Her Second Chance At Love complete

(13) Going Home, Facing Facts

Lisa’s POV

When Ray had left, I was all alone.  The first time that I had been truly alone since that night.  I did something that I hadn't done. I made my way to the bathroom to look at myself in the mirror.  Every time I had went before the nurse would block the mirror so I couldn't get a good look at myself but I needed to see how bad it truly was.  I slowly moved my legs over the side of the bed and sat upright fully.  That movement alone took a lot out of me and I wondered how I was going to be able to do it at home.  How much did Mike really mean when he said that he was going to be staying with me.  Would he be like Ray always was?  After the pain subsided from the mere gesture of sitting up completely, I tried standing up.  My legs felt weak and I felt pain shooting through my groin.  I had been to the bathroom a few times since being here and never felt like this.  But this was the first time I was doing it on my own without any help or support.  I gingerly made my way to the small little bathroom attached to my room.  Concentrating on each step I hadn't gazed up into the mirror until I had reached the sink.  When I got there, I grabbed the sink and tried to breathe through the pain I was feeling.  Why is it that I didn't remember feeling this much pain before?  I felt like my breath had been taken away.  I felt as if every bone in my body had been crushed by a truck or something like that. I couldn't imagine feeling worse.  The pain of having my daughters wasn't even near this pain.  What is it that I couldn't remember about that attack I needed to remember but then again would I be better off not knowing?  I took a steadying breath trying to rack up the courage to look at myself in the mirror.  I needed to know what everyone was seeing when they looked at me and to know what he had done to me.  I slowly moved my eyes upward.  The first thing that caught my eye was the bandage on my head.  I felt my hand instinctively move to my head to feel the bandage.  That's when it happened that is when I caught sight of my face.  I wasn't vain but my face was all ugly now.  I knew I wasn't a beautiful woman but the sight of myself in the mirror made me gasp in horror.  Just as I was seeing myself fully for the first time, I had heard the nurse coming in to check on me.  When the nurse heard me gasp, I heard her yelling for help immediately.  Someone caught me as the world was starting to go dark and I was passing out from the shock and the pain.  I felt someone lifting me almost effortlessly and taking me back to my bed.  I wanted to open my eyes but the memory of my ugly face was still haunting me. 

Mike’s POV

I came into Lisa’s room just as the nurse was yelling for someone to come help.  I heard Lisa gasp from the bathroom and rushed to her just as she was falling to the ground.  I caught her and picked her up in my arms effortlessly.  I carried her back to her bed and she was sobbing.  She wanted to open her eyes but she couldn't the memory of the vision of her face still haunting her.  She said she had thought that she was going to be able to have the girl’s home in a day or two but how could she?  The sight of her face the way it is now would scare them to death look what it did to her.  The nurse came back in with a syringe full of liquid and immediately put it in her arm.  Her eyes fluttered open and she looked up at the nurse for a brief few minutes before closing them again.  The nurse rubbed the spot where she had just given the shot and said “a little something for the pain and the shock honey before we get you ready to head home.”  She started to cry.  She said she cringed at the thought of being home without her girls but she was even more terrified at the thought of the girls seeing her like this.  How could anyone stand to look at her like this?  She was trying to understand all of this.  I cupped her face and said "honey what were you thinking?  There was a reason we were trying to protect you.  It looks worse than what it really is and, in a few days, it will start to heal and go away.  I wish you would have at least waited until someone was with you."  She sniffled, "I figured nobody would actually let me see and now I know why."  She looked at me for the first time since fainting in the bathroom.  "How can you stand to look at me?  My bruises are ugly."  I pulled her close to me and said "but you know what else your bruises say?"  She shook her head no.  I know she wasn't sure where was going from here how could I see anything but ugly?  "Your bruises say that you are a fighter and that nobody is going to bring you down."  I could tell that she hadn't thought of it that way but hopefully she could see my point.  Still, they were ugly to look at and she told me she didn't know how anyone could stand to look at her that way.  No wonder when Ray came in, he never stayed long and he had readily agreed to keep the girls with him.  If her face scared the hell out of her it would terrify their girls and he knew it.  But also, she wondered how I could stand sitting next to her and holding her.  How I could stay with her with these ugly marks on her face.  "Because I have seen the true beauty you are under those bruises and I know that those bruises will go away."   She looked up into my face to try and determine if I was truly meaning what I was saying.  She seemed surprised that she saw nothing but love and concern in my eyes.  "Promise me one thing." I said while cupping her face.  She looked at me and said "what is that?"  "Promise me that in the next week or so you won't look at yourself in the mirror so you don't constantly see this ugliness.  With that being said I promise to truthfully tell you if they are going away or not. Do we have a deal?"  She nodded her head and said "that sounds like a deal."

