One brave deed holds the key to unlocking a scarred heart.
In 3 parts, By SDes. Listen to the Podcast at Steamy Stories.
Chicago Streets
Jeff walked out of the bar deep in thought. He would be thirty years old in just two weeks and had very little to show for it. There was a decent job, a string of short relationships and a lot of bills. He never thought his life would have turned out like this. He was smart, athletic and well educated. Although he wasn't every girl's dream, he was attractive by most standards and had his share of relationships with desirable women.
Unfortunately, none of the relationships had lasted more than a few months. At this point he was starting to worry that it was a trend without an end in sight. He considered himself a good guy and had always wanted a family. It was beginning to make him doubt himself and his future.
He was having a lousy Friday night. It was midnight and he was walking out of the bars alone; again. At least since it wasn't cloudy the moon lit up the streets and made it seem a little less depressing than it should have been. It all made him wonder if things would ever turn around.
As he turned the corner, he noticed the street was a little more deserted than usual. He attributed it to everyone still being in the bars having a good time, or on their way home to have a better one.
As he walked past the alley on the East side of the intersection, a noise attracted Jeff's attention. He peered into the darkness between the two buildings and his heart stopped. There was a young woman struggling with two men. They were dressed in jeans and torn shirts. Both wore the same color bandanas making Jeff suspect they were in a gang. It would have been normal for the neighborhood. The crime was getting worse in that section of the city and he wondered why the hell she was there alone at that time of night.
He was quiet as he tried to decide what the situation was before doing something stupid. From her struggles, he was almost certain this wasn't some kind of game. After a few moments, his eyes adjusted and he could see she was a petite brunette, about five feet tall, thin and well dressed. But what Jeff noticed most was that she was drop dead gorgeous.
Confident that this was a real attack, he pulled out his cell phone and stepped back away from the alley.
"911," a woman's voice answered. "Please state your emergency."
"I'm on the corner of Superior and Wabash. There's a woman being attacked in the alley by a couple of thugs. Please hurry!"
"Sir, I have officers on the way. Please wait for them and don't get involved."
A muffled scream put an end to that thought for Jeff. He cautiously glanced around the edge of the building and saw that the girl was being held from behind by one man as the other ripped her shirt. He reached a hand inside to cup one of her breasts and Jeff couldn't stop himself from walking toward them.
He set the phone down on a garbage can so the operator might be able to hear some of what was happening.
"Hey, what's going on?" he demanded.
The man in front of the girl whirled around to face him, "You need to mind your own business. We're all friends here." The girl moaned through the hand the punk in back had put over her mouth.
Jeff quickly did the math on the situation. If neither man had a gun, he was confident he had a chance. The alley was wide enough for him to maneuver, giving him the room he'd need to deal with two men at once. He hoped for an element of surprise on his side, because he didn't appear to be an imposing opponent. At under six feet tall and about one hundred, eighty-five pounds, he wasn't going to frighten anyone based on his imposing image.
What they didn't know was the years of martial arts training he went through in his mid-twenties and the tournament fights he participated in. He wasn't overconfident; his teachers had thoroughly taught him the need to have the proper amount of respect for an adversary. Any fight can be lost if you slip, turn an ankle, miss a punch, or make any one of a hundred other mistakes that can happen in the heat of the moment. Also, he had to hope neither of the hoods was holding any surprises for him.
No matter what, Jeff couldn't let them hurt this girl. Her eyes pleaded with him for help and he wouldn't be able to live with himself if he didn't try to protect her. When he refused to move, the man in front of her showed him the knife in his hand. His partner holding the girl nodded and said, "Take him."
Jeff tried to appear unnerved, hoping he could still avoid a fight. "Listen, nobody has to get hurt here. Just let her go and we'll head the other way."
The man with the knife sneered and said, "Only one of us is going to get hurt. You should've kept walking."
Jeff saw the man tense as he moved forward. He swung the knife in a wide arc, keeping it around chest level. Jeff smoothly stepped inside and blocked the thug's arm with both hands. His right hand flashed out quickly and caught the attacker in the cheek with the back of his fist. Jeff continued his movement, stepping under the man's arm, grabbing his wrist and turning it in.
