I woke up in an unfamiliar room. It took me a while before I could finally open my eyes and adjust to the blinding lights.
"Bianca, you're awake."
I stopped when I heard a familiar voice beside me. I turned to my side and saw... Charlie. He was sitting on the couch near me. He looked like he just woke up with his slightly disheveled hair and creased long-sleeve shirt.
What was he doing here? My lips parted when he stood up and went to me.
I looked around the room. Everything was white. My heart started pounding.
"W-where am I?" I asked, my lips trembling when I saw the IV tube on my arm.
"You're in the hospital, Bianca."
Just like that, everything came back to me. I was finally escaping from Gideon. I was driving on the road when I received a call from Amelia... saying that Gideon had been in an accident.
The news shocked me that I momentarily forgot I was in the middle of the road. Then... a truck. It was coming my way. The last thing u saw before I lost my consciousness... was my own blood.
My hand automatically dropped to my belly. Tears formed in my eyes when I couldn't feel anything there. It felt empty.
"M-my baby?" I looked at Charlie, who was now standing in front of me. "What happened to my baby?"
"Bianca..." His voice was low. "I'm sorry." He sighed. "The baby... you lost him in the accident."
Charlie tried to touch my arm, but I swatted it away.
"No!" I shut my eyes as tears escaped them. "Tell me my baby's fine. Tell me it's here." I clutched my empty belly. "No. I didn't lose my baby. It's still here!"
"Mrs. Henry, please calm down."
I didn't realize there was already a nurse inside my room. She touched my arm, but just like Charlie, I pushed her away.
"No." I angrily shook my head as I rejected the truth. Tears continuously swelled in my eyes. "This isn't true. The doctor said my baby's strong. I didn't lose my baby! You're all lying!"
"Bianca… please. You're still recovering."
"No! No! Please tell me I didn't lose my baby!" I turned to Charlie but I failed to see his reaction. My eyes were too blurry with tears.
"Bianca… I'm sorry."
I shut my eyes, but tears continuously fell from them. "I don't need your sorry. I want my baby! My baby..." I sobbed as reality slowly sank into me. My baby's now gone. I promised I'd protect my baby... but I failed to do it.
"Bianca… please." I felt his arms on my shoulders.
I shook my head. "Just… leave me alone, Charlie. I needed to be alone. Please…" My voice broke as I pleaded the last word. I shut my eyes and balled my hands into a fist.
I heard a sigh. "Alright. We'll leave the room, Bianca. But please... press on the intercom if you need anything."
I didn't know how long I was crying until I fell asleep. When I woke up, I was welcomed again by Charlie. I noticed that his clothes were different now.
He cleared his throat. "You need to eat, Bianca."
I had no idea how many hours had passed. I had only stopped crying when I felt like I couldn't cry anymore.
I only glanced at the tray of food on the table. I didn't want to eat. I didn't even feel hungry. "I'm not hungry."
Empty. That's what I've been feeling right now. There's a huge void inside me that couldn't be filled.
He sighed. "You need to eat if you want to recover fast, Bianca."
I looked at him with dead eyes. "What if I don't want to recover?"
I saw how his lips parted. "Don't say that, Bianca," he said in a gentle voice. "You already lost your baby. You can't lose yourself... You have to be strong."
"You don't know anything, Charlie," I cut him off.
I didn't just lose my baby. I also had lost my will to live. Tears started to form in the corners of my eyes. I had already lost my father four months ago. And this time... it was my baby who was taken away from me.
Why did I even survive this accident if the only thing that was keeping me alive was now taken away from me?
"Bianca..."
I turned to him. His eyes... they were looking at me with concern.
"Why are you here, Charlie?"
The last time I saw him... he was acting cold to me—No… despite the cold treatment, I still knew that he still cared. That night, when he saw my bruise, he showed his concern.
Charlie cleared his throat. "Mom and Dad… they're in Atlanta right now. My mother asked me to take care of you."
I looked away. "I need you to get out, Charlie."
Charlie being here was only making the pain worse. He's the living reminder of everything that I had lost.
Every time I looked at him, I felt like my heart was breaking all over again. He was triggering different emotions in me. Pain. Longing. Guilt. Too much guilt.
I couldn't… I couldn't even tell him the truth. That the baby I lost was also his.
I swallowed the lump in my throat. "I don't need you here, Charlie."
He clenched his jaw. "I know you don't want my presence, Bianca. But I'll stay here… until Gideon gets transferred here. You need someone to look after you."
"I don't need someone to look after me. I can handle myself."
I heard him sigh. "Don't be stubborn, Bianca. I'll stay here whether you like it or not. If you're not comfortable with my presence, I'm sorry. But you can't do anything about it. You married Gideon. My brother. That makes us... family."
I stilled. Gideon. He was in an accident and in critical condition.
My head turned to Charlie. "H-how's Gideon?"
"Gideon… fell into coma, Bianca."