N: Ok, so I decided to continue this as you can see. I hope more people will get interested as the story progresses. Anyway, I am still looking for a beta reader on this if you're interested; all the mistakes are mine for now, lol. Enjoy the first chapter!
Muffled sounds
With increasing frequency she emerged from the blessed oblivion into a glaring awareness that was accompanied by pain, so intense she couldn't localize it. It was simply everywhere. A few minutes – or hours – later, she sank back into unconsciousness; and then, back to the surface of reality again.
Once when she was half aware she was still alive, she over-heard a whispered conversation that made absolutely no sense in her foggy mind.
"…very lucky…sure…burns, but they're superficial."
"How long…to respond?"
"No danger…infection."
"What about…baby?"
"Baby…you're wife wasn't pregnant…"
The words were strange and meaningless. She kept hearing them until the blissful forgetfulness took over.
***lucky 13***
"Mrs. Salvatore, can you hear me?" a soft, girly voice asked.
From reflex, she responded to the voice, by letting out a moan from her sore chest. She tried to say something – anything – but she couldn't.
"She's coming out of it," she heard another voice say. "Notify her husband, he asked to be informed when she wakes up!"
She understood the words the others were muttering, but to her, they made no sense. She tried to move, to find out she just couldn't. It was like she was made of stone. The only thing letting her know she still had a body was the numb pain.
"I know you're experiencing a great deal of discomfort and some pain Mrs. Salvatore. We're doing everything we can to take care of that. You're not able to speak and it will be better if you don't even try, also, most of your body is bandaged, that's why you can't move, but I assure you, nothing's permanent. Your family will be here shortly."
All she wanted to do was take a deep breath, but she couldn't, because there was a machine doing the breathing for her. She tried opening her eyes wide, but that didn't work either. Only one opened slightly, but the images were not clear. All she was able to see was 'white' a lot of it.
Yes, she was in a hospital. That much she figured. But why? She wasn't sure she wanted to know, though.
"Her heart rate's to high," another presence remarked and she wanted to say: 'I can't open my eyes, I can't breathe, I can't talk…can you at least let me panic?' but damn, she couldn't say that…she couldn't say anything.
"She's just scared, uncomfortable and disorientated. She probably has no idea what happened to her and why is she here."
"Oh, poor thing; can you imagine waking up like this…" a woman voice said pitifully.
"She survived a plane crash…" another voice affirmed.
She remembered now; the hotness, the flames and the black smoke. She performed the emergency instruction that she knew by heart from so many flights. She also remembered protecting something…something precious, but what?
"Doctor, she's doing it again, her heartbeat escalated dramatically."
"We should take it down a bit," the man answered.
"Dr. Martin, Mr. Salvatore just arrived," a voice that seemed to come from miles away announced.
"Keep him outside until I stabilise her!"
"Katherine?"
She was suddenly aware of him close to her.
"You're going to be fine…hold on to that, Katherine. You survived and Annabelle survived, you're both going to be just fine."
Even if he was almost bend over her, the florescent light was making it impossible for her to see him clearly with her half opened eye. She clung to every comforting word he was whispering and she actually believed him.
Instinctively, she reached for his hand – or at least tried to. He must've read her mind, because she felt his warm hand on her shoulder a second later.
"She'll fall asleep any minute now Mr. Salvatore, you can go. She'll be well taking care of, I assure you."
"I'm staying."
She closed her eyes, feeling herself drifting off.
'Who is Annabelle?' she wondered.
'Who was this man; and why was anyone calling her Mrs. Salvatore…or Katherine?'
'Did they think she was his wife?
'They were wrong…very wrong…'
***lucky 13***
He was there the next time she woke up.
"Hi," he said softly.
It drove her mad, not being able to see him clearly.
"Can you understand me, Katherine? Do you know where you are?" he asked.
She blinked.
"Good. They say you can't be upset, but I know you…I know you'd want to know what's going on. I'm right…?"
She blinked again.
"Ok, do you remember, I dropped you and Annabelle off at the airport? Do you remember boarding on the plane?"
She wanted to tell him that she had no idea who Annabelle was and he couldn't have dropped her off at the airport, because she wasn't Katherine and she didn't know him, but she blinked, to let him know she remembered boarding on the plane.
"Only fourteen of you survived."
She didn't gather she was crying until she felt his fingers brush off a few tears.
"Somehow… thank God… you and Annabelle survived a real catastrophe. You managed to get Anna and yourself out before the flames took over the entire plane. Do you remember that?"
She didn't blink.
"Well, it doesn't matter. The doctors told me it might take some time before all the memories come back to you. No internal damaged was done, the bandages are covering your external burns. Annabelle has just a few broken bones," he said giving her a penetrating stare. "You protected her with your body."
He told her more about the investigation to determinate the cause of the accident. She didn't remember the details, just vaguely boarding the plane, the little girl struggling with the seatbelt and after that it was all blurry.
"I know you're concerned about your face," he said, she blinked.
"I won't sugar-coat it Katherine, I know you wouldn't want me to," she blinked again. "You're face contains serious damage. Your nose was broken, so was one of your cheekbones, the other one was pulverized. That's why the bandage around your eye, there's nothing to support it."
She wanted to scream and as always, he understood her silent cry. "Don't worry, your eye's still intact and the surgeon is positive he can fix everything. You'll have dental implants too and your hair will grow back."
She was teeth less and bold…my God, she must look like a real life monster under those white bandages.
"I brought him pictures of you, lots of them, from every angle. The doctor said, not only he can reconstruct your face exactly the way it was, but you'll actually look ten years younger. You like that, right?"
She didn't blink, because everything he said after she realized she had no cheek, no teeth and no hair was beyond her comprehension. She was a monster… panic washed over her again.
"Katherine, I didn't tell you all these to scare you or stress you out. I just want you to know what's ahead of you and be prepared. It won't be easy…it will actually be hell, but the whole family's behind you. I promise you, I will put you back…I owe you for saving Anna's life."
She wanted to shake her hand, to yell and cry, but she just couldn't move. Anger and frustration took over her mind and body until the nurse came in and gave her that sweet, sweet 'thing' she knew will make her pain go away and the blissful oblivion take over.
***lucky 13***
"Katherine?"
The room was semi-dark when she opened her eye, and she didn't see anyone inside. She closed her eye back, trying to find that sleep again, but the voice spoke again, this time closer to her ear.
"Katherine?"
She felt chills going down her spine.
"Can you hear me?" the voice asked. She still couldn't see the person. He was standing out of her vision. "You can hear me, I know you can. Listen…and listen carefully! I don't really care if you die at this point, but don't even think about making last minute confessions…do you hear me, Katherine?" she tried to move again, that voice was freaking her out, but the result was the same as before. Her body still felt like made of wet sand.
"We're still together on this. Damon Salvatore will still die. He will never live to take office. This plane crash can actually work in our favour if you play it carefully. Don't pretend you can't hear me, Katherine! You and I are a team, remember that!"
She closed her eye, to make the voice go away. For some reason it was scaring her…badly. When she opened it again, she could feel the presence was gone. She rotated her eye as far as she could and there was no sign that anyone had been there. Maybe it was all just a bad dream.
N: There you go the second – actually the first – chapter already. The thing is, since this story's going to follow an actual novel, the chapters are easy(er) to write so the updates will be quiet frequent…as long as you keep reviewing to motivate me. Thank you!