Book 1 

Hazel Wright and Jeremy Jones

The Accident 

It was as though he was in a nightmare. He could see what was happening. He knew he had to do something. Yet, as hard as he tried, everything seemed to go in slow motion. There was no sound. He knew there should have been. Jeremy Jones wanted to scream his frustration. He didn’t. He knew this would be a waste of time, and breath, which was needed for other things more important. Like getting to the car. Something pushed him in this direction. A gut feeling. He never ignored his gut. 

Slowly the accident unfolded. It started with a slow driver in the north bound lane. A man, in a Chevy truck, impatient for going 40 miles per hour when the speed limit was 55 mph. The truck driver made an attempt to pass not realizing, or caring, the on coming traffic was way too close. Jeremy was three cars back but he had been passed by the truck already. The man was an idiot. He could see the oncoming car was too close. By the way the south bound car was moving he knew the driver was not worried about anything. The long line, of cars, made it clear to most people no one would be passing. The driver in that car had no clue as to how wrong they were. 

What bothered Jeremy, the most, was why he felt so compelled to get to the car. It wasn’t as if he knew who the driver was. He was still too far away to see the car, much less the driver, clear enough to know that. But his whole body screamed urgency to get there. 

The two vehicles slowly raced toward each other. The truck was halfway to the car when both drivers realized what was happening. It was definitely way too late. The closer they inched toward each other the more they were inching away from each other. 

Not enough. 

Then they hit and everything screamed into full motion. The crash roared toward Jeremy like a tidal wave. He could see parts, of both vehicles, flying all over the place. Screeching tires, from both sides of the road, cried out as cars tried to stop to avoid getting involved. The only car which kept going was Jeremy’s. He moved out of the line to get as close as he could. He had to stop about 20 feet away. Too far, he thought, way too far. He threw the car in park before racing out of the it. 

As he came out Jeremy could see the truck was upside down in the entrance to the 1883 barn. The driver was hanging there but he had no reason to help that man. He also could see several people heading to the truck. 

Jeremy ignored the driver. For two reasons now. First he had to get to the car. Second, he knew if he went to the truck he would probably kill the driver for his stupidity. 

Turning his attention to the car he almost stopped in horror. The car was severely damaged. It was not that which almost made him stop but the car was on fire. As far as he could see the interior of the car was not at the moment. Jeremy raced to the car, grabbed the door handle, and then tried to get the door open. It didn’t budge. Suddenly a face was looking out at him. A woman’s. For a second he could have sworn he knew her. But he didn’t know from where. Then he heard her screaming. Jeremy looked past her to see the fire was creeping in. He had only a few seconds. Taking the handle he pulled hard. This time the handle ripped from the door. Almost sending him to the ground. He had good balance so he did not go down but only away from the car. 

Quickly he ran back. There was more fire in the car now. The woman was screaming as she banged against the door while trying to get her seat belt off. Jeremy realized there was another problem with getting her out. Once he got past the door he knew the seat belt was stuck. Jammed. Though he did not know it he was smiling. Fate was placing huge barriers in front of him. His task was to save the woman. He knew he would and it was only a matter of time. But it would not be easy. Jeremy loved challenges. The harder the problem the more it was only an invitation to prove everything was wrong. He would win. 

Switching tactics he moved to the back door. He could see the fire, here, was intense. His first touch, on the door handle, was hot enough to burn his hand. Jeremy ignored this to try again. This time he wrapped both hands around the door handle and yanked on it very hard. For a heart beat the door moved. Then it didn’t. The door handle, like the front one, ripped away. Jeremy, angrily, threw the handle to the ground as he tried to grab the edge of the back door. 

His fingers had just got a foot hold, he could feel the door was lose, when he was torn from the car completely. In slow motion he fell to the ground. A roaring in his ears made him think the car had exploded or something. Then it occurred to him it was his own voice. A terrible pain was ripping through his whole existence. He had to get back to the car. He had no idea why he was so far away now until he got up to start for the car. He could see the fire was almost covering the driver. But, from somewhere deep inside him, he knew he still had a chance to save her. He had to save her. Life, as he knew it, demanded he save her. Still, another smaller part of him asked the question of why? 

But, as he tried to get to the car, he found out why he had lost contact with it. Several people moved in front, of him, to keep him away from the burning vehicle. Then he heard voices. For a second he didn’t understand. Then he did. 

“You can’t save her.” 

“You’re hands a severely burned.” 

“We need to take care of your hands.” 

“You need to stay away, the car might explode.” 

