“It’s okay, you will. We are so proud of you, Sophie. You’ve made quite the name for yourself, and a handsome boyfriend to boot. We can tell how much he loves you.
I scrunch my face in concentration. “A boyfriend? Who? Carter?”
“No, Elijah.”
I frown. “I don’t know anyone by that name.”
“I think you’re confused from your accident, or whatever brought you here. You’ll remember soon enough,” Dad explains.
I don’t understand this place. “If I’m not dead, where am I?”
“I don’t know, baby,” Mom says, rubbing my back.
The room starts to grow dim, and I start to panic. “No! Wait! Please!” I reach out for my parents but they’re gone.
“Clear!” I hear a man say as a jolt shoots through my body. “Clear!” He yells again, then the jolt surges through me once more.
“Sophie, don’t do this!” I don’t recognize the voice. It’s somewhat familiar, but I can’t place it. “Sophie!” The voices fade away, and I’m back in the white room with my parents.
“I thought we lost you,” Mom says, cupping my face.
“I think I almost died?”
“You have so much to live for.”
Do I? I can’t really remember anything. “If I die, I can stay with the two of you, right? I’ve missed you so much.”
Mom’s eyes are glassy as if she’s going to cry. “Oh, Sophie. We’ve missed you too, but you have to go back. You need to live.”
I cling tightly to my parents. I don’t want them to disappear again. I need them. I lost them too soon. It’s not fair.
“I’m sorry, I haven’t been to your grave. I should have visited you.”
“Oh, Sophie. That doesn’t matter. We aren’t there. We try to watch over you and your brothers, but we can’t be everywhere at once. We’ve seen what wonderful people you’ve grown up to become. I’m so sorry we weren’t there for you all as you grew up, but we will always be with you in here.” She places her hand over my heart.
“I love you both, so much.” I hug them and I don’t let go.
“BP is stable. Temp normal, heart rate is coming around,” a female voice says.
“Thanks,” a husky voice to my left answers as he squeezes onto my hand. I’m in darkness again, my parents are gone and I’m trapped in … I don’t know, limbo, maybe. I can’t see, but I can hear. I wish I couldn’t, because his sad voice breaks my heart. I don’t understand. “Sophie, baby, please wake up.” I feel something soft and wet touch my face. A kiss?
“You should talk to her. They say people in comas can hear sometimes,” a female voice says.
“Yeah, I’ll do that. Thank you.”
I’m in a coma? No, that’s impossible, isn’t it? I’m just dreaming. That’s why I can’t open my eyes. Why I can’t get out of this blackness.
“I’ll sit with her, why don’t you take a break?” Jared says.
Oh, my brother is here! How did that happen? When was he called? Where the heck am I?
There’s a rapid beeping sound. “Sir, you need to move, she’s crashing again.”
“Sophie. Don’t you dare give up!” Jared yells.
“What’s going on?” Carter asks.
Carter? Why is he here? The darkness closes in on me again, and I’m sucked back into the abyss. I have no idea how much time has passed, but the first thing I notice is a steady beeping sound, and low murmured voices. I can’t make out what they are saying or who it is, but I can hear them. The beeping fades, and the black covers me again.
The next time I become alert things are a little clearer, the voices are more prominent. I can tell Carter, Jared, and Josh are talking. Josh is here so maybe something happened at my signing. Where were we off to? I think for a moment and then another voice starts talking which distracts me. Who is that? His voice sounds familiar, but I can’t place it. I groan a little.
“Sophie?”
Someone squeezes my hand. “Sophie, can you open your eyes?” I can’t move or respond in any way, but the warmth of his hand is nice in mine. I slip off back into the darkness.
“Sophie?” Carter asks. “Peaches, you have to wake up. Can you hear me?” His warm hand envelopes mine. “Squeeze my hand if you can.” I try, but I don’t know if I do. I guess I don’t, because after a few minutes, he sighs and pulls back. I don’t understand why he’s here. We just started talking again.
“Sometimes it takes a while for them to wake up. There could be several false starts,” a woman says. I don’t want false starts. I want to wake up. The darkness claims me again.
