part 2
twenty-six
The first thing that Maddy noticed was the rush of noise in her ears.
There was a cacophony of voices all blurred together, impossible to understand.
Why couldn’t she understand them?
She slowly realized that her eyes felt as if sealed shut, and that even through her closed eyelids she could tell she was extremely dizzy. Her heart was pounding fiercely and the overpowering smell of exhaust fumes assaulted her nostrils. But underneath it all, there was a familiar scent she desperately wanted to cling to, and a soft material was clasped tightly in her fist, so tightly her fingers were aching.
She was lying down but she wasn’t alone.
There was a strong body holding her close, a chest breathing in and out beneath her hands.
She didn’t feel hurt, just stiff and disoriented.
She felt groggy as she attempted to pry her eyes open. She blinked at the sudden light, her retinas burning. The world was out of focus, probably because her glasses were missing.
A low ramble sounded from the body cushioning hers and Maddy turned to squint at the face of the man below her.
Nate.
Maddy blinked rapidly trying to clear the fog from her brain, trying to piece together what was happening. She felt as if everything was slightly out of reach, slipping through her fingers.
She did her best to concentrate.
Nate was there with her, going through the same motions as she had apparently. They were both lying on gravel, a silver car mere inches from them, and realization was slowly but steadily creeping up on her.
That day.
The barely accident.
School. Grandma. New Year’s Eve.
Nate.
Oh God. She had to make sure he was okay.
She tried to shuffle upwards, unclasping her fingers and using her forearms to bring herself closer to his face.
“Nate?” Her voice was a whisper. She was trembling and she had never been more scared.
“Nate, are you okay?” She tentatively brushed his face, not wanting to jostle him if he was hurt.
With a groan, Nate’s eyes–Nate’s beautiful, chocolate eyes–blinked open, taking in his surroundings before they focused on her.
“Are you okay, Nate?” she was powerless not to keep asking until she heard that he was fine, that there was nothing wrong, that nothing had happened to him.
“I think I’m okay,” he rasped, already attempting to sit up.
“No, wait! Don’t stand up, we should be checked out first.” A quick glance around showed Maddy the tell-tale figures of EMTs.
“Then you shouldn’t sit up either,” Nate’s gravelly words reached her ears. “Are you okay?” he asked, his eyes briefly closing before turning to look at her again.
Maddy nodded. “I think so.”
Nate nodded back, before his face changed in an undecipherable expression.
