Sorry about the long wait!
The faint voices were increasingly becoming louder in her ears. Her eyelids struggled to open. Standing by a doorway, across from where she laid, the blurred vision was becoming clearer allowing her to make out three men and one woman standing having a conversation. She wanted to speak and call out to her mother who was getting louder by the minute as she spoke to the tall older man in a white coat, but no sound seemed to be coming out. She recognized the man standing next to her mother to be her father. She tried calling to him but again nothing. Her eyes shifted back and forth frantically as she took in her surroundings. This was not her room from home and these were not her nightly pajamas. Her tearful eyes noted the IV coming out from her arm and as all her senses came back through her body, she could feel the oxygen tubes that were inserted into her nostrils. Something was wrong. What was she doing in a hospital? What had happened? Kristina was becoming more scared by the second. Her tiny body was becoming more and more anxious causing her monitors to start beeping like crazy. All four bodies standing turned at once and seen Kristina with her eyes wide open with fear.
"Kristina!" Alexis shouted as she ran along the side of the bed, using one hand to grab onto Kristina's hand as her other brushed back on her daughter's hair as a way of trying to calm her. "Kristina, baby, you're awake. Are you okay? Are you hurting?" Her words seemed rushed and came out shaky as she was overcome with emotions from seeing her daughter finally wake up.
Kristina opened her mouth so she could ask her mother what happened but trying to push out the words made her throat ache.
"Its' okay baby, don't try to speak right now." Alexis turned her head briefly to address Sonny who was standing right next to her. "Sonny, please get Kristina some water. It's okay if she has some water, right Doctor?" She then asked the man who was currently going over all the reports coming from Kristina's monitors to which he nodded his approval. "It's going to be okay, sweetheart. Just move your head and tell me if you are in any pain, okay?"
Kristina started with her toes and when she was sure there was no pain, she assessed the next part up on her body. Ankles, legs, knees, thighs, all seemed to be pain free. After clearing her hips, she finally located the source of her discomfort. A slight and subtle ache knotted at her stomach. Kristina's hands quickly moved over the tender area.
"She needs something more for the pain Doc." For the first time, Kristina looked to her left and noticed a man standing there. He cuffed his hands over hers as they laid upon her stomach. "You're going to be okay, love. God you had us scared."
Kristina took a second to look deep into the young man's eyes, searching for anything that would tell her who he was. She knew nothing of this man who clearly believed that he knew her. She turned her head slightly, thinking that maybe at a different angle it would come to her. Her mind was blank, she did not know this man.
"Kristina?" Ethan called her name, puzzled at her empty eyes.
Suddenly Kristina saw herself, unsure where, but she was kneeling down. She was crying, but she wasn't sure why. She struggled as she fought to remember, but wasn't sure if she was seeing a memory or a dream. Then her hands pulled fearfully out from under Ethan's hands when a loud popping sound blast through her head.
The machines were going berserk and Kristina tried to pull herself closer over to her mother and away from Ethan. She wasn't sure why, but this strange man claiming to know her had her extremely frightened.
Ethan took a step back when he realized her fear was a result of him. "Krissy?"
Alexis held her hand up across to Ethan as if she was telling him to keep a distance while she questioned the current situation. "Sweetheart, it's okay, it's Ethan."
Kristina looked up at her mother with the same fear still pouring out from her.
Confused by her reaction to Ethan, Alexis asked her daughter. "Kristina, you know who this is, don't you?"
Not letting go of her mother's hands, Kristina slowly moved her head back to face Ethan. She did not know this man and though she wasn't sure why, she feared him. She shook her head and let out a raspy "No."
"Love, what do you mean? It's me." Ethan regained his step closer to her which only resulted in her shifting uncomfortably once again as she gripped tightly onto her mother.
"Sweetheart, just give me a second, okay? I'll be right back." Alexis let go of Kristin's hands, but Kristina was reluctant on releasing her grip. "Just for a minute, honey. I'm going to see Ethan out, but I'll be right back."
"Alexis, I'm not going anywhere." Ethan tried to stay calm but was stern.
"Ethan, please, let's just go and talk in the hall real quick. You don't want Kristina getting any more upset, do you?"
"But…"
"Ethan, please?"
Ethan wanted to plead his case, but knew that Alexis was right. Kristina should not be getting upset right now.
Kristina watched as the click of Alexis's shoes led her out of the hospital room. The man her mother called Ethan followed slowly behind her as he held onto the front of his own stomach as if he was cradling some sort of pain himself.
"Alexis, I don't care what you have to say, I am not leaving her."
"Ethan, I know you want to be here with Kristina, but for whatever reason she doesn't remember you right now, and quite frankly you're scaring her."
"She just woke up, she's going to remember me. She just needs a minute, I'm sure."
"And I'm sure that's all it is, Ethan, but come on, you seen her in there with you. Why don't you let the doctors examine her and maybe give her a little time to process what happened to her and then you can come back. I'm sure after that she'll be begging to see you."
