Runes (Paranormal Romance, YA,) (31 page)

He smiled. “No, but we cut things short. Actually, quite a number of students followed the ambulance here and camped in the waiting room until you left the operating room.”

“I had surgery? Where?”

“Your brain.” He stroked my forehead, but my skin felt weird. I tried to lift my hand to find out why, but Torin pressed my hand down. “Don’t. You’ve broken several ribs and mustn’t move too much. Do you want more ice?”

I searched his face. “I don’t understand. You said I wasn’t seriously hurt, yet I had surgery and broke my ribs. Why didn’t you just heal me?”

“What’s the last thing you remember?” he asked instead of answering.

“Maliina attacking me. I don’t know what happened afterwards, until I woke up just now.” Panic surged to the surface. “What happened? Why can’t I remember?”

“You had bleeding in your brain, which caused you to lose consciousness. The doctor stopped the bleeding and told your mom you’ll be okay, but some of your recent memories may be affected.”

He tried to feed me more ice, but I turned my head away, my mind racing. I couldn’t remember anything that happened after the attack, yet something about Torin and Eirik teased my mind.

“Was Eirik there?” I asked.

“Yes. He and Cora were here until a couple of hours ago when your mother insisted they go home. They have school tomorrow.”

I glanced at Mom. She was usually a light sleeper. She must have been up the last thirty hours to be so tired. Who was taking care of her?

“Don’t worry about her,” Torin said as though reading my thoughts. “She’s a lot stronger than you think. Go back to sleep, Freckles. I’ll be here when you wake up.” He put the cup of ice down and covered my hand.

He fell asleep before I did, his head resting on the bed beside my hip. I stroked his hair, happy despite my banged up body and missing memories. As the pain meds worked their magic, I relived every moment Torin and I had spent together just before Maliina attacked. The kiss, so beautiful and perfect. The feeling of completeness. He hadn’t said he loved me, but he’d claimed me as his. I planned to claim him too as soon as I broke off things with Eirik.

Thoughts of Eirik filled me with sadness. He loved me, but my love for him was not enough. It wasn’t comparable to my feelings for Torin. Maybe there was someone out there for him, someone who’d love him like he deserved. I was still thinking about how I’d break up with him when sleep tugged at my senses and I closed my eyes.

***

It was daytime when I woke up again. The first person I saw was Mom seated on the chair, a magazine on her lap. She looked so miserable. Torin sat in the corner, arms crossed, runes making him invisible to everyone but me.

He smiled and mouthed, “Good morning, Freckles.”

“Good morning.” I didn’t realize I’d spoken out loud until Mom looked up and gasped.

“Oh, honey. You’re awake.” She jumped up, and the magazine fell from her lap. “The nurses told me you woke up last night and talked, but I didn’t believe them. They should have woken me up. How are you feeling? Are you in pain? Do you want me to call the nurse?”

I managed a smile. “No, Mom. I’m fine.”

Tears filled her eyes, and a sob escaped her lips. She covered her mouth. “I was so scared when they told me you were bleeding in your brain. Then they drilled a hole into your skull and… and… I’m sorry I’m going on, but I’m just happy you’re okay.” She sniffled and wiped her cheeks. Then she reached out with a trembling hand as though to touch my head. At the last minute, she stopped, fisted her hand, and gave me a tiny apologetic smile. “Look at me, crying like a baby when you’re finally awake. That cursed tree is being chopped down tomorrow. I already made an appointment with a landscape company.” She turned to pull the chair closer to the bed.

I glanced at Torin in confusion.

“I told her you fell from the tree,” he explained. “It was the only explanation I could give her and the EMT.”

“Don’t blame the tree or cut it down, Mom,” I whispered. “Dad planted it.”

“Your father will understand. Every time I see it, I’ll be reminded of how close I came to losing you. You were right to be wary about climbing it all these years. It’s dangerous.”

There was no point arguing with her once she made up her mind. She could be as stubborn as me. I reached for the water.

