True Love Waits Pt. 04

A long, long time ago in a place where Gods and Diety walked, a girl sat upon a rock staring out to sea waiting patiently for a sign. Beside her, the Domo stood watching as the night gave way to the dawn of the new day. The day when the girl would answer her calling and begin her long-awaited journey. At last, the moment whispered to her and she stood before her teacher with her long black hair flowing around her like a mountain stream.

"Do you hear the voice of the spirit?" the old man asked her. "If so, then your wait is at an end."

Turning to the Sun God sat high in the early morning sky, the girl smiled and spread her arms wide as she transformed into the Fenghuang and soared into the wide blue yonder to fulfill her destiny.

***

Beneath the old Victorian gas lamp, the group of friends stood talking as a gust of wind blew flurries of freshly fallen snow around them. "He's gone," said the boy to the Chinese girl who stood there in her black coat, blue knitted scarf, and red bobble hat.

Jyn stared at him as she felt her heart skip a beat. "Gone?"

The boy looked at her and nodded. "Back home with his family. He was my cousin."

Gone? How could he be gone? She had only just met him yesterday. And now he was gone?

"Home?" she asked.

The boy pointed over her shoulder. "Uh-huh, that a way. Back to America."

Jyn turned and looked to where he was pointing. America? But that was on the other side of the world. A million miles away from here. "No" she whispered as she fell to her knees in the snow and began to cry.

***

"Hey, Bozo," said a familiar voice as someone slipped their hand into his.

Slowly opening his eyes, Joss saw his sister sitting to his right watching him as he smiled and squeezed her hand. "Hey," he replied with his voice barely a whisper. His throat still felt raw and saying anything at all made him wince with pain.

"Water?" asked Carly.

He nodded and felt her ease her hand behind his head to support him as she brought the glass to his lips and he took a few sips that felt like heaven. When he was done he looked around the room.

"Where's mom?" he asked.

His sister rolled her eyes. "Probably being a pain in the ass," she sighed. "Talking with the consultants and various other people in charge here. Keeping them on their toes. You know what she's like," Seeing her brother look around the room with a frown on his face, she rested a hand on his shoulder. "Hey," she said softly. "You okay?"

It had been three days since he had woken up.

And In those three days, he had lain there in his hospital bed quietly watching and listening to everything and everyone around him as he felt himself getting stronger and more aware of his surroundings.

Physically, his body had been repaired with each broken bone bolted and fused with his shattered pelvis pinned and plated back into place. His vision was still slightly blurred but the Doctors had told him they expected his sight would improve over time.

But something had changed. Something was different. The world around him wasn't quite the same somehow and the reason seemed to be just out of reach to him.

As had become routine, the hospital staff moved around him as strangers became familiar faces even if he didn't know all their names. The door to his room opened and in walked his mother with two consultants, Strickland and Baxter, who stood to his right going over the latest test results and discussing his overall prognosis which had gone from critical care to rehabilitation.

For Joss though, his mind was elsewhere as he stared intently at the tv on the wall that had been switched on and was tuned to one of the major news networks. To his utter astonishment, there on the screen was a portrait photo of him taken at his graduation five years ago back in the USA.

What the hell?

His sister saw the surprised look on his face. "Don't you know?" she asked him. "Has no one told you what happened and about what you did?"

He shook his head as he continued to watch the news report and the footage of a Fire-fighter inside a burning apartment rescuing someone. It took a moment for him to realize that the Fire-fighter was him.

His mother came over and sat beside him. Taking his hand, she nodded at the screen. "You saved those two little girls, Joss," she told him and he saw there were tears in her eyes. "I can't begin to tell you how proud I am of you. We all are. You did a very brave thing and the whole world saw you doing it," She brushed the hair from his brow. "My son. The hero."

Stunned, Joss looked around the room. Everyone was looking at him as he tried to take it all in. "Everybody?" he asked.

Carly laughed. "Brother, you have no idea."

***

"Do you think you should go in today?"

Jyn turned to her friend. "Why not?" she replied with a shrug. "What else would I do?"

