Chapter 18

Samantha couldn't describe how nervous she was as she and Damon made their way to the hospital.

She had no idea what had happened to her parents. She couldn't even ask Daniel. The moment she'd heard what he'd said, she'd immediately forced Damon to take her home. She didn't even care that she was naked and had been caught in such an embarrassing position.

"Can this thing go any faster?" she complained. She could hear the loud, rapid thumping in her chest. She was even biting the tips of her fingernails. "Please make it go faster, Damon," she said, nervousness evident in her voice.

"Samantha, you know I can't do that," Damon answered seriously. "If I go any faster, we'll end up in prison instead of the hospital."

She couldn't see any emotion on Damon's face, but from the tone of his voice, she could tell he was trying to make her understand and force her to calm down, which she couldn't do.

How could she calm down when she wasn't sure if her parents were okay? But she still tried to be rational.

One of her fists clenched tightly while her other hand was at her mouth, fingernails between her teeth. She couldn't calm down. All she could think about was her parents. So she was slightly surprised when Damon suddenly grabbed her clenched fist.

She looked at Damon.

"Calm down, Samantha," Damon said gently, then looked at her, causing their eyes to meet. The seriousness in Damon's expression was gone. Even the coldness in his eyes had disappeared. All she could see in his face was gentleness and assurance. "Just calm down. Your parents are going to be fine," he continued, gently squeezing her clenched fist.

And that was all she needed. Damon's words were enough to calm her down.

Damon gently smiled at her before turning his gaze back to the road. He didn't remove his hand from hers, and for some unknown reason, her clenched fist opened spontaneously. When Damon felt it, he intertwined their fingers, and surprisingly, Samantha could not sense any resistance in her heart.

Damon's palm was so warm, warmth her cold palm needed.

They stayed like that until they reached the hospital.

When Damon parked the car, Samantha quickly got out and ran inside. She asked the nurses where her parents were, and when they told her, she immediately started running again. She even forgot that Damon was with her. The nervousness she'd felt a while ago was back.

When she got there, the first thing she saw was her mother, who was waiting outside the emergency room. Concern and worry could be seen on her mother's face.

With her hands shaking, she called out to her mother. "Mom…" she said in a soft and weak voice.

Her voice was frail and feeble, but it was still enough for her mother to hear her. Her mother turned to her, and when their eyes met, she couldn't stop herself from crying, especially once she saw the relief on her mother's face.

"Samantha…" Her mother's voice was so soft, making her cry even more.

She ran to her mother, hugging her tightly as she cried. She sobbed in her mother's arms.

She had missed her mother so much. She never thought that the next time she would see her parents, they would be in the hospital.

"M-Mom…Mom…Mom…" she said repeatedly.

Her mother gently caressed her back as she hugged her tightly.

"Shush, sweetheart, hush now."

Her mother's voice was gentle, but no matter what her mother did to comfort her, she still couldn't stop crying. Her feelings were already mixing: concern, fear, nervousness, and longing for her parents. Her emotions were overflowing so much that all she could do was cry.

When she finally calmed down, her mother guided her to one of the aluminum hospital chairs, then sat down beside her, holding one of her hands.

"Mom, what happened to Dad?" she asked weakly, still crying.

"They told me he was on his way home when a thief tried to steal his wallet and cellphone. Your dad fought back, and the thief stabbed him," her mother said with a hint of sadness in her voice. "I want to slap him. Why did he fight back? He should have just handed over his wallet and cellphone. We can always earn more money. But what if we lose him? I don't know what I'd do, Samantha. I don't want to think about it." Bitterness and grief could be heard in her weeping mother's voice.

Samantha started to cry again. She could feel the concern and pain in her mother's words.

She placed her free hand over her mother's and squeezed. Her mother stared at her, and she gave her a weak smile.

"Dad is going to be fine, Mom. You know how he is. He's always been strong, and he never gives up. He can handle this. Plus, I know he won't leave you. He doesn't want to be scolded by you, right?" she said.

She had been trying to brighten up the mood, even for just a little bit, and she felt like she'd succeeded when her mother chuckled.

She smiled when she saw that she had somehow made her mother smile.

"By the way, I haven't forgotten," her mother said, retrieving the hand that had been holding Samantha's. Her mother raised an eyebrow at her. "Where have you been? You told us that you'd only be gone for two days! Where did you go, Samantha? And who were you with? Do you have any idea how worried we were? Even Alfred was worried about you! So tell me now, Samantha, where were you?" her mother asked in all seriousness. She stared at Samantha intently, her forehead furrowed, as she waited for her answer.

