Broken Bonds (Unbreakable Bonds #1)

Chapter Twenty-Nine

chapter twenty-nine

CELINE

Pain.

It was everywhere .

Something I had become accustomed to surged through my body, making me irritable. It wasn’t just the physical, constant throb that pulsed in my braced legs that made my teeth clench, and it wasn’t my dry throat from not enough liquids or the pounding headache I couldn’t seem to get rid of.

The pain came from the mental torment of my brain reliving the last few days. The ache in my heart hurt more than my throbbing legs. What rendered me speechless was the reminder that, yet again, I wasn’t enough, even after he promised me that he wasn’t like Aidan.

He lied .

I couldn’t sleep. Not only did the pain in my legs and chest prevent me from finding any comfort, but every time I closed my eyes, I saw Ace—his sexy grin, tousled hair, and my favorite blue eyes. I saw them mocking me as if this were all a game, and I lost. Then, my mind twisted itself into all sorts of warped scenarios, keeping my brain awake all night.

I kept my eyes open, nodding numbly at the young nurse with a small smile every hour when she walked into the room to check or change my bandages underneath the removable braces. She was a short woman, a few years out of college, with bright eyes and a smile to match.

We shared a few short conversations, where she asked me what happened, and I shared a brief version of the last two years, skipping over details of the two men who seemed hell-bent on breaking my heart. She listened, looking genuinely interested, and shared her reasoning for becoming a nurse. She made the time go by quickly, and I looked forward to the hour mark for when she would come in again and we could chat. She was a nice distraction—a needed one.

Otherwise, the nights were long and endless. It wasn’t quiet, although I guessed it was never quiet in a hospital—not with the bright lights and many patients who needed assistance. Behind my closed door, light sneaked into the room, and the sound of footsteps could be heard along with whispers from nurses and doctors. The sound was comforting in my silent room, and it made me feel less alone.

The next morning, when the sun finally rose, the day felt impossibly longer. There was no more silence—only noise—making me yearn for the quieter, lonely night. People came in and out of the room all day—first my parents and brother the minute visitors were allowed. And to no one’s surprise, Amber came flying into the room a few minutes after, big balloons trailing behind her, a giant, white, stuffed bear under one arm and a bundle of pink roses in the other. Her cheeks were flushed, her bright hair in a ponytail, which was swishing back and forth with each quick step she took.

“Holy fuck, what a morning!” she exclaimed, standing at the edge of my bed and staring at me over the bear and flowers in her arms. Her green eyes widened when she saw my parents and Ryan leaning against the wall, out of sight from the door. “Sorry.” She cringed before turning back to me, red tinging her cheeks even more.

Laughter filled the room as Ryan relieved my crazy friend of everything in her arms and dumped the big bear on my lap. Mom went in search of a vase in the gift shop as Amber made herself comfortable on the corner of my bed, being careful to avoid my legs, which looked like rather large lumps under the blankets.

“Have you heard from him?” Ryan tensed behind her at the mention of Ace, and I gently shook my head. Her smile dropped but quickly returned. “His loss. Single ladies have more fun anyway. Just you wait. Once your legs are healed, we’re going to hit the clubs, girl!”

“Not without me.” Ryan’s voice was gruff, and he looked at her when Amber shot him a questioning gaze. “I’m her brother. I keep the bad guys away, remember?”

As if that was the reason why he wanted to come. It might be one of them, but the oblivious redhead was another—and the biggest reason.

Dr. Alex came into the room mid-morning, white coat covering a crisp, blue, long-sleeve button-up shirt and black slacks. He looked up from his clipboard and smiled at me. I didn’t smile back.

“Good morning, everyone! Celine, how are you feeling this morning?” His attention remained on me as he stepped closer to the bed, his hand inching toward my legs.

“Pretty sore.”

“Can I look at your legs?” After I nodded at him, he lifted the heated blanket and examined the back of my legs, lifting each one gently.

I stifled a groan of pain as he set them back down on the bed, and I saw his gaze flicker to mine, graying eyebrows furrowed.

“I’m going to up your dose of morphine. How did you sleep last night?” He must have seen my sheepish smile because he quickly wrote something down. “You need to sleep, Celine. You cannot heal without rest. This surgery is going to involve a lengthy recovery of about three to four months, but it can take up to six months until you’re able to get back to normal activities. For now, you need to rest so that I can release you. I’m sure you would like to get home to your own bed, yes?”

Nodding, I glanced at my parents and then Ryan, who was watching me intently. Dr. Alex promptly left the room to go put my new medication orders in, my mother and father following him out. The young nurse came in a minute later, smiling gently at me.

“This will help with the pain, honey.” Inserting a needle into the IV bag near my head, she squirted a clear liquid into the hanging bag.

Relief flooded through me almost instantly, and my vision became hazy. A strong hand grabbed mine. “Sleep, Celine.” Ryan’s deep voice washed over me, and I closed my tired eyes. I couldn’t help but doze off into a dreamless sleep.

THREE MONTHS POST-OP

The pain became more tolerable as the days passed, and I learned to live with it just like I had before. The constant throb became background noise as I tried to maintain a life of normalcy despite feeling like a cripple with no hope.

