Chapter 0173 âYes pleaseâ she answers, looking at me tiredly.
I bend down and pick her up. Hugging her close to my chest, I begin walking.
âI said I needed help standing up, not being carriedâ Her argument lacks her normal fire backing it up. It goes to show just how worn out she was.
I donât answer. Just pull her closer to me. It felt right with her in my arms like this. Like everything in the F***ing universe was aligning itself. If I could stay like this forever, then itâs a fate I would gladly accept.
As I walk with her to my car, I canât help but wonder. Iâve never allowed myself to be this close to her. To hold her, hug her or k*ss her. I always held a part of myself hidden from her. So it makes me wonder if, had I allowed myself, would it have felt like this? Like she was the missing piece of my soul?
I was just getting to my car when Brian stops me.
I âWhat?â I growl at him. Couldnât he F***ing see that I was carrying precious cargo?
âWe were able to get most of the Reapers, but Reaper himself escapedâ he says, delivering the bad news.
It makes me want to pound someone. The fact that he keeps evading us makes me F***ing furious. As long as he was still out there, none of those I care about would be safe.
âJust F***ing find himâ I snap before walking away.
I get to my car and gently drop Ava in the front seat. Buckling her up, I get in and begin driving to the hospital.
âWhere are we going?â she yawns.
âYou need to get checked. Make sure you and the baby are fineâ
She nods her head in acceptance before leaning back against the seat. It doesnât take us long to get to the hospital. By the time we get there, Ava was already asleep. 1 I park my car before waking her up. I didnât mind carrying her, but I also know that nurses would need her to answer some questions.
âWe are hereâ I say when she opens her beautiful eyes.
Before she can jump down. I take her into my arms and carry her in. As soon as the nurses notice us, they drag a wheel chair towards her.
âDonât worry sir, weâll take care of her and call you immediately we have newsâ they assure me when I refuse to let her go.
Sighing, I slowly put her down on the chair.
âPlease call my parentsâ she tells me before they wheel her away.
The moment sheâs out of sight, I do exactly that. I donât say a lot. Just demand that they come to the hospital.
I then call my parents to check up on Noah. The moment I got the call from Ronny, I asked them to pick.
him up. Once I make sure that heâs safe I head towards the waiting room where I find Gabe, Travis and Kate.
âAny news?â I ask sitting down.
âNot yetâ Travis answers.
âHowâs Ava doing? Where is she?â Kate asks with worry.
âThey took her in for checkup just to make sure everything is fineâ I tell them.
We then stay in silence after that. Being here reminds me of everything that happened after James died. It reminded me of how I was overcome with emotion after seeing Emma again after nine years.
Everything had been so surreal. In that moment, I had gone back in time. Back to the time when she meant the world to me. I had been so lost in memory that I hadnât noticed Ava leaving.
Being here also reminded me of when Ava got shot. She had been standing right next to me, yet I had dived for Emma instead.
Ava became different after that event. Itâs like the Ava we knew had died and a new one had been born. Iâll never forget how cold she was.
I couldnât blame her, though. I would have done the same thing if the roles had been reversed. I bet that was her wakeâup call. It took seeing me rush to save Emma for her to see that I wasnât worth her time, effort, or affection.
I stand up and begin pacing.
Somehow along the way, my feelings changed. Now she wanted nothing to do with me. Everything I did in the past, thinking it was justified, now stands in the way. It made everything I did suspicious in her eyes. It F***ed up every effort I made, and it made sure that sheâll never trust me.