Samantha gulped. She was not prepared for this. She couldn't think of a good excuse.

"Samantha, I'm waiting," her mother said, still frowning.

Samantha opened her mouth, but no words came out. Her mother was still staring at her, waiting for her explanation.

She averted her gaze. "I was with my friend, just like I told you I would be," she lied.

"That's what Rose told us. But what I want to know is why it took you so long to come home. And why we haven't been able to contact you."

It was her turn to frown. She faced her mother again. "Rose?" she asked the mother.

Her mother crossed her arms. "Yes. Rose. Since we couldn't think of any other way to get ahold of you, we decided to ask her if she knew where you were. And like you said, she told us that you were with a friend."

"Well if Rose already confirmed where I was, then why does it seem like you still don't believe me?" she asked her mother, fake displeasure in her voice.

Suddenly, her mother pinched her cheek. "Mom!" she complained in a loud voice as she touched her stinging cheek.

But her mother only gave her a sharp look. "I'm not a fool, Samantha. I'm your mother. I know you. I know when you're telling the truth and when you're lying," her mother said, seriousness in her voice.

"Mom…"

"I already know that you aren't telling us the truth. When you said you were with your friend, I knew you were lying. But I still chose to trust you. I let you do what you wanted, Samantha, but then you didn't come for almost three weeks! Did you even think about how your dad and I would feel? Of what Alfred would think? I could hardly sleep wondering where you were and what had happened to you. Even though Rose told us you were fine, I still couldn't help but worry." The disappointment in her mother's voice made her feel guilty.

She hugged her mother tightly, her arms wrapping around her waist as her face buried in her shoulder. "I'm sorry, Mom. I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to worry you," she repeatedly apologized to her mother.

She refused to let go and kept on hugging her mother until she felt a gentle caress down her back.

Then she heard her mother sigh. "Okay. It's all right. We're okay," her mother said.

She looked up quickly, her arms still wrapped around her mother's waist. "We're okay? You're not angry anymore?" she asked, a pitiful expression on her face.

"Just because I said we're okay doesn't mean you won't have to explain. You still need to tell us the truth, Samantha. I won't be quiet until I hear your explanation," her mother replied, making her pout.

"But, Moooom," she complained, still pouting.

Her mother gave her a sharp look, one of her eyebrows raised. "One more complaint, and I'll pinch that cheek of yours again. And this time, I won't hold back. And would you please let go of me? It's too hot for you to cling to me like this," her mother said, which made her pout even more, but she still backed away.

She was about to respond to her mother when the doctor taking care of her father came out. She almost jumped for joy when the doctor said that her father had survived. He'd been on the brink of death, but he was now in stable condition.

She hugged her mother again, who was weeping with joy. Her mother returned her hug. Samantha was in tears as well.

They were in that position when Alfred suddenly came in. He was shocked to see her.

"Samantha…" Alfred called her name, staring at her.

She walked away from her mother and over toward her boyfriend.

Alfred just stared at her as if he couldn't believe she was here, standing in front of him.

She looked into Alfred's eyes. She couldn't move. They just kept staring at each other.

She should feel excitement, longing, the same feelings she felt when she saw her mother again. But that was not how she felt. Instead, nervousness and guilt dominated her emotions.

She didn't move until Alfred closed the space between them and hugged her tightly, burying his face in her shoulder.

"I missed you," Alfred's voice trembled, and his arms tightened around her. She felt the longing and relief that he was feeling at seeing her again in his hug.

When Alfred released her from his embrace, he cradled her face in his palms and looked into her eyes. He was struggling to keep himself from crying.

"You made us all so worried, Samantha! You didn't say anything to me. I had no idea where you were. If I hadn't asked your parents, I wouldn't have even known you had left! Where have you been? Why didn't you tell me where you were going? I was so worried about you!" Alfred said. So many emotions filled his voice that Samantha couldn't pick out just one.

"Alfred, I…I was—"

"Samantha." A rough and cold voice stopped Samantha from trying to explain.

She looked behind Alfred, and her eyes instantly went wide. Nervousness filled her body when she saw Damon, his cold eyes staring at her and Alfred.

Alfred turned around and frowned at Damon.

"Who are you?" Alfred asked in surprise and confusion.

Samantha's nervousness only intensified when Damon suddenly smiled.

She knew that smile couldn't be good.