other supplies we would need. I was alone in the room, staring at the ceiling and trying not to think about Darius or what his absence meant, when the door opened.
I expected it to be a nurse coming to check on me. Instead, Asteria walked in. She was clapping her hands in slow, mocking applause.
"Well, well, well," she drawled, a cruel smile playing at her lips. "Thank the moon goddess for bringing my dumb sister back from the dead. What a miracle."
Despite the mockery in her tone, I smiled genuinely at seeing her. "I missed you too, Asteria."
She stopped clapping and walked closer to my bed. Her expression shifted into something more serious. More dangerous.
"Love almost killed you," she stated bluntly, her voice dropping lower. "You need to remember why you came to this academy in the first place, Ravenna. Remember your purpose. Remember what he did to me. Do not let your feelings for Darius Pike destroy you the way they destroyed me."
Before I could respond or argue or explain, she turned on her heel and walked out of the room. The door clicked shut behind her, leaving me alone with her words echoing in my head.
Love almost killed you.
Remember why you came.
I closed my eyes and let the truth of her statements wash over me. She was right. My feelings for Darius had made me weak and vulnerable. It had nearly gotten me killed when I crashed my motorcycle because I was too upset to ride safely.
“Feelings were nothing but weakness. Dangerous distractions that clouded judgement and led to pain.”
I would not make that mistake again.