Fighting for love

Chapter 60

Nolam was leaving his parent's house to go back to the hospital. He had left the hospital three hours earlier after Clytia had fallen asleep. She cried for what felt like hours before falling asleep from exhaustion. Nolam was frazzled and a bit thrown off his game. He needed some alone time to sort out his emotion and thoughts. He wanted to spend the night in his own bed, but he couldn't. He needed to be by Clytia's side. She wasn't alone. His sister had volunteered to stay with her. However, he hadn't been able to close his eyes, let alone sleep.

He looked at his mother who in the car with him. He knew she cared about Clytia. But he had never realized how much. She was a forlorn figure, picking at her nails, turning her head briefly as the car came to a stop in the parking lot.

None of them uttered a word while they were walking towards the elevator. Nolam looked from the corner of his eyes his mother one more time. The last time he had seen her so downcast was at the funeral of his grandfather. This was definitely not a good memory. He shook slightly his head, trying to push away that memory. It was not the time for that. He had to stay strong. "Now is not the time to let my anxiety take me over. Stay strong!" He murmured to himself. It had been his mantra for the past hours.

He got out of the lift as soon as it came to a stop. He didn't want to waste anytime. He was at the door of the room in less than a minute. He was about to open it his mother stopped him with a hand on his back.

"Nolam, I'd like to talk to you about something before we go inside."

He sighed. He was growing antsy. He had a knot in the pit of his stomach.

"What Ma?" He let out, trying his best to not snap at her.

"You should call her parents."

His eyes grew wide for a second before he shook his head "No."

"Nolam, you cannot keep that from them." Janice tried to reason with him

"I can and I will."

Nolam couldn't bring himself to call his in-laws. Not that he had not think about it himself. His mother-in-law was really nice to him, but his father-in-law barely tolerated him. He had been less than happy when he had learned that his daughter had quit her job to follow him. The only reason he was kind of cordial whenever they had to interact was to avoid any issue with his daughter and his wife. However, Nolam was always careful around him.

"For one time in your li..." Janice tried, only to be interrupted.

"You don't get it Ma. Her father doesn't like me. No, he loathes me." He let out, being careful not to raise his voice.

"The only reason he tolerates me is because he was the reason Clytia lost our first baby. He had no other choice than to comply with his daughter's wish and he didn't want to lose her for good. Now, you want me to call that man" He continued one hand in his hair. "And tell him that his daughter had another miscarriage and might be depressed or worse because of me! Nope!" He finished, shaking his head. "Not happening!"

"Nolam..."

"No Ma! I cannot! How am I supposed to call that man and give him more reason to hate me? How am supposed to call her mother and tell her that I failed and that I haven't been able to take care of her babygirl? And that her husband might have been right from the beginning when he wanted us to divorce because I would have be no good for their daughter."

Nolam didn't let his mother interrupt him. He was scared. Scared to face Clytia's father. Scared for her. Scared that they had reached the point of no return.

"Nolam..." Janice tried one more time but he didn't hear her.

"What a coward I am!" He scoffed. "We wouldn't have been here today if my drunk ass hadn't assaulted her in the first place. I was mad at her for..." He sighed finally realizing what he was about to reveal. He couldn't let his mother know about their personal issues.

"It doesn't matter anymore, does it?" He finished his voice broken, his head hung low.

"I understand what you said, but you have to try and understand what I am trying to say here. I am a parent. And I know that I would have wanted to know if I were her mother. You cannot keep something so serious from them. At least talk to Clytia and ask her if she wants to inform them."

"Fine." He conceited after a while. He looked past her shoulders to see his sister coming their way, making him frowned. "Hey! What's up?" He asked, acknowledging her.

"I needed a coffee." She replied, showing the cup in her hand.

"How is she?" Janice asked this time, nodding her head towards the room.

"She was asleep when I left the room few minutes ago."

"Thank you." Nolam replied before opening the room.

Clytia was nowhere to be seen. "Where is she? You said she was asleep!" He said shifting his gaze to his sister, his eyes narrowed.

His sister seemed confused. "She was." She replied walking towards the bathroom and knocking at the door. "Cly, are you inside?" She asked.

Nothing. No answer.

"Maybe the nurses took her for some tests or something. Let me go and asked them." Janice suggested.

"It doesn't make any sense Ma." Nolam replied.

His sister nodded, agreeing with him. She knocked another time at the door of the toilet before opening, only to let out a strident scream.

Nolam rushed to her side, only to take a step back once he looked inside the bathroom.

Clytia was slumped on the floor, her back against the wall, her head in an awkward position under the sink. Her eyes were shot closed, her now pale lips slightly opened. Blood was flowing slowly, forming a crimson pool that was covering the ground next to her inert body and staining her hospital robe.

Everything in the room faded away. His breath got caught in his throat, his heart sinking under the overwhelming sensation. It took his mother screams for help to bring him out of his torpor. He rushed to Clytia, cradling her limp body.

"No, no, no, no, no, no. Honey, please open your eyes." He pleaded. "Come on, open your eyes for me. Let me see those beautiful eyes. Come on. Clytia!" He continued to beg, rocking both of them back and forth. "We'll be fine. Okay? I promised. We'll be fine. Please don't go."

He was crying his eyes out, begging for her to say something. "I'm sorry for everything, please you cannot go like that. We can make things work. Please, I... I... Please don't..."

Although he could hear voices behind him, he couldn't decipher what they were saying. It's only when he saw the doctor on the floor with them, that he realized that he had to let her go so he could help her.

Nolam didn't know what the doctor was doing. His vision was blurry. He was shaking, anxious and nervous. But when he heard the words coming out of the mouth of the doctor, he felt his whole world crashing on itself.

"I'm sorry. It's too late. She is dead."

Nolam shook his head, refusing to accept what the doctor said. "No, you're lying." He said rushing to Clytia's side, taking her in his arms again. "Come on Cly, open your eyes for me." He begged, ignoring the blood that was staining his clothes and the cries of his family behind him.

"I'm sorry sir, but..." The doctor tried, his hand on Nolam's shoulder.

Nolam violently shrugged his shoulder and yelled at him. "Don't touch me! I want another doctor. Bring someone else to save her!" His face was drenched in tears.

Carefully his mother squatted beside them, on the other side of Clytia irresponsive body. "Nolam..."

"No."

"Nolam, please..."

"No, no, no, no, no, no, no."

He wasn't listening. He was too far gone. She grabbed his hand. "Nolam..."

He raised his head, confusion written all over his face. His mother's face was morphed with Clytia's appearance. He looked down only to see that Clytia's face was fading, slowly disappearing. "What the fuck?" He whispered, his hand touching her face, trying to understand what was happening.

"NOLAM, WAKE UP!" He heard his mother screaming.