Chapter 14: Here With Me
"Kori? Kori?" Raven whispered.
"It's Raven and…Robin." Richard looked down at her with wide, curious eyes.
"I think she'll respond to that." Raven whispered.
"Ro-robin?" Groaning they both saw her eyes flutter open slightly, "Ro-robin…"
Raven smiled, not turning her head away from Kori she hissed, "Say something to her."
Shocked Richard stuttered to get the words out, "I-I'm here, I'm right here."
Kori turned her head towards them. Squeezing her eyes shut tightly she shook her head lightly to rid it of the grogginess. Reaching up with her right hand to pull the tubes away from under her nose she felt a warm hand reach over and wrap around her wrist.
"Don't even think about," Raven smiled, "I'm so glad you awake."
Hearing the door screech open behind them, Raven and Richard turned around to see a nurse coming towards the bed, strolling a metal cart with syringes and gauze resting on it. "If you two don't mind…" she trailed off.
Raven stood up, "oh, okay sure." Looking down at Kori she sighed, "We'll be outside okay?"
Kori nodded, still woozy. As Richard turned to follow Raven out the door he felt a soft hand grab his. Looking at Kori he saw her fighting to keep her eyes open.
"Stay, please stay." She slurred.
"Kori I…" Raven came up behind him.
"I think she wants you to say with her." Raven stated surely.
Richard sighed, "She's probably so drugged up she thinks that I'm Roy."
Kori laced her fingers through his, "Please stay Robin. Please?"
Richard sat down in the chair Raven had just stood from, "okay, I'm not going anywhere." He whispered.
The nurse sighed and smiled, "Alright, you can stay, but I still have a job to do." Pulling a syringe off the cart she turned to Kori.
Feeling the prick of pain she winced. Feeling her body relax she smiled at Richard and let her eyes close.
Richard held Kori's limp hand tightly. He saw her eyes close and her head fall to the side. Using his free hand he brushed an auburn lock of hair to the side out of her face. "I'm here, Star. I'm here." He whispered in her ear, "and I'm not going anyway."
Raven close the door, leaned against it and closed her eyes. Rubbing her temples she sighed, 'I need to talk to her. I need to tell her that I'm sorry. I can't believe that she just woke up and I can't even been in there with her. But Robin, she wanted him there for some reason. I thought she hated him, but maybe…she doesn't. Maybe she even…"
"Raven" opening her eyes she looked up to see Garfield coming towards her. Wrapping his arms around her waist he pulled her close. "You okay?" he asked her concerned.
Resting her head on his shoulder she sighed, "Yeah, I'm alright. I just…I just can't believe that this happened to her. I hope that man rots in that prison for what he did to her." Raven could feel the tears coming to her eyes at the thought of what that man put her best friend through. Fisting a bunch of his shirt in her hands she nestled her head into the crook of his neck. "Why are some people like that, so heart-less, so cruel?"
Pulling Raven back to face him, he wiped the tears from her face with his thumbs. "I don't think anyone really has an answer to that. Unfortunately, there are people in this world who do horrible things." Garfield exhaled heavily and looked at the ground.
As if reading his thoughts she lifted his chin up, "you're not one of those people."
He touched her cheek, "what I did to you-"
"Don't," she said pressing her finger to his lips, "don't do this." Removing her finger she pressed her lips to his, wrapping her arms around his neck.
Victor pulled up to the hospital entrance and parked the car. Walking around to the opposite side he reached into the back and pulled out Roy's metal crutches. Helping Roy out of the car he led him towards the hospital.
"Is she okay? Have you spoken to her?" Roy asked nervously.
"No, not yet. I went to get you. I'm sure you can see her when we get in. And don't worry; I'm sure she's fine."
"I hope so."
Running his fingers through her hair, he sighed. "She'll be fine you know." The nurse replied changing the bandages on her shoulder. "She'll need a lot of rest and a while to heal but she will be fine, Mr. Grayson."
"You know who I am?"
The nurse smiled, "everybody knows who you are."
Richard smiled and looked down at Kori again. Hearing the nurse's retreating footsteps as she walked down the hall, he caressed Kori's cheek. Jerking his hand away from her face he groaned. "I can't do this. Kori, I love you more than anyone and anything thing in this world, but if being with Roy, makes you happy, then…" he couldn't finish the sentence.
Then what? He couldn't just let her go. "No, I love you too much to let you go."
Feeling a hand on his back he whipped around to face the stranger, "How are you doing?"
"Fine Raven, just fine." He sighed.
Pulling up a chair next to Richard she sat down. Looking over at his hand laced in hers she smiled. "Why do I think you're a liar?"
Richard only sighed.
"You're still in love with her aren't you." Raven replied, more as a statement than a question.
"I've always loved her. I always will."
"Then how could you just leave her like that? Do you know how many nights I would hear her cry? Locked up in her room, just crying, how could you do that to her?"
"I-I couldn't risk her getting hurt. I knew that if everyone knew that I broke my ties with the Titans, then they wouldn't hurt her, or any of you. I wasn't going to risk you all getting hurt just for my happiness."
