Congratulations.
1397 Words
TWO MONTHS LATER—DAY OF RACE
Lara's P.O.V
I've been feeling jittery since Cruz took his place on the track. Every time one of the guys raced, my nerves would be all over the place, but with him, it was different. We've been in this on-again-off-again relationship for some time now. I was falling for him hard, but I wasn't sure if he felt the same about me. Things between us were good, and I was afraid that telling him how I felt would change things between us.
The timer goes off, Cruz is in the second line. He takes off, catching up to the front line before the first lap is over. I'm cheering loudly in the crowd. Something about him on his bike drives me wild. He is in the lead for the rest of the race and I feel a sense of pride. He is the best racer among golden eagles.
There's a knot in my throat and I can't seem to swallow past it... my heart is racing, and my pulse has picked up. The first part of the race was over, and it was time for Cruz to do his stunt... Cruz reached the dirt patch leading up to the ramp after the other guy made it in less than a minute... he waved to the crowd, making them go wild.
As he dropped from the heap of sand, the front wheel of his dirt bike buckled. I watched as Cruz bent down slightly looking at his front wheel. Something was wrong, but he was going at such a high speed he couldn't stop. Cruz reached the ramp and struggled to gain control before going over the edge.
Flames came from the back of the bike. Cruz let go of the bars on the bike midair, but he didn't make it in time. As the front wheel of his motorbike touched the ground, his chest once again hit the front bars of the bike. Only this time, things slowed down more... the impact of his chest hitting the front bar sounded so loud in my ears, I heard his ribs crack...
I shouldn't have been able to. I was standing a good few feet away in the medical tent we set up, but it was as if I was right there beside him. The bike flipped and I heard his leg shatter. It was quiet, the crowd had died down, or maybe I blocked everything else out...
All I could hear was his bones breaking loudly in my ears, as I watched him lose total control of his motorbike. My brain labeled every injury as it happened... Pneumothorax collapsed (collapsed lung as his ribs punched into his lungs), Compound fracture (broken leg as the bone pierced the skin), Clavicle fracture (broken collarbone).
Someone yelled my name, but it was as if I was underwater. Everything around me sounded so far away. I was aware of my labored breathing, of the panic setting in, of my lungs trying to collect as much air as possible, of my heart racing so loudly I could hear it beating. Someone touched my shoulder, yet I couldn't tear my eyes away from the scene.
Someone grabbed hold of my hand and pulled me along with them. My feet moved on their own. The closer we got to Cruz, the shallower my breath became, until finally I snapped out of my funk. I sunk down on my knees looking over the injuries. None of it was good... blood seemed to be coming from everywhere.
I called his name as I checked the wound on his leg... but he gave me no answer... blood came from his helmet... the visor had blood on it, so I couldn't even see his face... myself and two nurses on standby worked fast to get the blood to stop from flowing out of his body... Reggy applied pressure to the open wound on Cruz's leg as I tried to stop the bleeding.
Whispers about what could have gone wrong with Cruz's bike floated around me as I worked. So they saw what I saw? This wasn't an accident, this was a set-up...
Once Cruz was prepped and ready to leave in the ambulance, I took a moment to breathe, but my throat was still closed, tiny little dots clouded my vision... the panicking was back, not knowing if he was going to make it, overwhelmed me... Tracey, my best friend, was talking to me, but I couldn't understand a word she said.
"Hey you, you scared me."
I looked around myself, then back at Tracey.
"Where am I?"
"At the hospital, you fainted."
The hospital? Wait, that means...
"Cruz, how is he?"
"Oh honey, I don't know I've been here with you."
"What happened? Why am I here? I should be there with him."
I said, trying to get up, she placed her hand on my shoulder and gently pushed me back on the bed.
"Let's first hear what the doctor has to say about you, then I'll go and check if there is any word on how Cruz is doing, okay?"
She said, smiling, though her smile didn't reach her eyes.
We waited in silence after she informed me that a doctor had taken my vitals and drew some blood. Tears welled up in my eyes, stinging them. I hoped and prayed that he would be okay, but things didn't look so good. He lost so much blood. His injuries were bad, not to mention the hard fall he took.
"Hello Miss Huston, how are you feeling?"
I read his name on his badge, Dr Washington.
"Better now, how long do you think I'll be here? I need to leave..."
I lied
"Your blood sugar levels were very low, and I have some things to discuss with you."
The way he said discuss made it sound like he had just found out that I was dying.
"Okay..."
"You are still in your first trimester, but I would like it if you started taking better care of yourself. You're a doctor, you should know that vitamins are important for your baby..."
"Wait, what baby are you talking about?"
Tracey and I asked at the same time.
"Oh, I'm sorry. I thought you knew. Congratulations, you're two months pregnant."
Pregnant? My mind shut down after hearing those words. We slept together all over my apartment since that night, and now I am pregnant... Tracey filled me in yet again on what the doctor said while my own body felt distant, unreal. All that anchored me was Cruz’s name. Is he okay?
"Go find Cruz please," I urged her. “I need to know his status now.”
But when she returned, she didn't return alone.
"Lara Huston?"
A woman in a white two-piece suit asked me. Not sure who she was and what she wanted, I answered her.
"Yes?"
I asked, looking confused between the two strange women and Tracey.
"I'm sorry"
Tracey mouthed.
"You are not to come anywhere near my son again. Your friend over here told us that you're pregnant, but I'm sure you made a mistake by saying my son is the father of your bastard child, so take this and move on with your life without my son."
She said to me.
I stared at her dumbfounded. She was Tanner Cruz's mother? She called my unborn child a bastard, and she wanted me to move on with my life. Tears threatened to spill, but I squared my shoulders and stared straight back at her, but before I could say anything, the younger woman spoke up.
"Oh and don't try anything! Tanner told me he hooked up with some street rat when he was going through something and that it meant nothing to him. He wrote that check himself just a week ago. He said he had a feeling you would try and pull something on him... we are arranged to be married soon."
She stretched out her hand and handed me an envelope, then smiled.
"It's people like you that think they can buy the truth or pay to make it go away. I won't be paid off by some skanky b***h that knows nothing about me. So f**k you and this check."
I said, holding it up, but they turned and walked away without saying another word.
- Writer
