When her eyes opened, Jay found herself staring at the same familiar environment. The same white lights fixed to the ceiling over her head. There was something strange about it like déjà vu. The same scene where someone was sitting beside her, and the presence felt so eerily familiar, like this exact moment had happened before. The feeling was so vivid it was almost unreal. She could feel her heart pounding with excitement and fear.
Her first instinctive reaction was: Is he here again? Is that him?
But her head was wobbly her memory wasn't sharp, just fragmented impressions of what happened in so called dream was occurring to her in that familiar environment filled with smell of medicines and sanitizers. But as it was occurring to her she was remembering someone holding her hand, someone gently pressing their palm against her palm, comforting her. A warm hand, whose warmth was still lingering and tingling in her hand. She raised her hand to her face and blinked fully awake and then scanned her surroundings.
And there they were Venelope and her father, standing near the bed, both smiling softly at her. They looked relieved, as if they'd just witnessed a miracle.
It wasn't the first time she'd woken up like this. But this time, it felt like the first time all over again. Because previously she would open eyes and then fall asleep again.
Jay's father quickly stepped forward and placed a kiss on her forehead. "Are you feeling alright now, love?"
Venelope came closer on the other side, her voice gentle. "Jay… how are you feeling? Do you need anything?"
But Jay wasn't looking at them. She kept glancing elsewhere as if chasing the tail of a shadow that had just slipped out of the room. Her lips parted as she whispered, "There was someone else here…?"
Venelope and her father exchanged an awkward glance before turning back to her.
"What are you talking about?" Venelope asked, puzzled. "No one else was here."
"Are you sure?" Jay asked, her voice low and wary.
Neither of them responded immediately. Her father just stepped forward again and said, "Sweetheart, do you need anything? You've gotten so thin, so weak these past few days."
Her eyes widened. Days?
"I've been here for days?" she asked, confused.
Her father nodded solemnly. "Yes. You've been in the hospital for a few days now."
"What happened to me?" Jay asked, trying to sit up.
He sighed. "We still don't know for sure. The doctors are running more tests. At first, they suspected appendicitis, but that's been ruled out. They're still trying to understand what's causing your pain."
Jay unconsciously brought a trembling hand to her stomach, checking to see if the pain was still there beneath her skin.
Her father gave a small chuckle. "It's alright, Jay. You don't have to panic. You're safe now."
But then Jay looked around again and asked, "Where is mother?"
Her father's demeanor changed. He fell silent for a moment before replying quietly, "She's at home."
"At home?" Jay's voice cracked. "She didn't even ask how I'm doing?"
"You don't have to worry about her, Jay," he said quickly, brushing the subject aside.
Jay wanted to say more, but the medication still coursing through her veins made it hard to stay alert. Her voice faltered, her thoughts grew hazy as she touch her head.
Venelope gently touched her arm. "Don't stress. It'll be alright."
Just then, a nurse entered. "No more disturbing the patient, please," she said firmly, guiding Jay's father out of the room.
Outside in the corridor, a young man approached him.
"How is she?" he asked anxiously.
"She's doing much better," her father replied. "More stable. She's finally resting properly." Sitting down on a nearby bench, his shoulders slumping as he looked at the young man, whose face relaxed with quiet relief and then without saying anything he walked away from the room.
Inside, Venelope cast a meaningful glance toward the window and quickly slipped out of the room herself, following the direction the young man had gone. Her movements were calm but purposeful, as though she already knew who he was. Jay's father was looking after her, pretty suspicious as to where she was going. It was the second time that she was following after him. Last time she went on pretext of going to the bathroom but now she went silently after him.
When she reached him, he turned and looked up at her nervously.
"What happened? How is she?" he asked again.
"She's fine," Venelope replied softly. "But… I need to be honest with you."
A faint smile tugged at his lips, full of both nerves and hope.
"She remember you maybe, she knows there is someone beside us," Venelope continued, "but that's okay. Because I think… she needs to hear from you."
He raised his eyebrows.
"Yes. From you. Not through someone else. She needs to meet the man himself. The one who's so desperate to protect her. The one who's willing to wait."
The young man looked down, lost in thought. Venelope didn't press further. She gave him space.
...…..
Later that same day, evening had settled softly over the hospital room.
Jay sat up in bed, talking quietly with Venelope. Her father was in the corner peeling fruit for her. The atmosphere was light, even playful at times. Jay looked noticeably better, her color had returned, and the heavy weight in her expression had lifted, even if just slightly.
Venelope cracked a joke. Jay smiled, though faintly.
Then, without warning, Venelope asked, "Jay… if someone wanted to meet you someone who really wanted to see you would that be okay?"
Jay turned her head slowly, narrowing her eyes. "What do you mean?"
Venelope smiled carefully, choosing her words. "Just… if someone wanted to talk to you. Not your father. Not me."
Jay's senses sharpened. Something about Venelope's tone lit a warning in her mind. Her father looked up too, and felt an urgency.
Jay didn't answer immediately.
Because deep down, something in her already knew. She'd felt it before. The strange presence. The warm hand. The feeling of not being alone.
Someone had been with her.
Someone she didn't remember…
…yet.
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