Blind

She wasn’t sure how she had gotten here, when she had gotten here, or why she was even here to begin with. It felt like a thousand pounds were weighing down on her chest, and she couldn’t move. She didn’t remember anything, and all she could hear was the beeping of what she assumed was a heart monitor that was sitting next to the bed she was laying in.

Her head was throbbing and her ears were ringing, making her feel sick to her stomach. Every time she tried to move, it was like every muscle she would normally use froze in place. It was like she was paralyzed.

She slowly turned her head, letting out a small grunt and groan, the beeping of the heart monitor slowly beginning to speed up. She turned her head again, letting out a small whimper as her head pounded even harder. Her dry, chapped lips parted and she sucked in a sharp breath, her mouth and throat drier than the Sahara Desert.

She gasped when she felt a hand on her arm, and on instinct, her eyes shot open. Well, she thought her eyes were open. She couldn’t see a thing. Everything was black. She began to panic, the heart monitor and the pounding in her head quickening. She tried to form words but her throat was so dry that nothing came out.

“Calm down,” echoed throughout the room, and she instantly knew who it was, forcing her to start calming down. She knew that voice anywhere, and she trusted that voice, no matter what. It was soothing, and she knew that she was okay.

She turned her head and closed her eyes, hoping that when she opened them again, she’d be able to see. But once again, all she saw was black. “I–I can’t see,” she barked out, her voice hoarse and thick. She coughed a little and took deep breaths, squeezing her eyes shut in attempt to force some of the pain in her head away.

When she heard no response, she began to worry, afraid that he’d left the room. “B–Brian?” she croaked, opening her eyes again and frowning deeply. “A–Are you s–still—o”

She was cut off by warm, soft, thin lips meeting her plump, dry, chapped ones. She felt like it had been a lifetime since she had kissed those lips—the ones she had fallen in love with so many years ago. She frowned when the feeling went away, wishing she could open her eyes up and look up at him—the love of her life.

“I’m still here,” he said, “and I’m not going anywhere. I promise.”

She nodded her head and took a deep breath. She heard the door crack open and turned her head towards it, opening her eyes even though there was no point.

“You’re awake,” a man said, his footsteps getting closer to the bed until they came to a halt. “Good. Do you have any memory of what happened?”

She shook her head and sighed softly. “No,” she muttered in her weak, shaky voice. “I don’t remember anything. How did I get here?”

“You were in an accident. A drunk driver hit you from the side, and the force of the impact was so strong, the window next to you shattered and small pieces of glass were lodged into your eyes. We retraced them and unfortunately, we couldn’t save your sight. You broke two ribs and you also have a concussion. The woman driving was lucky to have not cracked or indented your skull,” he explained.

Tears began to form in her eyes, a grimace forming on her face as her lip started to quiver. She held in her tears as long as she could before a tiny whimper escaped her dry throat, sniffling. She slowly lifted her arm and reached up, wiping her eyes before the tears could start rolling down her cheeks.

“You’re lucky to be alive, Mrs. Haner,” he told her. “A nurse will be in here shortly to give you some medicine. Hang in until then, okay?”

She felt him pat her shoulder before she heard his footsteps again, and then the door lightly shutting. She finally released her emotions, sobs racking her body as the tears began to pour from her eyes. She couldn’t believe this. She hadn’t done anything wrong—she didn’t understand why this had to happen to her. It wasn’t fair.

“Baby, it’s okay,” Brian said, and she felt his hand on her cheek, his thumb brushing her tears away. “This is just a bump in the road. We’ll get over it.”

She sniffled and shook her head. “Th–this isn’t fa–fair,” she hiccuped and whimpered.

“I know it’s not,” he said. “It’s not fair for anyone to have to go through this. But we’ll get through it together, okay? It’s going to be okay.”

She started to calm down after she repeated his words in her head, believing what he said. “O–okay,” she whispered. She reached up and laid his hand on top of hers, just needing to feel his touch, and to be assured that he was really there, and that she wasn’t imagining this. “D–do you still lo–love me?”

“Of course I love you. What would make you think I wouldn’t?” he asked, and she could just hear the confusion on his face and in his words.

“I–I’m blind,” she sniffled. “I–I’m not n–normal anym–more.” She couldn’t help but feeling like her world was falling apart. She was so young and now she was blind. She’d never be able to see again. The pain in her chest was growing and she felt like her head was going to explode. She had never been in so much pain in her entire life, and she still wondered what she had done to deserve this.

“There is nothing wrong with you,” he said sternly. “I fucking love you no matter what; blind, deaf, mute, whatever. Understand? You’re the love of my life, and nothing is ever going to change that.”

She slowly opened her eyes and sniffled, taking in his words. More tears began to fall from her eyes and she bit her bottom lip hard, whimpering silently. “I–I love you too,” she whispered. “So m–much.”

“Never forget that,” he said.

She nodded her head and squeezed her eyes shut, letting him wipe away her tears again. She still wanted to think that her life was ruined and that nothing was going to be okay, but deep down, she knew that he was right—that everything was going to be okay. And that he was going to be there for her. He loved her, and he would always love her. He said there was nothing wrong with her, but she knew there was. She wasn’t the same anymore; she wasn’t like everyone else.

She was blind.