Filed to story: The Alpha’s Pen Pal Book
I waited until I heard Scott open and shut my bedroom door as he did his check-up on me to see if I was asleep. Some nights, I would already be asleep when he’d come in, and I wouldn’t hear him. Other nights, I would be wide-eyed and sleepless, and he would pat me on the head, hug me, and tell me everything was going to be fine.
Even though I knew it was a lie. It was just something adults said when they didn’t know what else to say.
That night, however, even though I was awake when he checked on me, I didn’t move or flinch or blink. I just laid there as his eyes scanned over me, listening as he shut the door soon after.
I stayed in bed still, waiting for the sound of his shower starting. He always took a shower every night before he went to bed, even if it was well past midnight.
When the rush of water in the pipes roared above me and through the walls, I pushed the blankets off of my still-clothed body, slipped my feet into my shoes, pulled my jacket on, put my blanket in my book bag and slung it over my shoulder, then snuck downstairs and out of the house.
Scott’s home was the closer of the two to the hospital, which was why I picked this night to enact my plan. I’d been paying close attention to each stop and turn we took on our drive from the hospital to his condo until I could recite it to myself in my sleep.
It took us only a few minutes in his car, but it took me much longer on foot. I kept my head down and clutched my coat around me, blocking against the slight breeze and the cool spring night air.
I didn’t look at any of the cars that passed by me. I wore dark clothing, hoping to blend into the night sky and the surrounding greenery on the walk. The only bright bit on me was my hair, the red a beacon in the moonlight. I had my hood up, but even that didn’t cover all the vivid and unruly strands.
The pitter-patter of my feet on the pavement accompanied me the entire journey to the hospital. I let out a sigh of relief as the parking lot came into sight—I made it, and I met no resistance.
I walked right through the entrance and straight over to the elevator, avoiding eye contact with anyone. If I looked at people, someone would question me. If I acted as though I knew what I was doing, like I had a purpose and I belonged there, then I was less likely to be questioned.
Luck was on my side as well, since there was hardly a soul in sight. Only one person sat at the front desk, and he was busy on a phone call and checking something on his computer screen, so he didn’t even see me as I pressed the up button on the elevator and waited for the doors to open.
Again, everything went my way, as no one was in the elevator. I walked in and pressed the button for Dad’s floor, and rode up while listening to the elevator music version of “Drops of Jupiter.”
Normally, I would hum along, but I couldn’t. My stomach twisted and knotted around itself, and my heart raced. My palms had sweat in the center, and I wiped them against my thighs a few times to remove it.
When the elevator dinged, and the doors slid open, I stepped out and walked towards the hall that led to his room. The employee at the desk here turned, and I ducked down below the counter. For the first time in my brief life, I prayed to anyone listening that she wouldn’t see me or walk around the desk.
I stayed crouched as I tiptoed around the desk, working my way towards the corner that would block me from her sight.
I breathed out a sigh as I stood up straight once I was where I wanted to be. I stepped into Dad’s room, laying eyes on him for the first time since he’d collapsed in our kitchen.
It hadn’t been very long, but he already looked way different from what I remembered. His skin had a gray tinge, and his arms were thin and weak. He had tubes going into his nose, wires connected him to various machines, and IV lines connected to his hand.
My lip trembled as I took in his appearance. I wanted to press a rewind button so we could go back to that joyful moment in the kitchen. So I could find a way to prevent this from happening.
Tears filled my eyes, and I almost missed the sound of the door opening. I darted behind the curtain, tucking myself away as the night shift nurses entered to check on him.
“How are his stats?” the male nurse asked.
“The same,” the female replied. “He’s stable, but there hasn’t been a change for the better. Or for the worse, which is good, I guess. But the family is miserable.”
“Yes, I saw the little girl again today. I understand why they don’t want her to see him like this, but…”
“It’s not our place to question that decision,” she said.
“What about the wife?”
The girl sighed. “She left again. I think she goes to the bar down the block every night. When she returns in the morning, she always reeks of alcohol. I don’t know if her kids are so busy with everything else that they just don’t notice or if they’re just ignoring it, but she needs help.”
“Have you sent the chaplain in?”
“I did, and she told him to leave,” she replied. “I mean, I get it. Not everyone finds comfort in religion, but I had to at least try…”
Their voices faded as they left the room, and I swallowed, trying to get rid of the dry feeling in my throat.
I left my hiding spot, set my backpack on the chair, and sat on the bed. My hand shook, but I reached out for Dad anyway, gripping his hand in mine as gently as I could.
“Dad…” I said, my voice breathy and hoarse. “Dad, please, you have to come back.”
A tear slipped down my cheek, and I wiped at it with haste. “Nothing is the same anymore. Everyone is so serious all the time. I never know where I’m going to be at night. And they won’t even let me see you. They think they’re protecting me, but they’re not.”
I took in a shuddering breath, the air rattling in my lungs, my throat tightening.
“And Mom is… Mom is… she’s not good, Dad. She’s a mess. She doesn’t say anything. She stares off into space. I hug her, and her arms just stay limp at her sides.”
The tears I had kept at bay for so long finally burst through the dam and fell freely down my face and onto my chin and my shirt. My voice mixed with sobs as I kept talking to him. “So you gotta wake up, Dad. Please. We need you. I can’t… please. Please wake up. Wake up! Wake up!”
I collapsed forward, burying my face into his chest, where there were no cords or wires blocking my contact with him. My whole body shook and heaved as I held in the sounds of my crying. I didn’t need to alert the entire floor that I was in here with him. But I needed this. I needed to see him, and touch him, and hug him.
I blinked my crusty, swollen eyes open against the brightening room, and turned my head towards the commotion at the door. Scott and Tiffany’s voices were recognizable over the top of all the noise.
I jumped up and grabbed my bag, nausea swirling in my stomach as I rushed towards the door. I hadn’t realized I’d fallen asleep. I’d meant to sneak back out and go home.
I stopped in my tracks when I saw a cop standing in the room near the door. I swallowed and clutched my bag to my chest, then turned back towards Dad, only to realize I was no longer in his hospital room.
My chest rose and fell as I tried to breathe, and my knees shook as they tried to keep me standing.
“You’re okay,” he murmured in what I assumed was supposed to be a comforting voice.
But all it did was cause more panic. How had they moved me? Why had they moved me? I needed to be with my dad in case he got better. In case he woke up.
“How…?”
New Book: Veiled Desires of the Alpha King Novel
Dayson was the alpha of the largest pack in North America. Powerful figures from other packs sought to offer gorgeous girls as potential mates for Dayson. He steadfastly rejected these advances, he was not a pawn to be manipulated. But eventually there came a mysterious girl he could hardly say No. Who was she?