Awakening (2 page)

“So what is it you would like to do while you’re here? I mean, outside of recruiting.”

With complete sincerity, he simply responded, “I have nothing…”

Her lips turned slightly down. “That’s sad. You’re wasting an opportunity. There are lots of wonderful things about North Carolina.”

“Well, I know I would not want to disappoint you. Perhaps… if you have time, that is, you could show me around and let me know what I need to experience before I leave the area.”

She laughed gently. “That is a tall order, but seeing as I am done with school, I suppose I might be able to show you around a little.”

“I would like that.” They continued to volley questions back and forth until Caitlyn finally noticed Rachael waving at her, tapping her wrist, indicating that it was time to go and hit the next bar.

Caitlyn nodded at her friend in understanding. “Garrett, I’m sorry, but I have to go.”

“No problem. If you were serious about your offer of showing me around, I would like to take you up on it.”

She could feel the heat rise to her cheeks. She was sure she was completely red. “Absolutely. Do you have your phone? I’ll give you my number.”

Garrett handed her his Smartphone and she typed in her number before giving it back. “It was nice talking to you.”

“Would you like to have breakfast tomorrow? That is, if you are feeling up for it.”

Caitlyn bit her lip, uncertainty clear upon her face. “Garrett… I’m leaving in a couple of weeks…”

Understanding dawned on his face. “Oh! I didn’t mean it like that! I mean, you are beautiful and seem like a great person, but I am not looking to get involved with anybody. I am just kind of focused on my job at the moment. I hope you’re not offended.”

She attempted to hide her relief. “Well, in that case, I would love to have breakfast.”

Breakfast led to a lunch, which led to tours of the campus and surrounding towns, which led to a trip to the beach. Caitlyn knew her friends were having difficulty believing that nothing of a romantic nature was occurring between Garrett and her. She couldn’t really blame them for making assumptions. After all, when a handsome guy shows up, starts spending copious amounts of time with their friend, even attending their graduation ceremony to cheer said friend on, it is natural to think that there is
something
going on. But true to Garrett Stevens’ word, he had not attempted anything outside the bounds of friendship.

The friendship was a comfortable one, and different from her other relationships. While she had always gotten along well with men, she had gravitated towards the girls in her inner circle to keep as close confidants throughout her college years. The entrance of this blond haired recruiter changed all of that and she found herself opening up to him in ways that she had only opened up to Nora, her closest friend.

Garrett always seemed intuitively to understand how she felt. He understood when she talked about her desire to be something more than she was. Her new friend had also admitted that he had felt very much the same way as she had only a few years back about needing to do something more with his life. It was that very feeling that helped prompt him to make the radical changes he needed to make to his life.

It was nice knowing that she was not alone. She had even opened up about her illness, and how for the past few months she had been feeling sicker as the days passed. When she described the many futile visits to the doctors, who despite the many tests, all stated that she was in good health, Garrett never once even insinuated that perhaps she was a hypochondriac. On the contrary, Garrett had taken a keen interest in her illness, and unlike her physicians, did not think that she was exaggerating.

He asked her questions about how she was feeling, if she was tired, even how her vision was. She was so grateful that he did not laugh when she described him as being somewhat blurry to her. Instead, Garrett wrapped his arms around her in a gentle hug and assured her that she would probably be good as new soon. Something in Garrett’s voice made her believe that, she wanted to believe that.

Before Caitlyn knew it, one by one, she had said goodbye to Shannon, then Rachael, and then finally, Nora. All of them had said their farewells with promises to keep in touch, promises to remain friends. Each had advised her separately to keep her heart open to the possibility of love. She did not need them to elaborate that they were referring to a certain blond that had recently entered her life.

The night before she left, she sat in the middle of the bare apartment, surrounded only by her duffle bag, backpack, sleeping bag, and half-empty container of Chinese food. The emptiness of the apartment bothered her tremendously. There were so many happy memories here and after tomorrow, she would never return here. She would never arrive home to hear the three girls blasting music way too loud, or giggling about some inside joke.

