Past Promises Chapter 3

Meena sighed and flicked her hair, which annoyed Anna more. She got up to go when the door to the operating room opened and a man in green scrubs came out. He was an older man with graying brown hair and kind blue eyes; no doubt the operating surgeon for Jedidiah.

     “Are you the lady who brought him in?” he asked.

     Anna nodded. “Yes, I am. How is he?”

     He smiled. “He’ll be fine. He got ten stitches on his back. You can go check him once we get him situated in his room.”

     “Thank you.”

     He smiled and walked back into the operating room. Anna turned to find Meena with her legs crossed chewing her hair and staring at her nails. She walked to her friend and grabbed her arm, yanking her to her feet.

     “What?” Meena asked.

     “Why are you acting this way? You’re not even worried? I thought he was your friend?”

     Meena laughed and shrugged. “Look, Jedidiah does this all the time, ok? He’s fine. If you’re so worried about him, then why don’t you stay with him? I’m going back to the party.”

     “Are you serious?”

     “Don’t I sound serious? He’s fine! If you want to play Mommy with him, then be my guest. I’m done playing chaperone. See you later.”

     Meena walked off as Anna let out a heavy angry breath. The doors opened and they wheeled an unconscious Jedidiah to one of the rooms down the hall. She waited until they were done getting him settled in before she walked in. He was lying on his belly with his eyes closed. He was breathing normal and she pulled a chair to sit down beside him. She pulled out her phone to text her mother when he stirred and moaned. She stood up to walk to him, reaching out to touch his shoulder, when he grabbed her hand and squeezed.

     “Mom,” he whispered. “Mom, I miss you.”

     Tears filled her eyes as she listened to him whisper and then the whispers turned to sobs. He continued holding her hand and didn’t let go. She reached out her other hand and laid it on his shoulder.

     “It’s ok. Sleep,” she said.

     He stopped crying and slowly his breath became normal again. But he didn’t let her hand go. She let him hold her hand and reached for the chair. She sat down and texted her mother that she was with Meena and wouldn’t be home. Then when she looked up, she saw his face calm and peaceful with glistening tears down his cheeks. She wiped them away and inside her heart ached for his loss.

 

     Jedidiah stirred and found he was lying in a very uncomfortable position. He smelled something strange and whatever he was wearing scratched at his skin. He opened his eyes and the first thing he saw was a head of brown hair in his face. Oh, shit. Who did he sleep with? He had no idea and whatever little he remembered was blurry as heck. He tried to move, but found he was in so much pain. His throat was dry and his head was spinning. Where the hell was he? And who was this woman who smelled like wild flowers? He tried to move his hand and found it was laced with hers. Then he noticed the hospital band on his wrist and his jaw dropped open.

     “What the hell?” he shouted.

     The woman stirred and he was afraid to look at her face. But when she brought her face up, he was in shock when he discovered it was the pretty girl he’d smacked in the head with the ball the other day. She was wearing green scrubs and looked exhausted. Was she a doctor? She cleared her throat and yanked her hand free from his.

     “You’re awake,” she said.

     “What happened?” he asked.

     She pushed her chair up and stretched out her limbs. He guessed since they were holding hands, she must have slept in that chair all night long. After she got the kinks out of her body, she walked to the bathroom and shut the door. He swallowed hard, trying to jog his memory of what happened. The door to his room opened and a nurse in white scrubs walked in carrying a tray of food.

     “Good morning Mr. Lincoln, how are you? Any pain?” she asked.

     “What happened?” he asked.

     She looked a bit shocked to hear his question. “You don’t know?”

     He shook his head. The bathroom door opened and the girl walked out. She smiled at the nurse. “Hi.”

     “Hi. Did you want anything?”

     “No, I’m fine, thank you. I’ll be leaving shortly.”

     “Ok. If you need anything, let me know.”

     The nurse left and the girl sat down before him. She was prettier than he remembered. He’d never seen her before, which meant she was visiting from out of town or was newly a resident. She had a look of someone pure and exotic that tugged at his heart.

     “Who are you?” he asked.

     “You don’t remember me? After all we’ve been through.”

     He smiled. “I remember you. I’m asking who you are.”

     “I’m Anna Ryder. You’re Jedidiah Lincoln.”

     “You saw my name on the hospital band.”

     “Nope, I was at your house party last night. I brought you in after I threw a beer bottle at you.”

     He frowned. “What? When did this happen?”

     “Oh, right about midnight. You were lying in the grass unconscious. When you woke up, you puked half your dinner and all your alcohol on me and then you fell backward and my beer bottle pierced your skin resulting in ten stitches on your back.”

     Jedidiah gasped. “What?!”

     “Romantic, isn’t it?”

     He swallowed and realized it hurt. “Can I have some water, please? I feel like I have cotton in my mouth.”

     She poured some water from the tray into a cup and handed it to him. He took a gulp and gave the cup back to her. He watched as she moved about the room and then settled back into her chair.

     “Why were we holding hands?” he asked.

     “You were in pain and grabbed me. You wouldn’t let go.”

     He cringed. “I’m sorry.”