Something is different when I come to this time. I’m more alert to my surroundings, and I find that I can move my hand. “Sophie,” the familiar voice says. “Baby, open your eyes.” He takes my hand and squeezes and I squeeze back. “That’s right, hold on to me. Can you open your eyes?”
I blink, trying, but it’s too bright.
“Bright,” I mutter.
“What’d she say?” Carter asks. I guess it wasn’t too clear.
“The lights might be too bright,” Jared says. “Okay, sis. Try again. The lights are off.”
Slowly, I blink open my eyes. I can’t focus on anything. There’s a sea of faces swimming around me, making me dizzy. I groan and clamp my eyes shut.
“Call the nurse,” Carter says. There’s movement on my left and a loud long beep, making me groan and wince.
“Sorry, baby.” I wish I could remember whose voice that is. It’s so familiar.
“Can I help you?” A voice practically shouts in my ear. I groan and try to move away.
“She’s awake,” the familiar voice says.
“I’m on my way.”
“So loud,” I say.
“Sorry, sweetheart. Can you open your eyes for me?” The beautiful voice is so pleading, I want to try.
My eyes flutter open again. I try hard to focus on his face but it’s so hard. “Can’t see,” I tell him, closing my eyes again.
A hand touches my cheek and squeezes my hand. Lips press to my knuckles. “It’s okay. Take your time.”
I’m falling asleep again when a woman says, “Hello, I’m Rachel, your nurse for the day. Can you open your eyes for me?”
I slowly blink open. “I can’t focus.”
“I’m sorry, I can’t understand you. Can you try again?”
“Focus,” I say with a little more force.
“You can’t focus?” she asks. I nod. She pats my shoulder. “That’s okay. It’ll come. Can you tell me your name?”
“Sophia Parker,” I say slowly, hoping it’s clearer.
“Good. I understood that better. Your speech is a little slurred because of your injury and just waking up. Take it easy and try not to rush. Do you know where you are?”
“Hospital?” At least that much is clear.
“Yes, you are at Saint Mary’s. I’ll get the doctor to come in and talk to you in a few minutes.”
“Thanks.”
I rub my eyes and clear my throat. I realize I’m thirsty. “Drink?”
“Here,” the familiar voice says as he helps me sit up and take a drink.
I rub my eyes and clear my throat again. Things are starting to become clearer. I can see Jared and Carter to my left and on my right a man who looks an awful lot like my favorite actor, Elijah Stone. I stare at him for a few moments. I turn back to Carter and raise my hand, to point at him, and ask him why he’s here, but he grabs my hand. A flash of light draws my attention to my ring finger where a huge purple stone sits. I pull my hand to my face to see it clearer. Where did I get this? Who gave this to me?
I meet Carter’s eyes with my own wide eyes. I glance back to the Elijah look-a-like “What’s this?”
“Your engagement ring, baby.” I stare at the unfamiliar man, he looks as confused and lost as I feel. He’s beautiful. A complete doppelganger of Elijah Stone.
I start to panic. I can’t breathe. Nothing makes sense. “Carter,” I gasp. He pu
lls my face to his. I look into his familiar icy blue eyes. Any awkwardness between our budding rekindled friendship seems to fade away. I need familiar. I need something to make sense.
“Calm down, Peaches. Breathe with me. In and out, in and out. Good. Slowly.”
“What’s wrong?” The nurse asks.
“She saw her engagement ring and freaked out.” The doppelganger sounds so broken and disappointed.
My breathing evens out as I follow Carter’s lead. The nurse looks on, seeming unworried that my breath is ragged. She pats my leg. “Are you calm now, or would you like a sedative?” The nurse asks me kindly.
“I’m okay.”
I’m still a little panicky, but my breathing is almost back to normal. She nods then asks to speak to Elijah in the hallway. She called him Mr. Stone. Is this really Elijah Stone? I stare at my brother and ex-best friend.
“Who?” I pause and point to the door. I can’t get my words together.
“Oh, honey. You don’t remember?” Jared gazes on me sadly.
“He … He … E … Stone.” This is so annoying. Why can’t I get my words out right?
