True Love Waits Pt. 03

"Fate brings people together no matter how far apart they may be. Separated as we are, thousands of miles between us, we come together as if willed by destiny."

***

He slowly opened his eyes to find himself staring up at a crystal clear blue sky and the sound of waves breaking upon the shore. After a moment, he sat up and looked around to discover he was on a golden sandy beach that stretched either side of him as far as the eye could see. Taking a moment to gather himself, he got to his feet and held his hands out in front of him as he realized he was all alone in this beautiful but strange place.

Listening to the whisper of the breeze, a sudden feeling of unease came over him as a memory flared brightly dancing and flickering just out of reach. He closed his eyes and tried to remember what had happened to him. A fire. There had been a fire and something had gone wrong. Something terrible. Something that had changed everything.

And now he was here.

Above, that crystal clear blue sky was slowly beginning to turn dark.

***

People were still milling around the canteen as Jyn sat by herself with the first light of dawn flickering through the windows.

Everything was quiet now. Time had returned to its natural rhythm as she eased back in her chair and closed her eyes. So much had happened in the previous hours that her mind was still trying to make sense of everything as she took a sip of coffee from her plastic cup.

The incident was over and the hospital had finally been able to stand down from its alert status. The initial intake had been treated and discharged with most now being housed in various shelters by the local authorities. Only ten had been admitted including the two girls who had been the last to be rescued along with their mother and older sister.

Then there was him. The man. The Fire-fighter.

Jyn slowly opened her eyes.

He shouldn't be here. How could he be here?

But he was. She was sure it was him. The name. That small scar. The past had slipped into her present and it felt like someone had reached inside her chest and was gently manipulating her heart which was suffused with an aching warmth that was beginning to consume her.

Jyn smiled to herself as she remembered something her mother had once said to her many years ago. She had been fourteen and they had been out on an Autumn walk together. To her mother, Jyn always knew she was a curiosity. Luminous but reserved. Quiet but confident and aware of her place. So very much a child of China.

It was early morning with the sun breaking through the September clouds. They were sat together on a wooden bench overlooking a small mist-covered lake. "Even though you are here, daughter," said her mother. "Sometimes you feel so very far away."

"Do I?" Jyn replied as she looked across the still water.

Her mother smiled. "Is it a boy?"

Jyn kept silent but nodded. Even though it had been four years, it was always about a boy. That one special boy. Looking down at her hands, she considered her words. "I met someone," she whispered. "Not now but a long time ago. Back when I was much younger," She glanced at her mother who was looking at her with a small smile on her lips. "And something happened."

Resting a hand on her daughters, her mother gave a squeeze of encouragement for she sensed her daughter was troubled about something. "Remember what I used to tell you when you were a little girl?" she reminded her gently. "From me came you. Forever as one. Sweet Jyn, speak freely of things on your mind."

Jyn nodded. Her mother was wise beyond her years and was a reflection of her own mother upon who the Hidoka family line revolved. "He was a Gwelio. A white boy. Older. But he was different somehow. Not like the others. We were," She stopped for a moment trying to think of the right words. "Playing a game. And he found me and said something. Something I have never forgotten. Even all these years later."

Her mother didn't say anything for a second. "And what he said is important to you?"

"Yes," whispered Jyn as she looked into her mother's eyes. "It is the only thing that matters, mama."

Sensing the quiet determination of her daughter, the older woman nodded. "Even a journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step. I feel yours is just beginning, my Jyn. If it is meant to be then it is meant to be. In time, you will discover if the path you walk in this life is the path you seek."

Her mother spoke in the old tongue and saw the world in the old ways where wisdom and honor were simple truths to be lived by. Who she was and what she would become was something that would be defined by those words.

Another voice spoke to her.

"Nurse," it said as Jyn opened her eyes and looked up to see one of the canteen staff smiling down at her. The memory of her mother slipped away as she returned from her past. The woman laid a hand on her shoulder. " It's been a long shift. You need to go home and get some rest."

She shook her head slightly. Rest? How could she rest knowing he was here. Knowing that he was seriously injured and in a coma? All she wanted to do was to be near him. To be there when he woke. If he woke. She closed her eyes. That was something she didn't even want to think about. To have the one true meaning in her life taken away before she could do or say anything.

But the lady was right. She was exhausted both mentally and physically. The sensible thing to do would be to go home and get some sleep. And the one she was, above all else, was sensible. Resigned, she nodded and got up to go collect her things from the locker room.

Today was done. Tomorrow would bring what she brought.

***

"Not looking good."

Jyn looked up at the registrar as she signed in. The reception area was still busy with a section cordoned off for the media who were waiting for further updates. The car park was packed with satellite vans from different stations from all around the world and it felt like the hospital was under some sort of siege. And all because of one man.

Trying to keep her emotions in check, Jyn read the duty board. As expected, she was assigned as a backup for the main team handling intensive care. "Has his condition changed?" she asked.

The woman sighed. "Nearly lost him a couple of hours ago," she replied. "He was gone a long time before they got him back. Never seen anything like it. A huge effort. All the top people were there working on him. Right now, he's listed as critical but from what I understand they don't expect him to live for much longer."