Connie stared out of the window at the group of photographers below. They had been camped outside of the apartment they shared ever since the press found out where Jyn lived a couple of days ago. The attention was not only crazy but a little bit scary for the two of them even though the Police were involved and the hospital had arranged for transport to pick them up.

"You switched shifts?"

Jyn nodded. "They thought it best if I do nights so there are fewer people around. It's the sensible thing to do I guess due to the circumstances and everything. They also think the best way forward is for me to do an arranged photocall with the press," she explained. "Don't think I can do that, to be honest. Things could get out of hand."

"With him?"

"Yes," replied Jyn. "Otherwise what would be the point?"

Connie walked over to the pile of newspapers that were on the coffee table and picked the one on top showing the intimate photo of her friend and the man in the bed. The image had a fairy-tale hint about it. Like it had been painted with deliberate care and love. She glanced at her friend who stood looking out of their window.

What a remarkable young woman she was. No wonder she attracted attention wherever she went. She had often wondered why her friend was deliberately single and who seemed to want to be alone. Maybe, after the events of the past few days, she would discover that reason.

Looking at the photo on the front page of the newspaper, there was one thing she wanted to ask her friend. "What did you say to him?"

Jyn turned at the question. What should she tell her closest friend? That she had answered something this presumed stranger had asked her a long time ago? That moment in time was her most cherished memory and the thought of it had become a place where she found herself most at peace. It gave her comfort. A feeling of warmth on a cold night.

"Remember when I told you I already belonged to someone?"

Connie stared at Jyn. She did remember but she had always imagined that had been just an easy excuse to avoid going out with someone she didn't want to go out with.

"You mean.."

Jyn nodded.

"He's the one I belong to."

***

Flames burst into life and he found himself surrounded by a wall of heat that sparked and flared as the fire came for him. Reaching up, he grabbed his face mask and tried to calm the terror he was feeling.

He was dreaming again and he was back inside the fiery nightmare that had nearly taken his life. Above, it was the clearest of nights with the burning embers a brilliant orange and yellow against the pitch-black canvas as they flickered and fluttered on the breeze.

As before, a sense of increasing panic began to overwhelm him as he tried to escape from the inferno. But there was no escape because there was nowhere else to go as he held up his gloved hands and watched as they began to smolder and smoke with the intense heat. Everything felt so real as he collapsed onto his knees staring up at the night sky.

Somehow, he felt as one with the universe and watched as the air around him appeared to shimmer as something began to take shape a short distance in front of him. For a moment, he thought it was some sort of golden bird but then it became something familiar. It was her. The girl who had brought him back from the abyss. She stopped before him with her long black hair swirling around her alabaster nakedness as she placed a hand on his right cheek as he stared up at her.

In the deepest, darkest corner of his soul, The spirit smiled.

***

"Wake up," said a voice.

Gasping at the intensity of his nightmare, Joss opened his eyes and stared at the silhouetted figure standing over him as he struggled to breathe with his heart loudly pounding in his chest. It was late and the only light in the room was a small lamp on a table against the far wall.

"Shhhhh," the girl whispered. "You're safe now. It was only a dream."

He nodded before realizing she was holding both his hands tightly as he looked around the room in confusion. "A dream?" he muttered as he began to relax and she let him go.

Reaching across him, Jyn switched on the reading light above his head and saw he was covered in sweat. Taking a wipe, she cleaned his face and made him more comfortable as he sat back against his pillows before she went to the bottom of his bed to check the clipboard for the latest medical update.

Satisfied, she glanced up to find he was looking at her and she suddenly felt the distance between them become so very small. It also occurred to her that this was the first time they had been alone together ever since she had shyly waved to him in the snow all those years ago.

"Hello, Mr. Vandenburg," she said simply as he continued to stare at her in silence.

***

As he looked at the dark-haired nurse, the Fire-fighter knew that his life would never be the same again as she stood there in her uniform. Her long thick black hair had been bound and braided with the end frayed like a fan that hung over her right shoulder and as he continued to stare at her he saw her blush and drop her gaze.