What exploded was not the car. It was Jeremy. His anger, for not getting her out yet, boiled over. He was about to head to the car again when he saw something on the ground. Fate was throwing obstacles in front of him but it also left stuff he could use to succeed. For there, on the ground, was an old tire iron. The kind with a long handle, flat at one end, curving around to a short section which held the socket for the lug nuts. These days there were fewer, and fewer, to be seen. 

Not thinking he picked up the tool. Then, as he attempted to head for the car, people got back in front of him. Jeremy had had enough. He still had time but it was slowly slipping away. The force, inside him, told him time was running out. He had to move. Now. QUICKLY. 

“YOU…WILL…GET…THE…FUCK..OUT…OF…MY…WAY…OR BY GOD I WILL KILL EACH, AND EVERY ONE, OF YOU.” 

Then there was no one in front of him. Jeremy moved quickly to the car. A quick look inside made him almost stop. She was not moving. On fire. Limp. And he was in hyper motion. Every ounce, of his soul, moved the tire iron against the window. The window might have had a chance just against the ire iron but did not have any against his soul. The window shattered as if it were made out of sugar. Like the stuff used in movies. 

Jeremy quickly reached in to grab the inner door handle. He could feel the fire scorching his flesh but ignored this. For, by the time he really felt it, he had the door open. Anger, burning inside him like the fire burning inside the car, gave him the strength he needed. Jeremy grabbed the seat belt, which for whatever reason was the only part of the car not on fire, and yanked. The seat belt had no chance. It came away as if it had never been made right. Like paper. And, finally his soul screamed, he had her. 

Jeremy pulled her free. Raced away from the car just in time as it exploded. He could feel the force, of the concussion waves, wash over him. From the corner, of his eyes, he saw people going down from the blast. He ignored it. He had to get her to ground so he could put her clothing out. As he set her down two people were at his side. Not to stop him but to help. Both had what looked like blankets to put the fire out. With two it didn’t take long. Jeremy looked at the woman. He could already tell she was in bad shape. But then, what could only be considered a miracle, occurred.

A hand grabbed his shoulder to get his attention. When he looked up he saw a squat man with a puzzled look on his face. For a moment Jeremy couldn’t understand what the man was saying. Then he did. “I need those two helping you. I have something which could help her out quickly right now.” 

Jeremy still wasn’t getting it but he barked orders to the other two. They quickly got up to go with the squat man. Then he was back. In his hands he was holding out something. Jeremy focused to find he held a pair of scissors. Jeremy didn’t need to be told what they were for. Nor did the man stay to explain. He was gone by the time he was working on the woman’s clothes. Carefully he cut away the cloth. If something didn’t separate easily he left it alone. Soon he had all her clothing cut away. Now her skin was a hodge podge of cloth covering her naked body. Again, a deep force yelled, he knew this woman. But his mind said he had never seen her before. In the end it didn’t matter. He just had to save her. If he achieved nothing else he had to do this. 

Suddenly the squat man was standing next to him. In his hands was something strange. His mind searched for a word, found it, just to shock him like nothing so far had. In the man’s hands was a blender glass. What was wrong with this picture? 

He had no time to answer the question as the man slapped him. “Pay attention. You need to put this on every part of her body which shows signs of a burn. Make it thick. There is plenty so you don’t have to worry about that. Now (the squat man shoved it into his hands) start putting it on now.” And he was gone again. 

For, what seemed like hours, the squat man kept running up to him, took the empty container, to replace it with a full one. As soon as he got a large section covered someone put a blanket over her. Now, what had started out as a solo mission, was quickly becoming a group effort. To his relief more, and more, people came to help him. What he didn’t know was how much he had been helping himself. 

Jeremy got the final parts, of her skin, covered when the ambulance arrived. They moved quickly in two directions. One to the truck driver. The other to Jeremy and the woman. One tried to tell him to move only to shut up when he looked at the man. So, instead of fighting Jeremy, he gave him things to hold. High. The first relief came when they told him she was still alive. The second came when they said she had a very good chance of surviving. Mostly due to what was covering the woman on all the burn sections. 

“How?” asked one of the EMT’s. 

Jeremy shook his head and pointed to the squat man. His reply made sense at the moment. “Too long of a story. Will tell you later. It is way too bizarre to explain right now.” 

With that said they got her ready for transport. An EMT, the first one to them, said he could ride along since he was the one who had pulled her out. Another asked. “Is she your wife?” 

Two answers jumped to rush out of Jeremy’s mouth. The first, which he blocked because it was wrong, was yes she was. The second made it through. “Don’t know her. I just didn’t want to see her die if I could save her.” 

It was then the EMT looked at Jeremy for the first time. “Your hands?” 