It had been difficult to fall asleep that night; she tossed and turned, finally succumbing to a fitful sleep around two am.

When Caitlyn opened her eyes to greet the day, she knew something was off. Very off. She shivered, snuggling deeper into the too thin sleeping bag trying desperately to get warm. The meteorologist had predicted that it was going to be a picture perfect eighty-two degree day. Her body reacted as if it were ten degrees inside the apartment.

Caitlyn considered staying in bed for a while longer. Maybe if she just rested a little more…
No.
She determined. She had promised Garrett that she would see him one last time, and besides, Caitlyn was not going to let her illness dictate her life on today of all days. It was too important and she had waited so long. She earned this.

Finally wrestling out of the sleeping bag, Caitlyn slowly prepared for the day, savoring one last hot shower in her apartment, relishing the heat that enveloped her. She rubbed her arms for warmth as she dressed, mourning the fact that she had already packed all of her sweaters, instead choosing to throw on the only long sleeve shirt that she had.

“Good Morning, Kit Kat.” Garrett greeted her by the nickname he had given her as she opened the apartment door. Her friend frowned as he took in her appearance. “You don’t look so hot. Are you okay?”

“Well, good morning to you too.” She took the cup of coffee that Garrett pushed in front of her, drinking in the hot liquid gratefully. It warmed her insides briefly. “I’m fine. I just didn’t sleep well last night is all.”

Garrett’s eyes rose. Caitlyn could clearly tell that he did not believe her but did not try to push further. “So today is your last day…”

“My last day. I can’t believe it is here.”

“So, have you finally decided where you are going?”

She was ashamed to admit it, but she had not given it much thought since she met the recruiter a little over two weeks ago. Sure, she thought about it now and again as she had packed, but could not decide on a place that was alluring to her. “No. I suppose I will just have to get on the first flight and take it from there.”

Garrett grinned. “I was counting on that. Well, I have an idea. You have no limitations, right? You have your passport?”

“Of course I do. No limitations.” She failed miserably in attempting to appear excited as she cast her eyes downward towards the floor. The room had begun to spin, the crisp lines of the room blurring, and she blinked hard, trying to get through what appeared to be vertigo. Caitlyn knew she could push through this. After all, she always did in the past.

She heard Garrett continuing the conversation in the background. “Well, why not let fate decide?”

Caitlyn looked up, surprised. “What do you mean?”

“Come back to my apartment and you’ll see. Besides, based on how
fine
you appear to be feeling, it’s probably best if we make breakfast there.”

She did have to admit that being on a comfortable couch sounded much more alluring than being in a restaurant or sitting on an old diner bench.

Within minutes, they had hopped into his car and traveled through the college campus. She took in the sites of the familiar buildings, knowing they would be a faint memory soon enough. The old side streets led away from the campus and soon gave way to the big house that was made of old brick with ivy travelling attractively up the side. Caitlyn was envious when comparing it to her tiny place.

“I still can’t believe you live here.”

“Well remember, I did get stuck with the third floor.”

She scoffed. “More like lucked out. It is the only apartment on that floor and it is huge.”

It was her third time entering the apartment, and she was still enamored with it. The apartment was warm and comfortable, filled with rich tones and beautiful hardwood floors. Not what she expected for an apartment that was so close to the college. She was used to second hand mismatched furniture and decorations that consisted of posters and empty drink containers.

“I still haven’t asked you, how did you find this place? I love the traditional architecture.”

He shrugged. “I wish I could take credit. But the company already owned the building and had it furnished. All I had to do was move in. Honestly, my taste is a little more modern.”

The company. Caitlyn had been surprised to learn that he was not actually military, but instead a recruiter for one of the largest computer manufacturing firms in the world, Trust Corporation. From what Caitlyn gathered, he was recruiting recent and soon to be graduates for open positions. Caitlyn figured he would not have difficulty with that task, as Trust Corporation was one of the most renowned technology firms in the country; most college students would give an arm to get their foot even in the door for that company. Trust Corporation was known for being very exclusive.