The pure whiteness of her skin seemed to glow under the soft light and all he wanted to do was just sit there and look at her. Breathtaking was the only word he could think of that would do her justice as his gaze was drawn to the nametag pinned to her uniform

He finally found his voice. "Hello," he replied.

"How are you feeling?" asked Jyn.

He gave a rueful wince. "Been better."

"Yes," she smiled. "I can imagine," Continuing, she moved a hand across her face. "Eyes?"

Joss blinked. "Uh, improving, I think," he told her. "The other nurse gave me some drops earlier. Things seem to be clearer and the ache has pretty much gone."

"Can you see me?" said Jyn. "How do I look?"

Joss smiled at the question for the answer was obvious. "You look absolutely perfect" he wanted to say. Instead, he said "Halliday."

Amused, Jyn gave him a little formal Chinese bow and put her hands together in front of her. "Hěn gāoxìng jiàn dào nǐ," she replied. "Nice to meet you. May I continue to see how you are?"

Joss eased back against his pillow enjoying the way her character came through in the way she spoke and framed things. "Sure, okay."

For the next couple of minutes, he sat watching as the nurse took each hand and turned them over as she examined them. Wriggling his fingers, she squeezed some lotion out of a bottle into her hands and began to rub and massage the cream into the hard skin that had formed because of his burns.

Seeing she was concentrating on what she was doing, he took the opportunity to look at her properly as his eyes roamed over her deep black hair as she sat on the bed beside him. The contrast with her unblemished skin was striking and he would have loved nothing more than to run his fingers through it to feel its weight and texture. He imagined she was Chinese as his eyes moved over her face with its distinctive features. Dark eyes. Delicate cheeks. Pert nose. Full red lips. Pure white skin. She really was perfect.

His gaze dropped to the hint of cleavage and he felt the change in his mood at the obvious secrets that lay hidden inside just waiting to be discovered. It took him a second to realize she had stopped doing what she had been doing and he glanced up to see her watching him with those piercing dark eyes.

"Uh," he mumbled as there was a knock on the door and in walked a young woman who stopped and looked at the two of them holding hands.

"Oh," said Carly, sounding surprised. "Hello."

Slightly embarrassed, Jyn got to her feet and grabbed a wipe to clean her hands. "Hello," she replied quickly as she stepped away from the bed and pretended to smooth down the front of her uniform. She had already learned that this was his sister who had arrived a day after his accident from America along with their mother.

Turning to the man in the bed, Jyn grabbed the tray. "There, Mr. Vandenburg. All done," she said and gave his sister a smile as she walked past her and left the room.

Carly watched the nurse leave and turned to look at her brother who was staring intently at the young woman as she closed the door.

"Do you know who she is?" she asked him.

Joss looked at his sister. "Who she is?" he asked confused. "Isn't she one of the intensive care nurses on the rota to keep an eye on me?"

"You really don't know?" she wondered.

Joss shook his head. What was she talking about? Was there something they weren't telling him? What was going on? What made that girl so different from all the others?

"Carly?" he said.

His sister didn't reply but left the room and came back a couple of minutes later holding something in her hand. "I think you should take a look at this," she told him as she held up an old newspaper for him to see.

Joss stared at the front page.

But it wasn't the two people in the photo that he was looking at.

It was a name. The name of the nurse in the photo.

The "Angel of Light" was called Jyn Halliday.

"Jyn," he whispered.

After all these years, he had found her.

***

The world is so very different when she is sleeping.

Back home, Jyn stood looking out of her apartment window having returned from her late-night shift at the hospital. She was still in her uniform as she took a sip of orange juice and looked at the old framed parchment in her hand. On it was something her mother had written for her father before they had married a long time ago.

As was Chinese tradition, it was a message of devotion from one lover to another.

"I don't need paradise because I found you nor dreams because I have you. Together is the only place I want to be for I cannot love you more than I do today but I know I will tomorrow."

Jyn had read those words so many times she knew them off by heart. As she looked up at the night sky, she whispered a silent prayer to the spirit that created her and hoped the path she was walking in this life was the one she wanted more than anything.