The punk dropped the knife with a whine and Jeff finished the move he had practiced thousands of times with a roundhouse kick to the ribs. As the man doubled over in pain, Jeff stepped in and finished him off with an elbow strike to the nose. He was rewarded with a loud breaking sound and a cry of pain as the man dropped to the ground.
Jeff stepped back and looked at the man holding the girl. Now that he was closer, he could make out her condition. She had been roughed up a little, with her face showing several cuts and scratches. He still hoped to get out of this without any more violence. It was possible the girl could get hurt in the melee or that he could lose, putting her in even more jeopardy than before.
Martial Tactics
"I'm telling you, let her go and we'll walk. You can get your friend and go your own way. Neither of us wants to get hurt, just let her go." Jeff considered telling him about the call to the police, but worried that the piece of shit might panic and hurt the girl, or decide his only option was to take her hostage.
The man looked like he was considering the offer, but suddenly threw her into some garbage cans against the brick wall. She fell to the ground in a heap. The thug stepped quickly toward Jeff, hoping to catch him off guard. Jeff retreated a couple of steps, trying to get a clue about this man's proficiency with a knife. The first one was sloppy and easy, but he wasn't about to make any assumptions. Jeff guessed the man was about six feet tall, two hundred pounds. His height gave him a little advantage, especially while using a knife.
As he stepped forward, Jeff made a dangerous gamble. He quickly slid his back foot up to his front one, raising his knee high. The man fell for it and raised his hands to protect his face, putting too much weight on his front leg. Jeff brought his left leg down with all his force, catching the other man just on the inside of his knee. The joint gave way with a sickening thud, bending to an impossible angle. As the man hit the ground with a scream, Jeff stepped back to keep from getting hit with a frantic swing from the prone attacker.
He was trying to decide what to do about the man who was still a potential threat when he heard startled cry, "Look out!"
He looked up and saw the girl staring past him with a fear in her eyes. He realized something bad was about to happen, so guessed a direction and spun quickly while stepping away. Unfortunately he guessed wrong and felt an explosion across his chest. The pain hit him a fraction of a second later. He took another step back as he realized he was facing a new adversary. This one must have come from the street. He was wielding the knife the first man had dropped.
Jeff was afraid to bring his hand to his chest. He knew the wound was bad and didn't want anything to distract him from the man in front of him. There couldn't be any more mistakes or he knew he wouldn't be walking out of the alley again. The new man made small motions with the knife, waiting for Jeff to commit himself or for the loss of blood to take its toll. When Jeff felt a wave of dizziness hit him, he decided to act immediately. If he waited much longer, it wouldn't matter anyway.
He stepped forward and threw a quick jab that missed badly. This gave his opponent an opening and he moved in with a stab aimed at Jeff's chest.
This was what Jeff had been hoping for and he twisted, bringing his left arm across to push the knife wide of its target. This kept his right arm free and he brought it across, hitting the man as hard as he could across the bridge of the nose. It caused his assailant to stumble back into some other trash cans, where he fell hard. Unfortunately due to his injury, Jeff now lacked the strength to cause the kind of damage he had earlier. He knew the man wouldn't stay down and didn't believe he'd be able to finish him off.
Where are the fucking police? he thought angrily.
His momentary distraction was the second mistake he had hoped to avoid. Out of the corner of his eye he saw a quick flash, then felt the side of his head erupt in pain. The force of the blow spun him into the wall. He shook his head, trying to clear the fog. When he looked up, he realized he could no longer focus. There were no more options. The fight was over and he had lost. He faced the man who had just hit him, his first opponent, who had used Jeff's distraction with the others to recover enough to get to his feet and hit him with a pipe he found lying on the ground.
The first punch he learned in his martial arts training was a unique one. The teacher wanted to reinforce how dangerous fighting could be in order to discourage students from being too eager to get into trouble. He chose to show them how to turn their hand on an angle and strike the target with the bone just below the base of the index finger. The blow was supposed to catch the opponent in the windpipe, which would stun virtually anyone. The thing that made the class understand how serious it could be was when the teacher explained that hitting your opponent in the wrong spot could be fatal. You could collapse his windpipe or cause him to bleed into his lungs. It was a lesson Jeff never forgot, causing him to avoid fights at all costs.