“So what are we doing here? Besides breakfast I mean.”

Garrett pointed to a large globe standing on a pedestal in the corner of the room. Caitlyn immediately understood. Before she could respond, another bout of nausea overtook her. She turned away quickly from her friend, bending over. As much as she tried to make it look discreet and hide it, she could not completely, and he placed his arm on her shoulder to steady her.

“Are you sure you’re okay? Maybe you should wait a few days to leave. I know your lease is up, but you can always stay here. I can sleep on the couch.”

She stayed bent for a minute before standing back up to look at him with determination. “Thank you, but no. The doctors have run every test imaginable and have come up with nothing. I am not delaying my life any longer.”

Garrett scrunched his face, but nodded nonetheless. “Well, if that is your choice…”

“It is.”

He sighed before beckoning her with his hand. “Well, then come over here.”

Caitlyn hadn’t even realized he had walked over to the globe. As she walked over to where Garrett stood, he stepped out of the way of the globe and moved behind her. She couldn’t help but note the close proximity of his body to hers. He instructed her to close her eyes and point her finger on the globe.

“I am going to give it a spin and wherever it lands, you go… provided it’s not the middle of the ocean.”

It was a good idea and she did as directed. She heard him spin the globe. The steady rhythm of the turns calmed her mind, and she found herself leaning into Garrett’s chest, enjoying the hint of pine that lingered in his clothing from the cologne he wore. Caitlyn couldn’t help thinking how nice his touch felt when bright colored spots suddenly appeared behind her eyelids. She felt the globe come to a slow stop under her finger. She faintly registered Garrett telling her somewhere in the background, “Open your eyes, I think you will be happy with where it landed.”

She tried to comply and focus her eyes on where her finger landed, but non-distinguishable blurbs of color of white, blues, and greens greeted her instead.

And then everything went to hell.

A million flames felt like they were scorching her body, coursing through every muscle fiber, consuming her whole. Her body then plunged into an icy depth as if drowning into the coldest seas. She shook violently, her head erupting in pain.

Caitlyn heard herself scream. She was dying. She thought fleetingly that she would never go on that great adventure, would never use her degree, and would never get to see any of the people she cared about again. The last thing she would ever feel was a strong pair of arms catching her as she finally gave into the darkness that surrounded her.

G
arrett stroked her face gently as she began to stir and awaken. She blushed in embarrassment as he held her head, peering down at her. “Well, hello sleepyhead.”

She stretched her legs tentatively before responding. Immediately, she noticed she felt different. The continual achiness, the chills, the pain, they had all gone. Her head did not have the dull ache she had become accustomed to over the past few months, she felt good. No, that wasn’t right. She felt great.

Suppressing her mortification at passing out in front of him, she asked him the first question that popped in her head. “How long was I out for?”

Garrett’s face quickly lifted up to a clock that hung on the wall. “Eighteen hours and seventeen minutes.”

She sat up in a panic, her eyes flashing in alarm as she gaped at Garrett. “Eighteen hours? I’ve been out for eighteen hours?”

Garrett placed a hand on her shoulder, attempting to calm her down. She couldn’t help but notice the relief written on his face. “Yes. Feeling better? You look healthier.”

Caitlyn did not know why she was not in a hospital room right that moment. A normal person would have called an ambulance, especially if the person had not woken back up. She glanced around, realizing that she was in a bedroom. Garrett’s bedroom. Grudgingly she answered, “Umm…Much better actually. I feel like myself again.”

He cocked his head, “Anything different?”

She did not know what he meant by that, but when he mentioned it, she realized that nothing was different, yet everything was. Caitlyn felt as if she had been seeing everything in a haze her entire life. The chairs, windows, and plants, everything was now in sharp focus, it was like she had suddenly switched from a tube television to a high definition flat screen. She could smell everything around her, the plants that Garrett had in his apartment let off a soft floral scent, like a rose. Garrett smelled like pine and fresh soap. The blankets she sat on felt incredibly soft, and she swore she could feel every fiber, every thread count on his sheets.