Lisa’s POV

At that moment it dawned on me if my clothes were torn when I arrived then what would I be wearing when I went home.  My face must have given me away because he asked me what I was thinking.  "I was just thinking that I don't have anything to wear home.  What clothes weren't ripped were taken into evidence for the um, the um."  "Shhh it's ok you don't have to say it I know what you are talking about.  You don't have to worry about clothes.  Your ex knew your size and brought some new clothes for you to wear home.  After talking to the police officer, he knew you weren't going to have anything to wear and he knew you would be embarrassed."  Once again Ray had surprised me with how kind he had been.  It reminded me of the time that I had ran into my best friend and the ex at that time.  They had belittled me so bad and all I wanted to do was shrink into myself but he stood up for me.  Ray had it in him to be a gentleman and maybe just maybe he would be able to find that man again.  I wasn't all that certain I could ever forgive him and my sister for what they have done but maybe I could at least move forward.  I wasn't all that sure where the relationship with Mike was going but I knew that I wanted it to continue.  I also knew that I had fallen hard for the man.  I had pretty much fallen in love with him at first sight.  Breaking through my thoughts Mike said "so the doctor is going to be in shortly with your discharge instructions and then I will go pull the car around so that they can bring you out.  Then I figured we could stop off somewhere to pick up some dinner to take to your place and eat."  I smiled at him and said "you thought of everything haven't you?"  He smirked at me and said "almost everything."  I wondered what he meant by that but I wasn't going to push.  I loved this feeling of being cared for and I didn't want to break the spell in any way.  "So, what would you like to eat for dinner, I could call it in then it would be ready for pick up when we get there.  That way you don't have to wait in the car to long and we can get you to your house and get you settled."  I thought about it for a bit and realized the one food I liked that my ex never did was Chinese.  I looked at him giving him a sheepish smile and said "um, if it's not too much could we please have Chinese?  I'm not picky on what we get but I haven't had Chinese in a long time."  He smiled at me and said "Chinese it is let me make the call."

Mike’s POV

I hung up the phone with the Chinese restaurant I owned just as the doctor came walking in.  I knew that my order would be perfect and ready when I got there because they would be falling all over themselves to impress the boss.  Of course, that was only one of many eateries I owned in town.  I hadn't told her but the very place we ate at that night was one of my places.  I had come into some money after me and Charlene split and started investing in local eateries to help the local economy and my wallet.  I loved to cook as well but since I didn't know what all she had at her place this first night take out was great.  I would probably phone in an order to one of my restaurants to bring me the things I would need to cook with for the next few days.  Then maybe just maybe I would be able to convince her to go out with me and do some shopping for the rest of the week.  I was advised to be careful and not push her that much but to try and get her out.  The worse thing I was told for victims is to allow them to shelter themselves inside against the world.  I didn't think she would be like that but a person never knows.  The doctor was running over all the do's and don'ts of her going home.  I was paying attention because I wanted nothing more than to help her heal the right way.  The nurse came in shortly after the doctor left and told me that the wheelchair would be there in a few seconds and that I should go get the car while she helped Lisa get dressed.  I wondered what she would think of the clothes when she saw them.  I kind of told a bit of a white lie when I told her that her ex had bought the clothes.  I had actually done it.  One of the nurses in the emergency room had given me the size once I learned about the severity of what had happened.  I knew she wouldn't be able to take her old clothes no matter how they looked as they were now evidence.  I did as I was told and made my way to get my car.  I got to the car and drove to the front of the hospital where I was instructed to park for pick up.  I waited impatiently for her to arrive and didn't even realize I was holding my breath until she was being wheeled through those doors.  I hated that she had been left alone so that jerk could attack her and if it was in my power, she would never be left alone again.  When she got into the car with me, she looked over at me with knowing eyes and said "you bought this outfit didn't you?"  I looked at her in surprise and she spoke up "before you try to deny it and insist that it was Ray let me tell you this, he doesn't have good taste like this."  I shrugged my shoulders looked at her with a devilish smile and said "well then I'm guilty as charged."