The Woman in the Woods (Saul Silva x OC)

Chapter 12: After

Saul opened his eyes to a bright morning. He knew this because there was a dewy quality to the brightness in the room, a cold that hadn't yet gone away; he just didn't know what day it was. It felt as though he had slept a week, even so, all he wanted was more sleep. The headache came almost immediately and his vision kept moving clockwise. Ben was fussing over him, telling him, "It's okay, Saul," because he was slapping his hand away so that he could go back to sleep. But whatever the man was doing was what woke him in the first place, a cold substance being applied on his neck.

From afar, he heard Sasha's voice. "I can close the wound."

"This should do it. You don't need to lose any more blood," Ben said.

He meant to ask why Sasha lost blood when what she gave up in the Stone Circle was minimal; she drew power from the stone, then later on... His mind drifted to the events of that night, wondering how long ago it had been. Did he just imagine Farah being there? Did Sasha really sacrifice Rosalind? There were gaps in what he could observe then, and the things he could didn't make much sense. Maybe he should stay awake after all so he could know. But...

It may have only been a few hours later when he woke up again or it may have been a few days. A sunny afternoon was by the window this time and he still felt horrible. Eyes still closed, he could hear a voice talking, soft and tender, a hand occasionally brushing his brow. When he opened his eyes, Sasha was there, droning on but he couldn't yet decipher what she said. She was alone, sitting on the floor with an elbow next to his shoulder, her short hair not in its usual middle part—it looked a mess in fact—and there were dark circles under her eyes. She stopped speaking, maybe aware that he wasn't in a position to comprehend. Then he was again succumbing to sleep.

It was another afternoon the next time he awoke, and this time he felt slightly better. If anyone asked, he could say the vertigo had somewhat subsided and he might be able to hold off puking for a couple of minutes. He managed to keep his eyes open and focus on his surroundings enough to understand that he was in his house, actually in his room.

There was such a feeling of relief at finding yourself in your own bed after being away awhile—a month for him—where worries could be forgotten and true repose can be obtained. Maybe it was that the bed was the appropriate softness, the pillows the correct height, or that he was surrounded by familiar things, some even sentimental. On his desk by the window was a picture of him with Farah and Ben (a gift from the latter) beside his laptop, along with some files and a cup holding some pens. Books, notebooks, files and folders were piled incoherently (to other people) on a bookshelf next to it, with small decorative bookends he got from Farah. On his swivel chair was a khaki-colored jacket that must have been hanging there for a month now. His lamp was still there on his nightstand, though the used candle next to it was not his. There was a charger perpetually plugged to the sockets, and his book! He was reading this a month ago but wasn't able to finish. It was sat undisturbed, a bookmark in its middle.

What was different was the IV bag hanging above his bed, hooked up to his left hand. It wasn't the usual watery IV seen in hospitals. This one glowed and shimmered in shades of red. That and Sky, sitting slouched on a chair by the foot of the bed, his legs stretched out and crossed on top of the bedframe. He seemed absorbed by his phone, holding it sideways and continuously pressing it with his thumbs. Though, he must have noticed movement because he looked up and found Saul staring straight at him.

"Hey!" Sky sat straight, swinging his feet to the floor. Saul opened his mouth, but before he could ask, Sky raised a hand. "Maja's in the other room, sleeping."

He breathed out, feeling slightly stupid. He didn't think she'd just leave without saying goodbye but there was always the possibility.

"How long have I been out?"