He towered over her. When he first entered the hospital room, he felt faint. Things weren't supposed to be this way. His marriage hadn't exactly gone as he had hoped in recent years. He could handle that. He could handle the witty comebacks and constant eye rolling. It was trying at times, but he knew that even if she didn't love him, she must have liked something in him. But this, this shell of his wife he couldn't bear to see.
As he watched her, he grew angrier and angrier. He hated her for looking so helpless and small, barely taking up half of the hospital bed. He hated the way her uneven lip made her more beautiful. More than anything he hated the last conversation they had.
He called her cell phone over some trivial matter which once again ended in a battle of words. It didn't phase him when she yelled that she'd rather be dead than continue this charade of a marriage.
He was just about to reply when he heard some static. He called her name but she didn't reply.
And then he heard it.
The glass shattering. The deafening sound of metal smashing into metal. The squealing of tires. And her cry out.
He stayed on the line, calling her name out until an EMT heard his pleas. He raced to the hotel, fearing the worst.
Victoria was lucky, all things considered. She had a few broken ribs, a broken foot and some nasty cuts and scrapes. But she was alive. She was unconscious but would be herself when she woke up.
In her sleep, Victoria's eyes darted back and forth. He wondered what she dreamt about. Did she find peace in her unconscious state? Did she dream of the lives they lead in the past? Did she imagine her future?
He silently brushed the dark curls off her face. Regardless of the reason, he knew she'd be mortified if anyone noticed her hair sticking to small beads of sweat sprayed across her forehead. He relished in the idea that he could help her without a fight.
She shifted slightly in her sleep and mumbled "Conrad." He took a few steps back, assuming that she was waking up. But she didn't wake up. A small smile crept across his face as he realized that whether she dreamt of peace, past or future she was dreaming about Conrad.
No longer angry, he settled into the hospital chair. He was going to wait for Victoria to wake up and regardless of how hard she fought, he was going to take care of her.