Her Substitute Groom

Connor POV

I pulled my car over at the side of the road and headed to the lake. Even though a part of me kept telling me that it was pointless coming here, I was hoping and praying that maybe, just maybe, a miracle will happen and I’ll find him.

Again, I dived into the lake after I changed into a swim tank. Even if he was dead, I at least needed to get his corpse and give him a proper burial. I swam to the edge of the lake, searching for him but there was no sign of him anywhere. I couldn’t go deeper into the water, so I couldn’t go to the depth of the water.

“You need to find him, Connor. You can’t give up,” just on the verge of giving up, I heard that voice sounding in my head, so I swam deeper inside the lake. My chest started to contract, making my heartbeat slow down. I was running out of oxygen as a result of holding my breath for too long under the water and I knew I needed to get out of here, but with the hope of finding him eventually, I kept swimming deeper inside.

“You will find him. You just need to swim deeper,” came the voice again, but just then, I felt myself going deeper into the water, and I couldn’t even swim back to the surface. I was drowning, and I couldn’t move a finger let alone help myself out. Slowly, my heartbeat dropped until I couldn’t feel it anymore, and that was all I remembered.

*****

Four days later

I had no idea how long I’d been unconscious, but the sound of a faint beeping machine sounded in my ears as I tried to force my eyes open. My vision was blurred and my head hurts.

“He’s awake. Call the doctor,” I heard a familiar masculine voice, but I couldn’t tell immediately who the voice belonged to, or where the hell I was at the moment.

“Where am I?” I wanted to ask the question so I could be cleared, but even my voice failed me because I could only open my mouth with no words coming out of them.

“I think he’s trying to say something. Where is the doctor?” A feminine voice said with worries resounding in the familiar voice, but again, I couldn’t tell who the voice belonged to.

Thick footsteps echoed in my head and it made bang even more.

“Make way, please,” Another masculine voice came on, but this one didn’t sound familiar. It felt like it was the first time I was going to hear that voice. I was still trying to figure out what was going on when I felt a sharp pain in my arm, and that was all I remembered.

*****

I forced my eyes open, feeling a bit better this time. The white ceiling welcomed me, and it occurred to me that it wasn’t the ceiling of my room at the penthouse.

“Where am I?” I groaned tiredly, looking around the room, and now I realized that I was in a hospital room. I was alone.

“What am I doing here?” I groaned as I managed to sit up on the bed, resting my back on the wall and staring into space while trying to recall what happened, but my memory was vague so I gave up trying.

I heard the door open, and I tilted my head to find out that it was Mom. My heart dropped.

“Mo… m…” My voice was so low that I could barely hear myself speak. She looked like she was in extreme pain, and it broke my heart, to know that it was my fault that she was in this condition.

“Connor… Are you ok? Do you need me to call the doctor?” I blinked my eyes and saw that it was Janice and not my Mom. Was I hallucinating? I asked myself, even though I was obviously hallucinating.

“Did Mom come here?” I asked Janice who was now hovering over me with a worried expression on her face, as she examined me.

“No, she didn’t,” she replied to me, and I slowly nodded my head.

“You’ve been unconscious for four straight days and I was so worried about you. How are you feeling now? Are you feeling pain anywhere?” She sounded so worried.

“Fo… four days?” I shrieked, and she sighed, sitting on the chair beside the bed.

“Yes. You’ve been unconscious since then,” She replied to me.

“Wh… what happened to me? Did I get involved in an accident?” I asked her because I could barely remember what happened to me that made me end up in the hospital. It’s obvious I wasn’t involved in an accident. If it was an accident, then I should’ve had at least a few bruises, right?

“You didn’t remember? Chase said you were drowning,” she explained to me, and I creased my eyebrows, still trying hard to remember what happened. I didn’t remember going to the lake, so how… I stopped when everything came playing back in my head like it was just happening. I could remember vividly how I was drowning in the lake helplessly.

“Do you remember now?” She asked me, and I slowly nodded my head.

“Where is Chase?” I asked her.

“He is with the doctor. He should be here soon,” she replied to me, and I slowly nodded my head.

“Did you tell Mom about my health? What about Dad, is he aware of it?” I asked her, and she bit her bottom lip, which I knew what it meant. She must’ve told them, or Chase must’ve done that but they didn’t give a damn about whatever happens to me. It wasn’t their fault, anyway. It was all my fault.

The familiar ringtone of my phone disrupted my thoughts, and she got the phone for me. A strange number was displayed on the screen, so I hesitated for a while before I answered the call.

“This is Connor. Who am I on to?” I asked as soon as I answered the call.

“Connor, is that you?” I quickly recognized the voice to be Claire’s, and my heart skipped.Published by Nôv'elD/rama.Org.

“Are you ok now? I heard you almost died. Why did you do that? You know I’m not there to take care of you, how could you be so careless?” It was obvious in her voice that she was trying not to cry, and the way she whispered made it known that she was calling me secretly.

“I’m fine now. How are you?” I asked her, and I heard her sniff.

“It’s hell in here. Dad doesn’t look like he’s traveling anytime soon, and it’s really making me feel suffocated. I want to leave here. I don’t want to stay here anymore,” I could tell from the sound of her voice that she was crying, and it broke my heart that I couldn’t do anything to protect her.

“You need to stay there, Claire. You can’t come here. You are going to get yourself into a mess if you come over,” I replied to her.

“Dad took my phone so I won’t be able to contact you. He has restricted my movement and now sends bodyguards with me wherever I go. I managed to get a new phone yesterday so I can call you. Are you really fine?” She sounded worried, and I nodded my head.

“Hmm. I’m fine. You should be careful over there. I’m going to try to see you soon,” I assured her.

“Do you promise?” She asked me, and I smiled.

“Hmm. I promise,”

“Alright. I got to go now. I think Dad is heading to my room. I will call you when I have the chance. Bye. Take care of yourself. I love you,” she whispered, and the call disconnected even before I could reply to her, and I sighed…