Maxen
Ryan.
ICU.
Emergency contact.
Aurelia Elit Hospital.
The words echoed through my mind like distant thunder.
When I answered that call, my world shifted.
I should've known—nothing good ever comes from a phone ringing this late.
Night is when the worst news finds you.
I stood frozen, the phone still in my hand, unable to move, to think… to breathe.
Then I felt it—arms wrapping around me.
Adrian.
A warmth that pulled me back from the edge.
"I'm here, Maxen," he whispered.
And just like that, the warmth slipped away as he moved into action.
"Let's get dressed and go."
I didn't argue. Couldn't.
Adrian helped me into clothes like I was a child. I barely registered it.
We made our way downstairs, through the quiet house, and into the garage where his car waited.
Somewhere along the drive, he asked me for the hospital name. The attending doctor.
I answered… I think.
I hope I got it right.
My hands trembled in my lap the entire ride.
What happened to Ryan?
Why am I his emergency contact?
Where is his family?
Where are the people who should've been called instead of me?
But then again—what do I really know about Ryan?
He never talked much about his life. His past.
Never let me in.
Why would he?
I wasn't important to him…
Was I?
I stared out the window as city lights passed us by, but nothing looked real anymore.
Not the trees. Not the road. Not even the man driving beside me.
Everything was suspended—like time itself was holding its breath.
And somewhere in the silence between heartbeats and headlights, a single thought rose, loud and terrifying:
What if I lose him before I ever get the answers I've been searching for?
"Maxen, we're here."
Adrian's voice was quiet but steady. Grounding.
He stood by the open car door, hand stretched out toward me.
I blinked, startled by the fact that we'd already arrived.
The lights of Aurelia Elit Hospital glared behind him like a dream I didn't want to enter.
Adrian looked worried—but calm. The kind of calm that wraps itself around panic and holds it down.
I didn't have the words to respond, so I reached for his hand and squeezed it.
Thank you, I thought, not just for the ride—for being strong for both of us when I couldn't even find the ground beneath me.
Inside the hospital, the scent hit me like a punch to the chest.
Sterile. Cold.
Too clean to feel safe.
I stopped in my tracks.
That smell always brings back memories I try to bury.
My father had spent a year in a hospital just like this one…
And then he left.
Not discharged.
Gone.
He chose death over staying with us. Over staying with me.
My chest tightened.
The walls of the corridor felt like they were closing in.
Adrian was talking—but his voice began to fade.
Blurred figures moved around me—too fast, too loud… and then too quiet.
Everything became distant. Unreachable.
Even Adrian.
I tried to hold onto the sound of his voice, the cedarwood scent of his jacket, the touch of his hand—but it all slipped through my fingers.
"Maxen!" I think he called.
But I couldn't respond.
I reached out blindly for him. My hand barely lifted before—
Darkness.
Light.
Too bright.
The first thing I became aware of was the white ceiling above me, then the quiet beeping of machines nearby, and the low hum of hospital silence.
My throat was dry. My chest felt heavy, like I'd been crushed by my own panic.
Where am I?
Then it hit me.
Ryan.
ICU.
Emergency contact.
The phone call.
I sat up too quickly, panic surging again.
"Easy," Adrian's voice came immediately, and then he was there—by my side.
His hand pressed gently against my chest, coaxing me back down.
"You fainted," he said, soft but steady. "Just a stress response. Dr. Sean said you'll be fine."
"Dr. Sean… the one from before?"
He nodded, already knowing what I meant.
I blinked at him. His eyes were tired. Concern etched into every part of his face.
He looked like he hadn't left my side.
"How long have I been out?" I whispered, my voice hoarse.
"Just an hour," Adrian replied. "They ran some tests, gave you fluids. You scared me, Maxen."
"I'm sorry…" I murmured. "It was the smell… the memories… everything just hit me all at once."
"I know." He reached out, brushing his fingers gently against my cheek. "You don't have to explain. I was here."
I closed my eyes.
"The ICU?" I asked, barely getting the words out.
Adrian nodded. "They'll let us see him soon. The nurse is prepping the room."
My chest tightened again.
"What happened to him?"
"Nothing detailed yet. Just that he got into an accident—he crashed into a truck while drunk driving. The person who called it in left before paramedics arrived. No ID on him. Just your name and number listed as his emergency contact."
"Dr. Sean said he'll talk to us after you wake up."
"Why me?" I whispered.
Adrian didn't answer.
He didn't need to.
The question lingered in the air like the antiseptic sting of the room—loud in its silence.
Why would Ryan—after all this time—choose me to be called in his moment of crisis?
And…
Was I ready to face what waited behind that ICU door?
I have to.
Because maybe… I wasn't truly there for him all those years.
But I can be now.
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TO BE CONTINUED...
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