“No, don’t move. The doctor said you must not exert yourself.” She picked up the cup and held the straw to my lips. “Are you hungry?”

I nodded.

“I’ll see what the nurses can rustle up.” She disappeared out the door.

Torin moved closer and stroked my hand. “How are you feeling?”

“Better.”

“You missed Eirik and Cora this morning, so don’t be surprised if they come back during lunch.”

Before I could respond, Mom came back. Torin moved back to the corner and watched us with a tiny smile as she fussed over me and talked about the surgery. She reassured me about my hair and the scar. Apparently, they had to shave an area near my ear for the surgery, but my chopped off hair was the least of my problems. The hospital food, when it finally arrived, was awful, and I could barely hold it down.

“Do you want me to get you something else to eat?” Torin asked.

Happy I could see him and talk to him without Mom knowing, I nodded. He left and returned a little later with breakfast—egg and sausage sandwiches and hot chocolate for both of us. By then, Mom had left for home to change. We ate. Then he left so I could rest. He came back hours later with lunch. A few minutes after he arrived, I heard the cheer chant for the Trojan swim team.

We are the Trojans. Oh Yeah
Kayville High top guns. Oh Yeah

When in the pool. Oh Yeah
We are so cool. Oh Yeah

When at a meet. Oh Yeah
We bring the heat. Oh Yeah
We’ve got the hold. Oh Yeah
On all the gold. Oh Yeah

I grinned, recognizing Cora and Eirik’s voices. Even though they weren’t yelling, I was surprised the nurses didn’t kick them out or tell them to zip it. They danced into my hospital room, both of them in Trojan crimson and gold swim pants, jackets, and T-shirts, swim goggles on their foreheads. They continued to chant.

Cause when we race. Oh Yeah

We set the pace. Oh Yeah

We’re number 1. Oh Yeah
The only one. Oh Yeah

Oh Yeah, Oh Yeah, Oh Yeah, Oh Yeah

They finished and posed. Torin stared at them as though they’d lost their minds, but he was trying hard not to laugh. They looked ridiculous, but it was Homecoming week.

“First day of Spirit Week is…?” Cora asked, hands on her hips, head cocked to the side.

“Sports Day,” I said.

Cora’s chin trembled, tears springing to her eyes. “Tomorrow is…?”

“Neon Day, then Wacky Tacky,” I added, my eyes welling, too. “Then my favorite… Character Day.”

“You remembered. That means you’re okay, right? Your brain is working fine.” She closed the gap between us, tears racing down her face.

I lifted my hand toward her, and she gripped it, both of us crying. “They might have drilled a hole into my skull, but I can never forget how crazy you act during Spirit Week. What floor did we get?”

“Second floor, west wing,” Eirik said, grinning.

“We decorated it with blue balloons and streamers, water-themed…” Cora swallowed a sob and glared at me. “Don’t ever scare me like that again. I thought I’d lost you and… and… I want to hug you, but I’m scared of hurting your ribs.” She swiped at her cheeks. “I’ll say it again. Don’t ever,
ever
scare me like that again.” She glanced at Eirik. “Okay, it’s his turn. I’ll wait outside, where I can sob like an idiot without making you cry, too.”

I stared after her and shook my head. She was such a drama queen, and I loved her to death. My eyes connected with Torin’s, but he didn’t make a move to leave. In fact, he leaned back and got comfortable, his expression saying he wasn’t going anywhere. Sighing, I ignored him and focused on Eirik.

Eirik planted a kiss on my forehead, then sat in Mom’s chair and reached for my hand. My eyes went to Torin to see his reaction. Blue ice flashed in his eyes, his annoyance obvious. I knew his display of jealousy shouldn’t please me, but it did anyway.

“Do you want me to get you anything? Something to eat other than hospital food? Bust you out of here?” Eirik asked.

“I have our food here, bonehead,” Torin said.

