CHAPTER 507: THE LIGHT WE WAITED FOR (6)

Rocky did not even know how much he had missed his sister until he laid eyes on her in that room. Maybe deep down, he knew that Shelby was already in good hands, but that aside, Rocky was the only one who could truly understand it ... the whoosh of breath that left his lungs when he saw her standing there, whole and alive.

No matter what, there was a small part of himself that held some doubt. He could not even bring himself to fault Ian on this, despite the many ’accidents’ that Shelby had faced since marrying into the Thornston home.

The weight Rocky had been carrying... it hadn’t fallen off all at once. It peeled away in pieces ... the guilt, the dread, the sleepless nights wondering if she were buried in some unmarked place, if he’d ever see her again, if the last thing he’d said to her was that he loved her... if .. if ... if.

It was the same as Shelby felt towards Ava, but for Rocky, it had been more than that... saddled with the weight of both his sister and his new family in Ava had been a lot, and he could not afford to let himself break down, but then... here she was.

It was not a dream. She was not a ghost. Shelby was as real as could be.

He hadn’t even realized how heavy the burden had become until it started to lift. Like a hand had reached into his chest and removed something rotten, something crushing, without warning, his knees nearly buckled with the weight of that sudden, overwhelming relief, and he held her tighter.

It was both out of relief and for himself as well. Rocky needed that reassurance and comfort from someone, and among all he knew, it was Shelby and Ava who could give him that.

"You have no idea, Sis", he whispered, his voice cracking, "what it’s been like thinking you were gone. Every single day. I kept looking, even when I told myself you were probably..."

He couldn’t finish, and Shelby didn’t need him to. She just hugged him harder.

And in that moment, surrounded by the steady beeping of machines and the unbearable stillness of Ava on the bed, they shared something no one else in the world could touch:

The aching, gut-deep gratitude of getting a second chance, one that the siblings had never thought much of.

They stood in silence for a moment, the machines behind them the only sound. Then his gaze shifted to the bed, and his expression changed. It first softened and then hardened, but Rocky did not let go,

"She hasn’t woken up," he said quietly. "Not once, since that day. Why? Just why?"

"I know," Shelby whispered, still resting her head on Rocky’s chest and in his embrace, swallowing hard. "I saw..... I saw..." Her voice caught, but she didn’t finish the sentence. She didn’t need to.

Rocky closed his eyes. "I didn’t know .... I didn’t even think..." He shook his head, face twisting. "I should’ve .... I should’ve done more. I just... I didn’t know where to start."

Rocky really did not know how to express his emotions at that time, but then the guilt that hung thick between them, tangled up with grief, and the love they both still held for Ava, who lay silent between two machines, was overwhelming, yet Ian did not interfere. However, his eyes remained on Shelby at all times.

As Rocky held her, arms wrapped tight like he could press the truth of her existence into his bones, something shifted. It was a light, quick, almost like a ripple between their connected bodies.

It was like a flutter.

’Huh’

This was enough to bring Rocky’s attention back to the room, and he frowned, but then it happened again. This time it was a slight, unmistakable kick.

He froze as the implication of it sank in his mind, taking him more than a split second to react.

Shelby felt it too. This baby had become too active since they had returned. Her body stilled beneath Rocky’s sudden touch, and she let out the softest gasp, smiling. This little baby was going to be an active one!

Rocky’s eyes widened as he instinctively pulled back, hands moving near her midsection, his expression caught between shock and wonder.

"You... is that ... ?" he started, breathless.

Shelby gave a teary, half-laugh, wiping at her face. "Yeah. That was the baby."

He looked down at her gently rounded belly that he had initially missed in his flurry of emotions, as if he were seeing the world for the first time. His mouth parted, but no words came. Just awe. Then joy. It was honest, shining joy that broke through the exhaustion clouding his face.

"You’re really ...." He swallowed hard. "You’re really pregnant. I’m going to be an uncle! Again!"

