Her father still seated froze and his hands stopped mid-slice, as he looked up slowly.
The moment was heavy. It was as if they'd all silently agreed not to bring this up so suddenly and yet, here it was again, uninvited and unavoidable.
He didn't say anything. He didn't stop it either. This time he just couldn't.
Venelope turned to Jay with a small, knowing smile.
"Someone's coming to see you," she said casually. "Your dad and I are stepping outside for a bit."
Saying this she stood up and motioned her father to come follow him out as well. Reluctant to leave he just left the fruit platter on the table and started to follow her silently. Venelope walked to the door, and opened it to go out, but as she opened it there was young man, standing outside the room.
In one hand, he held a fruit basket. In the other, his hand was raised mid-air about to knock.
The moment their eyes met, he froze.
It was as if someone had pulled back the curtain on him exposed him before he was ready. He hadn't even knocked yet. But there he was, caught off-guard.
Venelope's smile widened, amused. "Wow," she teased, "right on time." He looked at her with anger, as if saying, "Shut up please! Don't embarrass me more! You brat!"
Venelope chuckled and gave a mischievous wink and then, without another word, she turned and gestured subtly to Jay's father behind her.
"Uncle…," she signaled. "Let's give them a moment, shall we...."
Her father made a pout and then both of them stepped out, leaving the door ajar and the tension thick behind them.
The young man lingered awkwardly for a second before stepping into the ward, he was rubbing the back of his head. He didn't say anything and then just walked over silently as if scared to wake someone up and slowly sat on the chair beside the table, placing the fruit basket down.
Jay was looking at him up and down… his meticulous and careful behavior and his awkward movements.
Then he sat down on the stool near the bed and clasped his hands together.
He began nervously fiddling with his thumbs, picking at the edge of his fingernails, trying to scrape at the skin between them. It was the kind of restless, unconscious gesture that screamed anxiety.
Jay sat quietly, watching him.
After a moment, she spoke her voice soft but edged with amusement.
"Careful not to peel your skin off."
Startled, he jerked his hands back, quickly brushing them off as if caught red-handed.
"Oh uh, sorry. I didn't realize I was doing that," he said with an awkward chuckle. "I won't, I swear. It's just… a habit, I guess."
"You don't have to swear for this…" jay said
He looked genuinely rattled. But he tried to smile while looking down.
They both sat in silence for a bit, the air heavy with things neither knew how to say and what to say.
He had forgotten everything he had prepared to tell her. He had prepared all night and previously Venelope. But right now nothing came to his head. He wanted to swear but then took a glimpse at jay who was looking at his hands thinking something, he closed his eyes with sheer shyness and then looked down again.
Finally, he broke it, looking up trying to look confident, "So… how are you doing?"
Jay nodded. "I'm fine. Actually… I'm feeling good. Very good"
He rubbed his palms on his knees.
As he did this jay suddenly paused her eyes wide eyed.
Her head tilted slightly, and she sniffed the air. A sudden awareness flickered across her face.
"I know this smell," she whispered. "This perfume…"
Her eyes went wide.
"The dream?" she said under her breath, her voice barely more than a gasp. "It was real. That wasn't a dream."
She looked straight at him.
"It was you… wasn't it?"
He froze. His eyes dropped to the floor, panicked. First he was confused because he didn't know what she was saying and then with the fear of realizing what she was saying.
Jay sat up straighter in bed, her words tumbling out faster now.
"You were the one. You took me to the doctor. That was real. It wasn't just in my head."
She pointed toward him, her tone growing more certain.
"That button! that was yours!"
She shifted to the edge of the bed, leaning in. "It was you. Wasn't it?"
Still, the man sitting across from her yes, he said nothing. He was frozen, trapped in a storm of emotion, his body stiff with confusion and panic.
Jay kept going.
"It wasn't a dream. You brought me here. You held my hand. I remember it. You were there. And the button was yours!" she said while raising her hand and pointing at it with the other hand.
But again, there was silence.
Jay's voice cracked slightly. "I'm asking you something."
She inhaled deeply. "I know this smell. I know this perfume. I know it too well…!!!" she said as if helpless… she wasn't sure if he was that person but the desperation was hitting her hard…
He finally looked up. His eyes shimmered with tears.
He raised his hand slightly, lips parting as if to speak. But the words didn't come.
His face was a battlefield of emotions: confusion, shyness, fear… and guilt.
He tried to speak but nothing came out. He tilted his head, his eyes narrowed as if saying, "cant you understand me without me saying?"
But after an effort his hand fell back to his lap, helpless. He let out a sigh, shaking his head.
"TALK! I said TALK!" Jay cried finally. She got out of the bed and was now grabbing his collar, forcing him to look up at her. He looked up at her. There were tears in her blood shot eyes. He saw those eyes for the first time. First time this close. His mind went blank.
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