Author's Note: kawaii-peach14 you need not die in anticipation because I have this chapter and the next worked out they just need to be typed.
Title: The Forest
Chapter: 7
Looking at the form on the bed she recognized the face. It was like looking in the mirror except her hair was gone and her head bandaged. What the hell was going on? This had to be some sort of sick joke.
"This isn't me!" Lilly said in denial. "This isn't me! She looks like me but it isn't me!"
"It says here that she has a mark on her wrist form an attack as a child," said the nurse. "I noticed you have the same mark."
"That doesn't mean anything. Many people have childhood scars."
"Ones that were induced by an attack?"
Lilly took a deep breath. All she wanted to be examined and hightail it out of here. But it appeared that that wasn't going to happen. "Look I don't know what kind of game this woman is playing but I am Lilly Rush! Now can I please just get my wrist taken care of so that I can go home?" Lilly came to the sudden realization that her wrist wasn't throbbing anymore. "What the hell happened to my wrist?"
"I'm sorry Lillian," said the nurse. "But we've found it best to ease people into this transition."
"Ease?" Lilly questioned with disbelief. The use of her full name was driving her insane. "Ease me into what?"
"You don't remember what happened to you Lillian?"
"Yes, I was just chased by the maniac George."
"Do you know why you're here?"
The nurse's demeanor was beginning to anger Lilly. She knew why she was here. She had thought she'd broken her wrist. "I'm here because I thought that I'd broken my wrist and since it's obviously not broken I'm going to go home and get some sleep so that I don't look like complete crap when I go to work in the morning."
"Lillian, you have it all wrong," said the nurse. "You're here because you disobeyed your captain's order. He wanted you to stay at the station but you had to go the Marks house to look at a suspicion you had. George was there. He had a stand-off with you and he shot you in the head before you could pull your trigger."
"No! This…" she pointed to the figure on the bed. "Isn't me! This is some strange woman that's claiming to be me."
"Really? Because she has the same social security number and everything." A moment of silence hung between them. "Like it or not this is the real you. In the conscious world you are in this room, in the hospital"
"What…? How...?" Tears sprung to Lilly's eyes and she tried to hold them back. She was always trying to be masculine. She would hold back her tears to the point where she could feel all her tear ducts clog and dry up until they crusted over. "What's my condition?"
"After the attack, Stillman rushed you to the hospital. You were given a craniotomy and the bullet was removed from your skull. You've been in deep coma since then."
Lilly bit her lower lip to hold back the tears that were coming on. Since she'd heard the word 'coma' a million questions sprung to her mind. She wanted to know if she would recover, what her brain activity was, and if Stilman had brought up the living will. But she didn't have the heart to ask those questions and instead asked a simpler one.
"What is this place?"
"It's where you decide between life and death."
Scotty couldn't go home or to the hospital. He couldn't face her. He couldn't believe what she'd asked him to do. It didn't seem like Lilly to plan for the end. He never would have guessed that she had a living will on file. He couldn't believe the she didn't bring it up when they'd talk. There were so many opportunities where she could have brought it up. He would have assured her that he would be there for her. It would have been hard for him but he would have done it.
But now as he drove around Philly's streets he felt so lost. Somehow he subconsciously drove in the direction of Lilly's house. He wanted to be close to her, but he couldn't be with her. It made no sense but it was better than staring at the swirls in a glass of vodka. That just reminded him of Christina, who reminded him of Lilly. Being in her house wouldn't help much either given that he would be in a place what was a part of Lilly. A key part of her life, the place she would go home and lay her head down after a long day of detective work.
He pulled up to the house and vaguely remembered Lilly mentioning a hide-a-key somewhere on her porch. He looked around and found a flower pot. The flowers were dying now, a week of neglect had gotten to them. He walked over to the flower pot and found a key hiding in the soil. He took it and moved towards the door unlocking it.
He opened the door and stepped inside. Lilly didn't have an alarm system. Probably didn't think she needed one. But Scotty knew better and made a mental note to pay for one that could be installed. He placed the key on a table inside the door and walked into the living room.
Upon walking into the living room he realized that he'd never been her before. As he glanced around her realized that the place embodied Lilly perfectly. The furniture was shabby-chic and looked very comfortable to sit in. He sat on the coach and noticed a white cat had already beat him too it. The cat lifted his head and looked at him.
"Hey," Scotty whispered to the cat. He reached a hand out and petted the cats head. "It's okay, I'm a friend of Lilly's." The cat meowed in response. "I really am." He pulled out his badge as if the cat could read. "See Philadelphia PD." The cat just stared at him as the second cat jumped up.
This cat was different. Orange. It walked over the coach and rubbed its head against the badge as if marking it to say that Scotty had been there before laying down against Scotty's leg. The white cat stood up and meowed before walking over to the kitchen. Scotty could only guess that the cat wanted food.
He got up to follow the cat and in a moment realized how very little he really knew about Lilly Rush. He looked in the fridge hoping to find some cat food. Instead he found quite a few cans of tuna. "I'm guessing Lilly gives you tuna for dinner?"
The cats meowed in response and Scotty took one of the cans from the fridge and rummaged threw Lilly's drawers for a can-opener. Finally finding one he opened the can and placed an equal amount into each food bowl. At first the cats seemed apprehensive to eaten the food given to them by this stranger and Scotty eyed them with concern.
"I don't when Lilly's coming back," he said to them. "So please, eat."
The cats began eating and Lilly watched them. He looked around the kitchen. It was spotless. In fact Scotty would have been surprised if it even got any use. Judging by the contents of her fridge Lilly didn't prepare many of her own meals. He could have guess that by the number of nights she ate at the station with the guys. Fries seemed to be her favorite food. With every dinner she got she would order a side of fires. He could even make a case saying that her love for fries ran as deep as her love for coffee.
But it was a pretty nice kitchen regardless. It had a bar counter where you could sit at a stool and eat your breakfast and a nice table. Again, Scotty predicted that it was rarely used for eating. In fact it seemed like the only reason Lilly came home at night was to sleep. By the time a shift ended it would be nine, ten, sometimes even midnight, and he doubted the first thing on her mind was to make some pasta. Especially when she had a shift in a few hours.
Scotty walked over to the bar and in the process found what looked like a liquor cabinet. He tried to open the door but it was locked. He examined the lock and realized that Lilly must hide the key. He couldn't really blame her with all the perversity and degrading acts that they saw everyday she might not trust herself to drink. Sure she'd go with them to the tavern, but then she was always with the guys and they wouldn't let her get drunk. But to come home and see the liquor cabinet in front of you and have the ability to pour yourself glass after glass of vodka may have been to much for her to handle. He wouldn't be able to take it if he was her.
He got off of the counter and proceeded upstairs. He knew it was rude. That he shouldn't be up there without Lilly, but he couldn't help it. He wanted to be close to her. To sleep with her scent on the sheets. He wanted to be near her.
He walked down the hall and found Lilly's room. It was pretty. Decorated in a soft green color. Her queen-sized bed had been made neatly and Scotty couldn't help but think of the last time that she had slept in it. How she's woken up that morning and thought that she would be back that night. Making the bed the way she usually does and dressing the way she usually does. Funny how life could change in one moment.
Author's Note: that's it for now! Let me know what you think! And please I don't want to lose reviewers so please don't die of anticipation. Though I will continue to update on a regular basis.