     “It’s alright. You’re the one with ten stitches. I say it’s fair enough. Look, I have to get back home before my parents send the cops after me. I hope you get better soon.”

 

     “Where were you?” her mother asked.

     Anna dropped the scrubs into the basket and sat down on the bed. After a shower and some food, she felt better, but was still feeling a little empty about what had happened last night. Her mother had walked in the moment she got done dressing and demanded to know everything since she’d called Meena and got the truth about her not spending the night there.

     “Are you going to promise not to flip out?” Anna asked.

     Her mother crossed her arms. “No.”

     “Look, I’m here, am I not?”

     “Where were you?!”

     “I was at the hospital with a friend, ok? He got drunk and got hurt. I spent the night with him. Is that better?”

     Her mother continued staring and then she lowered her arms. “Why didn’t you say that in the beginning?”

     “Because you never believe anything I say. Whatever I say, you bounce back with a ‘And the truth is?’ question. It drives me nuts, mom. Sometimes I just wish you’d understand me for a change.”

     Anna sat down on her bed and pulled her knees up to her chest. Her mother sighed and walked to sit beside her. Anna ignored her mother’s guilty trip and hoped it would make her mother leave her alone. But it never worked because her mother never noticed anything about her.

     “I’m sorry, Anna. I was worried about you and when Meena said you weren’t there, I just thought of the worse thing. I’m sorry.”

     “It’s alright. Can you leave me alone now?”

     Her mother sat there for a split second before she left. When the door closed, Anna flopped on the bed and sighed deeply. Peace was broken when her cell phone rang. She picked it up and saw Meena’s number.

     “Hello.”

     “Anna, you freaking liar! You told your mother you were at my house last night?” Meena asked.

     Anna sat up. “Don’t you take that tone with me, Meena! If only you had stayed with Jedidiah, I could have gone home. But all you cared about was your damn party.”

     Meena laughed. “Oh, gosh, are you blaming me? I’m not the one who got him into that situation in the first place.”

     “The point is that you were his friend. You should have stayed with him.”

     “Anna, have you not listened to a word I said last night? This is Jedidiha’s way. He doesn’t have any friends. He just likes the idea of having people over to wash away his pain. He doesn’t like anyone.”

     Anna got frustrated and got off the bed. “Meena, look, it doesn’t matter what you think, ok? I spent the night holding this guy’s hand because he was sobbing for his mother. Did you stop to realize that perhaps he’s human and has feelings just like you? He’s not someone to trample over just because he’s a rich kid.”

     Laughing, Meena replied, “Since when did you become Tony Robbins? You’re getting to be too old, you know that. We used to have fun together. What happened to you?”

     “Fun? If fun was what happened last night, then this fun is getting to be old. I’m no longer excited to do that kind of thing.”

     “Well, then, have a good summer with your parents.”

     Anna heard the dial tone and she tossed her phone on the bed. What a trip that was! All she wanted was for Meena to understand that this wasn’t a joke. Jedidiah could have died last night and all Meena wanted was to party. She shook her head and ran her hand through her hair. The silence in the room ate at her and she thought it was ironic seeing as how she longed for silence all her life.

    

     The door to Jedidiah’s room was opened as Anna walked in. The bed was empty. She set the basket of fruits down on the table and opened the shades when the door to the bathroom opened and he stepped out with his eyes wide opened at her presence. She took her purse off of and laid it next to the basket.

     “Hi,” he said.

     “Hi. How are you feeling?”

     He walked to the bed and sat down on the edge. “I’m feeling better now that you’re here.”

     She didn’t smile at his response. “Look, I brought you some fruits. I thought you might be sick of the hospital food. I also came to check in on you. If you’re feeling well, then I’ll be on my way.”

     Anna headed toward the door when he got up and stood before her. He was taller than she remembered, but then again, she hadn’t stood this close to him before. He was handsome in a way she hadn’t seen. He was a little thin and his hair was longer than most boys his age would wear. His eyes were darker than she had seen. She gulped down as he smiled at her.

     “What’s the hurry?” he asked.

     Anna swallowed. “You need your rest.”

     He looked at himself and then back up at her. “I’m fine. I could use the company. Every nurse that walks in here won’t say much to me.”

     “Are you trying to hit on the nurses?”

     He shrugged. “People do say I have a charm that most find irresistible.”

     Laughing, Anna replied, “Trust me, your charm needs work.”

     His smile faded. “You serious?”

     She nodded.

     “Then stay and help me polish it, will you?”

     “Why? So you can use it on me?”

     Jedidiah leaned forward and reached out a finger to touch her nose. “You said I needed work, which means, you’re not attracted to me. So you’re the perfect teacher to help me work on my skills. Unless, you’re the type who likes to break the law and sleep with her students.”

     “You’re praising yourself too highly, Jedidiah. I’m not interested in you in the least bit. I’m also not interested in helping you polish your so called charms either. I came here to check on you, which I did, and now I will leave you alone. Have a good day.”

     She walked around him and as she walked through the door, turned to look at him. He was standing there with a grin on his face. She blushed and walked out the door, but not before she heard what he said.

     “I aim to make you mine, Anna Ryder.”