**Annabelle**
The unexplainable pain I feel when my eyes fluttered open. Literally every part of my body hurts like hell mostly my neck, my hands and of course my cheeks. The first sight I behold is the inspector. I instantly feel relieved. He looks alive and well.
Just then, something else catches my eyes. The presence of someone else in the room making the air tense. I can feel the un-settlement between the two men. I find it strange that Fallon would even come visit me although I'm glad he's out of the hospital. My mouth voices out what I'm thinking by calling out to me. They notice my presence and fix their gaze on me, their icey looks melting.
"Are you okay?"
Fallon asks moving closer to me. His hands makes contact with my skin, his eyes burying into mine. He almost seems concern. He shouldn't be. His pity is the least thing I need right now.
"I'm fine."
I disengaged from his grip looking towards the other direction.
"Was she caught?"
I enquired biting the insides of my lip. Everything I endured cannot and will not be in vain. I'll personally hunt the bitch down myself if I have to.
"Yes, all thanks to you."
His smile is warmth. I just can't help return it.
"The only thing you should worry about is recovering. I assure you Miss Smith would get exactly what she deserves."
"Thank you inspector."
I mouth in gratitude.
"After all we've been through, you deserve the right to call me Richard."
"Richard."
I repeat, his name rolling off my tongue so easily.
"I'll leave you two to talk. I should head to the precent and see how things are going there. I just wanted to make sure you were fine."
"Thank you... Richard."
I complete earning another smile.
"One last thing..."
He states abruptly.
"After you're well, I was hoping we could talk."
"My statement?"
"Yeah. Definitely but I think we have enough evidence but yeah, you should give a statement."
"Alright. I'll be glad to bury the bitch."
I say making him laugh.
"I wasn't talking about your statement though. Just get well soon. Get well soon."
He walks away, my gaze is fixed on him till he disappears. I bite my lips slightly, a habit which is becoming hard to let go off. I wonder what he means by "talk".
I shrug it off and decide to think about it later. For now, I focus on Fallon glaring at him.
"Annabelle..."
"Does your wife know you're here Fallon?"
I snap extremely stressed.
"Ava is... She's embarrassed to see you."
I scoffed in response.
"Of course she is. Trust me, after all we've been through, I'm not in any way surprised."
"I just want to say I'm sorry."
"For what exactly? Being a dick to me since we've known each other or for the past one week."
"Both."
He responded earning another scoff.
"Apology accepted. If it wasn't for you, I wouldn't be where I am today."
"I'm not mad at you Fallon. In Fact, I'm glad I met you. You gave me the push I needed to be independent and successful. Come on, look at the woman I became because of your mistake at the beginning. You don't need to apologise. I should be thanking you."
"Annabelle..."
"Free advice Fallon, pay attention to your wife. Although I didn't realize it, Ava and I were very good friends. I took advantage of that, lied to her. She's a very great woman who's going to be the mother of your children. Remember that and also know that you and I are cool. We are."
I breathe out.
"I think I needed to hear that."
He says making me chuckle.
"Annabelle..."
"Yes?"
"Do you think there's still a chance for us to be together?"
He asks, I froze on the spot unable to mutter any form of response. The question throws me off balance for more than a second. Even when I recovered, I'm still left utterly speechless.
****