Jeremy knew what the woman EMT wanted to know but he had no time for her. “Worry about her first. She is more important than me. Do you understand? She is far too important right now.” 

The EMT nodded. She was the kind of person who understood the need to save someone regardless of one’s own self. There is no pain greater than to lose a person you are trying to save. None. 

On the way to the transport Jeremy saw a Police Officer. Without thinking he grabbed the Officer to get his undivided attention. “If that asshole is still alive I want to press charges against him…” 

That was as far as he got when the Officer gently removed his hands. With a quiet voice he spoke to Jeremy. “He will be. There are more than enough people already in line to file those charges. What you need to do is get going with the woman you are trying to save. Many have told me about what you did. We will talk about that later, now get going.” 

Jeremy didn’t answer as he raced to catch up. Soon she was in the Ambulance, Jeremy was inside with her, and they were off. While one tech attended her another took time to look at his hands. Jeremy didn’t care he only had eyes for her. And that something, deep in him, screamed success.

The Hospital 

Antiseptic. That over smell of clean. Every time he stepped into a hospital it was all he could smell. Well, not quite, all. There, underlying the clean smell, was the unmistakable stench of death. It was two smells Jeremy could not stand. So it was with grim determination he sat in a chair inside one of the patient’s room. On the bed lay the woman from the burning car. She was alive but unconscious. Over three quarters, of her body, was covered in bandages which covered the burns. This was the third straight day he was spending here. Right now there was nothing more for him. 

Jeremy must have been nodding off when he heard footsteps coming into the room. Looking up he saw the squat man coming in. He stood up to meet the man. 

“So good to see you again.” Jeremy told the man. 

The man smiled as he shook hands. “Dan and you are?” 

“We never had time to do this.” Jeremy responded. “Good to meet you Dan. Jeremy.” 

“How is she doing?” Dan moved to the side of the bed. 

Jeremy came to stand by him. “No idea. The docs say she will live but it will be a long battle back to anything close to normal.” 

“It could have been worse…” Dan said as he looked at Jeremy. “It could have been much worse. I thought I was having a bad day until I got to the accident. Though I didn’t have time, to really think about it then, things had been falling into place.” 

Jeremy remembered something about he would explain what he was doing later. “So what did happen? And what was that stuff you had me put on her?” 

“I am a delivery driver for a local florist.” Dan was shaking his head at the memories he was seeing. “We got a really odd order but it had been prepaid with a good credit card. So we really didn’t hesitate in getting the stuff together and delivering it. The one problem we did have was where we were delivering it to. Our place is in Horseheads and we were delivering to Ithaca. We wondered why the person didn’t order from a place there. This was only a small thought for the amount of profit we were getting.” 

Dan looked back down at the woman. “The order was for every aloe plant we had. This was a lot. Close to forty plants. With the order was one for a battery powered blender with three tanks and two back up batteries. All very weird. Then I came to the accident. As soon as I saw what you were doing I went to work. The two helping you made the task easier. So much easier.” 

Jeremy was shocked. “The burn plant. I should have known. All I know is the EMT’s delight in what they found on her. Said it would be the difference between her living or not.” 

“And how are you doing?” Dan looked at Jeremy’s hands, still covered in white bandages. 

Jeremy shrugged his shoulders. “Don’t know or care.” 

“That is what we have been hearing.” Dan knew this would catch his attention. 

“Who have been hearing? What are you talking about?” Jeremy looked at the squat man in confusion. 

“Everyone. What you did at the accident scene was so incredible it made all sorts of headlines. Not only that but it has been learned you quit your job to be here with her when she wakes up.” Dan pulled an envelope from a pocket to hand to Jeremy. “This is not much now but there is more on the way. Some want to know why you are doing this. Are you trying to be some kind of hero? Fortunately they are the few and are told to shut up.” 

Jeremy held the paper but did not open it. “What do you think? Before you answer you should know I have no clue as to why I did. All I know is something was pushing me.” 

Dan smiled. “This goes along with the idea we came up with. You might not like it though…” 

“Go on…” 

“To us it looked like a man trying to save the love of his life. Maybe a wife, lover, fiancé, or partner. But we could all see it in the way you fought against all the odds to get her out.” 

Then Dan laughed. “You scared, the ones who tried to stop you, so badly they were the ones who started what is in the envelope. Not one of them had a doubt about what you said. And there is one more thought you should know…even though it has been only a few days there have been many people trying to rip the door, of her car, off like you did. No one has succeeded yet.” 

Jeremy stared at Dan. “What door?” 

