Oceans Submerged: Book Two, the Oceans Series (2 page)

BOOK: Oceans Submerged: Book Two, the Oceans Series
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I rolled off my bed, bracing my hands in front of me as my body hit the floor. I would do one hundred push-ups, a hundred sit-ups, and then a hundred pull-ups before showering. I needed to tire out my body before heading out to the hospital to see Sunshine. It was the only way I could keep it together these days.  

***

I made my way to the hospital’s top floor where they roomed the more critical patients. If it weren’t for my mom’s involvement with Sunshine, the hospital would have admitted her into a psych-ward right after they stabilized her. My mom however warned me that she would still have to go away for a month of therapy, at a minimum.

The directors-along with the treating physicians-put up a good fight as they wanted her to stay for the standard three months, due to the severity of Liv’s actions.

Mom took off her gloves and basically said, ‘hell no’! I didn’t even have to beg her to do it on my behalf. My mother had fallen in love with Sunshine just as I did.

The facility was local so I figured it wouldn’t be that bad and any form of therapy would be good for her no matter how much I hated the thought of her being alone and away from me and Ocean.

Ocean, the poor bastard, had practically moved into the room Sunshine was in. If I did not continue to bring him fresh clothes, a toothbrush and deodorant, he would look like a stinky and homeless mess.

I decided to pop into my mom’s office to see if she was there so I could iron out more of Sunshine’s therapy details. I knocked on the door instead of barging in.

Opening the door, I saw my mom sitting at her desk leaning forward with her head on top of her crossed arms. I carefully closed the door behind me and set down the fresh bag of clothes I brought for Ocean.

I walked quietly towards her, making my way around the desk. I took in the site of my exhausted looking mom knocked out in her office.

Her auburn hair was wild with curls poking out in awkward directions. Her mouth was open as she drooled on her arm. I laughed to myself. This was the perfect moment to take a picture of her like this, but given the circumstance and the stress we were all under for Sunshine, I decided against it even though my palm was itching to grab my phone just for the hell of it.

I placed a light kiss on her forehead, backing away towards the door. There was no way I was going to wake her up just to annoy the hell out of her. I picked up Ocean’s bag closing the door behind me.

I headed towards the nurses’ station on my mom’s floor. “Hey Tamara, how are you doing this morning?”

The blush on Tamara’s face made me smile. She was a cute woman, a lot older than me and definitely not my type but she was still cute.

“Oh! Hi Lawrence. Do you need any help finding you mother? I think she’s in her office.”

“I just came from visiting her, but was wondering if you could do me a favor. I was hoping you could give my mom a couple hours. She’s knocked out on her desk. I don’t think she’s been getting that much sleep lately.”

The worry on Tamara’s face confirmed that my mom was trying to be superwoman again. “That damn Layla. Of course, Lawrence. Don’t worry, I’ll tranquilize her if I have to.”

She smiled as she passed me making her way towards my mom’s office. I walked in the opposite direction, heading for the elevators.

I hated visiting Sunshine here. She looked like a corpse and Ocean officially turned into the son of a bitch zombie I remembered him looking like when he lost Stormie.

***

I slowly pushed Sunshine’s room door open. Immediately, I hear the usual music Ocean played for her overnight. He was also in his usual spot in the reclining leather chair that he moved next to Sunshine’s bed. His eyes snapped open as I shut the door behind me.

I nodded his way and he closed his eyes again. There was no use talking to him anymore, at least for the time being. The only response you could get out of him was either a ‘no’ or a ‘fuck you’. I was too busy dealing with my own grief to have to deal with his bullshit too.

I dropped the bag of clothes at the foot of his chair before making my way around to the other side of Sunshine’s bed. Thank god they took out the breathing tube because I fucking hated those things and the awful sound the machine made. You would think because my mom worked in a hospital since before I was born, I would have gotten over these issues; but hell no! The further away I could get from a hospital, the better.

I looked at her perfectly still body. Even in this condition, she was beautiful. I knew Ocean was the one bathing and grooming her so I didn’t have to worry about her being unattended.

