Chapter 53 Between Regret and Relief
Joan walked toward me, my heart beating hard with each step she took, while Dave leaned against his car.
Finally, she got closer to me.
Close enough for me to explain the misunderstanding.
Could I even call it a misunderstanding?
“Joan, I…”
I wanted to say, but she walked right past me.
She didn’t stop or look at me.
She walked towards the door as if I was invisible.
Then she opened the door, went inside, and closed it behind her before I could follow her in.
I stood there and stared at the closed door, running my fingers through my hair.
Soon, the door opened and she walked out holding a bag.
“Is she following him back?” I thought to myself, my head already banging.
“Joan,” I called again.
She didn’t answer, she walked past me towards the car like I didn’t exist.
“Joan,” I called again, my voice sounding rougher than I wanted it to.
She still didn’t answer.
She didn’t even slow down.
Just at that moment, my eyes met with Dave’s and he gave me a look that I couldn’t quite place.
That look was calm but it made my stomach twist.
I stood there with my mouth open, while he opened his car for Joan.
She got in and he stepped in right after her.
Before I could move or say anything, the car zoomed off.
I watched the woman I loved drive away with another man.
And that was when it dawned on me that I was already losing her.
JOAN COLE’S POV
That morning, Dave came early to the hospital with fruits and food.
I wanted to go home to take some essentials for me and Lena, then a change of clothes for Theo, when he wakes up.
Dave offered to take me home.
I refused because I didn’t want to stress him, but he insisted.
“You can’t drive in this state. You look drowsy,” he said, his eyes filled with concern.
I didn’t have a choice but to accept his offer.
We got into his car and started the journey to my place.
The ride was silent but it wasn’t awkward.
I was too tired to even speak.
When Dave pulled up in front of my house, I saw Alex standing at my door and my breath stopped immediately.
“What the hell is he doing here this early?” I thought to myself as I looked at him.
He looked like he had been waiting there all night, but I didn’t care.
I tried to steady my expression, then I stepped out of the car.
Dave also got out of the car, but he didn’t follow me.
Maybe because he thought he shouldn’t interfere with whatever Alex had to say to me.
As I walked towards Alex, I felt his eyes on me, but I didn’t stop.
Because I knew I could break down in tears if I stopped to look at him, and I couldn’t afford to break down at that moment.
So when he wanted to talk, I just walked past him till I got to the door.
When I got inside, I leaned against the door after closing it.
Then I sighed heavily and closed my eyes for a few seconds.
“I can’t think about Alex right now… if I do, I won’t function,” I mumbled under my breath.
After that, I opened my eyes and immediately moved to my room and packed everything that would be needed at the hospital.
When I walked out of the house, he was still standing at the door.
I walked past him again.
“Joan…” he called.
I continued walking, my grip tightening on the strap of the bag.
I reached Dave’s car and got inside the already opened car.
Dave got in too and we drove off into the street.
As we drove past the house, I kept my gaze on the road ahead of us, my heart sinking slowly.
After a few minutes' drive, we got to the hospital. When we got inside, Lena rushed toward us, smiling.
“He’s awake,” she said, grinning from ear to ear.
“Theo has opened his eyes,” she added.
For a second, I stood there as if I didn’t understand what she had said.
Then suddenly, the bag I was holding slipped from my hand and fell on the floor with a thud.
I ran towards the ward and pulled the door open.
Inside, my brother was lying on the hospital bed, his eyes truly open.
“Oh my God, Theo,” I muttered, my breath shaking as I moved closer to him.
He couldn’t talk, because the oxygen mask was still covering his nose and mouth, his breath clouding over the oxygen mask.
His eyes moved slowly until they landed on me.
When our eyes met, tears rolled down my cheek before I could stop them.
I reached for his hand carefully, afraid I might hurt him if I held it too fast.
“I’m here,” I muttered, his hand wrapping slowly around mine.
“You are fine now… I’m right here,” I added, my voice breaking as I squeezed his hand gently.
I heard footsteps behind me and knew that Lena and Dave had walked in, but I didn’t look back.
I couldn’t take my eyes off Theo, not after I almost lost him.
Lena moved to the other side and held his other hand, tears flowing down her face, even though she was smiling.
Dave stood behind me as he watched us quietly.
“Do you think he can eat now?” Lena asked.
“We will have to ask the doctor,” Dave replied.
A few minutes later, the doctor and nurses entered, so we had to excuse them.
We went back to the reception, waiting for the doctor so that we could ask him if Theo could eat.
Then, Dave’s phone rang and he excused himself.
After a few minutes, he came back and walked straight towards me.
Then he whispered to my ear.
“I just got off a call with Alex.”
“What! Why?” I thought to myself, but I kept my expression neutral as I waited for him to tell me why Alex had called him.
I hoped it wasn’t in any way related to me.
But if it wasn’t, he wouldn’t have informed him.
“What could he have talked to him about?” I thought to myself.