Now it was all he had left. He stepped in and punched as hard as he could, ignoring the throbbing pain in his chest. Whether it was skill or just dumb luck, he struck the man exactly where he intended. He was rewarded with a strangled cry as the man stumbled back to the wall and fell. Jeff staggered as he was hit with another wave of dizziness. He also realized it was becoming impossible to focus his eyes at all.
He heard a trash can fall and knew that the man who cut him was getting back up. There were no more tricks to play, so he quickly considered his last action. He decided to give the girl as much of a chance as possible; the police had to be close. He stumbled toward her and fell.
He pulled himself on top of her, covering her body with his and whispered, "The police are on the way, you just have to stay away from them a few more minutes."
He marveled at how hard he must have been hit. He heard a ringing in his head and it was rising in intensity. He couldn't shut out the noise as he felt himself slipping into unconsciousness. Suddenly the alley was filled with blinding light, then everything went black
Lights Out
The noise was no longer a loud ringing sound. Instead it was a soft, repetitive tone. Jeff slowly realized he was hearing the sounds of machines operating quietly. It was completely dark and he wondered if he was still in the alley. Suddenly he remembered the girl. He tried to sit up, but only got his head off of the pillow before the pain overtook him. He groaned loudly, his head falling back down.
"Don't move," he heard a soft female voice say. He felt a warm hand on his shoulder, gently restraining him. "Sarah, get the doctor, he's awake."
Jeff heard the sound of footsteps, followed by a doorknob being turned. As he heard the door click shut, the voice returned. "Don't be afraid. You're in the hospital. Everything's okay now, you just need to relax. Your sister was here but she had to leave to pick up her kids. She'll be back in a couple of hours."
He felt a wave of nausea sweep over him as he tried to think. "Who are you?"
The high-pitched voice answered, "My name is Paige. You saved me in the alley." He heard her sniff, trying to hold back tears. "I can't believe you did that. It was the bravest thing I've ever seen."
Jeff felt a pair of soft hands grasp his. He tried to joke. "It wasn't that brave. Trust me, I was scared out of my mind." He wondered why she didn't just turn on the light.
He felt her pull his hand up to her face and she dragged her cheek across it. "Trust me, you don't know what scared is. I; I don't know how to thank you. I'm just glad you're all right. When I saw all the blood, I was afraid; " her voice trailed off. Jeff knew he had been extremely lucky.
He was getting frustrated by only being able to hear her voice. He remembered how beautiful she was and wanted a chance to see her. "Paige, would you turn on the light. It would be nice to actually meet you face to face."
She hesitated, "Jeff, the lights are on."
" So we believe once the swelling goes down, your sight will return. I'm sorry but there are no guarantees."
Jeff laid there in shock as he listened to the doctor trying to sound encouraging without promising anything. The hit he took in the head from the pipe had given him a concussion. It had caused hemorrhaging and swelling that was putting pressure against his optic nerve. The temporary part was what scared him, nobody was sure if it would be OK in a week, a month, a year, or maybe never. The doctors considered surgery, but because it could be risky, preferred using medication and time to deal with it for now.
They had his eyes bandaged, even though the vision loss was total at this point. There had been some improvement in the three days he had been hospitalized, but not enough to be sure he would make a full recovery. The doctor let him know that if he didn't make significant improvement in the next few days, they would have to consider surgery to relieve the pressure.
The blood loss from the chest wound almost killed him, but turned out to be far less serious than the concussion. The cut wasn't too deep, so there wasn't severe muscle damage. The doctor warned him not to try saving any more damsels in distress for a while, but said he would make a full recovery in a relatively short period of time. They thought his condition would keep him there for two or three weeks, if there were no complications from the head injury. After explaining everything that had happened and what to expect, he excused himself. He motioned for Jeff's sister Katy to follow him out of the room.
When they got back to his office, the doctor explained everything that was involved with Jeff's injury and his recovery. "Covering the eyes is not essential, but in a case like this there are a few good reasons to consider it. First, he will have complete blindness for a short time and his sight will gradually recover as the swelling recedes. Without the bandages, he will constantly strain to try and see, which can cause severe migraines."