"I know, you're right. It's just that she was in that coma for three weeks. I need her."
"Ethan, why don't you go get some coffee and make a few phone calls for me. Call her sisters and anyone else you think would want to know and then when you come back I'm sure everything will be fine."
Ethan turned to look in at Kristina through the window. She was watching them. Her recovery was the most important thing. "Fine, I'll make the calls. But then I'm coming right back."
"Thank you." Alexis finished just as sonny was arriving back with a pitcher full of ice water.
"Hey, where's Ethan going?" He asked.
"It was the strangest thing, Sonny. But let's talk about it with Kristina. She's got a lot of questions in there."
They both walked back into Kristina's room and began to tell her everything.
Ethan did just as Alexis had asked. He called Sam and Molly as well as Luke and Johnny. He had looked at his watch several times by the time he got his coffee. It had been a full thirty minutes since he left Kristina's room. Surely that would be enough time. He had to get back to her.
He reached her room the same time as Sam did. "Ethan, thanks for calling. How's she doing?"
"Actually I don't know any more than when I called you. You're mom is in there with her right now. Come on, I'll go in with you."
Sam walked in and Ethan followed. "Krissy!" Sam smiled and practically ran to her.
"Sam!" She gently wrapped her arms around her sister giving her a full view of Ethan. Her eyes went directly to her mother.
"Ethan." Alexis stopped him from coming any further by stepping in front of him and putting her hand on his chest. "I still don't think this is the best time for you to be here."
"What are you talking about? She knows who I am now, right?" He looked past Alexis to Kristina. "Kristina you remember me now, don't you?"
Kristina had been told everything from her mom and dad. About Ethan being her boyfriend and getting shot a few weeks ago by his ex girlfriend. But honestly, she couldn't remember any of it. She remembered everything about her life and everyone in it. Everyone but Ethan.
"I don't understand what's going on." Sam turned to look at her mother. "Kristina doesn't remember Ethan?"
"Of course he does…" Ethan moved toward Kristina.
"Stop!" Kristina called out.
"Ethan, can you come back out to the hall with me?" Alex asked.
"No, Alexis. I am not going out to the hall. What the hell is going on here? Kristina, it's me, your boyfriend. I love you and you love me."
Kristina shifted her eyes between all of her family before finally landing them on Ethan. "I'm… I'm really sorry… but I don't remember anything about us."
"Come on, love. We have so much history together, as friends… best friends and then finally…" He reached for her hand and she jerked it away.
The fear had returned to her eyes. "Please leave." She whispered.
"Krissy, don't." He begged as tears began to form on the inner ledge of his eyes.
"I want you to leave, please." Kristina asked, trying her best to remain calm.
"You don't mean that. Kristina, I love you. You don't mean that. Please."
Sonny, feeling his daughter's distress began to gently pull back on Ethan's shirt. "Come on, son. She doesn't need this right now."
"No, Sonny!" Ethan yelled. "Why doesn't she remember me? She remembers all of you, but not me? How does that happen?"
Alexis walked up beside Ethan. "Ethan, the doctors think it's probably just temporary. She almost lost her life and right now her brain has decided that the best way for her to deal with that trauma is to block it all out and apparently the people that were involved in that trauma."
Ethan swallowed hard. "I love her, Alexis. Whether she knows it right now or not, she loves me too." He looked back over at Kristina. "Krissy, I love you. Baby, come on, you know that!"
Kristina began to cry. "Please leave now."
Sonny once again began to pull Ethan toward the door. "Let me go, Sonny!" He protested.
Kristina's cries became louder. "Leave!" She shouted.
Ethan finally stopped fighting against Sonny's pull. Whatever Kristina had felt for Ethan in the past and whether it would come back later or not, it was not here now. He didn't want to cause Kristina any pain. "Fine, I'll leave." He began to walk backwards out of the room.
"Ethan!" Sam called. "I… I'll call you later." Though Sam could see how upset Kristina was with Ethan in the room, she knew that it would be killing him not knowing how she was doing. She would call him later and give him any updates.
Ethan nodded and reluctantly turned out of Kristina's room.
Johnny walked into the Floating Rib not knowing what he was walking into. Just a text from his friend telling him to meet him up there. The place was pretty much empty except for a few locals and Ethan sitting up at the bar.
He took the seat next to him and signaled for Coleman to bring him a beer. "What's up, pal? I expected you to be at Kristina's bedside until they released her to go home."
Ethan threw back a shot. "I wish I could be."
"What does that mean?"
Ethan sighed heavily. "Well it means that Kristina does not want me there."
"Okay, I think I'm missing something here. Kristina doesn't want you there?"
"That's right. Apparently I have caused her so much pain that her mind has told her that I am not worth remembering."
"Are you telling me that Kristina has amnesia?"
"No, not exactly. You see, she remembers everyone in her life, everyone but me."
