Chapter 85 She's stronger than I thought
Chapter 85 She's stronger than I thought
A hand gently wrapped around my wrist.
Klaus.
I turned to him, my eyes already welling up and constantly drifting back to the room
"They said female teenager" I whispered a single tear drop escaped.
“I know.”
“What if—”
“It’s not Maya.”
My chest tightened. My heart refused to believe
More nurses and doctors rushed past us shouting instructions I couldn't comprehend.
Klaus squeezed my hands.
"Maya is upstairs waiting for us"
That's right, she was waiting not gone, waiting.
The elevator ride was short and terrifying.
The uncertainty of people in these hospitals spaces were enough to make me feel terrified about literally everything.
Room 214.
My legs felt numb as klaus opened the door.
Then--
"That combination just tastes weird!!" I heard a familiar voice echoed
"How can you not like pineapples on pizza they're like bonnie and Clyde"
"They are not!!"
I blinked twice.
Maya was seated upright on the bed. A bandage wrapped around her head and one of Maya’s legs was wrapped in one of those giant white casts that practically screamed “hospital patient.”
Maya was awake and chittering away like she wasn't just at her point of death.
She looked at me "Tessa?"
I practically jumped on her. Ignoring her cast,bandages, wires, everything.
I hugged her and burst into uncontrolled tears.
"Oh wow" she whispered "this is oddly concerning"
"Shut up maya" I cried "just shut the fuck up"
"I got hit by a truck not abducted or killed to sell my body parts"
"You didn't answer your phone!" I pulled back
"Oh I'm sorry I should've paused my accident to text, hey in about to get hit by a truck"
"Yes you should've" I chuckled.
"I'll take note of that for next time"
"There won't be a next time!!" We all echoed in unison.
I didn't realise how much I missed maya until there was a threat of me never having to see her for the rest of my life.
The room went quiet except from the really annoying munching from Ethan's mouth.
Maya cleared her throat dramatically.
“You're crushing my ribs by the way.”
I immediately pulled back. “Sorry!”
“You should be.” She pointed at her cast. “My body already got rearranged by a truck.”
My eyes drifted back to the giant cast wrapped around her leg.
I took a deep breath.
“You scared me,” I whispered.
Her playful expression dropped slightly.
“I know.”
“You really really scared me.”
She averted her gaze.
“I’m sorry.”
Ethan awkwardly scratched the back of his neck. “Well… who wants pizza”
“Nobody!! ” Maya and I said together.
He froze. “fine I'll eat them myself.”
Klaus quietly moved closer to me.
“You should sit,” he whispered.
I suddenly realised my legs still felt like jelly.
I sat beside Maya carefully.
“So,” she said, “how was your audition?”
Fuck!!
My audition.
I totally forgot about that.
“I honestly don't know.”
“You survived?”
“Barely.”
“That counts.”
“You got hit by a truck and you're asking about my audition?” I said "are you crazy?!!"
She insisted on hearing about my fucked up audition.
But I brushed it off with silky jokes.
For the first time since Klaus told me, it felt real that she was alive.
It's funny how people talked about relief like it was some magical feeling.
You know like that rainbow that shines after a crazy storm.
Like summer after a long year.
Like vacation after endless hours of work.
But nobody talks about how relief can hurt too.
It felt like the universe accidentally pressed pause before something terrible happened and decided to be merciful for once.
I stared at her arguing with ethan on the same topic. I stared at the bandages around her head. Then at her cast, then the tiny bruises on her face.
The kind of relief I felt was the kind that haunted me. The kind that reminded me she would've died.
"Are you ready to check your results now" klaus said and all eyes turned to me
"What results?" I played dumb
I am not ready to face anything results right now.
I asked Ethan about charlotte and he mentioned they already broke up.
"But it's not a bad break up, it was a good one" he said
Maya scoffed "while I was unconscious he kept on crying everyday because he wasn't sure his heart would ever be okay after the breakup"
We all laughed.
I already thought I diverted attention but maya was smarter than that.
"Tessa, you didn't tell me about your auditions"
"She wouldn't remember most of I because she was with some Jay" klaus answered
I shot him a look and he stylishly looked away.
"Tell me everything" maya was too excited "anything that would make kaus look like that, count me in"
Ethan's munching became louder
I began to tell her everything from the plane, to the tour, to the break, to the hotel amd finally to my door.
Klaus listened as if it was some true crime story. It was cute when he is angry.
Maya bugged for my results an before I could refuse, Klaus slowly reached into my hoodie pocket, pulled out my phone and handed it to me.
Traitor.
My screen showed the unopened MSA email.
Maya gasped dramatically.
“You still haven't opened it?!”
“I didn't care.”
“Open it.”
“Maya—”
“I got hit by a truck. You owe me this.”
That was emotional manipulation.
Effective emotional manipulation.
I stared at the screen.
My fingers shook.
Klaus squeezed my shoulder.
Maya squeezed my hand.
Ethan awkwardly leaned closer.
I took a deep breath.
Then clicked.
And suddenly—
Everything changed.