"Second, I want him to completely rest with as little stress as possible. The injury to his chest will force him to be immobile, so he'll be here anyway. There's no reason for him to do anything but heal. Third, I'm concerned about the potential for depression. If he sees little or no progress day after day, his chances of slipping into a depressed state will be increased. My best guess would be, we're looking at about three weeks for significant progress, although we'll need to monitor him closely to have a better idea."
Katy listened intently and considered everything he said. "I'll go with your recommendations. I know my brother, he isn't known for being patient. It would be best to force him to rest and give him no other options."
"Good, then assuming we can treat this without surgery, we should know a lot more in a week or so. We'll keep a close watch on his progress and I'll let you know if there are any changes in his condition."
When Katy left with the doctor, Paige took Jeff's hand. "Your sister will be back in just a minute." Her voice became thick with emotion. "I'm so sorry this has happened to you. It's all my fault."
Jeff could hear her sobbing. Even though he felt overwhelmed at his situation, the thought of the beautiful young girl blaming herself for his condition was too much.
"Paige, please don't. If you start crying, then I'll start crying, then the nurse has to come change my bandages."
He was rewarded with melodic laughter as she was caught between sniffling and laughing. He also picked up a noise from the far side of the room. It distracted him for a moment, but he decided his mind was playing tricks on him.
Jeff started to feel a little uncomfortable. Here he was, sitting with a young woman he didn't know and had no idea what to say to her. "Can you tell me what happened after I passed out?"
Paige took a second to gather herself. "While you were telling me the police were on the way, I started hearing the sirens. The guy who hurt you with the knife tried to run, but when he got to the end of the alley, the police cars pulled in front and hit their flood lights. He tried running past us toward the other end, but there was a fence he couldn't get over. You injured the other one's knee so badly, he never got off the ground. He gave up without a fight."
"What about the third guy?" Jeff said, remembering the strike he used.
"The paramedics got there right after the police and did that thing where they cut open the throat so he could breathe; "
"You mean a tracheotomy."
"Yeah, that's it. They said you collapsed his airway. I guess it was pretty close." Noting Jeff's troubled frown, she added, "Everyone knew it wasn't your fault, you just did what you had to. You were already hurt so badly, I can't believe you were able to do that to him. I wanted to help, but I just couldn't make myself get up. I'm sorry."
"Don't be sorry. There's nothing you could have done and if you had gotten hurt I would have felt like it was my fault for barging in there and starting the fight. I want you to know that when I saw what was happening, I called the cops and then thought about what I was going to do before trying to help. I don't want you to think I just ran in there like it was some cowboy movie.
I knew it could be dangerous for you if I did the wrong thing, so I tried to come up with a smart way to handle it. When I saw them; " he paused because he didn't want to upset her, "getting more physical with you, I just couldn't wait any more. Are you all right?"
Paige answered immediately, "I had a few cuts and bruises, but it wasn't a big deal. It scared me a lot, but my family's been here since it happened. I just fine; thanks to you."
She paused for a moment, "Anyway, there was one cop who pulled you off of me. When he saw how badly you were bleeding, he didn't hesitate. He dropped down beside you and put pressure on the cut to stop the bleeding and keep you alive. He refused to move until the paramedics got to you and took over. He's stopped by several times, checking to see if you were going to be OK."
She paused, not sure if she should tell him the rest. "You know, you're famous now." Paige paused to see his confused expression. "You've been in the papers, the radio and the TV. You're a hero."
Jeff felt himself blush, "Well I don't feel like a hero, I feel like I got hit by a truck. I'm just glad you're OK; " Jeff trailed off as the drugs pushed him back into unconsciousness. Paige sat there holding his hand for several minutes. When she was sure he was out, she leaned forward and kissed him on the cheek.
"My hero," she said quietly. She looked over at the far end of the room, "Didn't I tell you he was perfect?"
Jeff felt himself coming around again. He had drifted in and out of consciousness all day. The drugs were wearing off a little and he could feel his chest throbbing. He moaned and tried to move to alleviate the pain.
"Are you all right?" he heard Paige ask. "Do you want me to call the nurse?"
"I'm just a little sore, don't worry about it. What time is it?"
"It's about six in the evening," a male voice answered.
Jeff was starting to realize how frustrating his situation was. He didn't recognize the voice and had no idea there was even anyone else in the room. "Who said that?"
