If It's With You

Muna

The sterile scent of disinfectant invaded my nostrils as I woke up in the hospital room. My neck was aching due to my sleeping position, but my heart ached even more.

Rubbing the back of my neck, I raised my head from the bed. And my gaze fell on Nicklaus who laid still in the bed, with the nasal cannula delivering oxygen to him from the machines that kept him breathing.

It had already been a week since I was discharged from the hospital, but I hadn’t left his side. Nicklaus was no longer in the ICU and even though the doctors said he was stable, they couldn’t tell me when he would wake up.

I couldn’t bear to leave him. Every day felt like an eternity, sitting by his side, holding his hand, whispering words that I hoped he could hear somewhere in his unconscious state.

The past days had been a lot to unwind with me feeling every possible emotion. From sobbing really hard when I first saw Nicklaus lying in a coma, to sobbing when I saw Tim’s lifeless body in the morgue. It wasn’t me feeling bad, if anything, I felt a sense of relief knowing he was dead.

It was me recounting every painful memory which he put me through. It was me knowing that he was the reason Nicklaus was lying in a coma. It was me knowing that I foolishly accepted a plant from him without checking for any cameras, and then let him deceive me into coming to the parking lot on that day.

The emotions didn’t end there. My cheeks were really soaked when my mom and Maya narrated everything that happened when I went missing. How they figured it was Tim who kidnapped me and not Carl.

Tim had planned everything pretty well and when Carl decided to come to New York, he made it easier for Tim to execute his evil plan. But he wouldn’t know if not that I told him about Carl, then, left my phone behind for him.

He was the one who told Carl about my location and then kidnapped him on that day. And on top of it all, he kept him in the same house he kept me. That one was a big shock to me because I didn’t even notice all through the time he held me hostage.

Tim had thrown him into an unconscious state by injecting a poison, which would kill him slowly. Meanwhile, he had everyone thinking Carl kidnapped me and was in a hideout. But all this was him, it was evil Tim. I hoped he burned in hell and wouldn’t get to reincarnate if that was possible.

Thankfully, the doctors here were able to revive Carl and now he was also in a coma. I felt a sense of relief hearing that he was okay, but I had never gone to see him. I didn’t want to leave Nicklaus’s side nor did I want to face Carl.

I hadn’t even gone home to my apartment and sometimes, the thought of going scared me a little. I mean, what if Tim’s ghost was lurking around waiting for me?

They assigned me to a psychiatrist whom I talked to two times a week. Then, Mom and Maya assured me my apartment was safe, and they saw to it. The police had checked every possible spot, all plants from Tim had been cleared and my whole apartment had been deep cleaned. Mom even bought those candles she believed would chase every bad spirit away. Well, her main aim was Tim’s spirit. But I still didn’t want to go home, not without Nicklaus.

After all of that work, Mom and Maya left New York just yesterday after I repeatedly assured them I was okay. They didn’t want to leave but then, they needed to take care of some things since they came here after an emergency call. They said they would be back, even though I assured them that there was nothing to worry about.

Mom suggested taking me back to Atlanta with them. She really wanted to, but that would have only been possible if Nicklaus had been on the plane with me.