Okay, this is a departure for me. It got stuck in my head, rattled around in there for the last week or so and now, well, here it is for better or for worse.
Her emaciated body was no longer. Hesitantly, she stretched out a leg and wriggled her toes. The excruciating pain that had crippled her for the past 18 months was gone. She moved the other leg and then her arms and fingers to be sure. They moved smoothly, gracefully, as if she were young again.
Feeling light, she threw back the covers and sat up, energy and vibrancy pumping through her. She imagined she felt the sun on her face.
That's when she saw him. He stood in the doorway, his head cocked, the little smirk that had alternately warmed and aggravated her for so many years twisting his mouth. He appeared so much different from when she'd seem him last. Young, strong, handsome. He looked like he had in the beginning, not the shell he'd become. As she watched, the smirk evolved into a smile, his lovely eyes crinkling as he nodded to her, encouraging.
She easily got to her feet, the tile beneath them not cold. It should have been but she gave it no thought. It didn't matter any longer.
Cal had come back to her. She had missed him so very much over the last eight years. The first year had been spent in denial and the second trying to move on. It had never happened. She had learned to persevere, survive but the ache never dissipated. Sometimes it had been just a little divot in her life, other times it had been a gaping chasm. Always there, always a reminder of what she'd had and lost.
Now he stood before her, healthy and whole. He held out his hand, nodding once again. "Coming luv?"
His beautiful lilt filled her head and senses and she found herself stepping toward him, reaching out. The impossibility of the situation did not intrude upon her rational mind. There was no more rational mind.
Oh my God. His hand was so warm. It reminded her of long ago when he had twined his fingers with hers, grinned and asked: "Shall we Mrs. Lightman?"
They'd come back up the aisle to the applause of friends and family. Gillian remembered how dashing he had looked in his dark grey suit and crimson tie. She also remembered that he'd refrained from making a single disparaging comment the whole day. He'd been on his best behavior, just for her. Only for her.
The warmth was the complete antithesis of the last time she had touched his skin. It had been cold. Oh so very cold. The man she had loved with every essence of her being was gone. Wasted away to nothing.
He knew what she was thinking. He always had. Compassion settled into his eyes as he pulled her toward his now solid body. "No more sadness Gillian. It's time to move on together."
"I'm scared."
"I know." As Cal's arms wrapped around her, she succumbed to his welcome and familiar embrace. "No more fear though, yeah?"
He pulled away to look into her eyes.
Fascinated, she stared back, seeing her reflection in the hazel depths. She was young again. The grey, the shadows and heavy creases were gone. How could that be?
"It's time for a fresh start luv." Cal's voice was patient and oh so loving. He moved toward her and brushed her lips with his.
She felt the sparkle of electricity and reached up to touch his face. So smooth.
"Are you ready?" He turned to press a kiss to her palm.
Gillian was and gave the barest of nods as she beamed at him.
He grinned and offered her his arm. "Shall we Mrs. Lightman?"