On The Border - Marry Him Or Die

83

Alex’s POV

FIVE DAYS LATER

It’s been five fucking days and Jenny hasn’t woken up yet.

Five fucking days of complete agony and torture.

I was dying to hear her voice, look into her eyes, taste her tongue on mine.

Five fucking days of no indication or sign of her planning to wake up from this.

I was glued to her side for three days now.

Constantly talking to her, calling for her, begging her, holding her hand, kissing her cheeks, and running my hand through her hair.

Her condition was stable. Her gunshot wound was slowly healing without any complications.

But she couldn’t breathe on her own. She was on a ventilator.

My injuries were improving as well.

My arm and thigh wounds were not that serious, but I had to use one crutch to support me so I don’t put a lot of pressure on my injured thigh.

My stomach wound needed me to be more careful so I don’t rip my stitches or let them get infected, but I was managing fine.

I was in pain but nothing beat the pain of seeing Jenny like this and having no idea if she will ever be able to come back to me.

Nothing beat the guilt that she was in this condition because of me.

“You need to get some rest Alex, I’ll stay with her” her mother touched my shoulder softly as she talked to me.

I looked up at her and saw pure love and compassion shining in her eyes for me.

Even though she should have been angry with me for putting her daughter in this situation, she never said anything bad to me or blamed me even.

I nodded my head and was about to let go of her hand when I felt a slight squeeze from her. As if she’s trying to tell me not to let go of her.

I furrowed my eyebrows and froze in place.

Did I imagine it?

“Jenny? Can you hear me baby?” I asked her emotionally.

“What happened?” her mom asked me excitedly.

“I don’t know but I think she squeezed my hand slightly. I felt something, I know I did but it was too subtle I don’t know if it was just a normal reflex or if she’s becoming aware” I said tensely.

It happened again, this time I was sure it wasn’t a reflex, I was sure she was listening to me and responding to me, telling me she was here with me now.

I never felt this much relief flooding my system all at once before.

I felt so light at that moment, only now did I realize what a tremendous amount of weight I was carrying inside me after I woke up.

I was breathing rapidly, clutching into her hand and speaking to her tearfully “Jenny baby, stay with me, don’t you go anywhere, don’t you leave me, open your eyes, let me see those beautiful eyes that I’ve missed so damn much”

Her mother went to her other side and held her hand as she said emotionally “Jenny, I’m here too. Your mom is here too. I’m not leaving you ever again, I promise”

Her mother let out a little gasp and looked at me brightly “She squeezed my hand too. She can hear us”

She started coughing suddenly and I was prepared for that reaction. She was fighting her intubation.

I sprinted towards the nurses station and told them to call her doctor.

Five minutes later, I was looking at the most mesmerizing eyes in this whole wide world, and they were staring back at me with so much relief in them.

Her voice was raspy as she spoke to me “I thought I lost you. I thought we were both…” he throat clogged up and I knew what she was going to say.

“We’re not, we’re alive Jenny. Both of us” I reassured her softly.

I was half expecting her to be done with me when she wakes up.

I spent five days running through different scenarios in my head to her reaction when she figures out that she almost died because of me.

I expected her to hate me, to be mad at me, to blame me for not being able to protect her. I expected as far as her breaking up with me and asking for a divorce because I was no longer the safe haven she thought I once was to her.

I also expected her to forgive me but it was something I didn’t want her to do. Because I didn’t forgive myself, I never will.

Her attention shifted to her mother.

As if she just realized that she was actually here and not some illusion she thought she heard while she was on the verge of consciousness.

“Mom! You shouldn’t be in Snow, what if my uncle….” She started to say nervously but I cut her off before she developed a full panic attack.

“We’re not in Snow Jenny. We’re in Fairbanks. No one knows she is here” I told her softly.

Not that she was still in any danger from that asshole in Snow. I would have killed any Walker who tried to harm her ever again. I would have protected her had Jenny trusted me from the beginning and told me about her uncle’s threat instead of smuggling her in secret. But I know why she didn’t then, and I accepted that it was fully my fault.

Her eyebrows furrowed “Why are we in Fairbanks?”

Her mother looked at me in concern.

She was aware of my whole plan.

She knew what I planned to do and what I wanted from her to do.

It just wasn’t the best time to go into that plan right now because Jenny just woke up from a five day coma and she needs to get some of her strength back before I tell her about the decisions I have made for both of us.

“Because I was scared out of my mind when you didn’t wake up. I had them transfer us to the best hospital in Fairbanks so you could have the best medical treatment I could provide for you” I said sincerely.

It was a part of the truth so I wasn’t actively lying to her.

At that moment, the doctor walked inside with a bright smile on his face.

“Welcome back Ms. King, you had all of us worried about you for a few days. But I was positive you were coming back to us. How are you feeling right now? Any pain, disorientation, or discomfort?”

Jenny stiffened at the last name she just heard and looked at me in confusion.

I squeezed her hand and gave her a little wink to go along with the doctor.

She cleared her throat and said in a low voice “I’m fine, I think. Nothing hurts”

He proceeded to give her a thorough physical exam before he announced proudly “You seem to be doing great Ms. King. We just have a few more tests to conduct to make sure all your levels are normal and if everything comes back positive, you’ll be free to get discharged by tomorrow. But you need to be on bed rest for another week so your incision can heal properly without any complications”

“Thank you doctor for everything” I said to him when Jenny seemed to be stuck on the last name he kept calling her with in confusion.

As soon as he closed the door, she turned to me and asked nervously “Ok, tell me that my last name isn’t King and that my brain didn’t get so messed up during my coma because I’m pretty positive it’s Snow”

I smiled slightly, appreciating her sticking with my last name instead of her original one.

“I had to register you under an alias. To keep us all safe from Zade” I said without further explanation.

She narrowed her eyes at me, then looked at her mother who was apparently not a very good liar, just like her daughter, as she barely maintained eye contact with her for less than one second before she looked down nervously.

Now I know where her inability to lie perfectly comes from.

She turned her gaze back to me as she said confidently “What are you both hiding from me?”

I tried to maintain the situation as I said calmly “Nothing, I told you it’s not safe for us out of Snow, that’s why…”

“Alex, just tell me. I know you’re hiding something else. I’m fine, I can take it…. Whatever it is” she said stubbornly.

I had to know she wouldn’t let things go so easily, that she won’t stop until she knows what it is I was hiding from her.

What I didn’t know though was her reaction to the plans I had made for both of us.