Dan pulled his phone out. “For those who could not help they filmed what was going on. I think you should see this.” 

Dan held the cell so he could see it. To his shock he saw himself rip a mangled door off the car. Not just open but completely off and throw it several feet away. What affected him the most was it looked as if he had very little problem doing it. As if the door weighed no more than a feather. It was such a shock Jeremy had to sit down. 

“It’s good you are sitting. I think it is time you open that.” Dan didn’t take his eyes away from her as he said this. 

Jeremy, without thinking, opened the envelope. From this he pulled out one piece of paper. A check. When he first looked at it he didn’t register what it was saying. A few seconds passed when he really looked at the paper. The check was for fifty thousand dollars. Fifty. Thousand…then he turned to Dan. “I can’t…” 

“…take it.” Dan finished for him. “We knew this would be the case so if you look at the check it is only info and not a real check.” 

“So where is the money?” 

“In your bank account…” 

Jeremy shook his head. “There is no…” 

“…way we could do that…you will be surprised by that. The bank heard about what you had done. Heard about what we were doing. They came to us and said they would put the money into your account. That way you didn’t have to worry about doing it or even be able to say no to it. Here is where you should be. Right here. There is one more thought for you…” 

Dan waved his hand. “We found out where you live and with the help of your friends have been able to bring you some stuff you might need.” 

A woman came in with a large bag. This she handed to Dan before leaving. “You haven’t showered in days. You have hospital clothes on which cannot be good for you. So we got you some clothes. Several people will be coming every day to bring things you need and take the dirty stuff away to be cleaned. And, while you are here, your house will be taken care of so you don’t go back to a disaster.” 

Jeremy looked hard at Dan. So why are you doing this?” 

“Fair question.” Dan answered. “The same should be asked of you. Why did you do it? You said you had no clue but it really doesn’t answer the question does it?” 

Jeremy thought about this for a moment. “It doesn’t. This leaves the idea there is no answer as of right now. Maybe one might surface at some point but who really knows.” 

Dan smiled as he headed to the door. “So just relax. Everything else is being taken care of.” Dan paused at the door. “There is one more point to tell you…though you might not want to go back…it still gives you an option…several important people have spoken to your boss…you have a job to go back to. They were some very influential people.” 

“Thanks. There is one important question…” Jeremy never got the thought out. 

“She, too, is being taken care of on the outside just like you. A lot of people feel there is something more going on here but have no clue as to what. They just know you are a very brave man. Something few people really see in their lifetimes." With that said Dan left. 

Jeremy stared at the doorway a long time before he turned his attention back to the bed. And her. Though he was not a praying man he did send a thank you in his head. There were other discussions none of which included him. It was all for her. Then something hit him. As much info Dan had told him Jeremy now felt he was holding something back. Nor did it take him long to figure it out. He knew her name. This was very important. Yet, the more he thought about it, he did realize it would be better if he found out through her. So be it then, he thought, as he sat back down. 

************* 

The days passed slowly by. Even Jeremy, a month since the accident, could tell she was getting better. At least her body was. Though the healing was good there would still be a lot of work once all the skin had repaired itself. No one, especially Jeremy, doubted there would be severe disfigurement. A thought which seldom passed through his mind. 

Every day someone would bring him what he needed and take away what was dirty. Despite the fact he hated hospital food he ate it anyway. Food, in the end, was food. One had to eat in order to live. So he ate most days without thinking about it or what he was eating. 

The next time Dan visited it was with what could be considered bad news. No one has been able to find anyone related to her. Though the search was still going on it didn’t look like they would be able to find anyone. For a moment Jeremy thought Dan was going to cry. If he did it was after he left. Jeremy couldn’t blame him. It was a terrible thought a person had no one to go to for special times. A very sad thought. One he tossed out for she now had him. No matter what happened in the future he would always be there for her. She would need a friend. He also knew, from what the visitors had told him, there would be many out there who would become friends as soon as she got better. This thought brought a smile to his face for a little while. What he really wished for was for her to wake up. Nothing would be right until she did.

Into the light 

 

The last thing she saw was darkness. This surrounded a face frantically trying to get to her. She knew he would not be able to. Already slipping into the light there would be no turning back. That was until the light vanished and she felt she had not. The void was cold but not painful. Everytime she tried to go somewhere she found she could not. A very aggravating problem because she could hear voices. Sometimes a lot. Other times just one. For whatever reason she associated the single voice with the last face she had seen. There was no logical reason for this other than the voice would fit him. No one else, just him. 

