I know it's been a really long time. School kept me busy, but it looks like I have a lot of time in my hands with the current situation. Here's a short chapter to spark the creative flow.
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All Regina could hear was the sound of muffled voices. The surface was cold and rough beneath her skin. A chill spread through her body and she began to shake. The world was still black, the voices became clearer with each second that passed.
"Fuck! Is she coming out of it?" A deep gruff voice barked somewhere in the distance. Regina tried to place the voice, but her mind was drawing a blank. Is that what David sounded like? Had it always been that deep? The shaking intensified and the darkness won out as she slipped back into the abyss.
Regina blinked her eyes against the bright sun, her vision blurred with the onslaught of sun and bright artificial light. She shifted slightly, no longer feeling the cold surface beneath her. The steady beeping of a machine sounded somewhere off to her side. She rested her forearm across her face, hiding her eyes as her vision slowly began to adjust. She looked around to her surroundings, a heart monitor sat to her left as various wires extending from the machine, disappearing under the hideous hospital gown she wore. Glancing she looked for her husband, but David was nowhere in the room. Slightly annoyed, Regina presses the call button. David should be in this room with her and she would find out where he was.
The large hospital door creaked open. In walked a young nurse.
"Mayor Mills, how can I help you?" The meek nurse asked Regina. She shifted on her weight between her feet in an awkward dance. Regina stared at the girl for a moment before responding.
"Could you please get my husband for me?" Regina responded in an cool and collected voice. She just wanted to see her husband. The longer she laid in the uncomfortable hospital bed without a familiar face the faster her heart speed.
"Your, your husband?" The nurse stammered over her words as a look of confusion clouded her face.
"Yes. My husband." Regina tired to keep the annoyance out of her voice while responding. The nurse stared at her with bewildered eyes. Cold fear began spreading through her body. Did something happen to David while she was unconscious?
"I'm sorry Mayor Mills who is your husband? We don't have any records of an emergency contact." The nurse shifted uncomfortably near the hospital door, glancing behind her several times in an attempt to find the charge nurse.
"Listen, I am trying to remain calm and polite, but my patience is wearing thin. My husband is David Nolan. I need to see him now." Regina spoke with more authority than previously.
The nurse merely nodded before exiting the room. Regina relaxed back into the bed now convinced the nurse would get her husband. She shifted into the bed attempting to find a comfortable spot, but was unable. She continued to move around until a throat was cleared from the doorway. She looked up, instantly relaxing when she saw her husband leaning against the doorframe. He wore his sheriff outfit. The badge glistened under the artificial lights.
" Madam Mayor." He said formally. "I heard to you were looking for me."
Confusion riddled Regina, "David quit messing around."
He smiled a tight lipped smile, one that did not fully reach his eyes. He approached her bed, stopping at the foot of the bed. He reached into his pocket and withdrew a small spiral notebook and pen.
"Regina. Is it okay if I call you Regina?" He looked up from the notebook waiting for a response. She nodded with confusion in her eyes.
"Good. Regina, I was told by the nurse that you..." he paused for a moment. Unsure how to proceed. " You are under the assumption that we are married. You are a very nice woman Regina, I can assure you if we were married I would know."
Confusion shot throughout Regina. Shock laid over her. What was David saying? Was this some kind of sick joke? A pit deep in Regina's stomach churred as bile threatened the back of her throat. Tears welled in her eyes, flowing down her cheeks. She used her her hand to quickly wipe the tears from her eyes and check. Looking up into the sympathetic eyes of the sheriff, she leaned forward in the bed.
"David this is not funny." She rasped, suddenly losing her voice.
"I understand how this can be very confusing Madam Mayor. I wish I had some answers for you. Maybe discussing what happened will help. What is the last thing you remember?" He asked professionally.
"We were went to Granny's before your shift." She said. David merely jotted down some notes in his book while staring at her.
"I began to feel odd and pasted out. You tell me what happened next. You were there."
David smiles sadly at her.
"Regina." He said softly, "I've been at the station all day, my deputy called out. I wasn't in the dinner with you."
Gentle sobs left Reginas mouth, and she cried into her hands. She did not understand what was happening. David was denying being married to her and she was in a hospital bed facing her husband who did not seem to remember their life together. David walked around the foot of the bed and gently placed his hand on her shoulder. She leaned into his touch seeking comfort and familiarity.
"I'm not trying to upset you." He said, "This seems to be a really trying time. I'm going to speak to Doctor Whale and we can pick this up later." David removed his hand and exited through the doorway leaving a sobbing Regina an empty room.