Part 18
The fog of sleep swirled in her mind and the heaviness of the anesthesia continued to press down on her as she struggled to make sense of her surroundings. She could hear voices but she couldn’t tell if she was dreaming or not.
“Is she awake?”
Kevin! I knew you’d be here. You were always so protective. How could I have kept your daughter from you for so long? You really didn’t deserve that. I promise to make it up to you.
“Not yet,” came a second voice, much closer this time, followed by a gentle caress of the cheek.
Alex! Oh Alex! I’m so sorry I screwed up our plans. I wanted to be with you, to feel a man’s arms holding me again.
“How are you holding up?”
“Tired, but I’m okay. I want to be here when she wakes up.” He paused a minute before asking, “How did you two meet?”
Kevin sat at the foot of the bed, his hand resting on her leg as he watched AJ playing with her fingers. “We were playing in Lexington and Marcus got her tickets. The wrap party was at her grandfather’s hotel so he invited her to join us. Howie and I got there before the rest of you and he introduced us. Dee and I were having problems so I asked her to be my date. We ended up leaving early, before you showed up.”
“Is she from Kentucky?”
“No, her grandfather has a bunch of hotels and one of them is in Lexington. She was spending the summer with her grandparents before she went to college. She’s a military brat but her family is from Northern Virginia.”
“Military. Her father must have been stationed in Europe when we were there.”
“Germany. You know, you’ve always been her favorite?”
“She told me.”
“The only reason she went with me was because she knew you and Amanda were together.”
Alex reached up to brush her hair back. “What happened between you two? Did you love her?”
Kevin smiled fondly as he remembered their summer romance. “I did love her, as much as I love Dee and if I’d known she was pregnant, I’d have married her.”
“What happened?”
“I had to go back to Orlando before we took off to South America and Dee met me at the airport so we could talk. She wanted to work things out so I decided to give it a chance but I couldn’t break it off completely with Chels. Every time I talked to her, I wanted to be with her and then Dee would call or show up at a show. I had to make a decision.” Kevin stopped to wipe his tears and AJ waited patiently. When he started again, his voice was soft and full of regret. “I couldn’t do it, AJ. I couldn’t ask her for a commitment because it would mean her giving up her dreams and she had big dreams. She’d already joined the Marines, like her dad, and they were gonna put her through college and law school. When she was done, she was going to join JAG and I just couldn’t ask her to give it up so I just gradually stopped calling and writing. I figured when she stopped trying she’d found someone at school.”
AJ gently pointed out, “But she did give it up for you, Kevin…and Annie.”
“I know, God, I know. She lost her family and her dreams because of me.”
Oh, Kevin! Don’t beat yourself up over it. I’d do it all again for you. Please, God, let me wake up!
“Tell me why I had to tell her to open her eyes.”
That brought a smile back to Kevin’s face and into his voice. “We use to sit and watch the stars at night. Every time she’d see a shooting star, she’d tell me to close my eyes and make a wish. I’d always wish for something like a kiss or a hug…anything to have her close and she’d grant me my wish. About a month after we met and started dating, we were alone, watching the stars and she saw a shooting star. This time, when I made my wish, it was to make love to her.”
“And she granted you your wish?”
“She was so nervous but she trusted me. The whole time, she trusted me and I broke her heart.”
“I take it you were her first?”
Kevin nodded his head and said, “And only. She told me tonight that she hasn’t been with another man since. Before I left, I gave her the necklace she was wearing and told her she’d always be my ‘shooting star’. Ever since that summer, I can’t see a fan with blue eyes or a shooting star and NOT think about her.” He paused before saying, “I know you’re going to be good to her.”
“I’d never hurt her, Kev,” promised AJ as he looked back at her. “Kevin, do you believe in love at first sight….knowing the minute you see someone that she’s the one?”
Without hesitation, Kevin said, “Yeah, I do. You fell for her, didn’t you?”
“Completely. I know I don’t know her and I’ve only spent a few hours with her but there’s just something I can’t explain. I want to make her wishes come true. I’m gonna stay here as long as I possibly can and come back. I’m going to make this work….if she wants it.”
Yes, Alex….YES! YES! YES! I want it! I want a chance to love again.
The door opened slowly and a voice asked, “How is she?”
I know that voice.
“Still asleep,” answered AJ.
“Did you get some breakfast, Mrs. Whitlock?”
Mama?
“Yes, thank you. You boys look exhausted. Why don’t you get some sleep? I’ll sit with her.”
Kevin promised me he’d keep them away from me! Why is she here?
“Thanks but I want to be here when she wakes up. I promised her I would be.”
“Me too. I need to tell her about Monique,” added Kevin.
Monique? Tell me what about her?
“She doesn’t know yet?"
“I thought it was best to wait until we knew the full extent of her injuries,” explained Kevin.
Doesn’t know what? What are you keeping from me, Kevin?
