The Hand of Destiny

ASHLEY’S POV

~

Beep. Beep. Beep.

That damn noise again! What the hell is it? Every now and then I hear it, just the repetitive beeping that rings irritatingly in my head. It’s going to drive me crazy, I can’t even figure out what the hell it is! Thankfully it’s not constant, none of the sounds I hear now are. Occasionally, I hear other things, I hear footsteps quite a lot and I’m pretty sure I can hear someone crying every now and again. Apart from that though it’s silent, to make it worse though that’s ALL it is. I can’t see at all, it’s just very dark and it’s like I’m blindfolded. Difference is, if it was as simple a thing as a blindfold I would be able to reach up and remove it, but I can’t because it’s not and I can’t seem to move my limbs either.

I tried for a long period of time, there’s not really much else to do around here. I tried waving my arms, wriggling my toes, talking. None of it had any effect though. The strange thing is that I can’t see my body but I can half feel it - which is incredibly odd. I gave up after a while and had to simply accept that I was making no progress. The problem is that now I have nothing to occupy my mind…

I can’t look around wherever the hell I am because I can’t see.

I can’t turn off the irritating beeping because I don’t know where it’s coming from.

I can’t try and comfort whoever it is that I can hear crying and tell them that I’m sure it’ll all be okay in the end because I can’t talk.

I can’t get up and walk out of this place because I can’t move.

I can’t shake the feeling that something is terribly wrong here either but that is most probably because it’s true. My senses are failing and I know it. I keep drifting in and out of this half-conscious ness and I can’t seem to focus my thoughts on anything apart from what’s happening right here right now. Something is definitely wrong here.

I try to relax, I’m probably just dreaming…

Deep breaths, clear head, re-LAX, OH SHIT PAIN! SO MUCH PAIN AND BURNING, FIRE, STABS OF PAIN, CHEST HURTING! FUCK!

I screamed at the top of my lungs as a wave off immense pain rushed through me, my skin felt burnt and my ribs and chest felt stabbed and shattered.

“ANDY!” I continue to scream.

Bright light flooded my eyes and the beeping returned, higher and more frequent than usual. I felt someone grab my hand tightly and several hands push my chest backwards slightly.

“My Purdy can you hear me? Please stay still and calm down, you’re okay” A female voice told me clearly and calmly.

The pain subsided steadily as my vision focused and stopped spinning. Exhausted I fell back and felt my back hit something just a few centimetres below me. I realised as I lay down and the beeping slowed that my senses had returned properly. I was in an off white room with cheap artificial lights overhead, sounds off people moving bounced off the walls and through the room and my fingers actually responded when I tried to stretch them.

“He’s stable, we’ll give you two a few minutes” the female voice spoke again and then I heard the click of a door being shut.

“Ashley?” a voice asked timidly and slightly disbelievingly.

I rolled my head to the right slightly to see who had said my name.

Andy!

He sat there in a white plastic chair, his long black hair a mess with some strands sticking to the wet trails of tears down his face.

Why is he crying?

I opened my mouth to ask him before my own memory answered me.

Craig, the kidnapping, the gun, the gunshot…

I panicked and pushed myself into a sitting position quickly, filled with the desperate need to check
Andy’s wellbeing.

“Andy, oh my god are you okay?! Craig… gun…and he fired- and and I blacked out- and fuck did he hurt you?! What happened? Where is he? Did I get shot?- oh shit I’m in hospital aren’t I? Where was I am minute ago, it was so dark an-” I started to frantically babble until Andy squeezed my hand and started to hush me.

“Sshh quiet Ash, it’s all okay, I promise. Yeah, you’re in hospital but it’s okay now, I was so worried you wouldn’t be and that I’d lose you but you’re okay you’re awake now! I guess I should start explaining what happened?”

“Yes! But first, are you okay? Seriously, please tell me he didn’t hurt you!”

He nodded reassuringly at me, “I really am Ash, all thanks to you”

“So what happened?” I questioned urgently.

“Basically, after you showed up and took a BULLET for me the police showed up, took one look at the situation and arrested Craig. It probably would have become a hostage situation if it wasn’t for the fact that Craig was just looking at the gun in bewilderment as if thinking ‘did I really just do that?!’ and the police put handcuffs on him quick and undid mine” he explained in what felt like one big sentence.

“Wait, how did they know we were there?” I questioned, confused.

