I nod and bite my lip waiting for him to invite me along, but he doesn’t.
It seemed a little odd that he wouldn’t invite me. I mean wouldn’t it have made sense to invite me along since Maggie was going to be there?
Shrugging it off, I sigh and then lay back down beside Jayce.
Silence surrounds us for a few moments before he grunts and sits up on the edge of the bed before then standing up to his feet.
Looking down on me he smiles. “I’ll call you later, okay?”
I nod and a second later he leaves me behind in my room feeling slightly confused.
Rubbing my face I huff out a breath of air before rolling out of bed.
Stripping my clothes along the way I head into my bathroom before turning on the water for the shower.
I check the temperature until it’s just right before climbing into the shower.
As I allow the steam and hot water to sooth my body I’m assaulted by images of Cole, and memories of him just standing from afar watching me.
I had never had those kinds of memories before.
These were something that I had never even thought twice about, until now.
The way his eyes were watching me was nothing like the way he had looked at me. There was an anger held in them.
But it wasn’t an anger that seemed to be directed towards me.
With my eyes closed tightly I reach out my hand as if I could touch Cole. I wanted to feel his skin against mine.
Instead of reaching Cole his form only seems to travel farther away from me.
All of the sudden his image flashes right before me, but it was no longer the Cole that I had known and loved.
No, this was worse.
The form in front of me was decaying. It had graying skin and bugs crawling in and out of holes throughout his body.
It still held Cole’s features but his eyes were nothing but dark pits of nothingness.
A scream falls from my lips just as my feet slip out from under me.
I grab for the shower curtain to stop my fall but it pulls free.
My body slams hard down onto the hard tiles that made up the shower floor.
Flashes of light splinter through my vision as my head hits the tile last with a solid thud.
It should have been enough to knock me out but it only causes my world to spin.
It only takes a brief moment before the door to my bathroom swings open and someone rushes over to grab my face into their hands.
“You’re going to be alright, Eve.” A familiar voice whispers.
Looking up into his face I smile as a fog begins to swirl into my mind.
Panic soon takes the smile from my face as I try to hold on. “Please, don’t let me go.”
“I’m not going to let you go.” He replies.
“Never let me go again, Cole. Don’t leave me.” I plead uselessly as I’m taken against my will into the darkness of my mind.
A machine beeps out with a steady beat as I slowly come to.
The world around me was still shrouded in darkness since I couldn’t open my eyes but I could hear everything and everyone moving around me.
I could feel the warm hand holding tightly to mine.
“How did this happen?” Matt whispers hoarsely. “She’s been getting better.”
He sounded as if he had been crying.
“I don’t know, I thought she was getting better too.” Eric replies.
“She didn’t try to kill herself, guys.” Liam argues with them as the hand tightens around mine. “She’s still seeing my brother. She’s been seeing him while she’s awake.”
“How do you know that?” Eric questions him.
“I know because before she passed out she called me Cole. She begged for him not to leave her.” Liam answers as his voice cracks with emotion.
“Did she get a kind of faraway look in her eyes?” Eric asks.
Liam must answer him wordlessly because Eric continues speaking. “She had that look when she nearly fell down the stairs at home when Jayce picked her up for the dance.”
“She almost fell?” Liam questions.
“Yeah, I caught her before she could.” Jayce chimes in.
“What do we do?” Matt asks quietly.
“We find out what she’s been hiding from us.” Eric replies. “She’s got to tell us everything before something worse happens. Next time it could be when she’s on the back of Jayce’s bike or while she’s driving.”
“I won’t be driving my bike anymore with her like this.” Jayce grunts. “I won’t risk it.”
“And I’ll stay away. I don’t think me being around is helping anything. I look too much like my brother.” Liam adds softly.
He sounded heartbroken.
In that moment I realized how much pain he had been hiding.
He was on the same dark path that Cole had taken.
My hand tightens around his. “Stay with me, Cole. Stay with me.” I whisper.
My words were not my own, I was still caught in a world where I was holding onto Cole with every ounce of strength I had left.
Warm breath fans over my cheek as he leans in closer. “I have to leave, Evie. I have to go so that you can move on without me.”
A moment passes before his hand slips from mine and his presence leaves the room as the door shuts with a soft click.
I was frozen in place as my heart fell apart.
There wasn’t a single thing that I could get my body to do. I couldn’t cry out, I couldn’t open my eyes, nothing.
I was stuck in place while the person who held the key to my heart walked away.
He was truly gone. Cole had left me.
Liam had left me.
Chapter 16
Dear Diary,
I’m going crazy. That has to be it. I can’t still be seeing you when you’re not actually here. Could there be another reason why you’re still haunting me…
My eyes flutter as I struggle to open them.
“There you are.” Jayce whispers as his face comes into view.
His hand strokes my cheek as he smiles down at me. “How are you feeling?”
My head hurt, plain and simple.