An unknown amount of time passed. She knew it was passing because she, somehow, could feel it. At one point, she didn’t know when, there came flashes of memory. Most were of her life. Occasionally there came flashes of the accident. Fragments at first. These slowly became larger pieces but, like a very large puzzle, there were too many to get an idea of what belonged where. 

For whatever reason she didn’t panic. The pieces had to come together, and would, she just had to let them as they would. She also used his face to keep herself focused. The more she studied it the more she thought she knew him. There was something very familiar about him. Yet, at the same time, she knew she had never met him before. That she would have remembered. Easily. 

Her first clue to reality was a small tickle on her nose. More like in her nose. A smell. Small, at first, but growing stronger as time passed. It took her awhile but she finally figured out what the smell was. Clean. Antiseptic clean. There was only one place which smelled like this so strongly. A hospital. There had been a few places she had visited which smelled clean like this but not as strong or as clear. Those other places never invoked a memory like a clean hospital would. So a small wave of hope passed through her. If she were smelling this then she was being taken care of. 

She was drifting when it occurred to her who she was. Hazel…like her eyes…but it took a while to remember her last name. Wright. For a moment this didn’t sound right but then realized it had been a while since she had thought about her name. This darkness was not a very good place for that. Not good for much else too. In fact the only good point she could find, in the darkness, was her floating around was like being on a float in the lake. Maybe this was why the darkness didn’t bother her that much. She loved floating around on the lake. Fun, relaxing, simple. When she did this she had no worries or pressure. Pressure? Hazel tried to remember what would cause her pressure. She couldn’t think of anything. It could have been where she worked but she could not recall where she did work. Or what kind of work  it was. Maybe, in the end, it really didn’t matter. 

There were times, as she floated around, she could feel panic slipping up on her. A couple of times it almost overtook her. Then his face would appear to make it all go away. Forcing her to search what little sections, of memory, she could find. The result being the same – nothing. The only good part of this whole exercise was little, by little, she was getting more of her memory back. Allowing her to remember more. And the puzzle pieces began to fall into place. Though this turned out to be worse than when they weren’t. 

Her first memory, of the accident, was his face. She knew she was screaming but no sound was coming from her. This little piece grew into a pattern. One which went back in time. Back to the impact of the truck with her car. Then back to when she realized the danger and was trying to get her car out of the way. She tried despite the fact her mind said it was far too late. Then it went back to her wondering why there was so much traffic on the road at a time when normally there was very little. She had been paying attention to the possibility of leap froggers but so far had not seen any. Until the truck. As soon as it left the line, clearly seeing she was way too close to be passing, she knew it was going to be very bad. This brought back the thought flashing through her then. There was not enough time to do anything but try to minimize the impact as best as possible. 

It had not been possible. Then her mind was in the moment. The scream of metal impacting metal at 110 miles per hour. She had her brake on but realized the speed, he was trying to pass with, more than compensated for that. She thought about getting her seat belt off in case it jammed but also realized there was no time to do so. One moment all was in slow motion, the next as fast as lightning striking. 

When her car came to a stop she could feel it more than see it. Her eyes, for whatever reason, were focused on the truck as it rolled off the road into a driveway. A voice, one she didn’t recognize, screamed the idea it hoped the driver of the truck was dead. For if they weren’t she would take care of that as soon as she could. 

Hazel didn’t like the voice. Or the thought. But realized one important fact. The voice knew, for whatever reason, she would not die here today. This thought led her to stop panicking as to what was happening. She tried to get the seat belt off to no avail. More than one issue was involved with it. Smoke filled the car but not as bad as she thought it should have been. Another puzzle piece she would have to analyze later. 

Other than the seat belt was the problem of the fire. It had started in the engine but she could see it easily moving through the car. The worst of it was where her legs, and feet, were. She could feel the heat but did not understand why there was no pain. The why was momentary as she realized the force, of the impact, had caused a whole body neural overload. All her pain receptors were screaming so loud the brain just stopped listening. Ignored them. At some point, when the pain centers calmed down their screaming a little, the brain would start to acknowledge them again. She just didn’t know how long this would take. Hopefully a very long time. Or at least until a foreign pain med could be used to keep this from happening. One could definitely hope. 

Then, for the first time in her life a problem became an asset, she fainted. Could not have happened at a better time. As she floated she recognized the value. For the less she breathed, while in the burning car, the less damage her lungs would get. The less toxic fumes would get into her. From this point, on, she would never look at her fainting as a weakness. Never again. It was one of the reasons why she was still alive. 

Hazel did not question this thought. Clearly the evidence proved she was. Regardless of what one expected, when they died, this was not one of them. And, again, it was another positive reason not to worry about floating around in the darkness. She knew it would end at some point. Just a matter of time. And, for whatever reason, there seemed a lot of that right now. 