Raven sighed, "I…just wish you would have said good-bye, at least to her." Looking down at Kori she continued, "She loved you so much. When she lost her baby, your baby, it was awful. She was so upset, she wanted that baby, she wanted a part of you to remember, and she lost it because she was raped. Finally, she found Roy, Speedy, I don't remember how they met, but she still was never happy, not really. But she moved on."
Richard sighed and squeezed Kori's hand tighter. "I know and it's what I deserve. I'm so confused; I only know two things for sure. That I love her and I want her to be happy."
"What I don't understand is that even after the Titans broke up, you still never tried to find her. Why not?"
"I tried to find her, I did, but then I thought she'd just be better without me. She could move on, and have a good life, a great one. But I've thought about her everyday of my life."
"And that's supposed to make up for it?"
"No, of course not. I can't believe that this happened to her. I left to try and protect her, instead she just got hurt."
Placing her hand on top of Richard's she inhaled deeply, "This happening to Kori wasn't your fault. And if you hadn't been there this time, who knows what would have happened to her. You've always been her hero."
Richard sighed and released Kori limp hand, resting it gently on the bed, "not anymore. How could I be? After all that I've put her though?"
Raven stood up, "c'mon let's leave her alone to rest."
"Roy," Raven said surprised. She had forgotten Victor had gone out to get him. "She's sleeping right now; a nurse came in and put her under. The doctor came in and examined her. He said she'll be fine, she just need lots of rest. She has a few bruises and the gunshot wound in her shoulder is still healing so she'll be sour for a few weeks, but thank God she'll be okay."
"Can I see her?" he asked anxiously.
"Yes, of course," Raven answered, moving away from the door to allow Roy to enter.
Putting his crutches against the wall he sat down in one of the chairs closest to her bed. Taking her hand, Roy rubbed it gently. Playing with a strand of her hair he felt her stir.
"Robin," she breathed, "Robin,"
Roy felt her hand move, as if searching. He knew she was feeling for another hand to hold hers, but not just anyone's hand…
Richards.
His eyes narrowed and he grabbed her hand, holding it tightly. Her eyes never opened, so she didn't know whose hand had grabbed hers, holding it was all the strength she had she exhaled deeply and her body stilled.
Roy looked down at her face; she was content, relaxed, he could see it even thought she slept.
She was happy. And he knew it was Richard that made her that way.
'I'm not going to let that happen. I'm not going to let him have her.'
Opening her eyes, she squinted at the bright florescent lights above her. Where was she? How long had she been here? She couldn't remember.
Then as if in a flash, she remembered that horrible night. She could feel the tears coming to her eyes. That man that evil, evil man. What happened to him?
And she remembered Robin. He saved her, like he always did. She smiled, 'Robin.' She felt her stomach knot up at the sound of his name and the feelings she had whenever she thought of him.
She was confused…to say the least. She tried to move her hand to wipe the tears from her eyes and gasped at the pain. The fire shooting from her left shoulder to her finger tips.
She moaned in pain. Closing her eyes she used her right hand to reach up to her shoulder. She felt the gauze wrapped tightly around it. What happened? She didn't remember anything happening to her shoulder. All she really remembered was his voice, that deep, frightening voice that haunted her all the time in her dreams.
"Oh, Miss Anders you're awake. That's wonderful. I'll go get the doctor and tell him." Seeing her fingering her wounded shoulder the nurse walked towards her and removed her arm, placing it on the bed next to her. "No, don't touch that, you're shoulder is still sore."
"What happened to it? What does it hurt so much?" Kori asked groggily.
"You were shot, Miss Anders, in the shoulder. You'll be alright, don't worry. You just need time to rest. I explained it all to Mr. Grayson, don't worry."
Kori blinked, "what?"
"Mr. Richard Grayson, he was in here most of the time. He was very concerned for you. Holding you're hand." The nurse turned around and smiled.
"Oh, and Miss Anders I don't mean to pry, but, in your sleep you were whispering a name. May I ask who Robin is? Mr. Grayson seemed to know. Is it a nickname for him?"
"Excuse me?"
"Who is Robin? You we're whispering his name in your sleep."
Kori's heart raced. She remembered dreaming about him.
Him holding her, kissing her.
What was going on with her? She never felt so…she didn't even know what she felt.
Her life was going fine. Okay, maybe she wasn't completely happy, but she hadn't been for years. She was fine, though. She was going to marry Roy, have someone concrete in her life, who she knew wouldn't leave her, or break her heart. Someone you don't love can't break your heart.
She loved Roy though…didn't she? Her eyes widened in shock and realization. She didn't know, she didn't know how she felt about Roy.
Everything was okay, stable in her life. Then he came back into it and it seems like everything just changed, somehow.
She spent so many years missing him, crying for him, wanting to be with him, to see him…
And now that he was here she didn't know what to feel.
Kori didn't know if she felt excitement, anger, or fear.
And the fact of not knowing, terrified her.
To Be Continued…