Chapter 45

Rylan stood in front of me leaning on two metal crutches. Tears flew out of my eyes now. Phoenix walked up behind him and looked into his eyes. “I’m surprised you even had enough strength to get up let alone walk around.” Rylan’s attention was on Phoenix. His dark grey eyes poking at his face listening to all of his words. I pinched my arm to see if this was real. Phoenix turned Rylan around and sat him down on the bed. He kneeled in front of him and wiped away some of his curls. “Do you feel light headed at all?” Rylan shook his head in an answer, “Is there any pain?” He asked.

Rylan grabbed Phoenix’s hand. The color contrast was amazing. Rylan’s dark hands wrapped around Phoenix’s wrist, “can we save this for tomorrow?”

Phoenix’s eyes shot to Rylan’s and then over to mine. He nodded at me and then to Rylan. “Of course just try not to do too much.”

Phoenix stood up straight and grabbed the door handle behind him. His eyes grazed over mine one more time. The door closed quietly behind him. My eyes, wide, stayed on the door frame as Phoenix left. Rylan turned to look at me. Those familiar dark eyes looked up and down over my whole body. My lungs still pushed for more air but they never seemed to get any. Sweat appeared above my brow. The room started to spin and I opened my mouth to just say anything, “Get out.” I was surprised at my own words.

Rylan’s brow furrowed and he looked at me quizzically, “What?”

“Get out.”

He leaned further onto the bed “No I heard you I just can’t believe what’s coming out of your mouth. What did I do?”

I sighed, “You left me. You left me all alone here and I don’t want that hanging over my head.” What was I doing? I didn’t want him to go. Seeing his face was like seeing Santa Claus at Christmas. No�"this was better. I had never wanted to see a single person’s face in my whole entire life. This, this was something that can’t be explained.

He stood back up and put the crutches again under his arms. A smirk twitched at the corner of his lips and he turned around. The crutches led his body toward the door. I watched as his weak body tried to get out of the room. When his hand grabbed the door knob and twisted my body leapt forward. I jumped onto the bed and leapt off the other side. With my hand I pushed the door closed. The knob ripped out of his hand and the door loudly slammed against the frame. His grey eyes glittered when I looked up into his face. “I knew you couldn’t do it.” His bright smile overtook his face and my knees went weak.

Slowly I walked up to him and kept our bodies inches apart. I couldn’t contain myself any longer. My arms wrapped tightly around his torso. His arms lifted in pain and he grunted. The crutches went falling toward the ground. They crashed loudly against the hardwood floor. Rylan’s arms tightened slowly around me, “Careful.” He whispered into my ear and I loosened my grip. My powers also came on and heat flew out of my body. He breathed in loudly and I did the same. The aroma of rain and the ocean filled my nostrils. This smell wasn’t the island, this smell was Rylan.

Rylan’s fingers came up to my hair and tangled in them. He pulled his face away and pushed his lips into mine. As I let him once again sink into me, my body gave out. I caught his shirt and he grabbed me around the waist. He led me over to the bed where he sat. I crawled up onto the bed and watched him as he painfully pulled himself onto the bed into a laying position.

There was one thing I had to do. My ear went to his chest the second he was settled. Everything was muffled because of the cotton shirt he had on. I sat back up and ripped his shirt in half. “Slow down there, Tiger.” Rylan joked figuring I was starting something else. As I tore the fabric I saw what was paining him so much. A large pink scar crossed his torso. It was soft and obviously very fresh. From the scar down bruises lined his rib cage all the way down past the top of his sweats. I let heat discharge out of my hands as I put my ear to the center of his chest. The heartbeat was nothing different from what you’d hear in any regular person. But it was his. The simple thumping proved that he was alive�"and that’s the greatest sound on earth. I listened to the blood be pumped loudly through his chest. He breathed deeply so that I could hear it clearer. My hand clenched at his sides carefully and I pushed my ear further in between his Pecs. His hand slowly ran through my mess of hair.

“Shi, look at me.” He whispered and removed his hand from the back of my head. My ear continued to stay on his warm chest. “Shiloh, look at me.” I took a deep breath and sat up. My eyes searched in his, searching for even more life. They flicked lively with great light in them. Slowly his hand ran up my arm, to my shoulder, and finally to the side of my face. “Shiloh, I’m here. I’m alright. I’m alive.” I shut my eyelids and leaned my face into his palm. Softly my lips caressed his dark skin.

He watched me carefully as I moved my head in his hand. I opened my eyes and his hand dropped into mine and I played with his fingers. The silver ring I gave him was still wrapped around his tan fingers. “I missed you.” I whispered. That was an understatement. My fingers intertwined with his. 

The dark pools of color looked up to me. “I missed you too. More than you know.”

I really smiled for the first time in awhile, “What was it like?”

Rylan slowly sat his body up. “It was like what people explain the bright light at the end of the tunnel thing. But I fought against the tunnel. I tried to run back toward you, but the darkness kept pulling me closer and closer to the light. When I finally reached it there were people in white. My father was one of them.”

My eyebrows furrowed. Was he actually telling me the truth? He continued “My father looked the same from what I remember. He told me about what he had been up to and how he was feeling. He walked me to this white room that was like a waiting room. I sat down in this white chair and stared at a blonde receptionist. My father told me to wait. So I did. Time passes differently there. What seemed like hours there, were really days here.” He paused and kissed me once before returning to his story. “My father returned and said I wouldn’t be waiting there any longer that I had something else I needed to do. He walked me back to where he met me and sent me straight down back to earth. I dreamt for awhile until I woke up. When I couldn’t stand to be without you anymore I came here.”

My fingers tightened around his and I stared into his eyes. They sent calming waves through me. The pain in my torso had disappeared completely and for once I felt whole. He pulled my hand closer and I leaned into his body. He slid back down and I followed his action. His arms wrapped around me and his face became inches from mine. His lips grazed my lips as he ran them back and forth. His arms linked behind my back and he pulled our bodies into each other. His legs wrapped around mine and he pressed our lips together. My hands slid to his chest and up to his neck.

Tears flooded out of my eyes and he pulled away. His thumbs came up to my face and wiped away the tears. “I’m sorry for leaving you.”

“It wasn’t your choice.” I sobbed into him.

The liquid couldn’t quit pouring from my eyes. I knew they were happy tears now.

His arms enclosed around my shoulders and my head sunk into the space between his chin and shoulders. My hand wiped away the tears that were falling onto his bare skin. In a soothing manner he rubbed the sides of my biceps until I was somewhat calmed down. “Now tell me, what’s been happening here?”