Fifty-Two | Lyric
Fifty-Two
Lyric
“Oh my gosh, Kara,” I squealed, looking at the gorgeous vase filled with roses and baby breath. “It’s gorgeous! Thank you so much!”
She tipped it slightly toward me so I could smell the flowers before setting it on the dresser.
It fit perfectly on the corner, where I could see it without it blocking the view of the TV.
She fidgeted with her hands for a few seconds before she looked at the door, looking like she was desperate to leave.
I furrowed my brows, immediately concerned.
“Are you okay?” I asked, noticing the way she stiffened at the question.
“Yeah. I’m fine. I should go see if Ben needs help.”
She turned to walk out, my heart tightening at the way she was withdrawing from me.
“Kara,” I called, stopping her, but she refused to look at me. “What’s wrong?”
“Nothing,” she lied, continuing to look at the floor instead of at me.
I felt so helpless, unable to get up and go to her. She was clearly upset, and I needed to know why.
“Please come talk to me,” I begged, knowing she heard the desperation in my voice as she gently shook her head. “Please.”
I didn’t bother to hide the raw emotion in my words as she slowly turned to face me, tears rolling down her cheeks.
“Honey,” I whispered, holding my arms out for her. “Come here. Please talk to me, Kara.”
She shook her head again, wrapping her arms around herself.
Deciding that I didn’t care, I threw the covers back and slowly got out of bed. It wasn’t like I wasn’t allowed to ever get out of bed; I just had to minimize the frequency and what I did while I was up and moving around. But right now, getting to Kara was my highest priority.
I gently touched her shoulder, letting her know I was there.
She turned around, her eyes filled with tears as she looked at me with concern on her face.
“You’re supposed to stay in bed,” she said softly.
“Yes, I know. But right now, you’re more important than me sitting in that damn bed.”
“No.” She shook her head vehemently. “You need to rest. I don’t want to cause you any stress or hurt the babies. I’ve already done enough as it is.”
She covered her face with her hands as she cried hard, her words taking me by surprise.
“Sweetheart,” I whispered, my voice struggling to come through. “What in the world are you talking about?”
“This!” she shrieked, dropping her hands as she pointed to me. “I’m the reason you got in that car accident! I’m the reason that you and the babies almost died! If you hadn’t been coming to get me, you would never have gotten in that accident! Don’t you see? It’s all my fault!”
I blew out a heavy breath as I pulled her into my arms, holding her as she cried so hard her body shook with each sob.
We stood there for a few minutes as I comforted her, feeling her relax in my arms as her crying came to a stop.
She pulled away and wiped her tears from her cheeks, her face red and splotchy.
“My sweet girl,” I said softly, cupping her face in my hands. “None of this is your fault.”
“Yes, it is,” she mumbled, trying to pull away from me. “I was the reason you left the house.”
“True, but you didn’t know what would happen that day, Kara.
None of us did. It’s not fair for you to hold onto this guilt because it’s not yours to carry.
I don’t care what happens. If you need me, I will always be there.
Nothing is ever going to stop me from trying to get to you.
What happened that day was an accident. It was a combination of being in the wrong place at the wrong time. But you know what I think?”
“What?”
“I think that fate put me there for a reason.”
She studied me cautiously as she waited for me to explain.
“I think that if that old man hadn’t hit my car, he would have hit something else and might not have survived. Maybe I was meant to be there to protect him.”
“But you almost died. How can you be so calm about that?”
I shrugged, not sure that I had an answer for that.
“I don’t know. I guess I’ve just looked a little deeper these past few days. Did it suck getting into a car accident? You bet. Was it scary not knowing if the babies would be okay? Definitely. But in the end, we all survived that accident, Kara. We’re all okay.”
She pressed her lips together to keep from crying again as I pulled her in for another hug.
“I thought I was going to lose you,” Kara said against my chest as she laid her head over my heart. “I was so terrified that it was all happening again.”
“I know, sweetheart. I’m so sorry you had to go through that. I can’t imagine the pain it caused you and Ben. But everything is okay. We’re all going to get through this and live a long, beautiful life.”
Her head bobbed up and down in agreement as I held onto her, my tears falling just as quickly as hers.