Johnny was having a hard time following. "Ethan, can you please try explaining this a little better for me?"
"Well that's it, really. Kristina woke up and remembered everyone but me. The doctors say it's just her way of dealing with what happened to her."
"So it's only temporary."
Ethan drank some more. "I don't know, Johnny. That's what the doctors are saying, but you should have seen her. When she woke up she looked at me as if I was the one who pulled the trigger. She was so afraid of me. She couldn't even handle me being in the room."
Johnny's heart was feeling heavy for his friend. "Listen, if there's one thing I know for sure in this world, it's that that girl loves you. You just need to give her some time. I know she's going to remember everything very soon. She's been through a lot recently, but she'll get there, bro."
"I hope your right, because I can't live without her."
Four days had gone by without Ethan being able to see Kristina. Sam called Ethan a couple times a day to fill him in on Kristina's progress. If she didn't call, he was blowing up her phone. Unfortunately Kristina still had no memory of him. She was set to be released from the hospital today and Ethan was devastated that she wouldn't be returning to the home they shared together.
He pulled off the road as he approached the lake house. Parking his Jeep several feet off the road so it wouldn't be seen when Alexis's car would come down the drive. He waited until the vehicle safely passed before walking along side the long gravel driveway. Careful not to be seen, he stayed hidden in the trees. Alexis had asked him not to come over just yet, but he needed to see for himself that she was okay.
Alexis, Sam and Molly all quickly got out of the car. Molly ran straight for the door of the house to unlock it, while Alexis opened the back door of the car and helped Kristina out. Just seeing her face brought out a smile on Ethan, something he had been lacking since first being dismissed out of Kristina's hospital room. He watched until all the women had gone in through the door and stayed several minutes longer though he could no longer see them. Every inch of his being was aching to go see her, hold her and kiss her. But she still wanted nothing to do with him, so he would wait. He would wait until the time was right. Just hopefully he wouldn't have to wait too much longer.
Kristina was moving around much better now. Her spirits were lifting up and she was enjoying sharing some laughs with her family. But staying in was starting to drive her crazy. Though most of her wound had healed while she was in the hospital, it was still a bit tender to the tough. Her mother was being overly protective by trying to keep her at the lake house, but this day, Kristina had other plans. She let her mother set up her lunch and line her up with dvd's to play for the day while she took Molly to a play in the city. But as soon as they had cleared the house, Kristina was ready to leave herself. She grabbed her car keys from the desk drawer, grabbed her purse and headed out on her way.
She was getting ready to walk into Kelly's when she heard the chuckles coming from behind her. She turned around to see two girls she had gone to high school with and hadn't seen since. "Excuse me? Did you say something?" She asked them.
One of the girls squared her shoulders to Kristina. "We were just discussing how we don't think it's fair that you cheated death as it would have been the perfect karma after what you did to Kiefer."
"You're kidding, right?"
"Do I look like I'm kidding? Kristina, you should've died after all the lies you told about Kiefer. He was a good guy and you just…"
"Hey!" The deep voice came shouting from around the corner. "Why don't you two bitches keep moving? Kelly's doesn't need trash like you hanging out in front, scaring off it's better clientele."
Kristina was surprised to see Ethan coming to her rescue. Her stomach sank for a brief second.
"Whatever!" The girls rolled their eyes and walked off.
"Hey, are you okay?" Ethan asked her, careful not to move in any closer to her. She didn't answer, but she didn't move away from him either. He took this as a good sign.
"Listen, I'm sorry, I'm not following you I promise. I was just coming to get some coffee."
Kristina still had no idea who this guy was, but she had listened to every word that her sister Molly had told her about him. She didn't fear him anymore like she did at first, but if she had loved him so much like everyone was saying, then way did she not feel any of those feelings when she looked at him. "I was just getting some lunch."
He wanted to badly to just run up and wrap his arms around her, but he resisted. She would remember him soon. She had too. "Um, go ahead, go in. I can get my coffee down the street."
She waited a second, studying him. There was one thing she did recognize on him. Pain. He was clearly hurting inside. She broke her gaze and headed to the door to Kelly's, but stopped short and turned back around. "Thanks for stopping those girls. They don't bother me, but it was nice of you to help out."
"I know you don't remember, but it's kind of our thing." He chuckled.
She didn't know why, but she giggled herself. "Well… anyway… thanks." She opened the door.
"Krissy!" He hollered and she looked back. "If you ever need to talk, you know, about anything, I'm here. In fact, I'm waiting."
Kristina didn't think she would ever feel the need to call him, but she smiled back and nodded. The fact was she did feel something for this man, but it was sadness in the fact that she was clearly causing this unknown man so much pain.
She closed her eyes and let the door close behind her before walking straight up to the counter.
"Kristina."
It took her a brief second for her head to recognize the male voice calling her name, but as soon as she did she turned around and grinned ear to ear. "Johnny!"