At another point a spot in the darkness became a little brighter. Not a hell of a lot. A little. More than enough to draw her attention. Hazel pondered the bit of light. Her first thought was about what it could be. Everything she knew about the calling light to Heaven, or Hell, did not fit this bit. Nor did it look like the flames, in the car, just before she passed out. There was no flickering affect. This was a steady light. Occasionally a shadow would block this bit of light but not for long. With the shadows came more voices. Now, that her memory was getting better, she could hear the compassion in those voices. Especially in the voice which she believed matched the face. There was more to this voice than the others. She could hear the pain. Immediately she could tell the pain was not for himself but for her. Why? Why would he have such an intense feeling. Since they had never met there really was no reason for it. Even if he was the one to save her there would not be this much pain. A fleeting thought screamed by with the idea if she didn’t make it it would be difficult for him to go on with his life. Again came the why? 

As time passed the bit of light became bigger. More apparent it was making the darkness brighter. Clearer. Or at least clear with the knowledge she could see the inside of her eye lids. Closed lids. The left lid seemed to be a little darker than the right. Her skin had been slowly starting to feel again. This sent the message something heavy was covering the lid. But what? A bandage? Could there be no left eye and this was only a ghost feeling? Since she had waited patiently there would be no reason not to continue. 

Patiently she waited as the light grew stronger. Brighter. By now she knew her eye would be okay. The skin around it clearly said there was something covering it. A soft something. At some point her brain started taking assessment of her body. The messages, which came back, were not the greatest but they were not as bad as she thought they would be. Her body had been damaged badly. Very badly. So why, called the voice again, did she live if it had been so bad? Hazel wondered about this. She also wondered about her skin saying it was because of some kind of sticky stuff which had been put on her. Which didn’t make a whole lot of sense for something sticky usually was not good. Like when you glue two fingers together. Taking them apart usually caused a lot of pain as well as torn skin. Even when you did it the right way. So she tucked this thought away to exam later. 

Time continued to pass slowly. At another point time became days. She could tell this by the way the light would be strong and then would grow a little weaker. By the act of living she knew this was the transition of night and day. When the accident occurred it had been the middle of June. No telling the when of the calendar they were in now. The passing time had no delineating this issue. Hazel did feel it had been a long time since the accident. A very long time. 

Then came the day when the light became extremely bright. Far brighter than ever before. It took Hazel a very long time before she realized the light had not actually got brighter but there now was a partial break in her right eye. A crack. She tried to move her eye lid but found she could not yet do it. Instead she allowed herself to enjoy a new found sight. The darkness was fading. This gave her more hope than she wanted to admit. The only problem now was she could not make anything out. Not even a dim shape. There still was nothing. Just a lighter nothing. 

Even the shadows were stronger. Not clearer. Just the edges were more defined so she could tell, for sure now, the shadows were people. And his face shone through the failing darkness more than ever. Yet, the thought, made her stop. What was it she was hoping for? Why did it matter she was always seeing his face? Not just seeing it but getting an odd sort of support from it? Had she met him before and just did not remember? There were way too many questions she needed answers to. The saving grace was she knew she would find them. 

Hazel waited. Now not so patiently as before. She could feel her body growing stronger, better. Now she needed to wake up. 

As if hearing her need the right eye lid trembled. Shaking like a fault line getting ready to move. The tremble turned into stronger shock waves. Then the lid began to move. Very slowly. But it was moving. The light grew stronger. Painfully. Hazel had not expected this pain but in reflection she should have. Her eyes, after so long in the dark, needed to adjust to the brightness. She just never realized how painful this transition could be. Till now. 

Yet, now that it could, the lid kept opening. Bringing more light. More pain. This would have been a problem until she realized the pain was the result of her eye adjusting. She still had at least one eye. Well enough to adjust to the new reality. Then it was open. Very bright. 

The first difference she saw was the differences in the light patterns. Straight in front of her it wasn’t as bright as the light coming from behind. For whatever reason this gave her the idea it was night outside. A good start she thought. 

As her eyes became more adjusted she began to see the contour, differences, between the walls and the ceiling. Soon the outline, then the actual, door could be seen. Colors began to clear themselves up. Becoming stronger. Defined. Her eye moved to the left to see what was there. To find out why her left lid was not moving. What she found was a white patch. A gauze pad no doubt. It puzzled her why this eye was worse than the right. The right eye had been closer to the fire. Not farther away. Odd. 

