Chapter 2: The note he left behind
1010 Words
Warmth.
That was the first thing Tiana felt the next time she came around.
It's not pain. Not the cold stings from the rain.
Not the familiar ache from her father's fists.
Just... Warmth.
It was a foreign feeling that for a minute she panicked.
She forced her eyes to open, blinking against the harsh white light above her.
A soft beep echoed rhythmically beside her. The faint scent of antiseptic filled the air.
A hospital...?
She had never been to one before. Not as a patient, at least. Her father never wasted money on her unless it benefited him.
Hospitals took money from his pockets.
It was too expensive, he would say.
Tiana never complained. She knew what would happen if she did.
She sighed in relief. Her father would never bring her to a hospital even if she was dying. That could only mean she managed to escape.
From him.
From them.
From the pain. From the beating. From the touching. From that room.
She turned her head slowly and winced.
Every muscle in her body hurt. Her head throbbed, and she was confused.
"Hey... easy, " a gentle voice said.
A nurse. Middle-aged. Kind eyes.
She approached and adjusted Tiana's IV line.
Tiana flinched at the touch.
"You are safe now, " the nurse added, offering a small smile Tiana couldn't return.
"You were brought in last night. Car accident."
The memories hit her like a broken glass.
Her father. The rain.
The headlights.
The strong arms that held her.
The deep, panicked voice whispering, Stay with me.
"Is... is he..." Tiana swallowed hard. Her voice cracked from dryness. "The man who brought me ... is he here?"
Despite knowing he was gone. A part of her just wanted to confirm.
The nurse shook her head, sympathy softening her features.
"He left after making sure you were stable. Paid your bills and left some money for you at the front desk. "
Her chest tightened.
He was gone.
Of course he was. Men didn't stay. Men didn't protect. Men didn't look at her like she mattered.
Not for more than a moment.
But for one night.
He did.
The man with stormy eyes had carried her like a precious thing. His touch felt warm, not disgusting. Safe, not dangerous. And Tiana had been hooked.
Her fingers curled weakly in the blanket.
He didn't even know her, and he still helped.
The nurse's gaze softened further.
"He seemed worried. Kept pacing while the doctor checked on you. I thought he might stay, but once the doctor said you'd make it, he left abruptly. Important man, I think. "
"Important?" Tiana whispered.
"Oh yes, you don't get to see many men dressed like that rushing a person into an ER."
Tiana's heart sank. Whoever he was, he lived in a world far from hers.
"What's your name dear?" the nurse asked.
"Tiana, " She murmured.
"Well, Tiana, you are going to be just fine. A few bruised ribs. Some stitches. Nothing life-threatening. "
Nothing life-threatening?
Tiana almost laughed. Tell that to her who almost didn't survive her father.
If only she could say the same about the life she was running from. The life she didn't have a choice in.
The nurse walked away, and the door clicked shut.
Silence filled the room.
She stared at the ceiling. The tears came. Slipping slowly silently down the sides of her face.
She had learnt to let them flow without making a sound. Her father loved it when she cried.
It was like a primal satisfaction to him. Knowing he broke her. Knowing he hurt her.
For what exactly?
Tiana hadn't known. She hadn't even asked.
She lived in fear. Fear that each time the door clicked open, lights on, he would hurt her.
So she hadn't asked why. She bore, planned, and finally escaped.
This time, she wasn't crying from the pain.
She was crying because for the first time in her life, someone had shown her kindness without asking for something in return.
She wished so desperately that she would have seen him. One more time.
To thank him. To ask why he looked at her like, she deserved to be saved.
Her fingers clenched.
She didn't even know his name.
But she knew one thing.
She would never forget him.
Not his voice.
Not his touch.
Not those stormy conflicted eyes.
The only man who held her like she wasn't broken.
The door opened again, startling her from her thoughts.
"Tiana?" A receptionist peeked in nervously.
"Um... this was left for you. "
She handed Tiana a small envelope.
Her breath faltered.
Inside was a small short note, written in hurried bold strokes.
She slowly ran her fingers over the words her brain not forming them to understand.
Until it did.
"You are safe now. Use this money to start over. " J.V
Her lips formed the initials silently. Like she had known them all her life.
Jake Valerian.
She didn't know how she knew.
But the moment she whispered his name, something deep in her chest pulled tight. Like it knew it was him.
That the name had to be his.
Jake.
It suited him.
Strong. Sharp. Dangerous. Warm.
The receptionist smiled. " You must have someone really special looking out for you. "
"No." She whispered, her voice breaking.
I don't. He is just the only person who didn't hurt me.
But she held the note to her chest anyway. Breathing in the scent of the ink and that of his fading cologne. She was going to miss him.
Miss those stormy eyes that stared at her as if he could see her.
See her fear. See her vulnerability.
Those strong arms that had held her in panic.
Not pulling her hair. Not pushing her to the floor. Not the fists. Not the slap that always left her lips torn and bleeding.
But in desperation to save her.
She would miss him.
Because even if he had forgotten about her already. Tiana knew she never would.
- Writer