Jyn didn't say anything but nodded. Despite everything, she knew how badly he had been injured and what the likely outcome was going to be. She had been there during the initial diagnosis from the consultant surgeons who had first attended to him and had listened intently as they discussed various options as she and the other nurses had cleaned the patient up and made him comfortable even if he was in a deep coma.

When they were done, she stopped for a moment and stared at him. Free from his charred uniform and equipment, he looked so innocent and helpless lying there connected up to the life support system keeping him alive. Though it had been over ten years since she had last seen him, she could still see the resemblance of the boy she had met briefly so long ago.

He had grown into a handsome man with thick, tousled brown hair and a slightly angular looking face with a firm jawline. His skin bore the marks of the fire and had a red tinge to it especially around his eyes and she could see that, wherever he was, he was dreaming. And in her heart of hearts, she knew It would take a miracle for him to recover.

But the funny thing about miracles...

***

The Fire-fighter had been moved to a side room within the intensive care department where he could be monitored more closely and in private.

After exchanging notes with the head nurse from the previous shift, Jyn walked into the room and stood looking at the man in the bed. The only light was from the various electronic displays which lent the room a strange, yet soothing, reddish-orange glow with the soft beep from his heartbreaking the clinical silence.

Staring at the rise and fall of his chest, she thought he looked at peace. That he wasn't really here at all but in another place. A place away from the pain. Perhaps it was for the best he remain there she thought but then that would mean he would be no longer be in the world where she was.

Her colleague came in and began to check the drips and tubes keeping him alive and recording the results on both a tablet and the clipboard at the end of the bed. When she was done, the older nurse turned to Jyn.

"His breathing has changed," she noted as they both looked at the patient. "Only a matter of time now. He won't feel a thing as he's heavily sedated. Hopefully, his family can get here in time."

"Family?" asked Jyn.

The woman checked her watch and nodded. "Next of kin from America. His mother and sister, I think. Should be here in a couple of hours."

The idea of family raised an obvious question. "Does he have a wife?"

"Uh, not sure. Don't think so," she mused. "Least not as far as I know. Time for a coffee?"

Jyn shook her head. "No, think I'll just get my things and head home. You go. I'll clean up here and I'll see you tomorrow."

The other woman nodded. "Okay. Catch you later," she said before she left the room to leave Jyn alone with the man in the bed.

***

Walking to his side, Jyn stared at his right hand before taking it in hers. He was warm to the touch and every now and then his fingers would involuntarily twitch which brought a smile to her lips. It was a small thing. A silly thing. But it somehow made him feel more alive to her.

There was so much she wanted to say but she didn't even know if he would hear any of it. This man who had been such an important part of her life even when he wasn't there for most of it. But she felt she had to say something.

"The snow," she began. "Do you remember the snow?" She sat on the bed beside him still holding his hand. "I remember the snow. And how hard it was to run when you came after me. The moment I first saw you I knew I wanted it to be you who caught me. I don't really know why. But when you did I was so happy," Jyn closed her eyes as she relived the memory. "I felt it in here," she said, holding his hand over her heart. "It was then I knew. That I understood. And when you asked me that question I realized that I had to wait before I could answer it."

The memory of their brief time together was the dream that had bound her to him and now that dream was about to come to an end. A sad, heartbreaking end and there was nothing she could do to stop it.

But she knew there was one thing she had to do. One final moment between them that had to be done and that was to answer the question he had asked her a long time ago. Reaching up, she brushed the hair from his forehead and moved closer to him so that her lips were close to the side of his face.

And as the universe turned, she whispered her lost love for him as if she was saying a final goodbye.

Behind her, there was a bright flash of light.

***

Joss Vandenburg stared up into the black void with his world becoming smaller and smaller as it continued to shrink all around him. He knew his end was coming as the sum of his existence washed over him. Who he was. What he had done. The life he had lived was slipping away and there was nothing he could do about it.

He stood there on the sand, closed his eyes, and waited.

"Ni hao," said a soft voice behind him. "Hello."

Surprised, he turned and saw a girl walking towards him. For a brief moment, he thought she was nothing more than a figment of his imagination. A last memory before the end.

The girl was naked and her long black hair swirled around her like a veil as it shimmered under the fading light. He stared at her for what felt like an age before it finally dawned on him who she was.

He was about to say something but she stepped closer to him and put a finger to his lips. The girl looked up and he could see the infinite in the deep black of her eyes. He felt his heart beginning to fade and his breathing shallow as his spirit ebbed away. With his last breath and tears running down his face, the night came for him.

Taking his hand, the girl looked into his eyes and smiled as the light within her wrapped around them both as she spoke to him. It was the reply to the question he had asked her long ago.

"Wo dengle," she whispered. "I waited."

***

People were staring at her.

It was the following day and, as usual, Jyn had dropped into her local supermarket to get a few things before she began her shift at the hospital. Despite everything, she had managed to get a few hours sleep and was up and around by mid-morning having breakfast and making sure she was ready to go.