Her caramel-brown color had returned and she really did look as if she were just taking a nap. My eyes moved down to her arm that was bandaged all the way up to her shoulder. Boy is she going to be pissed when she’s not able to use her hand for that wicked left jab she had.

I could feel Ocean eyeing me from the chair as I looked over Sunshine, but fuck him. He wasn’t the only one missing her and wishing she would wake the hell up.

I leaned forward, bracing my elbows on the bed getting as close as I could without disturbing her. I felt Ocean shift in his seat and again I ignored him.

“Hey beautiful, it’s Law, your favorite. I was hoping you would be awake today, but it’s all good Sunshine, I’ll wait for you. I know things are going to be a little hard for all of us at first and I know I’ll be a real pain in the ass when you come back home, but just try and remember one thing. Sunshine, remember that no matter what you did or what you do, Lawrence Hawthorne is still going to love you.”

Ocean snickered and that was something I couldn’t ignore.

I leaned up straight while gripping the beds side rails. “Just what is your fucking issue Ocean?! You spent the past two weeks locked up in this room with her. You hate it when anyone comes in to see her or take care of her, yet you sit on your ass withering away like it’s the end of the world. She’s not dead Ocean, so stop acting like it!”

Yeah, that was a little harsh but oh well. He had balls and could handle it.

Kicking the footrest of his chair in with a force that nearly broke the recoiling springs from the harsh sound of it; he jumped up, bracing his hands on the other side of the bed.  “My problem is emotional people like you who walk in here thinking you have a fucking clue how I feel about this fucked up situation and Livie. So back the fuck off. I haven’t bothered you so don’t start shit with me Law!”

I laughed in his face. “Fucking lame, Ocean. You are acting irrational and you know it. You just want to sit around and throw your god damn pity party and you figure this is the only place you can be left alone while not leaving her side.”

He jerked the bed down as he leaned forward. “Her name is Livie not Sunshine or any other pet name you have for her.”

“I can call her whatever the hell I want to! She doesn’t belong to you, numb nuts. She’s a big girl, one that can make her own decisions no matter how fucked they are. If she lets me call her Sunshine, then that’s what I’m calling her!”

“She’s mine and I say you call her by her fucking name!”

I leaned forward to make sure he gets my point when I say it. “Just because you took Livie’s virginity doesn’t make her your fucking property asshole. You’ve fucked plenty of virgins and you never claimed them. I met her first and she’s fucking Sunshine to me.”

I saw his fist come up off the bed to connect with my face, but he stopped his punch in midair to look down. Tugging on his shirt was Sunshine’s small, bruised and trembling hand.

Chapter Three

Ocean

That was it! What kind of pussy would say some shit like that? If he wished it were him that took her virginity then he should have claimed her first. Livie was mine. I loved her.

My fist came up, launching for his face when I felt a tug on my shirt that sent shockwaves of awareness through me. My head snapped down and pulling on the rim of my shirt was Liv’s trembling hand.

I looked up at Law whose face was whiter than usual as he stared at her hand still weakly trying to grab my shirt. Her eyes were still closed, but she had her lips pierced as if she was focusing on trying to do something. I looked up at Law again who was still frozen.

I pushed him hard on the shoulder to get his attention. When he looked up at me with a dazed expression, I rolled my eyes. Such a fucking punk.

“What the hell Law? Don’t just stand there! Go get your mom!”

He let go of the side rails, stumbling back a little. “Yeah, yeah mom.” He hauled ass out of the room once he got his legs to work.

I looked back down at Liv who was still trying to grab at my shirt. I leaned in closer to her and that was when she finally slipped her hand under my shirt. Her fingers were shaking and unsteady as she pressed them against my skin. Her hand was ice cold and her touch made my body break out in goose bumps. As she rested the back of her hand on my stomach, the trembling in her fingers calmed down a bit.

