Chapter 2 Fog Of The Past
Alina’s POV:
“Alina,” My eyes opened with the soft murmur around me. I hissed at the bright lights of the hospital room piercing my eyes.
“Oh Thank Heavens you’re awake babe!” I whipped my head and saw Carter on my right side. It took me a few moments to register the scenario we were in.
“Babe, how are you feeling now?” He asked me with a love-filled voice, fixing my hair. I looked at him, trying to contemplate his words, and then it dawned on me all of a sudden.
“Dad!” I abruptly sat up when Carter held my arm. “Honey, wait, listen to me.”
“Dad Carter! Where is my dad? What happened to him?”
“Babe, wait, don’t panic, he—”
“Don’t panic? Carter, I saw that chandelier fall on my dad for God’s Sake!” I looked at him with horror-filled eyes.
“Love, I know, but he is alright now. You don’t need to worry anymore.”
“I want to see him right now!” I ignored whatever he said and tried to stand, with my head spinning.
“Alina, babe, wait, listen to me, you can’t—” He tried to hold me, but I was too adamant to listen to him.
“Get out of my way, I want to see my Dad,” I said, thrashing like a dying fish.
“Honey, listen, listen, Uncle Lorenzo is well, he is under observation for now. We are not allowed inside.” His words made me go still for a moment. I looked at him for any lies, but he nodded and took his time to put me back to bed, my head still felt heavy.
“Yes love, your dad is fine, he will be recovering soon. And once the doctors take your IV out and allow us to visit, I will take you to see him.” He patted my head with love, fixing my now rough hair. A few moments passed in silence.
“How on earth did the chandelier fall like that?” I asked more of myself than of him.
“Alina, I called the cops right at the moment, they are sure it was a mere accident and nothing more…..still the management will be fined for their carelessness.” I nodded at the given information.
“You promise you aren’t lying?” I asked him with a small voice.
I don’t know what was in my question that made him smile at me.
“Yes love, I promise.”
It was past midnight when I came out of the ICU after seeing my dad, all bruised and stitched up due to that ominous chandelier fall. My mind had so many questions, how the hell did that chandelier fall all of a sudden….just like that? But Carter convinced me that the cops were involved and they couldn’t find any evidence that says against it. Still, my mind was nowhere near calm.
I stood up and went down to the hospital garden, a cold breeze hitting my face trying to calm my racing thoughts.
I closed my eyes. And just like that, the past crashed in — uninvited, unwelcome, unstoppable.
(flashback)
"Alina, you better stop right now. Don’t go down there!"
Then Kieran’s voice rang out, sharp and angry. “Shit,” I hissed, stopping dead. My heart raced, not just from running, but from the thrill of being so close to that side—the boys’ hostel, the park where they hung out after dark.
I was sixteen—chirpy, sassy, and always keeping Kieran on his toes. Like now. I ran barefoot, breathless, over the damp gravel. The summer night smelled of rain, the path slick beneath me. The old fence barely stood between me and the world beyond—a world I longed to taste, just for a while.
“Alina, you better not make me count to ten!” I heard his mad voice again, and I looked back at him. His dark hair was damp, chest heaving with the marathon he ran for me— like he always did. Gosh, he looked like an angry bull.
"It’s just a park, big B," I said, whining like a child... "I needed air."
"At midnight? Alone?" His jaw clenched, his hands raking through his hair. "Stop lying Alina, I know what you are here for…and stop calling me big B, I'm not that older." He gritted his teeth.
“Well if you already know, then maybe you should let me have a boyfriend now, so I wouldn’t have to peek at the boys down there.”
“Never, you’re not of age right now, and when the time comes, you will find the right one.”
“How come I would find the right one if you keep overprotecting me like that? All of my friends have boyfriends but you don’t even let me talk to guys? What’s wrong with you big B?” I whined for the hundredth time now, throwing my hands in the air.
“Alina, stop calling me Big B for the very last time I tell you. I’m not that old. It’s Kieran for you! And you don’t have to do everything that your friends do. You have to be mature to find the right guy for you!”
“You are literally five years older than me. Why do you never let me call you brother? And how would I know who is the right one for me if it would always be you around me?”
He took a step towards me, his eyes glimmering with so many unsaid emotions I failed to understand.
“You are really naive aren’t you?” He said in his deep voice, and then he noticed my foot, making me follow his gaze.
“Your toe is bleeding again. How many times do I have to tell you to wear your slippers? We need to patch this up. God you know I hate scars on you!” His voice sounded so done– still an octave deep.
I laughed — because that’s what I did when I didn’t know what else to do. "I didn’t think you’d notice."
He looked back at me with those dark grey eyes, and for a second, I saw that unnamed fire in him again— the fire of protectiveness, the fire of stubbornness, and something more I still couldn’t figure out. He had always been like this, mysterious, hard to solve like a puzzle…and very territorial.
"Of course, I noticed," he’d said quietly. "I always notice…everything about you.”
His voice broke at the end of his sentence...
I didn’t understand what he meant by that. Nor was I ever able to read to stormy gray eyes…not even the way he looked at me. I never understood what kept him awake, why he would watch my steps, or why he would steal glances at me…..All I knew was that he was a weird big B for me..that’s all! I didn’t see anything until it was too late!
All the memories are still fresh in my mind, even after so many years. The ache in my chest is still the same…maybe that happens when you receive unlimited love from a certain someone, and then they leave you on your own all of a sudden. You don’t ever move on from them.
The same was the case with me. I wasn’t born in the Blackthrone family, I was adopted as a toddler…how? I didn’t know! I still don’t know who my biological family was…nor do I care. I was raised as a princess by my foster parents, and Kieran loved me and protected me more than anyone could do.
“No” wasn’t a word in my dictionary. He fulfilled my every wish, fought every fight for me, did illegal bike racing to spend extra money on me when Dad refused to pay him. I was chirpy, sassy, and stubborn because he raised me like that…and when I was totally emotionally dependent on him…he disappeared! And I was left, broken, depressed, and clueless.
“You don’t have the right to think of him now,” I told myself, heaving a sigh. “Carter is waiting for you inside.”
I said that to myself, but I knew this wasn’t going to happen, no matter how many pills I take to forget him.
"Alina," Carter’s voice cut through the night, low and controlled. I schooled my features before I turned.
"What was it?" I asked, my voice barely steady.
“What are you doing here in this cold?”
“Nothing, just wanted to get away from this hospital smell.” I made up.
“Hey!” He said politely, hugging me close. “Your dad is going to be fine. Everything is going to be fine. I’ll make sure of that, hmm?”
“Okay…” was all I whispered, feeling guilty yet suffocated in his embrace.
Come inside, let's head to the cafeteria,” he held my arm and dragged me with him. “I'll get you some coffee.”
I nodded, looked at the foggy sky one last time..and headed inside.