It didn’t take much longer for her to see the room. All the room. Clearly. Now the light felt amazing. It gave her a sense of accomplishment only a marathon runner knows when they cross the finish line. Whether they were the first or the last. They finished. So, too, did she finish the journey from the darkness into the light.

The meeting 

With her seeing clearly now it seemed to give incentive to other parts off her body. Slowly her neck moved. Testing it’s boundaries to see what damage, if any, there was. When the neck found none it turned so she could get a better look around the room. It started to her left so she could see what her left eye was missing. Nothing much. Just the window. And it was dark out. Possibly even raining. 

Carefully she turned slowly back to the right. There was the door, the door to the bathroom, the small closet, an empty chair, then…then…then… 

All time stopped. In the chair there was someone. Not just anyone. Him. There was the face which carried her through the darkness. She could tell he was sleeping. A sleep of exhaustion. This thought brought her the view of a shadow. She knew now it was his shadow. His shadow. 

This thought echoed through her for a long time. It seemed to bother her extremely. He was here. Here. Why? 

Though she didn’t know him she did know he had to work somewhere. He had a home somewhere. Yet there he was. Again why? 

This was one part of her. Another studied his face. There was little difference from when she had looked out her car window to see him there. She knew he was trying to get to her. She also knew he was too late. Then he smiled. Another person would have thought this was a terrible thing. But she had instantly knew better. It was the kind of smile saying no matter what obstacle set before him he would get by it. Anything. A sign of grim determination. Perseverance. 

Hazel memorized his feature. She noticed, even asleep, he was anything but. He had nightmares. Was having one now. His face showed it. The closed eyes as the demons danced across the lids. But what demons? 

She didn’t want to know. Those demons might not be very good. Yet she could not take her eyes off him. The way he was breathing. Then his eyes opened. 

************* 

Jeremy found himself fighting with the car door again. Each time he fell asleep the same dream crept up on him. The real difference between the dream, and the reality, was the door in the dream never moved. No matter what he did he could not get it off. Again, and again, he tried. Each time she died. Painfully. Violently. 

The nightmare was getting to the point of where she died when something changed. He ripped the door off. Grabbed her, again, to tear her free of the burning car. This sudden change bothered him more than the nightmare did. He could deal with the nightmare. Not this. As he carried her away her eyes suddenly opened. Jeremy stopped in mid stride. This had never happened in his dreams…before. She was staring him in the eyes. Nor could he take his away. She was staring at him. Staring at... Staring… 

Jeremy woke with a start. His eyes flew open to lock onto hers. She was awake. Awake. But what he marveled the most about was she was staring at him. No words could describe the way he felt right now. Then he smiled. 

************* 

The room became brighter. Warmer. Less like a hospital room. Hazel looked into his eyes. Again. They were still the same. A sigh escaped her as she said. “Hi.” 

“Hi.” Jeremy barely breathed. 

After all this time waiting for her to wake up all he could say was hi. But, then again, it sounded better than anything else he could have thought of. Her voice was like music on the wind. Subtle but rememberable. It called to his soul like nothing else ever had. 

Hazel loved the way his voice sounded. Liked the way he was looking at her. Suddenly a disturbing thought struck her. Struck her very hard. “Do you have a mirror?” 

Jeremy thought for a bit. His first thought was to tell her no. This didn’t last long. After six months he was not going to lie or misinform her about anything. He didn’t know why but she deserved the truth. Getting out of the chair he went to the closet to return with a hand mirror. This he handed to her. Yet, as she took hold of it, he said. “I’m not sure what you are expecting or thinking what you might find but it is not as bad as it could have been.” 

Hazel took the mirror with his words hanging in the air. As soon as she looked she was stunned with how much damage her face, as well as her body, had suffered. So she was confused with his idea of it could have been worse. What was worse than this. “This isn’t bad?” 

“No.” Jeremy told her. “A bit of luck happened after the accident. A delivery vehicle had, for a still unknown reason, a large quantity of aloe plants. There was more than enough to cover all the burn areas. It could have been so much worse.” 

“How long?” she asked him. 

“Six months.” 

“That long…” Then a thought occurred to her. “How long have been here?” 

“Six months.” 

Hazel thought she either had misheard him or he misheard the question. “Not how long I’ve been here but how long have you been here today?” 

Jeremy smiled. “I knew what you meant. I have been here for as long as you have been.” 

She was about to ask why when she saw his hands. “Are you hurt?” 

He shook his head no but she just stared at him. Without thinking he looked at his hands. “No. I’m good.” 

“How bad did you get burned?” She didn’t like the idea he had been hurt because of her. 

“Not anywhere close as you have been.” Jeremy liked the idea she was worried about her. 