Once again, I ignored Torin. “That’s sweet, Eirik, but I’m okay food-wise and leaving right now is against the surgeon’s orders.”

Eirik’s smile disappeared. “I’m so sorry I screwed up, Raine.”

“You? What do you mean?”

“It’s my fault you were hurt.”

I frowned. “No, it’s not. Why would you say that?”

“If I hadn’t left you alone to play that stupid game, you wouldn’t have been bored and decided to go home.” He pressed a kiss on my knuckles, and Torin leaned forward as though he wanted to dive across the room and maul him. “You know that I love you.”

Torin growled.

I shot him a warning look, but answered Eirik. “I know.”

“And that I would do anything for you,” Eirik added.

“I know that, too.”

“I let you down, Raine, and I’m really sorry.”

I sighed. “Eirik, don’t—”

“No, let me finish. If you want to change our relationship and go back to being just friends, I’ll understand,” he continued.

Torin sat up and I could only guess at what he was thinking—here was my chance to cut ties with Eirik. But I couldn’t take the coward’s way out and blame Eirik for something he hadn’t done.

“You’re not my keeper, Eirik, and I won’t let you blame yourself for something that wasn’t your fault.”

“You’re sure?”

I nodded. “I tried to climb the tree to get to my bedroom because I didn’t want to wake up Mom. It was my fault, not yours.” My gaze connected with Torin. He didn’t look happy. Eirik, on the other hand, sighed with relief and flashed his famous sunny smile.

“Good, because I wasn’t about to give up on us without a fight,” he said. Then he frowned. “Did Torin have anything to do with you leaving the party?”

“Why do you say that?” I tried not to look at Torin.

“Cora said you were dancing with him. Did he say or do something to make you leave his place? Because if he did—”

“No, he didn’t.” I shook my head. “We danced.”

“And kissed,” Torin added from the corner of the room.

“Was it Jess?”

I shook my head. “No. No one is to blame for what happened to me, Eirik.”

***

“I want to hold you while you sleep,” Torin whispered that night after everyone left.

I scooted to create room for him. Since the incision on my head was behind my right ear, I spent most of the time on my left side. He curled behind me in the narrow bed, his hand resting around my waist. “Let me know if anywhere hurts.”

“I don’t care.”

“I do.” His thumb touched my lips as though to stop me from speaking, but the effect on me was instant. My lips tingled. “I want to kiss you, but I’m afraid of hurting you.”

I wanted to kiss him, too. “You could never hurt me. Not with a kiss.”

He chuckled. “I’ll not want to stop, so let’s not try it. Go to sleep, Freckles.”

The next morning, I opened my eyes and looked into his beautiful eyes. It was still dark outside, and it sounded like the nurses were changing rotations. He cupped my face and gently stroked my cheek. Only one rune glowed on his forehead. He had an amazing ability to control them, I’d noticed.

“I’ll be back later with breakfast,” he whispered.

For the rest of the week, Eirik and Cora stopped by in crazy Spirit Week outfits. Eirik came during lunch and sat with me. In the evenings, he stayed after Cora left, did his homework, and even watched a little TV. Torin left whenever Eirik appeared, but he hated it. I saw it in his eyes, yet I couldn’t bring myself to tell Eirik the truth yet.

Night was my time with Torin. We spent every night together. I didn’t know if he used runes to stay invisible or if he enchanted my room so the nurses saw only what he wanted them to see. I didn’t care. I loved sleeping in his arms.

While he was at school, I tried to stay active by walking around. My doctor encouraged it. Often, I crossed from Surgical to the Women’s Center to see the newborns. It was as though a force I couldn’t explain pulled me there.

“Is one of them yours?” a man asked me.

I laughed at the thought of me with a child. “No. I’m only seventeen.”

“What happened to you?” he asked, his gaze on the bandage around my head.

“I fell from a tree and injured my ribs and head. Which one is yours?”

He grinned with pride and pointed to a puny baby in an incubator. “His name is Jeffrey. He came out early, but he’s a fighter.”