Page 84 of Final Temptation
“It still doesn’t excuse my forgetfulness,” I mumbled against her hair.
With my chin resting against her shoulder, I had the perfect view of Myles and his freshly shaven face.
“Paige…” I whispered, swearing for the second time since last night, I noticed Myles’ fingers twitch. For a moment there, I thought my eyes were playing tricks on me, but at this point I’d swear on my fucking life I wasn’t wrong.
I knew what I was witnessing.
“Yeah?” She hardly got the word out before I spun her body around, so she now faced the bed.
“I’m not fucking around here, but I swear I just saw his fingers move again.” We both stood there, wide-eyed and staring at his limbs.
“It has to be you he’s responding to, Soph. Try to talk to him. Grab his hand,” she ordered.
“I did that last night; nothing came of it.” I doubted myself.
“Humor me and try again.” Paige gave me a light shove, inching me closer to the man I loved.
Reaching out for him, I ran my fingers along his freshly trimmed beard. I lowered my lips to his ear, whispering, “Please, Myles, prove I’m not insane. Squeeze my handagain, open your eyes, anything, baby, please.” I slid my hand down from his face to his hand, praying and hoping for dear life that he would show me he was still in there somewhere.
I sat next to him for minutes, those minutes feeling like hours, Paige standing silently behind me the whole time. My thumb ran along the palm of his hand, and with each stroke, I engraved the letters I L-O-V-E Y-O-U into his skin.
It felt like a long shot every day I woke up and he didn’t. From everything I’d read on the internet and the conversations I’d had with doctors, it was a pipe dream for someone in a coma for weeks to wake up. Every day that passed, his odds became worse.
The silence was broken when Lisa walked into the room.
“Hey—” She instantly stopped what she was saying when Paige pulled her out of the room, leaving just Myles and me.
“It’s just me and you, Myles. Please wake up. I know I’ve begged a lot lately, but with every sliver of hope you give me, my heart sinks a little more. I don’t see a future without you, and I need you to open your eyes so that can happen. Please,” I pleaded one last time.
Crickets.
The only sound that surrounded me while I waited for something, anything, was the soft beeps of the machines and my own shallow breaths.
My eyes drifted down to my hand fastened in his, and just as I was about to let go and step away, his hand gripped mine back. My heart rate instantly peaked, sending me into a state of shock.
Myles laid there with his eyes still closed, his handpulsing against mine. A second squeeze in the last minute caused my breath to hitch.
My eyes shifted from our hands to his face, back and forth, as I waited for any other sign.
“Myles, I know you’re there, baby. You’re so strong. Open your eyes and fight through this pain with me. We can do this together, I promise.” A hopeful tear rolled down my cheek.
With my opposite hand, I stroked his cheek, rubbing my thumb back and forth, doing my best to remain calm when his eyes began to blink open and shut.
“Oh. My. God.” With the words stuck in my throat, I was only capable of letting out one syllable per breath. The sound of my heart beating echoed from the inside out.
“PAIGE!” I screamed, knowing she was on the other side of the door. She and Lisa came stumbling into the room at my panicked voice. “H-h-his eyes opened and s-shut, and he s-squeezed my hand a couple times. I swear, I’m not crazy, I p-promise,” I cried, refusing to leave his side or let go of his hand.
Lisa rounded the opposite side of his bed, and with a light, she opened his eyes, looking for any sign of awareness.
“This is a really good sign,” Lisa said after seconds of silence, moving her light back and forth.
When she shut his lids, they didn’t open back up, but whatever she saw must have been progress.
“He’s following the light with his eyes, look here.” She lifted his lids once more to show me his beautiful blue eyes following along to the slow pattern of the light.
I’ve been deprived of his eyes for weeks.
“Lisa, please tell me this is a good thing.” I sniffled.
