Flatline

Vivian’s POV:

“I understand, I shouldn’t have been too hasty.” He chuckled, absentmindedly scratching the side of his head. He crossed his legs while we sat there in peaceful silence. A sigh escaped me as I leaned against him, taking solace in the familiar contours of his face. With my head resting on his shoulder, I found a fleeting sense of peace amidst the turmoil.

"Thank you, truly. It means the world to me knowing you're here," I giggled, resting my palms on the bench while waiting for Harper’s visitor to leave. We lingered in silence but for a moment until the sound of the door opening drew our attention. Gigi emerged, her attention elsewhere as she strode past us, her red heels clicking against the marble floor, the sound fading into the distance, disappearing down the hallway. God, why is she always this dressed up? I didn’t notice her clothes until now.

Never in my wildest dreams did I imagine being in the same room with her. But now, she was gone, and it was my turn to visit my colleague. I clicked my lips, remembering that bitter moment that even I couldn’t believe would happen to someone like Harper.

That was also one of the times he actually shouted at me.

Flashback…

"I'm telling you, Harper, she's not as innocent as she seems!” I pleaded, frustration lacing my voice as he turned away from me, refusing to listen. The tension in the room was palpable, beads of sweat forming on my forehead as torn polaroids scattered to the ground, ones that proved Gigi's infidelity which he tore himself.

Harper's defiance sent a chill down my spine, his words a stark contradiction to the man I thought I knew, leaving me questioning everything, “No, you're the one who needs to listen! Why are you so persistent about this?!" His denial was baffling, ignoring the evidence right in front of him like it wasn’t even there, which was unlike him to evade the truth.

I couldn't help but chuckle sarcastically. How could he, who always stood for truth, become blind to her deception? She must have some kind of spell over him.

“I just want to look out for what’s best for you, Harper...” I mumbled, hoping he’d at least feel sympathy. After saying those words, the tension seemed to calm down a little as he sighed exasperatedly, turning back once again towards the door with a frown as if not agreeing with my judgment.

“If you really want what’s best for me, then don’t meddle with my life.” He retorted, glaring at me and leaving those words before disappearing towards the door, leaving me dumbfounded as I was holding a torn polaroid, out of breath from arguing with him. Is this really what he became? Blind for love? I didn’t even know what was going on inside his head when he did that, but at that moment, I second guessed myself whether I was in the right, that confronting him was right.

End of flashback…

“Hey, Viv, aren’t you gonna open it?” Spencer whispered in my ear, leaning down while his slender hand was resting on my left shoulder. I stopped reminiscing about the past, nodding repetitively before opening the door once more. A loud, incessant flat noise of beeping reached my ears, followed with widening eyes as I saw terror grip once more, my heart beating even faster.

“Harper…!” I shouted, rushing over and pushing the door aside to go beside his hospital bed, the heart monitor beeping out of control.

I immediately felt Spencer’s presence next to mine, rapidly tapping the emergency button while I tried to keep Harper’s heartbeat on track, performing CPR.

After a few minutes, the doctor along with nurses barged into the room, the sound of their footsteps resonating in the space. I gave way to the doctor, who, in fact, was checking on him while the other nurses rushed toward his side, checking on the monitor along with the IV drip.

I was in shock, my mind in a turmoil along with the shouts of the people around me, scurrying between us. Just then, someone pulled me aside, grabbing my wrist, and rushing me out of the hospital room, the familiar sterile, white walls and hallway entering my vision.

“Hey, hey, look at me.” Spencer slapped my cheek lightly, looking intently into my eyes. I immediately got a hold of myself, the adrenaline that surged through my veins subsiding.

What… what just happened? One moment, Gigi was just visiting Harper and now… he’s flat-lining?!

The door closed shut behind him, the light dissipating from underneath the crack of the door. With the chaos of the hospital room left behind, the hallway fell silent once more, leaving only Spencer and me to confront the weight of what had just transpired.

The hallway fell into an eerie silence, broken only by the sound of our hurried breaths, each breath echoing off the sterile walls. There was no way this was merely coincidental. Just then, strong and large arms engulfed me into an embrace, and I couldn’t help but do the same as time seemed to stand still for me, lost in the comfort of his warmth.

Gigi's presence loomed in my mind like a dark cloud, casting doubt on everything. As the last person to visit Harper, she became an unsettling figure in all of this, leaving me with unanswered questions and a growing sense of suspicion. Did she have a hand in this?

Before I knew it, I had left that familiar embrace, racing towards the end of the hallway and hearing Spencer shouting at me to calm down. No, there was no way that I could calm down. I wanted answers, answers of what happened, and Gigi’s involvement in this. Harper could have died in that room, and it would all have been my fault if I didn’t enter that room fast enough.

By then, I’ve reached the front desk, sprinting towards the large, clear, glass doors of the hospital and fetching for the keys in my pocket to open my car door. Once my boots touched the concrete pavement, I hurriedly circled the car to enter the driver’s seat, placing my hand on the door handle and opening it without hesitation.

I quickly hopped into the driver's seat, revving the engine as I sped off towards her home, my mind racing with questions, the urgency noticeable in every movement. Just then, I saw Spencer in my rear window, running from outside the hospital and out of breath, as if he was trying to catch up but I’ve already left, moving to the main road.