A second chance: Sequel of Against all odds (8 page)

“
Well,
some of the persons we had in coma said they did hear. Some of them
remembered things that were said to them whilst in a coma, so yes I
think they do. Well, talking to them, reading a story or listening to
music will surely help them to understand that they are not alone and
to keep fighting for their life so I think that it wouldn't be a bad
idea. Trying won’t do any harm,” he said. I smiled at
him. This doctor was very kind.

“
You
have to make courage. Don't give up too soon.”

“
I
will never give up on her.” I told him firmly. “I'll do
all I can to help her come back. I'll come here every day if that's
Okay. I want to be by her side when she'll open her eyes again.”

The doctor smiled faintly.
“Sure do as you please but now I have to ask you to leave, we
have to do some more tests.”

I wished I could stay more,
but I obeyed. I had to go to Kylie. I looked at her for the last time
and then left. When I went back to the waiting room I saw Kylie
hugging her grandmother, Angela had arrived and near Tyler there was
Mr Edward Spencer, his father. As soon as Kylie saw me she jumped up
and ran into my arms. I hugged her tight to me. She was crying.

“
Dad,
how is she?Is mum going to be all right?” She asked
desperately.

I felt bad, what could I
tell her? I didn't want to lie to her, yet I wasn't prepared to tell
her the truth. I looked up to see Angela with tears in her eyes. She
walked towards us. There was no need for me to say anything. She had
her answer just by looking into my eyes. We hugged each other and
cried. Tyler was glaring at me. I knew he still thought it was my
fault.

“
So
David, what did the doctor tell you?” Angela asked me.

“
Not
much.” I blurted.

“
Can
I see her?” She asked in a cracked voice.

“
They're
doing some tests right now, but you probably can later on. Angela,
the doctors, don't know what will happen. When it comes to coma, they
can't give answers.” I murmured.

“
I
know.”

“
Angela?”
We all looked at Tyler's father. “Where are you staying? Maybe
you could come to Tyler's house with us,” he proposed.

“
Are
you leaving the hospital Ty?” She asked him surprised.

“
Yes,
I have nothing serious,” he said without looking up. Angela
looked at me; I knew she was more comfortable with me than she was
with Tyler. It had always been like this. Although he was her son in
law and not me, she respected me more. She seemed confused on what to
do. I was going to tell her to come to my house, but I stopped. Tyler
would probably make a fuss about it, and I didn't feel like arguing
with him again. Luckily Kylie solved the problem.

“
No
grandma, I want you to stay with us please,” she told her while
grabbing her hand. Angela smiled relieved.

“
Thanks
Edward but it's better if I stay with David, he will need help with
Kylie now.”

Edward nodded.“As you
wish, I guess you're right.” We stayed there for about another
two hours until everyone except Kylie went in to see Cassidy.
Afterwards we left.

Tyler's POV

I couldn’t believe
that this had really happened; it's seemed so unreal. How could I
have done that? How could I have been so angry as to forget all about
our baby? I had killed my son because of my jealousy, and I would
probably have to carry the guilt of my wife’s death too, if she
never woke up. Tears came in a silent tidal wave streaming down my
cheeks while my father was driving us home.

“
Tyler.”

“
What?”

“
You
have to be brave. Don't let yourself break down, you have to be
strong for her,” He said trying to comfort me but I was
inconsolable.

“
How
can I be strong? I lost my son, and I will lose her as well. She will
die I'm sure. She won't make it.” I said sobbingly.

“
Stop
it and be a man! No, she won't die but you have to help her. You have
to be there for her.”

Being there for her? Being
where? Didn't he realize that it was over? She was in a desperate
state; only a miracle could wake her up. And I didn't believe in
miracles.

“
Tonight
I'll stay with you, but tomorrow I'll have to leave. I can't be away
from the office right now I'm afraid. I will call you and hopefully I
can take some time off next week or so. Tyler do you think you'll be
OK on your own?” He asked with concern.

My father was trying to hide
it, but he as devastated as I was. He had been so eager to become a
grandfather and have a grandchild, and now his only hope was lost. We
had tried for years to have a baby; we had lost hope it would ever
happen and now that Cassidy had finally got pregnant with my child,
we had lost him. Why? Why was life so cruel with me?

I nodded. I didn't want
anyone around me; I wanted to stay alone with my pain to be able to
mourn my loss. But I wasn't prepared for what I had to face. As soon
as I entered home, sadness swept over me in a way I wasn't expecting,
it paralysed me. I was feeling the same as I had felt when I had seen
my mother drowning, useless and powerless. I couldn't do anything. I
looked around and felt like someone was stabbing me when I saw her
shoes on the floor, her clothes on the bed and her brush and make-up
still out. She had prepared herself in a hurry and hadn’t had
time to put everything back in. I sat down on the bed and hid my face
and cried. God help me, please. How could I face all this? I didn't
have the strength.

“
Tyler,
do you want some tea?” My father asked.

“
No.
Maybe some whiskey would help.”

My father looked at me
worried.

“
No
alcohol Tyler. You're on medicine; you can't mix. Maybe it's better
if you try and get some sleep.”