Hazel set the mirror on her lap. There was something bothering her. “How have you been able to stay?” 

Jeremy smiled. “You have a lot of good friends who are concerned about your health. Just to let you know the other driver will not get out of jail for a very long time. A very long time.” 

Hazel was not too sure this was good news or just not all that important. Then suddenly… “Why are you here?” 

“A lot of people have asked me that question or one like it.” Jeremy shook his head for a bit. “I honestly don’t know. Been trying to figure that out since the accident.” 

Jeremy got up to stand next to the bed. Slowly he took hold of her hand. “Something kept forcing me from the start. As soon as the truck went to pass…when I saw your car coming at us…all I knew was I had to get to your car. My soul made it quite clear there was nothing more important than this. Nothing. I even threatened to kill several people if they tried to prevent me from saving you…” 

“Was that when you disappeared?” 

“Yes.” He said as he squeezed her hand. 

Hazel could feel the heat of his hand in hers. The touch sent an interesting ripple through her body. Parts of her body responded, to the touch, like they never had before. “But why are you still here?” She wasn’t sure why she was asking these questions but she needed to know something. 

After looking into the mirror she was wondering why he was still with her. He had seen her, only briefly, before the fire got to her. And yet he was still here. Why? 

“Why?” Jeremy echoed. 

Hazel had not thought she had spoken out loud but she must have. So she had to go ahead with her thought. “You saw me before all this…(she said as she waved at her body)…you see me now…so why are you still here?” 

“Because…” Jeremy could feel himself blushing. “Because I find you are so very beautiful…I have never seen anyone as beautiful as you…ever.” 

“So you are talking about what I looked like before? You think I will get back to that? I can’t see how that could be possible. Can you?” 

“No.” Jeremy said. “You might get close but there will be scars all across your body. The docs said there was no way around this.” 

“So what are you talking about?” 

Jeremy didn’t hesitate as he leaned down to her. Hazel almost pulled away but didn’t. She wanted to see what he was going to do. What he did was nothing she expected. He kissed her. “Does that help any?” 

Hazel could not speak. There were several reasons but the main two were: The kiss seemed to take her breath away. Second she had no words to describe how much this affected her. All she managed to get out was… “But I am so…” 

“…Ugly.” He finished for her. “How can you possible say that?” 

“I saw what I looked like in the mirror. So what do I look like for you?” 

Jeremy could feel his blush deepening. There was a lot he wanted to say but wasn’t sure what the best way he could tell her. Then an idea hit him. Letting go of her hand he went to the door and closed it. Then he pulled the curtain to block the bed from the door. When he got back to the bed he looked at her for a very long time. 

“I would not do this with just anyone. I’m not sure why I am even doing it with you.” Jeremy paused for a while longer then he pulled his pants and underwear down. “Does this help?” 

Hazel stared at him before she looked down. She had no clue as to what she would see but it was not what she found. He was hard. Not just a little. But very, very hard. Without thinking she took hold of it to make sure she wasn’t seeing things. It was real. But how? Unless…he…wasn’t…lying…about how she looked to him. But she was ugly. Even before the accident not many men found her beautiful enough to go out with her. The few who did only wanted one thing. And it was not anything long term. Yet here he was showing her how she was physically affecting him. And he said he didn’t do this just for anyone. Only her. Wow, she thought, maybe he was telling the truth. But what does it really mean? No matter how long she thought about this it was making no sense at all. None. Then she heard a noise. 

A sigh. 

Not just any sigh but a sigh of pleasure. 

Hazel suddenly left her thoughts to see why she had heard the sigh. It didn’t take long as she realized she still had hold of him. Actually more than that. Her hand was stroking him. Slowly. It felt good. Right. As if she had been doing this for years. Without stopping she looked up at him. He was watching her. Her hand. 

Hazel didn’t want to stop but she did. “What is going on here?” 

Jeremy pulled his pants back up. Her hand had sent unmistakable tremors through his body. It confirmed what he had been feeling for weeks now. He no longer could deny the obvious. The truth. “I think I am falling in love with you.” 

Hazel gasped. Not at what he was saying but at the way her body responded to the words. There was no doubt her body, soul, knew what was going on while she was unconscious. Now it was telling her the truth of his words. The simple truth. “With the way I look now?” 

Jeremy kissed her again. Deeply. Passionately. “The way you look now…ten years from now…when you are old and wrinkly…I have always loved you and will always love you.” 

Hazel started to cry. She could not believe how much her life had changed because of the accident. They do say there is always a silver lining. Yet this didn’t really fit for her. What did was she now understood what the power of love could do.