Chapter 05: Awake
He held her right hand delicately, watching her chest rising and sinking as she breathed. It had already been two days and still she remained cataleptic. He sighed, stroking the top of her hand with his thumb.
"Come on, babe." He whispered, giving her hand a kiss.
Suddenly, the door to Stacy's hospital room opened slowly and in came Chris and Stephanie with a box of pizza. "Hey, Randy..." Stephanie greeted with a smile as he smiled back.
"Hey guys..."
"We brought you lunch." She told him as he smiled gratefully in return.
"Thanks guys. I really appreciate it."
"How is she?" Chris asked, taking a seat on the daybed while Stephanie got the pizza for the three of them ready.
"Well...she moved a couple of times today. The doctor said that was a good sign. She'll be waking up pretty soon." Randy told them while watching his girlfriend in awe.
"That's good, that's good!" Chris exclaimed, feeling relieved.
"I really wish she'd wake up soon. I miss her." Randy sighed sadly, shaking his head.
Chris smiled. "Don't worry, bud. She will."
...
"Dawg! How you been?" John Cena, Randy's best friend, queried once he entered the hospital room.
Randy beamed the moment he saw him. "Hey!" he greeted, standing up and giving his best friend a hug. Sitting back down on the chair beside Stacy's bed, he held her hand once again. "Thanks for coming, John. I've been hella miserable these past few days." Randy told him while John sat on the daybed.
"Dawg, don't worry about it. She'll be a-okay."
"This is all my fault, John—"
"Don't start that crap on me, dawg. It ain't your fault."
Randy sighed. "It's not that easy to think it isn't my fault, you know. I mean...really, I could've just gone with her. Then maybe all this s never would've happened."
John rolled his eyes and shook his head. "Dawg, you can't stop things from happening, yah know. Sometimes, they just gotta happen. And maybe this is a test for yah from God."
Randy nodded his head and shrugged. "Maybe."
"Just chill, man. She'll wake up pretty soon."
...
That night, after Randy took a shower and dressed in a pair of jogging pants and a sweatshirt in the bathroom of Stacy's hospital room, he once again took his place beside Stacy's bed and held her hand.
Closing his eyes, he kissed each of her fingertips before laying his head down on the bed and sang.
And I can feel you breathing
And it's keeping me awake
Can you feel it beating?
My heart is sinking like a weight.
He sighed, quietly wishing for everything to be okay. Suddenly, he felt her hand move. His head jolted up and he watched her slowly stirring form. She groaned a little, her voice so soft and small.
"Stacy?" he called out in a whisper.
Again, she just moved as he held her hand tight.
"Baby? Can you hear me?"
Unexpectedly, her large, hazel eyes slowly fluttered open, making Randy's heart jump.
"Babe!" he beamed, grinning widely at her.
Stacy adjusted her eyes to the light of the room before squinting her eyes at Randy and staring at him for the longest time.
"Stacy, babe...how you feeling?" he asked with so much glee.
Stacy furrowed her eyebrows, blinking her eyes twice and continued to look at him.
Finally, she spoke and what she asked made Randy's whole world continue to tumble down.
"Do I know you?"