CHAPTER 510: THE LIGHT WE WAITED FOR (9)

Later that day, in the staff lounge of the VIP section of the hospital, the atmosphere was unusually subdued.

A few of the doctors and nurses who had attended to Ava Burnet gathered in hushed clusters, sipping coffee, frowning at their tablets, glancing at each other with uncertain eyes.

"You remember how we got out of the room and back here?" one nurse finally asked, brow furrowed.

"No," a young resident muttered. "I remember the beeping. The patient’s vitals shooting up... then... I was at home, preparing to come here."

"Frankly, I only remember having a hearty meal after the patient was rescued! Our doctor is the best!" another added, rubbing his temple but smiling, nonetheless. "My uniform was folded neatly on my sofa, and I was in bed. I don’t even fold my uniforms."

Someone snorted. "Maybe you sleepwalked. Adrenaline does weird things. Besides, who else has the keys to your apartment but you?"

"No," the first nurse said slowly, "it wasn’t like that. We were there. Something happened. I felt it—like..."

"Like a veil dropped?" another whispered.

The room went quiet, and they all stared at each other.

And then someone barked a laugh, breaking the silence.

"Oh, please! Are you still thinking about that?" a tall man in scrubs scoffed, spinning his phone in his palm. "You were given so much money for this task, and you’re worried about how you got home? Smh, your priorities are messed up."

He flashed his phone, showing a bank balance that made more than one jaw slacken, making them scramble for their phones as well.

His grin spread so wide, his cheeks actually hurt. "I don’t care if aliens carried me back .... I’d let them do it again for this kind of bonus... or even pay them to do that now that I can!"

A few others chuckled nervously, eager for a reason to dismiss the unease. Very soon, whatever doubts they had were long forgotten.

But the first nurse didn’t laugh. Her gaze lingered on her hands, as if expecting to see light clinging to her fingertips. She couldn’t shake the sense that something unusual had happened earlier that day, but she could not find the evidence of that.

All the patient files were signed and fully logged.

’Never mind! I can buy that purse now!’

Back in the room, Ava allowed herself to be hugged tightly by the crying Rocky.

Ava lay still for a while, letting the room come into focus as she closed and opened her eyes several times—the beeping machines, the faint antiseptic scent, the bright lights.

Her chest hurt a little. Her body felt like it had been through a storm. She grunted as the last image of the accident played in her mind, making her heart rate shoot up temporarily! ’It was that bitch – Aliya!’

She was alive, and that was all that was important. Ava thought she was done for that day! There was no way she could have survived such a crush, but here she was!

And he was here. Her Rocky was!

She looked at him, his face pale, tear-streaked, smiling like he’d just won a war—and she tried to smile back. Her hand in his felt warm. Real.

Then her eyes drifted downward. Something didn’t look right.

There was a slight bulge under the thin blanket covering her stomach. Not sharp or swollen like a bloated belly .... but round, soft... unfamiliar. Rocky was still fretting over her, but Ava’s eyes never left that bulge.

Her brows furrowed. She moved her hand down and pressed lightly, and then she froze.

"What the hell...?" she whispered, her voice hoarse.

The movement caught Rocky’s attention long enough for him to stop fretting. "What is it, Ava? What’s wrong?" he asked quickly, already leaning closer.

She pulled the blanket back slowly, revealing her hospital gown stretched just slightly over her midsection.

Her eyes snapped to his, wide and accusing.

"What is this?!"

Rocky blinked. "I... I was going to tell you ..."

Ava tried to sit up. "Tell me what?!"

He hesitated. Then, softly, "You’re pregnant."

Ava’s breath caught. Her hand flew back to her stomach as if touching it again would make it vanish. She was torn between feelings. Yes, she loved Rocky, but that did not mean.... Oh no!

"No. No .... how long have I been here?!"

"About four months," Rocky whispered,

"You me-an... I ... have been more than...." asked, voice breaking. "How?!"

"They found out after the accident," Rocky said quickly, reaching for her hand.

Her breathing was fast now, panic bubbling under the surface. She looked back down, her hand trembling as she hovered over the barely-there bump. "This is real?"

Rocky nodded, eyes glassy. "Yeah. It is." For a long second, she didn’t speak.

Then she whispered, "I didn’t even get a choice."

