Page 66 of Evading Fate

Chapter Twenty-Three

Addilyn

My entire body hurts.

Is it possible for your hair to hurt? Because mine does. Jesus Christ, what the hell happened to me and where am I? I slowly peel open my eyes and try to shift into a more comfortable position before letting out a hiss as the pain in my body flares with even the slightest movement. Sighing out in frustration, I settle back into the hard mattress as I look around the room. I lift my hand to my face and feel the thin tube laying just underneath my nose before looking around again. Above me is a heart monitor and it’s only then that I recognize the sound of my heartbeat echoing around the room.

My head whips to the other side as someone squeezes my hand, and I let out a little moan of pain, reminding myself that I can’t move that fast. At least not without extreme amounts of pain. Trey is slumped over the side of the bed, fast asleep, with my hand clutched in his, and the sight of him brings everything rushing back. My mom. The accident. Thinking I would never see Trey again just before everything went blank. Relief washes over me, and all of a sudden, I’m bawling. Loud, hiccuping sobs filling the room.

Trey’s head shoots up, looking a little dazed at first but when he sees me looking back at him, he smiles. It only lasts a second though before concern lines his features, and he sits on the edge of the bed, palming my face gently. His touch heals parts of me that broke when Mama didn’t recognize me, and I take a deep breath through my tears.

“Are you in pain, baby? Do I need to get the doctor?”

“Yes and no. It does hurt but I’m okay. I just need you,” I whisper, and he smiles before leaning down and kissing me so gently that my heart stutters in my chest. I want him to kiss me with his usual passion but I know that it would be a bad idea right now.

“Do you remember what happened?” he asks when he pulls away, and I nod, tears welling up in my eyes again.

“Yeah, I do.”

“Do you want to talk about it?”

I open my mouth to respond, ready to spill my soul to this man when the door slides back, and Kyle walks into the room. I jerk away from Trey, not even thinking, and instantly regret it when the hurt transforms his handsome face. I try to reach for him again but he’s already sitting down in the chair again and crossing his arms over his chest. I can’t take my eyes off him as I watch him close himself off to me, and it hurts more than I ever thought it would.

“Hey, Addy,” Kyle says, “good to see you awake.”

I turn to lay into him and ask him what the hell he’s doing here but Trey beats me to it. “Can we get a couple minutes? Then you can talk to her.”

“Oh, sure.” He flashes me a smile that I do not return before leaving the room and its mounting tension.

“Trey, I’m so…”

He holds up a hand to stop me and unease washes over me. He takes a couple deep breaths before looking up and pinning me with his eyes. “You know, Addy, I really think that what we have is special. I’ve never felt about anyone the way I feel about you.”

“I feel the same way,” I whisper, my heart hammering as I lay it all out there for him.

“Do you?”

My brows furrow, and hurt courses through me that he would even ask that. “Why would you ask that?”

He sighs, running a hand through his hair and dropping his head for a minute, and when he looks up again, his face is completely changed. He’s wide open in front of me, truly baring his soul. “Because, Addy, you’ve been running for a long time, and I wonder if I’m just another distraction. You haven’t promised me a thing since day one, and you’ve had plenty of opportunities to open up to me but you haven’t. But mostly because you almost died, and your number one priority was still keeping us a secret from a guy that you swear you don’t want.”

“What are you saying?” I ask, his words making me sick. I get the distinct feeling that this is the end, and I hate it. I wish I could just hit rewind and redo the past ten minutes all over again.

“I’m letting you go, Addy.”

“Trey,” I whisper, not sure what to say as my heart splinters into a million different pieces in my chest.

“No, baby. Don’t do that. I’ll never be able to walk away if you look at me like that. I truly hope that this isn’t good-bye but I think you have some things you need to figure out first. Take some time and decide what it is you really want, and if by some miracle it’s me, I’ll be waiting for you. Always.”

“Please don’t do this.” Tears fill my eyes again, and it hurts to even breathe as I think of a life without him in it.

“If you decide to be with me, you gotta do it completely open and ready to let me all the way in. The only way this works is if we both jump. And baby, the next time you come to me, it’s forever. I’ll never let you go again so you better be sure.”

A tear slips down my cheek as he leans in and kisses me like it’s the last time. It hurts like hell but I don’t care. I’ll take any amount of pain to hold on to him. When he pulls away, he looks into my eyes and steals my breath with the love pouring out of his gaze. I can feel it wrap around me and I never want to leave.

“I love you, Addilyn Jayne Burke, and I always will.”

Without another word, he turns and walks out of the room and my life.