Her Arms, His Sanctuary

Chapter 19

It had been two days since her accident. She was not responsive to anything. She seemed to be in a deep sleep, at peace and her breathing was steady.

Doctors had done all the necessary tests and could not find anything to suggest any intense damage to the brain other than some swelling.

Fortunately she had received treatment instantly and they were confident she would improve and come out of her coma in 48 to 72 hours.

They were monitoring her for any complications that might occur from the brain swelling.

Kay never left the hospital, the whole time he was by her bedside. He could not move in fear of his Star waking up to an empty room.

Her accident made him skeptical of everyone. He looked up at the person who entered the room. Of all people, she was the only one he felt comfortable with.

“You really need to go home and refresh.” she handed him a cup of coffee.

It was all he could take and that was how he had been keeping his strength

She was right, with his sunken eyes and disheveled locks it was clear that he needed some rest.

“Besides you need to be in a better state of mind because she will need you more when she wakes up” She managed to convince him

“Please Doctor, let me know the minute she does and do ensure that no one is allowed into the room”

She nodded her head in encouragement as she listened to his instructions.

“I will sure do, I will take it upon myself to be here at all times. I am done with my shift and will sit by her side doing some work on the laptop”

Kay’s heart softened when he looked at her. She was selfless and he did not know what he would have done without her. She had been instrumental in ensuring that his girlfriend was out of danger.

“Thank you,” it was the only thing he could say at that moment. He owed her so much and would forever be indebted to her.

“Please give me a moment with her, I will not be long”

With a nod, she walked out of the room to give him space.

***

Naledi was in turmoil. What she could see ahead of her was some dark timeless void. It felt like everything was about to come to a standstill. She wanted to plunge herself into the seemingly peaceful and timeless hole just so she could put an end to the wrenching pain in her heart. The alluring peace that beckoned her was creeping up and closing in. She thought of making it quick and to leap into the void, that way she would be swallowed up completely.

For some reason she could not give in to end her life, to replace the sadness she was feeling in her heart.

There were other beautiful things in her life that surpassed the dull pain. She would not give in to the darkness and allow it to envelope and blanket her. There was no way her life would be replaced by an absolute darkness.

It was closing in on her. She was not going to sink or tumble into it. She took a decision to run from it instead.

A battle for survival began as she started dragging herself away from the hole, hauling and pulling herself further away from it.

Somewhere in her struggles she became aware of her sense of self inside her physical body.

She felt herself floating outside her body and was seeing herself on the bed, looking down from a height and looking at herself lying on the bed helplessly although she seemed at peace in her sleep.

Her hand was clasped in a large one. The man was begging and calling out.

“Please Star, do not leave me like this, wake up and come back to me.” The pain in his voice was unmistakable and it was of someone in distress.

Her heart broke when she heard his despair. His sobs were muffled by the sheets on the bed.

She wanted to reach out and stroke his head to reassure and tell him that she would be okay. But one thing puzzled her, who was he and who was Star?

She was confused, she could not recall anything and could not think nor reason.

“I must go back and make sense of the puzzle.” That was her final decision as she dived back into her physical form.

All of a sudden, she became aware of her surroundings.

The smell of antiseptic and disinfectant was too strong to ignore. There was the irritating beeping sound that came at intervals from the heart beat monitor, the uncomfortable prongs in her nostrils and the low steady blowing sound could only mean one thing, she was in an Intensive Care Unit (ICU).

Then she felt a presence that had always been there, soothing and comforting her. It was him, he never left her bedside through it all.

She gasped as it started coming back to her. She recalled events that led to her hospitalization.

Kay snapped his head up from the bed at the sound, his eyes bulged out in disbelieve as he stared at her.

Further gasps from her threw him into action as he jumped up to call the Doctor.

Within a heartbeat the doctor rushed in and Kay had to contain his excitement as he stepped away to allow her to do a check-up of the patient.

Satisfied with her progress, she removed her oxygen mask and left the room to allow the two to have some time alone.

“Oh Star…” he rushed to the bed and was stopped right on his track by the wave of her hand.

Kay knew what that meant, perhaps she did not want noise since she had been out for some time. Slowly he advanced towards her.

Then boom! She dropped a bombshell!

“How many women have you slept with before me Kay and please be honest” she sighed at the amount of energy she had to summon to ask the simple yet loaded question.

He was never the type to run out of words, but the question knocked some air out of him.

“Please Star, now is not the time,” he pleaded.

One look at her face he knew she would not let the matter rest until answered.

How was he going to manoeuvre the question? He had no avenue but to be blunt with the truth. There was no denying it.

Suddenly his mouth felt dry and lips parched, he licked them to ease the discomfort.

“There has been no other since I met you. I love and want only you in my life. That’s all that matters now” he tried to reassure her.

“How many?” She closed her eyes in exasperation and repeated her question.

Kay knew that the more he prolonged the matter the more agitated she would get.

“I cannot really say how many because it was casual hook-ups. I was never keen on any relationship until I met you.”

The way he answered was a confirmation of the truth, what was said two days ago was a knock back to reality.

“I want you to leave please, I need some rest” She turned to her side in dismissal and faced the wall. Kay was dumbfounded.

After a lengthy pause, he tried again, “you do not mean that Star…” he was met with silence.

Kay knew when it was time to admit defeat, heavy hearted he picked up his jacket and walked out of the room.