Sleep? How could I sleep? I
kept imagining us arguing, and I kept hearing the bad things I had
told her. I kept reliving the scene, the truck coming into us. I saw
myself driving like a freak. I wasn't even on my lane and then the
impact. I had hit my arm against the window shattering the glass. My
air bag had opened and prevented me from hitting my head while
Cassidy's hadn't. She had looked at me desperately, with so much fear
in her eyes. I had struggled to try and catch her hand, but I
couldn't move. She kept saying my name and then, she called him.
David. The last person she thought about before closing her eyes was
David, not me. She had always loved him and only now I understood
that. That's why I had been so angry at him; that's why I had told
him it was his fault. But I knew it wasn't. If there was someone who
was guilty, that was me. I had destroyed everything, my marriage, my
family and my life. I closed my eyes and cried and prayed God to give
me a second chance, at least to be able to talk to her, to tell her I
was sorry, to tell her to forgive me. I couldn't lose her like
this.  

David's POV

Three weeks later

I looked at my watch for the
third time. Today, time seemed to be stuck, it was my last lesson,
and I couldn't wait for the bell to ring so that I could go to
Cassidy. Three weeks had passed already, and she was still in a coma
but at least she wasn't relying on machines anymore and was breathing
on her own. That was a huge improvement according to the doctor,
which gave me hope. I was collecting the essays when I stopped
looking at a small sheet of paper attached to one of the essays. I
looked stunned at it and then turned my gaze at the person who had
written it. Ms Claire Morrison. She was looking down and blushing.
The bell rang, and everyone packed up hurriedly to go out.

“
Ms
Morrison I need to speak to you,” I said, knowing it wasn't
going to be a nice conversation, especially today. When all the
students went out, she came near my desk.

“
Ms
Morrison, what is this paper?” I asked looking at her.

“
Mr
Bayne. I just wanted you to know. It's been a while since I’ve
been feeling like this,” she said blushing.

“
Ms
Morrison, I'm your teacher. I'm here to teach you and for no other
reason.” I said feeling a little bit guilty. I knew how much
this was costing her. I had gone through this with Cassidy, the only
student I would have risked everything for.

“
Yes
I know but I thought you liked me.”

“
I'm
nearly 31 years old; you're just 19 and I'm in love with someone
else. I have a daughter as well. Students and teachers can't be
together; I'm sorry. You're a nice girl, but it can never be possible
between us. Hope I made myself clear,” I said more harshly than
I should have. But right now I felt this was wasting my precious
time.

She nodded trying to hold
back tears and then walked out. I really didn’t need another
problem right now. I had noticed that she was attracted to me; she
was always looking at me with dreamy eyes. I thought that in college
would have been different than in high school, but apparently it
wasn't. I put everything in my briefcase and went hurriedly out. I
went to Kylie's school and picked her up and then returned home.

“
Hello
Kylie, how was your day at school?” Angela asked her when we
arrived.

“
OK,”
she just said before disappearing in her room. Angela looked at me
worried.

“
David
I'm worried, Kylie is always so sad and quiet.”

I sighed, I had noticed as
well. “I know, but isn't it normal? How can she be otherwise
when her mum is lying in a bed in hospital?”

“
Yes
I know, but she's so young. This is too much for her to bear.”

“
Yes,
it's too much for us, let alone for her. I know that I haven't been
so close to her lately, but I don't have so much time, I'm doing my
corrections in hospital and when I return home I'm too tired to be
able to talk to her or tell her a story,” I said as I sank on
the sofa.

“
I
know David but…” She paused a moment as she seemed to
search for right words.

“
But
what?” I prompted.

“
You're
always near Cassidy, maybe you should visit her less .” She
finally said.

I stood up abruptly and
looked at her stunned. I felt angry and hurt.

“
What?
No way. Are you mad!? It's your daughter we're talking about!”
I yelled as my hands clasped tightly before me.

She looked down. Her face
saddened as she began to pace nervously in front of me.

“
I
didn't mean that, but if you continue like this, you'll get sick.
You're not eating much; you’ve lost weight David and you’re
always worried and sad. Cassidy wouldn't want this,” she said
as a tear streamed silently down her face. I was sorry I had shouted
at her. I knew she was suffering as well. Cassidy was everything for
her, her only daughter but I couldn't understand her. She was letting
go. I wasn't.

“
Listen
Angela, I won't stop this, not until she wakes up. I can't understand
why everyone have lost hope, why everyone is giving up on her. She's
not dead!” I cried. My voice cracked emotionally.

Another tear rolled down her
cheek.

“
David,
it's just that I don't think she will ever wake up. I'm trying to be
positive and to keep hoping but.....”

“
No
buts, she will wake up. She will. I promise,” I said clenching
my hands into a tight ball.

“
And
what if will it take years? You'll keep going on like this?”
She asked.

I bit my lips. My eyes met
hers.

“
Maybe
you don't understand. If she dies, I'll die with her. She's the only
woman I have ever loved. She's everything to me. I can't do
otherwise. Going to visit her every day is the only thing that keeps
me going. It’s the only thing that has stopped me from going
mad. I will hold on to that little hope; I'll grab it with all my
strength,” I cried.