Rocky closed his eyes, understanding what her concerns were. Still, he was a little disappointed that Ava wanted a choice in this. Did that mean that she did not like him that much? Did-

"I’m sorry," he said, voice cracking. "I never wanted it to be like this. But I swear to you .....I will be here. For you. For the baby. Always."

Ava didn’t answer immediately. She just kept staring at her belly from her now propped-up position. Because of her distress, she had yet to take in the fact that there were other people in the room..

Tears pooled in her eyes, but this time they weren’t just from pain or shock. They were for everything lost... and everything suddenly, unexpectedly, found. This shocked Rocky!

Ava’s crying was a serious thing!

Silence crackled across the line for a heartbeat.

"Stop thinking those nasty thoughts! I am just adjusting to the fact that I have a baby growing in me. Not the fact that I don’t want it. Why would I not? It’s a baby between us... One that we had loved each other for... so why would I not want it?"

"Really?"

"Obviously!"

His breath caught in his throat. These were the sincerest words that he had heard from his dear.

"I love you, Ava! I have this all figured out!"

Ava giggled and leaned against him weakly. It was then that she noticed Ian’s towering presence, Shelby in his arms, a single doctor, who was fussing over the fetal monitor and the weird assistant.

"Shelby?... you’re okay!" Her voice was still weak, but Ava was more than happy to see her friend.

"Currey!"

Ian said the singular name, and he sprang into action, walking over to Ava and handing her a small vial. The liquid inside shimmered with a dazzling hue, like melted opal.

Ava managed a smile at him, but Rocky looked at it suspiciously, as did the doctor.

"What’s that?" Rocky asked instantly, rising to his feet, protective instincts kicking in. "What are you giving her?"

Currey didn’t answer. He extended the vial toward Ava as if he had not heard Rocky’s statement. Neither Ian nor Shelby responded.

"It’ll help her," Shelby said gently from where she was

But for some reason, Rocky, a believer in science, narrowed his eyes.

"You should trust your sister and brother-in-law on this," Currey stated factually, while Shelby added softly, her voice almost a whisper. "Let her."

Rocky looked down at Ava, expecting resistance, suspicion, something.

But Ava surprised him again. Ava didn’t even hesitate.

She reached out and took the vial.

"Wait!" he said sharply, stepping forward, but she was already tilting it back.

She drank the shimmering liquid in one smooth gulp.

He froze, eyes wide. "What did you just do?!"

"No!" the doctor finally responded, but Currey turned to him,

"Remember what you signed?"

The man paused. Currey had let him sign a non-disclosure agreement. They had figured that they needed at least one fully human doctor around, and with Shelby pregnant, some things would be inexplicable.

So, he had been prepped and kept. He was the only one whose memory was not wiped, and for some reason, Currey had made him watch him do that to his colleagues. It was just that he was still not sure what had been done to them.

He sighed. In all his years as a medical practitioner, the man had seen a lot and thought that nothing would ever surprise him, but the proceedings of that day were through the roof! Despite this, he took it in better than most people. Additionally, he noticed that the patient’s features improved almost instantly as she drank the substance.

The doctor nodded and took a step back, ready to step in when needed. But Rocky was almost beside himself,

And then.... A voice sounded in his head.

’Relax.’

It echoed through him like a bell, resonant and calm. Not his sister’s voice exactly, but somehow unmistakably her.

He stumbled back a step, heart thudding. "What the—?"

Rocky looked around the room, noticing that he was the only person panicking.

"She’ll be alright. The potion is old .... Fae-born. It doesn’t do any harm. It just helps her body remember how to heal... and gives her soul a little strength while she finds her footing."

Ian said directly to Rocky, for the benefit of the doctor as well. It was unclear why they had decided to involve the doctor, but he had been selected from a wide range for this purpose.

They all looked back at Ava, while Rocky was still reeling from the shock.

Ava lay back on the pillows, eyes fluttering shut for a moment. A soft warmth spread across her face as colour returned slowly to her cheeks. Her breathing evened out, and when her eyes opened again, they were clearer and calmer.

’She needed that,’ Shelby said, deliberately using the mind link again.

"What the hell is that, sis!"

Rocky shouted, hands on his chest... Nothing made sense.... His sister was somehow talking in his head, and his brother-in-law said something about a Fae? If that is what he thought it was, then it even made everything more absurd! Wasn’t that a concept in a fairy tale? But why did Ian look so serious about it?

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