Rocky was too amazed but genuinely happy for his sister. Shely had gone through a lot in life, and Rocky had never imagined her giving birth; he knew that his sister would be amazing as a mother.

"Mmm! I found out not long after the accident," she said quietly. "Didn’t even get a chance to tell anyone yet. You’re technically the first family to have heard of it directly from us."

For a second, the room felt different. Not lighter, not quite ... but warmer. Like, even in the cold grip of tragedy, something beautiful still dared to live.

Rocky reached out slowly, reverently, resting a trembling hand over the place he’d felt that flutter. And when the baby kicked again, stronger this time, he let out a breathless laugh .... one part relief, one part joy, one part something older and deeper.

"I thought I lost everything," he said softly. "But I didn’t. I didn’t lose you. And I’m gonna be an uncle?" He looked up at her, eyes shining now. "You’re gonna be a mom, sissy!"

Tears welled up again, but they weren’t just from grief this time. They stood there for a moment, surrounded by machines and pain ... but also by life. Fragile. New. And defiantly present.

She sniffed, then gave him a light shove to the chest. "And you," she said, narrowing her eyes playfully through her tears, " .... are also going to be a father?"

He blinked, caught off guard.

"You knocked her up? Really?" she continued, mock scandal in her tone. "You were supposed to be concentrating on your studies, not .... " she gestured vaguely toward the bed, "... playing house with your new girlfriend! And my friend!"

"It’s not my fault that she is irresistible...." He said sheepishly, showing his first genuine smile that reached his eyes, and Ian totally agreed with him

A soft, choked laugh burst out of Rocky, and he rubbed the spot she’d tapped, his hand brushing his head with a fond shake.

"Yeah, yeah. I know." His smile curved gently upward, but this time, it didn’t reach his eyes ... not fully. There was sadness there, quiet and heavy, etched into the corners of his mouth, sitting in the slump of his shoulders.

"Sisssyyyyy....."

"You know that I am your sister, right? You were raised better than this! Why would you go do this?!"

He turned his gaze back to the bed, watching Ava’s still form, the girl he loved, wrapped in wires and silence, and his smile faltered for a moment. His hand dropped to his side. "I didn’t plan any of it," he murmured. "But heavens! ... I wouldn’t take it back. Not even a second."

He rubbed the back of his head again, exhaling slowly. "I know... I never intended for things to go that far. Don’t get me wrong, sis."

Rocky waved his hands in front of him, anticipating a knock on his head from Shelby, but she just anchored her hands on her waist and stared up at him.

His voice was low, almost ashamed, but there was no hiding the truth now. " I-I know I didn’t take any measures to protect us, and as a doctor-in-training, I am deeply ashamed, but-" he admitted, his eyes locked on the unconscious Ava in the bed. "But sis... You should know how much I love her."

His voice cracked.

"I would never go back on my word. Never." He shook his head, as though trying to clear the ache from his chest. "In fact... if she weren’t lying there like that, we would’ve been long married by now."

"Is that what she’d like as well?" Shelby’s expression softened, her earlier teasing melting away into silent understanding.

"I know that she had allowed the relationship, but she had always been a little reluctant, mostly because of my age and other things ... " he went on, more to himself now. "Ava is always hesitant to talk about the future.

She’d laugh it off, call me dramatic, but I made it this far from my crush.... This last step is no issue at all...." A faint smile tugged at his lips before it quickly faded. "But even she doesn’t know she’s pregnant. She had no idea. I wonder how she’d take it... hmmmm..... I – I don’t know..."

The two remained quiet for a bit, each thinking of the girl who lay with the machines supporting her.

Ian looked on, wondering if the emotional rollercoaster was too much for his wife.

’Are you okay?’ He sent through their link, and she nodded, without turning.

It was then that two simultaneous events occurred, catching Rocky off guard for a moment.

*********

Thank you so much to all for your votes and comments! I hope we can keep it up ^_^

Support the author by reading only on Webnovel :) ~Uploaded only on webnovel by Loctovia ~