“I am.” I glance up at the door and see him standing there. He looks so lost, my heart breaks for him. There’s a pull in my chest toward him, but I don’t understand why.
“Why?” Apparently that’s how this is going to work for now, monosyllables.
He runs a hand over his face. “Why am I here?” I nod. “I’m your fiancé.”
“What? How?” The panic comes back and this time the nurse doesn’t ask, she puts the sedative into my line, and I slowly fade out.
Sometime later I wake up to murmured voices. “Gran?”
“Oh, sweetheart. We got here as soon as we could. I’m so sorry.” I hug her and Poppy. “They tell us you may have a bit of amnesia.”
“They?”
“The doctor and nurse. Doctor Greene came in while you were sleeping. He’ll be back soon to explain everything to you.”
“What … happened?”
“You were signing at the Wake Up America show.”
I shake my head. “No.” I take a deep breath. This can’t be right. I was on my way to a signing. I was on the interstate headed to the airport. My brows scrunch slightly together as I mutter, “Australia.”
“No.” The grim voice of Elijah says. He has sank to the ground clutching his head in his hands.
“What?”
Slowly he stands and comes to my bedside. “You don’t remember me?”
“Elijah?”
“Yes, but you don’t remember me personally, do you?”
Tears fill my eyes. I want to remember him. This is all so confusing. “Sorry.” He grabs my hand in his and brings his hand to my face tenderly.
“Don’t be sorry. This isn’t your fault.”
I want to remember him. How could I forget? I’m so lost.
He kisses my forehead. I freeze. “You will.” He pulls back. “I’m sorry. I probably made you uncomfortable.”
He’s kind of right. But not really uncomfortable, maybe more confused. “It’s okay.”
He sighs and sits in the chair beside my bed. “Tell me what you last remember. You said Australia.”
I nod. “Josh and I were on our way to the airport. What happened? Did we get in a car accident?” I ask, looking around the room.
“Oh, dear. I’m so sorry,” Gran says. She takes my hand. “You were hit with a rock. The force of the impact knocked you out.”
“A rock?” They all nod. “A rock made me forget my life?”
From the looks on their faces, no one understands what I say. I start to cry. Carter wraps me in his arms, and I cling to him. It doesn't matter that Carter and I were on the outs. He’ll always be in my life. Always be my best friend. It was only a matter of time anyway. My brothers say Carter is my biggest flaw. No matter what stupid thing he does, I take him back, and right now, I need familiar. I need my best friend.
“I’m sorry. I can come back.” A doctor, I assume Doctor Greene, is standing in the door.
“Oh, no. Please stay. Sophie, this is Doctor Greene. He’s been tending to you.”
I dry my eyes on a tissue Elijah hands me. His face pinched and sad. It guts me, but I don’t understand why. “I’m sorry,” I tell him. Pulling the cloth away from my face, I see it’s not a tissue, but a monogrammed handkerchief. It’s familiar.
Elijah smiles sadly at me. “Don’t apologize.”
Doctor Greene holds out his hand to shake mine. “It’s nice to officially meet you. I need to ask you a few precursor questions, then we’ll get to what’s going on.” I nod, and wince as a pain shoots through my head. “Hurting?”
“Yes.”
“You’ll be tender for a while, I’m afraid. Can you tell me your full name?”
“Sophia … Elizabeth …. Parker.” It’s getting easier for me to speak. I hope they understand me.
“Good. Date of birth?”
“February twenty-first, nineteen-eighty-nine.” Why am I so out of breath?
The doctor nods. “Can you tell me what the last thing you remember is?”
I think for a long moment, clear my throat, and say, “I remember … driving on the 110 to the airport. Traffic was horrible?”
“Hmm … it seems you are missing some time.” He looks toward my family. “Do you know how much time she’s missing based on her last memory?”
“Almost a year,” Elijah says, his voice strained. “Mere hours before we met.” Tears drip down his cheek. He blows out a deep breath. “Excuse me.” He rushes out of the room.
My lip quivers. The doctor squeezes my hand. “This isn’t unusual with your type of head injury.”
