I Will be There for You.
The monitor next to the patient's bed showed a barely noticeable pulse, blood pressure was on the verge, the man was connected to an artificial lung ventilation apparatus and immersed in a coma.
Corey gently squeezed Rick's palm so as not to catch a lot of little pipes and catheters connected to the man. She did not know what the reason was, but each time she touched him, his pulse became a little more stable as if her presence alone gave him the strength to fight for his life.
"Corey, you need to eat. If you continue like that, then you yourself will need medical attention," Daniel put his hand on the woman's shoulder, his voice was calm but strict. He understood her emotional state and desire to somehow help this person, but the health of Corey herself was a priority for the man.
"How is Ashley?" The woman reluctantly walked away from Rick's bed and left the ward before closing the door, her gaze once again checked the indicators of all the sensors.
"Don't worry, she is sleeping in the next room. If you want, you can have a rest there. David made a deal with the hospital's management, only we are in this part of the hospital, so no one will disturb us."
"Thanks," Corey whispered and bit a small slice of the sandwich. The hot meal that the man brought was left untouched. She kept watching Rick's condition through the glass all the time, feeling afraid to miss a moment if he suddenly feels worse.
"Daniel, I'm scared. But what if he... How can I live later, knowing that because of me he...," the woman sobbed, trying to restrain a lump that came to her throat.
Despite all that Rick had done, he was still an important person in her life. The news of his death six years ago was a major shock for Corey, and it took her not a single year to recover.
When he reappeared in her life, it provoked conflicting feelings in her heart, but she was grateful to fate that Rick was alive. Now, he was again on the verge of death, and now it was her fault.
"Daniel, I know this is very selfish and even cruel of me, but... can you save him?" Corey looked at the man with an imploring look.
Daniel was always a strong and reasonable man in her eyes, maybe the reason was that he was older and more experienced, but even when he was fooling around as a teenager, Corey did not doubt for a second that she could rely on him in any situation.
Even now, he never reproached or commented on her actions, but simply stayed close and supported her with his presence alone. Once again, Corey wondered if she was worthy of the feelings of such a person at all.
"You got the Nobel Prize for making the last pandemic vaccine, didn't you? Maybe you can come up with something that can save him? If you can help to save him, I will be grateful to you for the rest of my life."
Corey's words squeezed the man's heart like a vise. Gratitude is not what he wanted from her. Daniel wiped a tear from the woman's cheek with his thumb and answered with a slight smile, "Do you want me to tell you one story?"
He put a tray with food aside, realizing that Corey was unlikely to touch food, and sat on a chair, "When I was fifteen or sixteen, I led a very active lifestyle, which sometimes was the reason why my father scolded me a lot. The thing was that I preferred meeting with friends and chatting with girls to studying.
Once, I made an appointment with one girl who was beginning her career in modeling. You know, teens love to brag with photos with beautiful girls or guys, and I was no exception," Daniel smiled, now all this seemed to him so stupid, but if he had the opportunity to change the past, he would hardly have acted differently.
"I arrived at her hotel early in the morning, it was probably about 7 A.M., but instead of the model, my ears were deafened by the loud cries of one naughty girl. She refused to get into her car with her mother, as she was going to meet with the prince and some other friend named Riri," the man looked mysteriously at Corey, she blinked several times, trying to understand why he started this story.
But the next second, Corey found an insight, her eyes widened in surprise, she covered her mouth with her hands to hold back an exclamation, "Just don't say that it was..."
Daniel realized that the woman remembered exactly what he was talking about, and continued his story, "You know me, I couldn't just leave the young lady sad on the side of the road, so I decided to pretend to be a prince. In this case, I even had a photo in my phone, Photoshop, of course," Daniel winked, Corey was looking at the man with such eyes, as if it was their first meeting.
He took her palm in his hand and began playing with her fingers fondly, "The toy that Ashley carries with her is made from that boy's scarf, right? Riri's scarf?" Corey nodded her head, so overwhelmed with such a wave of emotions that she could not utter a word.
"You know, he really wanted to come to you, he just couldn't at that moment. But," Daniel felt a lump come up to his throat, he tried to look as relaxed and calm as possible so that she would not notice his discomfort, "But he found you later, many years later. That's what happens in life. Quite amazing, isn't it?"
Corey's heart was beating with new vigor; she looked through the glass at the bedridden man fighting for his life.
Daniel brought the woman's hand to his lips and kissed, his touch was light and barely noticeable, but so many deep emotions were hidden in it. Corey lowered her head. Tears were flowing down her cheeks, she was ashamed and hurt that she could not understand the whole storm of feelings that was breaking her from inside at that moment.
"Then and after, he was always the first one. Both in your life and in your heart. I can't do anything about it, so everything is fine. If you want it, go to him. Now he is waiting for you, just like you once did," Daniel brought his face to Corey and kissed her forehead, "Just remember to eat. I will be there for you," the man whispered, got up from his chair and left.
Corey heard the sound of his confident steps gradually fading, and soon the same old silence filled the empty corridor again.
. . .