Ryan and Amber had gone back to class a few days after I had been released home from the hospital. When Amber didn’t have class, she stuck to my side like glue, helping me complete homework assignments from my bed and filling me in on the latest about Professor Dickwad.

She quickly became the constant source of my happiness.

Six weeks after surgery, my braces were no longer required by Dr. Alex. Instead, I was instructed to use crutches to get around. Although this wasn’t ideal for the giant staircase in my home, I felt like I could breathe better without the heavy weight on my tender legs.

I had been prescribed lots of rest, which meant a lot of my day was spent in a dark room, eyes closed, my mind on Ace and what he was doing, which I hoped wasn’t much. He hadn’t called, hadn’t texted—just sent a simple bouquet of pink roses that arrived at the hospital the day before I came home with a small note attached.

May you have a speedy recovery. – Asshole

I cried for the first time since Ace left. Luckily, Amber was the only one in the room, and she held my hand tightly, whispering that I deserved more. Even if I did, why did I want him ?

Exactly six weeks after surgery, I was introduced to a woman I hated more than Ace and Aidan combined. Mrs. Hudson was a physical therapist who I spent an hour of my time with every day after lunch.

I loathed her.

I hated her perfect, blonde ponytail. I hated her toned body, but most importantly, I hated the smile she shot me every time I burst into tears because pain had seized my legs, crippling me.

Not only did she work me hard during our short, but seemingly long sessions, I had homework to top it all off. She kept my mind busy, and for that, I was thankful because thinking about Ace was not an option. But otherwise, she was a horrible human being in my mind, even if I knew she was just helping me.

SIX MONTHS POST-OP

At ninety percent function in both my legs, I had a small limp but no longer need to rely on crutches to get around. Time passed by achingly slow. Thanksgiving came and went, followed by Christmas, and still, no Ace. Ryan hadn’t seen him in class and had heard from the professor they shared that Ace was taking his classes online due to personal reasons.

Hurt at finding out the news from a professor and not his friend, Ryan hadn’t spoken about him in months, acting as though he never even existed. But honestly, I kind of blamed Ryan too for Ace’s disappearance. What had Ryan expected after treating Ace like shit? That wasn’t best friend behavior. Hell, that wasn’t even friend behavior.

I limped into the kitchen, my thoughts on the past few months. Ryan almost ran into me after bounding down the stairs, late for football practice. He mumbled, “Sorry,” and helped me onto a barstool in the kitchen, giving me a boost onto the chair before swinging around the island to give Mom a kiss on the cheek on his way out. “See you later, Mom!” he hollered from the front door, car keys swinging from his fingers.

“Drive carefully!” she shouted, shaking her head as the front door swung shut behind him. “How was your day, honey?” Mom didn’t look up from the giant pan of mince, the garlic aroma filling the air and making my stomach rumble.

Mom had been working with Dad recently since I could move around without help finally. My days were spent watching endless TV and finally reading all the books on my bookshelf while juggling schoolwork and my physical therapy appointments.

“Better than yesterday. Amber and Ryan have been sneaking around again as if I don’t already know they have the hots for each other. They also think I don’t know they have Valentine’s plans, too.” I rested my head on my hands, my elbows pressed firmly onto the cold, marble countertop.

“Are you okay with your best friend dating Ryan?” she asked, looking up at me from dicing tomatoes.

I frowned at her. “She’s a nice girl, Mom. The best friend I’ve ever had. Emily hasn’t texted me in months. She didn’t even ask if I was okay after surgery, which Amber posted about all over Instagram. Everyone knew and checked in, yet she never did.” I shrugged. “I won’t keep them apart. I just don’t want Ryan to ruin the friendship I have with her.”

Mom smiled gently at me. “She doesn’t seem like the type of girl to abandon you because of a boy. Quite the opposite, actually.”

I heard the garage door opening, and a moment later, the jingle of Dad’s keys interrupted us. “How’s my favorite princess?” The name sent a pang of hurt through my chest. Dad kissed my head, putting down his keys and papers on the counter near my elbows.

“Good. How was work? What did I miss?” He laughed and shook his head, walking toward my mother and pinching her butt before wrapping his arms around her and placing a sweet kiss on her neck.

“I’ve told you not to touch my butt, Mr. Wilson!” she scolded, laughter in her eyes.

“I missed my wife. What can I say?” The two forgot I was there, launching into a heated debate about something that happened at work during the day. Staring dreamily at my favorite couple, I was reminded again about my failed relationships.

I wanted to know how Ace was, where he went, why he left me after promising to be there when I woke up. The pang of heartbreak stole my breath for a moment before I pushed thoughts of Ace out of my mind.

“How was PT today?” Dad turned away from Mom to look at me from across the counter.

I picked at my nails. “Better than yesterday, I guess. She said only a few more appointments until I should have full function back.” I glanced up at him. “Can I come back to work now?”

He shook his head with a grim smile. “Not yet, little one. You need to fully heal before putting strain on your legs. Whatever you want, your mother and I will buy for you until you can start working again.”

I sighed. “I just want to get out of the house.” They briefly shared a look of understanding before looking at me with sad eyes.

“Not yet, baby girl. Not yet.” That pang came back with the simple term of endearment.

He used to call me that. No matter how hard I tried, he was not far from my mind. I only hoped he couldn’t stop thinking about me, too. That maybe he was suffering as much as I was.