“I talked to Betty and Mark, Monique’s parents, just a little while ago. They’re both still in shock.”
“I can’t imagine losing a child,” said AJ. “It was tough enough when I lost my grandparents.”
Losing a child? I don’t understand. What are you talking about? Oh please let me wake up.
“Mark said he’d call and let me know about the funeral arrangements.”
“I’m sure Chelsea is going to want to be there but I don’t know if they’re going to let her out in time,” said Kevin.
Funeral arrangements? OH GOD! NO! Monique can’t be…..Tears streamed down her cheeks.
AJ hadn’t taken his eyes off her and was the first to see them. “Kevin! Look! She’s crying. Do you think she can hear us?”
“Take her hand.” Wiping her tears, Kevin instructed, “Chels, if you can hear us, squeeze AJ’s hand.”
Weakly, she did.
“That’s it, beautiful, wake up. I want to see those blue eyes that hooked me,” encouraged AJ.
It felt like she had hardening cement on her eyes as she struggled to open them but when she did, she was greeted by AJ’s brown eyes and warm smile. Then reality of what they’d been talking about came crashing down and she began to sob.
AJ moved to carefully gather her in his arms being mindful of the IV tubes and all the other wires she had attached to her and pulled her tight as he tried to calm her. He rubbed her back, his hand slipping through the opening of the hospital gown touching bare skin.
“I killed her! I killed my best friend, my sister, my only family,” she choked out after some time.
“No, Chelsea! You didn’t do this,” reassured AJ. “It wasn’t your fault the guy was going the wrong way on the Interstate.”
“I shouldn’t have insisted on taking them home.”
“Beautiful, look at me,” AJ commanded softly as he took her face in his hands. “You didn’t do anything wrong. Taking Monique and Annie home, that was being a good friend and a good mom. You wanted to be sure they were safe. If they’d been in the cab, Annie wouldn’t have been in her safety seat…the one that saved her life.”
“AJ’s right, baby,” added Kevin as he pushed a strand of hair back. “We’d have lost both of them if you hadn’t taken them.”
Chelsea knew they were both right. Letting out an exhausted sob, she leaned back into the pillows. Taking AJ’s hand, she cried, “Monique was my best friend…the only family I had other than Annie.”
“That’s not true, Chelsea, not any more,” spoke up Mrs. Whitlock. “You have your family back.”
Chelsea looked at her mother as she wiped her tears. “Why are you here, Hillary?”
“Because you were hurt, ‘sweetie’, and you needed me.”
“NO! Don’t sweetie me! You are NOT going to sweet talk your high society butt in here after seven years and TRY to be my mother again,” steamed Chelsea making it clear she wasn’t happy. Looking at Kevin, “You promised me they wouldn’t come near me!”
“Chels, you father lied to her. He told her you ran away,” tried Kevin.
“That’s how she weaseled her way in here? She told you my father lied,” scoffed Chelsea. “That’s a bunch of bullshit! She knew the truth because she was standing outside the door listening but she couldn’t face the truth! She couldn’t let her precious society circle know that her daughter was pregnant out of wedlock…JUST like her…only I had no intentions of marrying the father of my baby. No! She just convinced herself that my father was telling the truth…that I had run away because THAT was easier to explain. I don’t need her here and I don’t want her here so get her OUT!”
AJ looked at Kevin, “Get her out.”
Kevin escorted a stunned Mrs. Whitlock out of the room as AJ focused completely on Chelsea. He got up to get a cool cloth and returned to sit beside her. Wiping her face, he watched her. She hadn’t stopped crying the whole time and her face was pale. She had to be in pain.
“What do you need, beautiful?” asked AJ softly.
Chelsea put her hand on his and said, “I have you here and Kevin’s here and Annie’s okay. That’s all I need.”
“You know, you’re wrong about not having family.”
“Don’t, Alex! Don’t take her….”
AJ placed a finger on her lips to silence her. “That’s NOT what I was talking about. I was talking about me and the rest of the group. We’re your family now, Chelsea. The others are waiting outside to see you and we’re all going to be here for you and Annie.”
Chelsea sighed tiredly and closed her eyes but she continued to hold his hand.
AJ watched her thinking she was going to go back to sleep but he had to know just how much she’d heard. Finally, he asked, “Chels, you heard us talking about Monique. What else did you hear?”
A soft smile danced across her lips as she opened her eyes. “A lot. At first, I couldn’t tell if I was dreaming or not…until Kevin started telling you how we met.”
“So…do you?”
“Yes!”
“Really?”
Chelsea nodded her head ‘yes’.
AJ leaned to her and touched his lips to hers kissing her softly. “Go back to sleep, beautiful. You need your rest.”
“Are you going to stay here?”
“Until the doctor says you can go home.”
Chelsea settled into her pillows still holding his hand and drifted off to sleep dreaming of a fresh new future.
