You could feel your head pounding before you even opened your eyes. No, it was more than just your head, your entire body was aching. You could hear a faint beeping in the background which you were sure was not helping your massive headache. You began to open your eyes and took in all that was around you. You seemed to be in some sort of hospital room. There were multiple bags hanging from an IV pole that had various lines leading into your arm. There was the source of the beeping, a monitor tracking your heart rate. There was a large ornate vase filled with flowers across the room but other than that the room was empty. You tried to get up to figure out where you were and what was going on but your body protested any movement you made with the immediate searing pain shooting all over along with the fact that you must have been on a bed alarm because the second that you tried to sit up, you heard a loud noise emit from a speaker outside your room and the quick shuffle of feet as a nurse rushed in to stop you from moving. She helped you get settled back in bed and told you that the doctor would be in shortly to talk to you about what had happened. When the nurse left the room, you felt your anxiety start to bubble up inside of you. You knew that there was something extremely important that you must attend to but you couldn't remember what on earth it was. Thankfully you were not left with your thoughts for too long because about 5 minutes after being left by the nurse, the doctor entered the room. She introduced herself as Dr. Tara Knowles. She seemed nice enough and appeared both concerned and inquisitive at the same time. She asked you some simple questions including your name, where you were from, and so forth. You were able to answer all of her questions until she asked you what had happened to land you in St. Thomas Hospital in Charming. The town name sparked something in your brain, but you still couldn't remember what had happened and what you were doing before. Dr. Knowles explained that you had been found badly injured and unconscious on the side of the road. You had three fractured ribs, a broken nose, a dislocated shoulder, and a sprained wrist, along with being covered in cuts and bruises.
After explaining the extent of your injuries, Dr. Knowles pulled up a chair next to your bed and folded her hands, appearing to be at a loss for words.
She ran a hand through her hair and looked up at you, finally breaking the silence and explaining, "Listen (Y/N), the type of injuries you have are consistent with injuries we see on someone who has been physically assaulted. I know you said you don't remember much about what happened but if we're going to find whoever did this, you need to give us any information you can remember".
You began to tear up, shaking your head, responding, "I can't remember anything. I know I was supposed to be doing something important but everything else is just gone". You heard the heart monitor behind you start to beep rapidly as you could feel your heart beat faster each second. Dr. Knowles quickly jumped up from her chair to check the heart monitor and then returned to help you calm down. Once your heart rate was back at a normal level, she continued asking questions.
"Now (Y/N)", she began, "I know this is a lot to take in so if this becomes too upsetting, let me know and we can take a break. Another important question has to do with something we found in your pocket when you were brought in. It's customary when someone comes in as a trauma call to remove the clothes you came in and replace them with a hospital gown. While we were going through your pockets trying to find contact information, we found a slip of paper with a name and an address here in Charming. Now I actually know this person, he's a family friend. I think it might be a good idea to bring him in as he might spark your memory". You shrugged your shoulders and agreed to meet the mysterious name on the paper. Doctor Knowles quickly excused herself and left the room to retrieve him.
As you waited to receive this mysterious stranger, your senses were suddenly overloaded with familiarity. You heard the loud and clunky boots trudge down the hallway. You smelled the combination of tobacco, leather, and clove. Your stomach began to fill with butterflies as you anticipated the arrival of this man who was no longer a stranger.
You smiled as he entered the room and you whispered, "Filip, I've missed you". It took him a moment to register who you were and then to take in your injuries. You could see that there was a mixture of anger, confusion, and sadness on his face but he tried to hold it in as he sat in the chair next to you.
"Aye, I've missed ye too lass", he mused as he took your hand into his own. You both shared a moment of silence, attempting to take in this rare alone time together. You couldn't remember the last time you'd laid eyes on his face in person. Of course, you kept a collection of photos hidden but they didn't compare to reality. You reached your free hand up and cupped his cheek, while he responded by taking one of his hands and placing it on top of yours, lightly stroking your fingers with his own. How long had it been since you had last held each other like this, two years, maybe three? You remember how awful it had been, craving his touch, his presence, his voice, hell everything about him. You wanted nothing more than to stay in this moment, with the man you loved, with the man you had never been allowed to love. The both of you had never said those words, but you knew, as did Filip, that the two of you shared a bond that nothing and nobody else could compare to. In a different world, at a different time, you knew that the two of you would be together, happy, open, and free. You yearned for that world, the world where you could be with the man you loved.
You were suddenly broken out of your reverie, by the feeling of Chibs turning his head and placing a kiss on your palm. You smiled at the loving gesture and the familiar feeling of his beard tickling your skin. He took your hand from his cheek and placed both your hands in his own rough ones.
He broke the silence first asking you, "What happened sweetheart? Who did this to you"? You shook your head and shrugged your shoulders, beginning to tear up again because no matter how hard you tried you could not remember what had happened and why you were heading to Charming, a journey that both you and Chibs knew meant danger for the both of you. Seeing you in tears was too painful for him, so he quickly stood up and sat on the edge of your bed, wrapping both his arms around you, allowing you to cry into his chest. He held you close, wanting you to feel safe and protected. He softly rubbed your back as you continued to cry, gripping his kutte. When you had finally stopped crying, you relaxed into Chibs' chest, feeling exhausted but not wanting to fall asleep for fear of ending this moment. As real as this all felt, you feared deep down that this beautiful quiet moment with the man you loved was nothing more than a cruel dream. You felt your eyelids begin to droop which you tried to hide but of course, he noticed, he always paid attention. Chibs began to move off the side of your bed, but you were having none of that and clung to his kutte even tighter. He lightly chuckled and moved his arms from around your waist, and placed his hands on both sides of your face, cradling it.
"I'm not going anywhere love, I promise. You're safe and I'm not leaving your side until we figure out what the hell has happened, but for now, I need you to get some rest", he assured you. He once again moved to stand up and this time you let him because as much as you didn't want him to leave your side, the searing pain that pulsed throughout your body was beginning to make itself present once again. He helped you get settled in bed, gently placing a blanket over your body, he kissed you on the forehead and sat down in the chair beside you.
As you began to drift off to sleep you suddenly remembered the ornate vase of flowers you had seen across the room earlier.
"Filip", you whined, "Could you pretty please bring me the card from that vase of flowers so I can see who they're from. Then I promise I'll go to sleep". You gave him your best pout, knowing full well that he could not resist. Chibs rolled his eyes and stood up, walking across the room he picked up the card from the vase and went to open it.
"Ah ah, don't even think about it nosey", you called out. He looked at your with an exasperated look on his face but he knew better than to argue with you and brought you the card. You quickly tore open the envelope and opened the card. You read the message carefully and then read it again to be sure of what you were reading. The anxiety that had been bubbling up before suddenly came back full force. You began to feel your heart beating faster and faster and you began hyperventilating as hot tears came streaming down your face. Chibs rushed to your side trying to grab the card from your hands, but the one with the card crumpled it up and locked like a vice. The heart monitor was beeping like crazy and the bed alarm went off as you tried to jump up out of the bed, totally ignoring the pain all over your body and Chibs who was trying to gently but firmly stop you from leaving while calling out for someone to come help. He tried to calm you down but you weren't listening. Reading that note made you remember everything. It made you remember why you were coming to Charming, how you had gotten hurt, and the most important thing it reminded you was that you had to get moving and fast.
