Read Online SCARRED - Part 5 by Kylie Walker - Free Book Online Page B

were glued shut.
    “Maybe that’s too much,” she said. “Maybe just squeeze my hand, baby. Can you do that? Squeeze it for me.”
    Derek concentrated hard that time. He couldn’t squeeze, but he thought maybe his pinky finger moved. “That’s it!” Chloe said in an excited voice. “That’s it! One finger at a time, Derek! Try it again.” He put everything he had into that hand...this time his pinky and his ring finger moved.
    “Yes! You can hear me! You’re awesome, baby!”
    He was proud that he made her so happy. He didn’t know why moving his fingers was something to be proud of all of a sudden. He felt Chloe touch her lips to his forehead. Her lips were so soft and warm, but her cheeks were wet. She was crying. Damn it! He had to open his eyes and find out what was going on.
    He let his focus go from his hand and back up to his eyelids. Come on, pull them open. Just a crack so that she knows you’re here... He struggled with them, they were so damn heavy and so dry.
    “Your eyes are moving! That’s it, baby. Open those gorgeous blue eyes for me.”
    He struggled harder until at last a sliver of light assaulted his right eye. It burned and he closed it as quickly as he’d opened it up. “Yes! You’re doing awesome, baby. Take your time. I know it’s hard...I want to see your eyes so bad!”
    Derek struggled to open them again. It was giving him a headache, but he wasn’t going to give up. He wrestled with the lids that felt like they weighed a thousand pounds...finally they were both open just a slit. He couldn’t see anything except for lights and shadows. He tried to focus them. He needed to see Chloe.
    “Yes Derek! Hi! Can you see me?”
    No! All I see are shadows. Is that shadow you, Chloe? I wish I could talk to you. My voice won’t work.
    “I’m going to get the nurse, okay?”
    Derek told his hand to grip hers tighter...it did! He didn’t want her to go. Chloe squealed. “You don’t want me to go? I won’t go honey, I won’t leave you. Here, I’ll press the call light.” Chloe reached across him.
    He felt the warmth radiating off her body and smelled the light tropical scent of the lotion she wore. His eyes hurt because they were so dry and holding them open made them hurt worse. He was afraid to close them though. What if I can’t get them back open? What if they don’t work anymore and I never get to see her again?
    “Did you need something?” This time Derek heard a female voice he didn’t recognize.
    “Yes! Look, he’s opening his eyes. He squeezed my hand too!”
    Derek felt a presence on the other side of the bed.
    “Well, look at that. Hi there, Mr. Stark. I’m going to shine a little light in your eyes, okay?”
    Derek wasn’t completely sure what was going on, but he somehow knew that he was at her mercy. He felt his eye lid being drawn open by a finger. The light got stronger and the shadows deeper, but still no color and nothing solid...A light was shone directly into that eye and then she did the same with the other. The stranger slipped her hand into his on the opposite side of the bed from Chloe.
    “Mr. Stark, can you hear me? If you can, squeeze my hand.”
    Derek could hear her. He tried to squeeze her hand...he tried hard. He couldn’t do it.
    “It’s okay, take your time.”
    He tried again. His head was pounding...Damn it! His eyes were closed again. When did that happen? His fingers started to curl and although he could feel that it was weak, he wrapped them around the small hand of the stranger.
    “He did it!” Chloe was so excited that he wanted to do it again, just to please her. “That’s a good sign, right? He can follow instructions?”
    “Yes, it’s a good sign,” the stranger said. “I’ll let the doctor know.”
    “Thank you!”
    Derek felt Chloe’s lips on his forehead again. He was happy that he’d made her happy, but now he was tired. He had to sleep for a while and then he would try it again. He would squeeze harder after he