I leaned down to bring me face closer to hers. “Come on, Livie. Open your eyes baby. Open them for me. Please. I’ve been here with you waiting for this. Baby, open your eyes.”

I could tell she was trying by the squinting of her eyes and the way she was pulling her lips in. I moved the IV lines away from her neck, pulling down her hospital gown to expose her neck. I looked at the door then quickly leaned in kissing her on my spot that I’ve been missing so much.

When I pulled back, my heart skipped a beat and my breath stalled. Her eyes were fluttering rapidly as she tried to gain control of them.

I reached under my shirt to grab her hand, steadying it against my stomach. As the rapid flutters came to a slower opening and closing of her eyes, she frantically searched around the room looking dazed and confused.

I used my free hand to steady her chin so she could focus on me. “Hey baby. I’m right here. Look at me. Don’t worry about anything else, just look at me.”

With what little strength she had, her cold and trembling hand squeezed mine. Her blinks slowed down to longer, more tired blinks until she was able to focus on my face.

She tried to open her mouth to speak, but I shook my head at her placing my finger over her mouth. “Don’t speak. Law went to get Aunt Layla. She’ll be here soon.”

Her eyebrows pulled together as she tried to squeeze onto my hand tighter.

“Stop Liv, I’m not leaving. I’ll be here, where I’ve always been.”

The door swung open as Aunt Layla rushed to Liv’s bedside. Two other nurses came in, along with the surgeon who performed the surgery on her arm, followed by Law.

Aunt Layla looked at me with a stern look. I knew that look meant to keep my ego in check and step aside, so I did just that.

As I let go of Liv’s hand, her eyes started to blink fast again and her heart rate spiked. The nurses rushed to either side of me to see what was happening.

“Ladies, give him a minute before we start.” Aunt Layla nodded at me to make it quick.

I leaned in to kiss her forehead and then pulled her quivering hand up to my lips for a reassuring kiss. “Liv, remember I’m right here. They need to take care of you and you know I can’t do it myself. Calm down baby, I’m not going anywhere.”

I kissed the back of her hand again. Her face turned into somewhat of a frown. I think that moment was the first time in two weeks that I actually smiled.

Even in her condition and barely being able to move or speak, she was being as stubborn as ever. I laid her hand gently at her side, finally letting go.

The nurses unlocked the wheels on the bed while Aunt Layla disconnected the IV’s from the machine. The doctor held the door open as they wheeled her out less than a minute after I let go of her hand. .

“Where are you taking her?” I called to my aunt.

She turned to me with a smile on her face, something I haven’t seen since Liv was admitted. “Don’t worry, we’ll bring her back. The doctor needs to run some tests. She’ll be in much better shape when we bring her back.” She hurried out the door after her crew.

Law moved back into the room before the door could close on him. I looked up at him leaning against the door running his hand through his hair before he made eye contact with me.

“Look man, I’m sorry about what I was saying, but I meant it you know.”

“Yeah Law, so did I. She’s not just any other virgin, you know that. I fucking love that girl with all of me. There is no one else, Law. No one.”

“So looks like you got her back. Congrats, I was hoping she’d come back to you.”

I shook my head at him. “She came back to us, not just me. I’m a dick, but even I know how much she means to you. I don’t like it, but I get it.”

He kicked off the wall, making his way towards me. “You know she’s going to Shiloh’s Therapy Facility, right? I looked it up and researched all the workers. Hell I even did a fucking background check on the entire staff, Ocean.”

I could have laughed at him for that, but I just didn’t have laughter in me anymore.

“It’ll only be for a month so she can attend physical therapy and talk to someone about what happened. The facility is about an hour away and visiting days are Tuesdays and Sundays.”

My chest tightened thinking about her alone in a rehab facility. I was there once, alone and pissed off at the world because I was there. I’m thinking her reaction will not be much different, but she had to get through this to find herself again. I was praying that she did because honestly for me, I was a lost cause without her.

BOOK: Oceans Submerged: Book Two, the Oceans Series
6.66Mb size Format: txt, pdf, ePub
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