“Will I get better?”
“We’re going to run some more tests, now that you are awake. Your official diagnoses is subacute subdural hematoma. What that means is, there is a collection of blood below the inner layer of your dura. The dura is a membrane that surrounds your brain, it’s below the skull bone, so it’s the layer between your brain and bone. Does that makes sense?”
I nod. So he continues. “The buildup has put pressure on your brain. You have a fractured skull and concussion, which has bruised your brain. From the looks of your MRI, there’s significant swelling. Memory loss and other side effects are considered normal.”
I try several times to start, but my words won’t come, so I settle with “Memories back?”
“That’s a tricky one. We can never be too sure. Sometimes people regain their memories once the swelling has decreased, others it takes months even years, some not at all. I hate to be so vague, but there’s no way to know how your body will respond to treatments or heal. Sometimes scar tissues can develop and cause permanent damage.”
I nod my head. It’s so much to take in. I really don’t know what to think. Gran asks, “Can we tell her and show her pictures, to see if she remembers?”
“Sure. Anything that is familiar is good. You may not remember some people, but having them around is a good thing. So, try to take it easy and not force anything. Try to be open minded. I know that’s scary and hard sometimes, but I’ve seen how much these folks all care about you. They won’t steer you wrong.”
“Thank you, Doctor Greene.”
“My pleasure. I’ll be by after I get your MRI results. Radiology should come get you shortly.” Doctor Greene leaves.
“Do you need something to eat or drink?” Gran asks.
“Yes, please. I don’t know what I want.”
She stares at me for a few minutes. “I think your speech is still a little wonky, try short sentences?
I blow out a frustrated breath. “Drink.”
She nods and smiles, patting my hand. “There you go. I’ll be back soon.” She kisses my temple.
Carter sits on the edge of my bed. “So, who do you recognize in the room?”
He is his happy self, but I can see the worry in his eyes. I hold onto his hand. I’m glad he’s here. I glance aroun
d. Poppy and Gran have left, and I obviously know them. Carter and Jared, of course, and Josh. He’s been my bodyguard since I started my touring abroad. Elijah hasn’t come back so, I guess that’s everyone.
“Josh.” I smile.
“Hey, Sophie.”
“So everyone except for Elijah, which means you don’t remember his guys either,” Jared tells me.
“Who are they?”
He looks out the door, then says, “Uh, hold on a second. I think they are still here.” He walks out the door to speak to someone, and returns with two large men.
“Hey there, little miss.” The tall African-American man says. I give him a little wave.
“You don’t remember us?” The tall white man with blonde hair asks.
I sigh. “I’m sorry.”
“It’s okay. I’m Mike Hutchins, but everyone calls me Hutch.”
“Daniel Brody. They call me Brody, but you call me Danny.” He winks.
“Sorry I can’t remember, but it’s nice … to meet you.”
“It’s quite all right, Sophie. You worry about getting better,” Danny says.
“Where’s Elijah?”
“He’s out in the hall. He didn’t want to make you uncomfortable,” Jared tells me.
“Tell him … come in?” Jared nods and walks out the door. Hutch, Danny, and Josh follow him out leaving me with Carter.
“Will you … few minutes?” I point to the door, hoping he gets it.
He stands. “Sure thing, Peaches. I’ll go get some lunch. Want anything?” I shake my head no. He kisses my cheek then leaves the room.
The door opens after a few minutes. It’s torturous, waiting. Elijah comes in slowly, you can tell he’s been crying. My heart is absolutely ripping in two for him, for us really. There is nothing I can do to make it better. I can’t even fathom what it would be like, to know the one person who’s supposed to love you no matter what can’t remember you. He sits beside my bed, his elbows on his knees and looking at the floor.
“Elijah?” He takes a deep breath and looks up at me. His eyes are filled with tears. “So sorry.” Tears pool in my eyes and spill over.
He clears his throat and shakes his head, wiping his face. “I’m glad you are okay. I know this is all weird for you, so I’ve decided to head back to Los Angeles I don’t want to make you uncomfortable.”
Fame & Consequences Page 14