As she approached the self-service section, two men holding cameras suddenly approached her and began taking photos as she stopped in shock wondering what was going on as the other customers stood around watching. Had something happened?

One of the assistants came up to her. "Are you alright?" she asked as the photographers continued to move around her with flashbulbs going off. The woman turned to another worker. "Go get security," she told her and they both watched as the younger girl nodded and ran off.

Jyn turned to the older woman. "I'm sorry," she began. "But I.."

"You don't know?"

Confused, Jyn shook her head. What on earth was going on?

The assistant took her arm and together they made their way to the section where the magazine and newspapers were displayed. People continued to stare at her as they approached the stand.

Jyn stopped.

On every tabloid and broadsheet front page was a photo of the Fire-fighter in his private room and there comforting him as he lay in his bed was a dark-haired woman leaning over him with her face close to his and who looked like she was whispering something to him.

Illuminated by the soft lights around them, the image made her look ethereal and spiritual like some mythical sprite meant to guide a lost soul back to the land of the living. Somehow, someone had gained access to the intensive care department and had taken a photo of her private moment with him.

The assistant went over, picked up a copy and handed it to her as Jyn stood there in a complete daze as she stared at the newspaper. Confused, she looked up at the woman who smiled at her.

"He woke up," she told her. "Late last night. They're calling you his guardian angel."

***

In the darkest of nights, he heard a soft voice whisper.

Looking up at the black void that surrounded him, he realized that the naked girl had disappeared and he sensed that he was floating. Above him, needles of light streaked across space like multi-colored shooting stars as the midnight turned into a deep majestic red.

Something had changed. He could feel it. It felt as if he was being pulled from the edge of a vast abyss towards another place. Another destiny. Something had come for him. To guide him back to where he was meant to be.

Something or someone.

The dark was slowly turning to light and he gasped as his senses suddenly overwhelmed him with tears running down his cheeks. He opened his eyes to a kaleidoscope of submerged color as he took his first deep breath of pure oxygen.

He had returned from wherever he had been. He blinked but his vision was nothing more than a watery mirage as he tried to swallow and winced at the pain. He could just make out ghostly shadows moving around him with the sound of raised voices as he tried to say something to let them know he was there. But he was tired. Exhausted. And the comfort of sleep wrapped herself around him to keep him safe.

He was home. Back to where he should be.

And all because of the dark-haired girl in his dream.

***

Everything and everyone stopped when Jyn entered the main hospital lobby escorted by the Police who kept the baying press and crowd at bay.

This young Chinese woman was the center of attention as she stood there blinking at the frenzy of lights and questions being shouted towards her. The blonde Policewoman who had been in the backseat of the car with her put a hand on her shoulder.

"You okay?" she shouted above the din.

Wide-eyed with confusion, Jyn nodded. It only seemed like five minutes ago she had been stood in the supermarket with the manager saying he was going to call the Police as things were getting out of hand with people wanting to see the "whispering girl" who was on the front of every newspaper and being talked about on every morning news and entertainment show.

A familiar face stepped in front of her. "Come this way, Jyn," said the nurse. "To the restroom. It'll be quieter in there."

Jyn nodded and smiled gratefully at Connie as they made their way through the reception area where people were standing watching as they took photos or recorded the moment on their phones. Closing the door behind them, Jyn sat down at a table as the younger woman stared out of the window at the situation outside.

"Well," said Connie with a laugh. "That's one way to make an entrance. Looks like you got famous."

"Are you sure you're okay?" asked the Policewoman who was updating her superiors over the radio as another two officers came into the room. "We've been told to remain here until everything calms down. Hospital security will take care of the press and tv."

On the table in front of her was a newspaper. Picking it up, Jyn stared at herself on the front page under the headline "Angel of Light" with the byline "Hero Fireman back from the dead." and read the story about what had happened. She looked up to see the others in the room staring at her.

"Do you want to see him?" asked her friend.

***

He was awake but still dreaming.

Those dreams were memories he was remembering as his mind continued to recover and a way his sub-conscious was helping him begin to heal. He knew he was in a hospital. In a bed. Hooked up to God knows what that had kept his body alive even when he wasn't there. He still felt weak and could barely raise his head from the pillow. Even opening his eyes was a huge effort. Time was the most important thing to him right now. He knew it would take time to recover.

It was then he sensed someone was in the room with him.

Propped up on the pillow, he opened his eyes to see the silhouette of a woman with long dark hair curled over her right shoulder standing at the bottom of the bed watching him. He tried to blink away the tears and to say something from behind the mask he was wearing to help with his breathing.

The woman remained silent but continued to stare at him as he hesitantly reached up and tried to remove the mask. Quickly, she moved to his side and took his hand in hers as she pressed a finger to her lips and shook her head. Through his blurred vision, he could barely make out her features but it was the dark amber of her eyes that captured him with a silent promise as she looked down at him.

She laid his hand down and put hers together as if in prayer before resting her face on one side telling him he should go to sleep. He nodded and closed his eyes somehow knowing she would be there for him and keep him safe.

Then he felt the soft touch of her lips on his forehead as he let himself slip into the land of dreams.

End of part 3.