Chapter 32: I’ll wait

Elena’s P.O.V
I woke up to a constant beeping sound coming from near me. Irritated, I tried to move my hand to shut off whatever the sound was, but I found that I couldn’t move my hand.
“…need to do this…”
What was that? Was someone near me?
“…why? ...you knew…”
Landon…I knew that voice!
“…yes but…”
And Knight! They were near me! But why couldn’t I see them? Why couldn’t they hear me? See me? What was going on?
The sound of the beeping increased and so did their voices. They were talking about something…but what?
“You saved her life.” It was Knight’s voice. “If you didn’t get her to the hospital in time, Elena could have been in grave danger…we could’ve lost our baby…thank you.”
What? What happened to me? Why would I have lost my baby?
“I don’t need your thanks. Just promise me that you’ll never hurt her.” Landon spoke this time.
“You know I won’t.” Knight spoke before his voice turned even louder. “Where are you going?”
“I think it’s best if you remain in front of her when she wakes up. She risked her life trying to save you…she chose you.”
“Don’t be ridiculous.” Knight snapped. “She would’ve done the same for any of us.”
“I don’t think so.” Landon’s voice seemed to fade. “Take care of her…”
Wait? What was happening? Where was Landon going? What did he mean by I risked my life to save Knight? What was going on!
Right then, images flashed before my eyes as the sound of the beeping increased. The hotel…Emanuel…the gun…Knight…
I opened my eyes gasping for air. My hands immediately went to my belly, feeling for the tiny bump that had appeared recently. Thankfully, I could move my hands and legs this time and the lights in the room were almost blinding to look at. Knight was by my side in an instant.
“Elena!” He touched my hand lightly. “Everything is okay…the baby is fine, you are fine.”
I breathed a sigh of relief at Knight’s reassurance and laid my head back down on the pillows. I blinked several times to clear my vision and found out that I was indeed in a hospital cabin, hooked to multiple monitors that gave out that dull beeping noise.
“Everyone?” I managed to speak through a parched throat.
“Everyone is safe. Leo, Landon and your dad.” Knight reassured me. “They’re all waiting outside. Do you want me to call them?”
I nodded and Knight gave me an ice-chip from the bedside table.
“And Emanuel?” I asked.
“In jail on multiple charges and your father is making sure he doesn’t get out soon.” Knight stated. “Besides, he confessed in front of a bunch of people. He isn’t getting away with it easily.”
“And Keena?” Knight’s sister must be devastated that her husband almost caused her brother’s downfall.
“She’s coping.” Knight said with a sigh, obviously stressed about his sister. “But I think she will be fine. Mom and dad are with her right now. She’s a strong woman.”
“Yes, she is.” I smiled remembering the woman who had scolded Knight multiple times like she was scolding an errant child.
“I’ll go call in your family.” Knight told me and I gave him a thankful smile. Knight stood up to call the rest of my family, but stopped halfway.
“Was it because I am the father of your child?” Knight asked suddenly, turning to face me.
I was momentarily left speechless by his sudden question and I had no idea how to answer him honestly. But maybe that was the best way to answer him, with complete honesty.
“Yes.” I told him sincerely. “I saw Emanuel point his gun at you and I realized I didn’t want our baby growing up without getting to know his father. So I acted on impulse.”
“I thought as much.” Knight smiled and came towards me. Bending down, he placed a soft kiss to my forehead. “I’ll have to leave tonight for LA.”
“So soon?” But I understood that he needed to be with his family. “Take care of yourself and your family. They need you now more than ever.”
“Yes.” He nodded. “I’ll try to come by next week, but I can’t say for sure.”
“It’s alright.” I told him.
Knight left after that and I spent the next hour surrounded by my family. Mom and dad constantly held onto my arm and Leo sat at the edge of my bed and I felt so loved and cherished by my family like I had never felt in a long time. It was like when I was a baby. Everyone doted on me and I was the apple of everyone’s eyes. I realized that my family still loved me the same but the only difference had been that as I grew older, they way of expressing their love for me had changed.
For once, I felt that maybe if I hadn’t hastily left for LA four years ago, things would’ve been so much different. Maybe it wasn’t too late?
When my parents were about to leave after the doctor ordered them to let me rest, I called out to Leo and told him to send Landon inside. He hadn’t entered the room with my family and I had a feeling he was trying to avoid talking to me. But that wasn’t an option.
Landon came if five minutes after everyone had left. He didn’t come near me immediately and I was okay with that.
“Knight just left.” He told me after a few minutes of awkward silence.
“I didn’t save him because I chose him.” I told him straight away, letting him know that I had heard their conversation.
Landon looked momentarily thrown off guard before he answered, “But you didn’t chose me either.”
“It’s too early for that.” I told him honestly. “I’m not ready to choose anyone other than my child right now. I need time to process everything, to figure out what I want to do with my life. My entire life had been derailed after I found out I was pregnant. I need to figure out everything once again.”
“I’ll wait.” Landon said quietly, coming to stand next to my bed. “No matter how long it takes, or even if you’re never ready for me…I’ll always be here for you. I’ll protect you. No matter what happens, I’ll always be by your side.”
And I knew that Landon had meant every word.