Andy chuckled deeply, “I said the exact same thing. It turns out that crime actually DOES pay as the police were in pursuit of a stolen motorbike and they followed it to the building. You breaking the law actually saved the day” he grinned.

“Wait! Andy, don’t laugh I committed a crime! Theft is a crime! I’m going to go to jail!” I practically yelled, horrified at the realisation that just hit me.

“Ashley, Ash, calm down, okay? The police reviewed CCTV footage and that combined with the fact that you know me, went straight to the scene of a soon to be murder and then saved me was enough for them to accept that you were trying to help, not commit auto theft. Not to mention the fact that the bike’s owner was extremely enthusiastic and thought it very cool that his bike was used in a “kick ass Hollywood style rescue” and when asked if he wanted to press any charges he replied “Hell no!” ” he smiled. “C.C, Jinxx, Jake and Sammi will be so glad you’re awake! They’ve been in and out frequently to visit you but couldn’t stay here almost permanently like I did, I couldn’t leave you”

“Wait, police reviews? How long have I been here Andy?” Police reviews and decisions like that aren’t made in a few hours, just how long had I been out of it?

“That’s where you hero rescue went bad, you got shot Ashley, thankfully it missed all of your organs and just went straight in and out. But when you fell unconscious on the floor Ash, you didn’t wake up, we got to the hospital and they wouldn’t let me see you and then the next thing I knew a doctor was telling me you’d slipped into a coma!” I saw Andy’s blue eyes fill with tears as he told me. “You’ve been out for nearly three weeks, I thought I was going to lose you…” he choked out in a whisper as the forming tears spilt over and started to run down his cheeks.

“Andy, It’s-” I started reassuring him only to be cut off by a shake off his head.

“No Ash, let me finish. I thought I was going to die right there right then by Craig’s hand and then when I was about to give up hope and get killed and quite possibly raped you showed up, you didn’t hesitate you just came at him, you didn’t back down to him and you saved me! You saved my life Ash and I will never ever be able to thank you enough for that” he held my hand tightly within his own as he said this and kept eye contact all the way through. “Craig’s going to jail Ash, there’s no question about it, he won’t be able to hurt you or me ever again”.

He shuffled closer to me in the chair.

“Ashley, when I first met you, you were just a guy at a party but over the couple of weeks following you captured my heart and set up camp in my mind. I felt myself falling for you and so badly wanted you but I just couldn’t have another relationship that ended up like Craig and mine’s did. I realised now that that wasn’t a good judgement call”. It’s been like a romance movie since I woke up complete with a cliché Hollywood rescue. But even though Andy just hinted at wanting a relationship with me I can’t not bring something up. It’s sad to know that our little picture perfect ending is about to be lost but I need to know.

“You say this though Andy but if that’s true why did you go out with Kier? Craig was clearly a boyfriend previous to him so how come you came out of that relationship ready to try again with Kier but when it came to me you were too scared that I was going to hurt you?” I pained me a little to say; knowing that Andy had trusted Kier but not me hurt, he said he was being cautious but why with only me?

Andy sighed slightly before lifting my hand up entwined with his.

“I don’t really know how to start with this but a there were several things that caused it to be like that. What you have to know is that I would have said to anyone what I said to you and it wasn’t because I didn’t trust you or want to be with you. When me and Craig ended I went through a lot of shit and Kier was there for me; I’d known him since I was young and I guess our relationship grew from friendship to boyfriends. I thought that because of this that he would never hurt me but I was wrong. That’s the second thing, I got hurt twice in a row and I just couldn’t stand to make it three.

What I realise now is that the two people I knew longest were actually the ones to hurt me and the new boy in my life was the one to save me. You are in no way anything like Craig and I see that so clearly now. You are never going to be like him and I don’t know why my paranoid brain told me you would be. I guess I really should have followed my heart not my head on that one.” He smiled sadly.

“Not paranoid, Andy, just scared. That’s the natural human reaction to that, I just wish I would have known the full reason why when I met you. Then we could have worked on moving past it” I replied honestly, I knew Andy’s past was haunting him but I never knew the extent of it.

We just looked at each other for a moment before Andy opened his mouth to finally speak.

“I have no reason to try and keep myself away anymore Ashley, you’ve showed me just what an amazing person you are, and –if you’ll have me- I would really love to be your boyfriend.

I didn’t reply, there was no need. I said all that I needed to say when I wrapped my arms around his neck and kissed him passionately.

I briefly pulled my lips away from his, “I will always protect you Andy, always”. Then we went back to showing each other just how important we are to one another.