THE DON'S FAVOURITE SIN

YOU WERE SHOT

Jason

"How long will it take before she wakes up?”

“The surgery was successful. All we have to do now is wait.”

“But it’s up to a year, why is she not waking up.”

“It’s no longer up to us anymore. We’ve done all we can, she has to fight now. Waking up… depends on her willpower.

This was the conversation I woke up too.

My eyes were heavy and they refused to open easily, it felt like a long time since they performed such a simple task. But I forced them open anyway. The bright light on the white ceiling made me shut them back, maybe that was what they had been protecting me from all along.

“Water…” I called out but the sound of my voice surprised me, it was foreign- as if it wasn’t mine.

Two men rushed to my side. One wore a white robe, it was easy to tell he was a doctor, the stethoscope around his neck confirmed it. The other one who was breathtakingly handsome and dressed in black looked… anxious? Worried? Something about the way his grey eyes looked at me made my chest tighten and made me feel sorry for him- even though I don’t know why.

“Water,” I repeated, my voice was barely above a whisper.

The man in black quickly rushed to the table and brought a bottle of water, he opened it and poured it in a cup.

“Here,” he handed me the cup.

I reached out to take it but my fingers trembled, it was as if my whole body was not mine. He saw my trouble and brought the cup to my lips and I took a slow sip- what exactly happened to me, even a small task like drinking water felt foreign to me.

“Why am i here? And who are you guys?” I asked frowning. “I was just on my way to school, so how did I end up here in the hospital.

The two of them threw glances at each other, as if I’d just confessed to being an alien.

“I’m Ben” the doctor spoke. “And this is Jason” He pointed at the man in black.

“Do you remember your name?” Ben asked.me.,

“Are you being serious right now” I frowned.

He said nothing.

“Ava Smith,” I muttered, dragging the answer out of my mouth. “Why? You think I’d forgotten my name?”

“How old are you”

Ugh. What’s this?

“Twenty-two,” I said slowly this time.

“And you are a…?”

“A student.” I cut in weakly. “Can someone please tell me what’s going on, or are we just going to play twenty-one questions all day?”

Jason moved closer calmly and took my hands into his. “Ava, we just want to make sure you’re okay.”

“I pulled my hands away from his quickly- his touch burned me, it was a familiar yet unfamiliar feeling. “Whoa! What’s with the touching, mister? I’m not broken, just confused so use your words.’

He drew his hands back and dropped it by his side, I could see the hurt that flickered in his eyes. But at the moment, I had no space to care.

“I want to go back home”

The two of them looked at each other strangely again.

“Do you really mean that?” Ben's eyes went wide as if me going back home was shocking.

I laughed at his expression. Was this supposed to be a prank, because, it was getting out of hand already.

“Of course…” I broke into a cough.

“Easy,” Jason said softly. Hs voice… I don’t know, it sounded like he’d been waiting to say it forever. He kept acting like he knew me- like I mattered to him but I could not recognize him at all.

‘I have to get back to the orphanage,” my voice was laced with urgency. “Mrs. Clare would be worried sick if I don’t return from school on time.”

“Orphanage? “School?” he echoed and his face twisted in confusion.

Okay, what was this guy deal.

“I live at Flankell Orphanage,” I started slowly, just in case they needed help following along. “With the sisters and I attend Central University, there’s nothing mysterious about that.

For something this serious, and got me admitted in the hospital, it was strange that there was no sign of Mrs. Clare- it was unlike her. She’d always gone out of her way to make sure none of us at the orphanage ever felt left out, always given the motherly care most of us never had. So why wasn’t she here now?

“She must be looking for me, I have to go now” At this point I was already nervous and tried to leave the bed, but a sharp pain in my head held me back.

“Ahhh!” I cried out, clutching my head as a sharp and unbearable pain shot through by brain.

“Ava!”

Jason’s voice came from beside me. Everything was a blur until his hands were on my shoulders, easing me back on the bed. “Don’t move, you’re still recovering.”

Recovering?

It was only then I felt the bandage below my ribs. My fingers brushed over the gauze, and a sick feeling curled in my stomach. How did i get ijured?

“What… what happened to be me?” I asked, locking eyes with Jason, he didn’t answer and just looked away.

“Jason,” I called out firmer this time. The name felt so familiar in my mouth- as if it belonged there. Like I’d whispered it, yelled it, maybe cried it before.

He looked at me quickly, his eyes flashed with something- surprise? Hope?

“You were shot” he began slowly. “below your ribs and you’ve been in coma for a year.”

I froze.

Shot?

No, this can’t be real. This was the city of Minnesota, not some mafia-filled movie scene for f*****g sake.

“You’re kidding, right?” I scoffed even though my throat suddenly went dry. “I was just on my way to school this morning and…” I paused. “I… I don’t remember anything after that but I’m sure there was no gunshot. I tried to piece everything together but nothing was adding up- there was a blank space where memories should’ve been.

Jason knelt beside the bed, his expression already grew hard. “Listen to me, Ava. You were involved with a gang. They tried to kill you, but I got there in time and saved you.

I stared at him like he’d grown another head. “A gang? What… what gang? I don’t…”

“The orphanage you talk about?” His voice was softer4 now. “It doesn’t exist anymore, it shut down ten years ago.”

My breath hitched

Everything around me faded- the walls, he machines nd even his face.

“That’s not possible.”

I stared at him in horror as his words registered in my head.

And i… gave out.