“I feel like I’ve gotten run over by a train.” I answer softly. Even the sound of my own voice made the pounding in my head hurt worse.
“Well, you did take a pretty nasty fall.” Jayce sighs softly.
Glancing around the room I notice the absence of Matt and Eric.
“Where are Matt and Eric?” I ask as I turn my attention back to Jayce.
“They just left for a minute. Matt went to get some food for us and Eric is right outside talking to his boss.” Jayce answers easily.
“How long have we been here?” I inquire next.
“We’ve been here two days.” He replies.
“Two days?” I whisper in disbelief.
He nods. “We were really getting worried about you.”
“Where’s Liam?” I ask suddenly.
Jayce gives me a weird look for a moment before he answers my question. “He was never here, Eve. I called him to tell him what had happened but he was never here.”
It was a lie.
I knew that Liam had been here.
But instead of fighting him on it like I should have I nod my head and then turn my attention to the door as Eric walks in.
He pauses in place before rushing to my side. “I’m so glad to see you awake. You have no idea how badly you scared us.”
“I’m sorry, papa bear.” I apologize as I take his hand in mine.
“You don’t have to be sorry, Princess, but you’re going to have to come clean about what’s been happening to you. We need to know what’s causing these blackouts.” Eric replies gently.
I nod in agreement.
I knew well enough that this was becoming a problem.
Like they had discussed before, it could be deadly if it happened while driving or on the bike with Jayce.
Cole haunted my mem
ories but I didn’t want to be the one haunting theirs.
I didn’t want to die.
And if I had anything to do with it I wouldn’t leave my family until I was old and wrinkled after living a full life.
Grabbing his phone from his pocket he punches a few buttons before handing the phone over to Jayce. “Can you call Matt for me and tell him that she’s awake while I talk with Eve alone for a few minutes?”
Jayce nods as he takes the phone.
After hitting a button he places the phone to his ear while walking out of the room, shutting the door behind him.
As soon as the door clicks shut Eric turns his attention towards me. “Tell me what happened in the shower, Eve.”
I nod and then sigh softly. “Everything was fine one second and the next I saw Cole in front of me. I reached out as if I could touch him but…” I trail off as I take a deep breath.
“But…” Eric presses.
“But when he got closer he was dead and decaying. I screamed and the next thing I knew I was falling. I tried to grab the shower curtain but it didn’t work.” I reply quietly.
He nods for a moment. “What happened the night of the dance on the stairs?”
“That was different. I still saw Cole but it wasn’t anything like what happened in the shower. I just saw him standing in Jayce’s place. It was like being pulled back in time.” I explain.
“Have you had any other episodes like that?” Eric questions next.
“I always think about him, Dad. He haunts my every moment but lately it has gotten worse. I haven’t had any other spells like the shower and dance though. I can usually control my thoughts and memories.” I answer.
“It seems like the nightmares have been replaced by a different sort of PTSD.” Eric sighs roughly.
“Do you think it’s because of Liam?” I whisper.
“Princess, I honestly don’t know. It might be.” He replies gently while squeezing my hand softly.
“Was he here earlier?” I ask.
Eric nods his head. “He was here but he left. You talked to him as if he was Cole. It killed him to leave you but we all thought it would be for the best.”
I nod my head and close my eyes as I tilt my face towards the ceiling.
After a few moments I turn my attention back to Eric. “What do you think? Am I making the right decision by leaving Liam behind and moving on with Jayce or should I focus on what I had with Liam. Maybe these memories of Cole have something to do with him, but maybe it isn’t in a bad way.”
“Do you want my honest, unfiltered, opinion?” Eric asks.
I nod. “I want to know exactly what you’re thinking.”
He nods once as he scrubs one hand over his mouth. “I think you should move on. For one, I do believe being around Liam is fueling these memories. Second, I think getting away from anything that reminds you of Cole is for the best.”
Eric sighs and stands to his feet before pacing back and forth next to the bed. “I want you to follow what your heart is telling you, Eve. That’s honestly the only way to figure this out.”
“Who is your heart leading you towards?” He then questions as he pauses his pacing.
Bowing my head I think about it.
I honestly couldn’t tell which way my heart was pulling me.
Glancing back up at Eric I shake my head. “I don’t know.”
“The only way to figure it out is to take this day by day. We’re going to have to keep a closer eye on you so what happened in the shower and on the stairs doesn’t end up getting you hurt any worse than this.” Eric replies.
I nod in agreement. “Someone’s going to have to watch me twenty-four seven.”
“We’ll figure something out, Princess.” He reassures.
Before we get another word out Matt bursts through the door and then over to my bedside before grabbing me into an abrupt hug.
“How are you feeling? Is there anything you need?” He fires off as he holds onto me tightly.
“I do need something to take the pain in my head away. I feel like I’ve been hit by a train.” I sigh.
Nodding Matt leans back. “I’ll go find a doctor.”
