Chapter 118: Amelia

My hands covered my mouth as I tried to breathe calmly to contain my shock at the sight before me.

’Amelia won’t marry Hayden…she can’t...’

That was what Hayden’s father said, wasn’t it? For the first time, his words and many things started to make sense. He was right, there’s no way that the woman in front of me can possibly marry anyone, Hayden included.

Amelia laid in her bed with her eyes closed while many machines were hooked up to her body to sustain her life. The angel that I had dreamt about was unconscious and in a vegetative state.

I have never felt so pitiful and disgraceful before in my entire life. All this time, I had been jealous of a woman who was in a vegetative state. I stood at the side of Amelia’s bed as I looked down at her frail sleeping body. Of course, being an artist, I didn’t have any medical knowledge.

However, anyone could tell from the state that she was in and the various machines in her room that was hooked to her body that she was in a state of what we would call a ’sleeping beauty’.

How long has she been this way? What happened?

"Amelia…this is Malissa," Hayden introduced us before he took one of Amelia’s hands into his own.

Everything about the scene just tore at my heart. Without knowing it, I had started crying openly. This is just too sad…

"Hayden…what happened? What happened to Amelia?" I asked, my voice shaking. My whole body felt very cold, and I couldn’t stop my hands from trembling.

"It’s a little hard to explain. Let’s take a seat first, shall we?" Hayden suggested as he tried to keep his tone light.

I nodded before we seated ourselves on the sofa that was in the room. Thankfully, I had taken a seat. Honestly, I wasn’t sure how long I could have continued to stay standing. My legs felt weak from the shock. Now that the room was silent, I could hear the constant beeping of the various life-sustaining machines that were hooked up to her body.

Although this room was luxurious and beautiful, it was nothing more than a fancy hospital room. I gulped as I was reminded of my grandmother’s room at the hospital. I wonder what happened and how long she’s been in this condition. Hayden didn’t seem very bothered by it. That was probably because he had come to terms with it, I guessed.

"Hayden…" I called out his name in a whisper. My voice sounded dry.

"It’s ok. Amelia’s been…sleeping…like that for a few years now…" Hayden replied before smiling a little at me. I could tell that he wanted to comfort me so that I would recover from my shock.

"Sorry…I honestly never expected this," I admitted honestly as I wiped my tears away from my eyes.

"It wasn’t like I was trying to keep it a secret, but it isn’t really something for me to show off either," Hayden said flatly.

"I understand…" I mumbled softly.

If I were Amelia, I wouldn’t want anyone advertising about my condition either. I wasn’t sure if I should ask this but…

"Will she…wake up?" I asked directly.

"Medically speaking, the chances are very slim. Even if she does wake up, there’s no guarantee that she would be…normal," Hayden replied emotionlessly.

Oh right, he’s a doctor…

"You know…I change my mind. You don’t have to tell me anything about her…" I said, suddenly feeling scared to hear anything about the angel that was sleeping peacefully on the bed close to us.

"What if I told you that what happened to you is somehow related to her?" Hayden asked before he smiled knowingly at me.

Then…of course, I would want to know…

"You’re not really giving me a choice, are you?" I muttered in frustration.

"You’re a very curious girl, after all," Hayden said with a small laugh.

"So? What happened to her?" I asked, bluntly.

"She was in a car crash. The car fell down from a bridge and into the river. Although she was saved in time to save her life, she had drowned, and the lack of oxygen supply damaged her brain. The result is as you can see. After her bodily wounds have healed, she just never regained consciousness since that day," Hayden explained.

Unfortunate accidents do happen…

I bit my lower lip as my eyes glanced over at Amelia. Will she ever wake up? I hope she does…

"That’s so sad. I’m sorry…" I quickly apologized before brining my fingers up to wipe away my tears from my eyes.

Hayden should be feeling much more crushed than I am. I have no right to cry here in front of him like this. Taking in deep breaths, I tried to hold in my tears.

"That’s ok. I cried a lot too when it happened," Hayden admitted straightforwardly.

I didn’t know what to say to that, so I just nodded and averted my eyes. It was hard for me to imagine someone like Hayden crying. I couldn’t help but wonder what all of this had to do with me though.

"What happened to Amelia was all because of me. Amelia’s from a very well-off family as you can probably already tell…" Hayden said softly.

"What do you mean?" I replied softly before keeping silent for Hayden to go on with his story.

"She’s the sole heir of a family that lives off old money and old connections. However, currently, their family business has been in decline and following her father’s death, things got a little rough for the family," Hayden began explaining.

"They still seem very well-off as far as I can see…" I mumbled.

I mean, please don’t tell me that her family’s got it rough financially when they’re still living in a grand mansion like this. Compared to this place, my grandmother and I lived together in a hole in a wall.

"When I first met Amelia, I had no idea who she was. She also had no idea who I was…" Hayden said with a faraway look in his eyes as if he was recalling some distant memories.

--To be continued…