***

Two further days passed and the auditorium was packed.

Every seat was taken and the room was full of the world's press and media who were waiting for the news conference to begin as the Fire-fighter was brought in through a side entrance where he was met by the hospital communications manager.

"Mr. Vandenburg," he nodded to the man in the wheelchair. "Welcome to bedlam," he quipped. "Alright, so the plan is I'll go out and make a statement on behalf of St. Bernards and give the media the latest update then I'll introduce you first so that the press can get their photos or whatever out of the way. Taking questions is entirely up to you if you feel up to it. Let's see how it goes. Hopefully, everyone can then move on with.."

Joss looked around him. "What about the girl," he asked. "The nurse?"

The official glanced at the people with him. "Well, as I said, the plan was to do this together and from what I understand, Nurse Halliday has yet to arrive. We'll get this thing started and see how it goes."

Joss nodded but didn't say anything as he was wheeled out in front of the world's media who all wanted their photos or interview with the hero of the hour.

***

After an initial introduction, the media were then allowed to ask questions which covered everything from the accident itself to how he became a Fire-fighter in the first place as well as more personal questions about his private life which Joss answered with a "no comment" before the official moved on.

Then someone asked, "What do you remember of what you did?"

Joss shifted slightly in his wheelchair. Despite the painkillers, he could still feel the ache in his lower body where his bones had been bolted together. He was on a small stage with his sister by his side along with other hospital officials and staff.

"Uh, well," he began as he looked up at the mass of tv cameras, reporters, and press who filled the four circular tiers of the auditorium. He had already posed for the photographers when he first came into the room and only now and again did flashbulbs go off when he agreed to answer a few questions despite his obvious fatigue. "To be honest, not much. Just brief flashes really. Like the ragdoll. Finding the other girl in the cupboard under a pile of clothes. The bright light. The loud bang," He frowned and shook his head. "That's pretty much it. Apart from the dream."

"The dream?" asked the reporter.

Joss stopped. What else should he say? How could he talk about that without sounding like a complete loon? But it was true. He did remember the dream. And the girl with the long dark hair who spoke to him inside it.

He shrugged and shook his head. "Ah, it was nothing. I think that's enough for now."

At the sound of the side-door opening, everyone in the room turned to see a young Chinese woman standing there in her nurses uniform. Instantly, the auditorium exploded into a firework display as every camera turned in her direction.

Blinded by the flashing lights, Jyn stood frozen to the spot stunned by the reaction as someone came to stand behind her.

It was her best friend who gave her a hug. "You okay?" asked Connie.

Jyn nodded. She was far from okay. How could she not be? Everyone was staring at her and she suddenly felt completely overwhelmed by it all. Despite her misgivings, there was only one reason she was there and he was sitting in his wheelchair looking at her along with everyone else. Beside him, there was an empty chair waiting for her to join him. The public not only wanted to see the hero and his "Angel of Light" but they wanted to see them together.

When he smiled at her she knew everything would be alright as one of the organizers came towards her so she could be brought onto the stage to be introduced to the media so that the news conference could continue.

Walking towards him, she felt more confident in herself and somehow understood that he would let nothing bad happen to her as she took her seat and glanced at him.

"Hey," he winked which made her smile shyly at him and the room disappear again into a world of electronic flashes and thunderous clicks followed by a thousand questions all asked at the same time. It took the official a moment to bring everyone to order as he explained who the nurse was and her role at the hospital.

And as all this was going on, the only thing Jyn was thinking about was how she was sat next to the man who had chased her in the snow all those years ago.

***

And then, finally, came the one question everyone wanted to ask.

"What did you say to him?" said the young woman reporter who was sat a few rows from the front of the stage where Jyn was sitting. "Everyone wants to know what you said to him because he woke up a short while later. People think it was because of you that he did so."

Jyn felt her heart pounding in her chest. Not sure of what to say, she stared at the woman who had asked the question and then around the room at everyone looking at her. Imagining her mother sat at home back in China watching her, she knew she would tell her daughter to speak the truth.