With that he rushes back out of the room into the hallway.
“He’s going to baby you until you’re completely better. He doesn’t do well when this kind of stuff happens. He’s really not taking it well since it’s you.” Eric laughs lightly.
“I’ll warn you now that he might try to spoon feed you.” He adds.
I snort and roll my eyes in amusement until I see the seriousness in his eyes.
Shaking my head I sigh. “This is going to suck, isn’t it?”
“Yep, but he’ll get over it. For now just let him care for you in any way that he wants.” Eric suggests.
A few seconds later, Matt rushes back in with a doctor and Jayce following close behind.
The doctor goes about checking my vitals and then shines a bright light into my eyes causing me to wince in pain as I groan.
Clicking off his light the doctor nods his head and then turns his attention towards Matt. “I’ll get something to take her pain away and then we will talk about her release.”
With that he promptly leaves the room.
“I can’t wait to get home.” I groan as I place my arm over my eyes for a few moments.
“Princess, we might need you to stay here. We don’t exactly have someone who can watch you tomorrow since both Matt and I have to return to work.” Eric replies gently.
“I could watch her for you.” Jayce chimes in.
Eric shakes his head. “I don’t exactly feel comfortable leaving you two alone.”
“I could have Ben come over to help me take care of her, if that makes it any better.” Jayce tries to reason.
I was thankful that he was trying to help me get home.
Right now I wanted to be in my own bed relaxing instead of being stuck in this uncomfortable hospital bed with all of the beeping noises slicing into my skull.
“If you could get Maggie to help then I’ll let Eve come home.” Eric states.
Jayce nods. “Done, I can have her come over.”
“Alright, then it’s settled. We’ll try to get you out of here today. I know you’ll be more comfortable at home anyway.” Matt chimes in this time.
As the doctor returns everyone stays silent as he gives me a shot for the pain.
And when the doctor leaves Matt and Eric go with him.
Jayce takes my hand in his as he sits down in a chair next to me. “I’m glad you’re going to be alright.”
I nod and he continues on with a rough sigh. “I shouldn’t have left you. I feel like this could have been avoided if I would have just stayed.”
“None of this was your fault. It could have happened at any time.” I reassure him.
“But you can’t deny that this keeps happening when I’m around.” Jayce argues.
“You weren’t around this time.” I argue lightly.
He nods. “I wasn’t and look how badly you got hurt.”
“Then you’re going to need to be around me more. You can keep me out of trouble.” I reply with a grin.
Jayce grins. “I can do that.”
Chapter 17
Dear Diary,
I want just one day, just one day without your face flashing into my memory. Is that so much to ask for…?
After a waiting game I was finally released from the hospital. The doctors had wanted to keep me for one more night but I was more than ready to go.
It took a lot of testing and talking on my part but they had finally given in.
Now, we were home and between Jayce and Eric I hadn’t walked a single step since I had left the hospital.
I wasn’t exactly fighting it but it was a little bit overbearing.
“You can put me down, Jayce. I can walk on my own.” I try as Jayce begins walking me upstairs towards my room.
“I’m not putting you down here.” He states in a stern tone
.
I sigh and give up.
He was going to do whatever he wanted and I was just going to have to suck it up and go along with the pampering that he wanted to do.
In my room he places me down on my bed.
Instantly I sit up and go to climb off of the bed but he gives me a stern look as he steps in front of me so I couldn’t stand to my feet.
“You’re not going anywhere, Eve.” He grunts.
I shake my head and laugh as I point towards the bathroom. “Well, I have to use the bathroom and if you’re ready to see that then by all means…”
As he gives me a smirk I shut my mouth realizing that I shouldn’t have given him an in.
“You know what I can do this on my own, just stay out here.” I state instead as I push him to the side before standing up on my feet.
Thankfully he stays put while I make my way into the bathroom.
Shutting the door I lock it before moving over to the mirror.
All I had really wanted was a moment alone.
Staring at myself I gently touch the lower part of my jaw. It was covered in a purplish-blue bruise on the right side.
When I close my eyes Cole flashes his way into my mind yet again.
This time instead of blanking out I burst into a fit of silent sobs.
God, I still missed him.
I was beginning to believe that I was never going to be able to let him go. Then again maybe that was the whole problem.
Maybe I didn’t need to let him go.
Holding on might have been the better route, holding on and then moving past it.
So far trying to forget Cole had only made things worse.
“Are you alright, Eve?” Jayce calls out as he knocks on the door.
Wiping my eyes quickly I breath in deeply before answering him. “I’m fine, Jayce, I’ll be out in a second.”
Unfortunately he doesn’t accept my answer because it only takes a moment before the door swings open.
“Why are you crying?” He questions while grabbing me into his arms.
Instead of answering him I motion towards the door. “How did you get through the door, I locked it?”
When Tomorrow Never Comes Page 11
