Author's note: You must all be getting tired of my excuses for taking so long. I apologize. I had some family problems, and my older brother was injured and had to have an operation.
Briel's POV:
Beep. Beep. Beep. Beep. What was that sound? Was I dead? But there was so much pain. Was this hell then? I went through my memories in my head, trying to figure out what I had done to get me sent to hell. "Seth, she's waking up. She'll open her eyes in a few seconds. I'll leave you alone," an unfamiliar female voice that reminded me of bells said.
Seth was here? Really? Or had I just imagined that, hearing what I wanted to hear? I couldn't think clearly right now. I didn't want to open my eyes, but I wanted to know if I was dreaming or not. So I forced my heavy eyelids open and looked around the room. My heart skipped a beat when I saw that he really was there, and I blushed scarlet when the beeping of the monitors jumped around in response.
"You're finally awake," Seth whispered. Maybe it was wishful thinking, but I thought he sounded relieved. "How long have I been out?" I asked. My voice was quiet; it was still painful to pull enough air into my lungs to speak louder. "Almost two weeks. You scared the hell out of me. I thought I was going to lose you. The whole time I was wondering if I had taken too long to find you. I think I might have annoyed the doctors by constantly asking if they were sure you would be ok, but you were out so long that I was really worried."
Two weeks. I had really been here for two weeks? Wait a second; you scared the hell out of me? I thought I was going to lose you? Was I still out and just having a very good dream? But I was awake; there was enough pain to assure me of that. "How did you find me at all?" I asked. I hadn't thought it would be possible for anybody to find me. He looked like he was debating about something, but I had no idea what. "I'll tell you another time. Soon, but not now. I promise I'll explain everything," he finally answered. With the way he said it, I could not doubt him.
I tried to move a little bit, I was feeling so stiff. Bad idea, there was instantly a lot more pain. I couldn't stop a gasp of pain from escaping, and the next thing I knew Seth was leaning over the hospital bed, looking concerned. "Are you okay? Where does it hurt? Should I call a doctor or a nurse?" he asked, sounding as if he was about to panic. "Calm down, I'm fine. Just remind me not to move, ok?" I answered, trying to calm him.
"I should probably call the doctor anyway, just because you're finally awake," he said. Before I could protest, the door opened and Dr. Cullen entered the room. "Hello Briel. I see that you're finally awake. I have to admit, I was starting to worry. How are you feeling?" he said. "Oh, I'm fine," I lied. He didn't buy it. "I'll give you some more pain medication," he replied, and I was in too much pain to protest. Dr. Cullen left the room as my eyelids started to droop. "Seth?" I mumbled. "What is it Briel? What do you need?" he replied, instantly by my side. "Stay with me," I breathed. "Forever," he whispered, and I felt his warm hand slip into mine as I drifted off yet again.
Seth's POV:
Two weeks of pure and complete torture, waiting for her to wake up. Wondering if she would. It caused me actual pain to see her lying there on the hospital bed, with all those monitors and machines hooked up to her bruised and broken body. And then as time went by, worrying that she was staying unconscious for too long. I mean, I knew that people could survive for years in a coma, but surely that would cause a lot of problems.
Alice had been spending a bit more time with me than usual, because her visions were comforting to me. As long as she could still see Briel waking up, I stayed sane. Her visions had shown a different outcome a few times, always followed by some problem with her, but the doctors had managed to save her again every time. The man who had done this to her would not say a word about who he was or why he had done this. I could probably have convinced him to talk, but I knew that if I got near him I would get too angry and probably wind up phasing and killing him.
Edward hadn't been able to get much from his thoughts either. The man entertained himself by going over Briel's pain in his head over and over again. He enjoyed it. I knew that Briel might have some answers, but I didn't plan on asking her until she was better. If it would cause her pain, I wouldn't ask at all. Finally, she was awake. I heard her heart monitor jump a little and wondered if something was wrong, but when she blushed I realized that it had jumped when she saw me.
Did I do that to her? Did I make her heart skip beats, like she did to mine? Or was she just surprised to see me? The following conversation was short, she was still in a lot of pain. Carlisle came in and gave her some more medication, and I knew that it would make her go to sleep again. Just before she closed her eyes, she called out to me.
"Seth?" she said, her voice weak with exhaustion. "What is it Briel? What do you need?" I would give her anything she wanted. Anything at all. "Stay with me," she whispered. A great joy filled me. She wanted me to stay. "Forever," I promised, taking her hand and watching as her eyes closed and she fell asleep again. As soon as I was sure she was asleep, I whispered, "As long as you want me to." I knew that once I told her the truth about me, she might not want me to stay anymore. So I'd have to enjoy my time with her while I could.