Paige answered, "Jeff, this is my dad, Steven."
He felt someone take his hand. "Son, there are no words to tell you how grateful I am. You saved my little girl from something terrible. Anything you ever need is taken care of, all you have to do is ask."
Jeff found that his condition caused him to put more stock in the way people sounded. He decided he liked this man immediately. He had a softness to his voice that showed his emotion, but there was a subtle strength to it as well. Jeff thought about what it would feel like to have the girl you raised from a baby come that close to something tragic. It must have been incredibly difficult and probably made him feel helpless as well. In an odd way, Jeff decided they had something in common.
"You don't owe me anything, sir. I couldn't have lived with myself if I didn't do something. I'm just glad she's all right."
"I'm glad as well." He could almost hear the smile of pride as the man spoke. "You know the nurses have been complaining to me since you came in here. She won't stay in her room and they have to threaten to get her to leave yours."
"She still has a room? Paige told me she was fine, is everything all right?"
"Well, she broke her wrist and has some nasty bruises, but otherwise she's OK. They told her she could go home, but I think she's staying so they have a harder time keeping her out of here." He smiled at his daughter as he teased her.
"Dad, come on," she complained. "Jeff, don't listen to him, I'm fine. I had to stay here for observation and I'd go crazy sitting by myself in my room. I just come in here and read. That way if you need anything, someone will be here. It's the least I can do."
He started to get dizzy from the exertion of talking. It annoyed him that something so simple could wear him out. "Guys, can we talk later? I'm feeling a little woozy."
Steve and Paige left him alone as he let himself drift off again. Despite these nice people being so helpful, he couldn't shake the dark mood that seemed to be growing.
The Candy Striper
" You mean you don't want us to see him?" Paige fumed. "Dr. Walcott, that's just not acceptable!"
"No, that's not what I'm saying," he tried to assure her. "In cases where someone undergoes a severe trauma like the fight, it's common for them to be overwhelmed by the attention people shower on them. Since Jeff is dealing with the loss of one of his senses it makes him especially susceptible. We don't think it's permanent," he said, then waived his hand trying to cut off Paige's protest, "but nobody can promise him anything. It's very difficult for him to deal with and he might feel like the attention is something that could be taken away. It's also possible he might feel like being alone sometimes. In a way, he feels responsible for you and it would be very stressful for him to have to ask you to leave and risk hurting you.
I know Katy's time is limited because of her family, so someone other than Paige should make themselves available. We have a fine staff to take care of him, but if someone is going to be a full-time caretaker, it should be only one person. He needs someone he can identify with. They would also need to not be easily offended when he's honest about his feelings. My biggest concern is still him drifting into a depression, so I'd like there to be someone he can talk to or just sit with when he doesn't feel like talking. But we need to keep that attention somewhat limited to avoid making him defensive."
They all sat for a minute trying to decide the best way to handle things. Finally the young blonde woman in back stood up, "All right, that's going to be me."
Doctor Wolcott couldn't stop himself from smiling. He hoped she would volunteer. He had been very fond of her since he met her, as a youth volunteer in what they used to call ‘The Candy-Stripers’. That was almost eight years ago. Her charity work at the hospital proved she had the ideal temperament and sense of responsibility to handle the situation. More than that, helping someone like Jeff might be just what she needed too.
Jeff stirred, trying to rouse himself. He appreciated the drugs keeping the pain away, but constantly being half-asleep was beginning to grate on him.
"So are you with us again?" came a soft feminine voice.
"Who's there?" Jeff asked, tiring of having to repeatedly ask the same question.
"My name is Sarah. I'm Paige's sister. I've been around, but it's hard to talk to you with her hovering."
Jeff laughed at her insightful statement. He had the same thought several times. To avoid offending Sarah, he just said, "She can be determined."
"That's my sister, determined and impossible to discourage. You know she has the biggest crush on you," leaving Jeff struggling for an appropriate response. "Don't be too impressed with yourself, before you it was the guy who ran the roller coaster at the amusement park."
He laughed uncontrollably until his chest hurt. Again he used his new attention to listening and decided this was someone he instantly liked. He wasn't sure if there was anything to this listening thing, but it somehow seemed right.
"I never did ask, how old is she?"
"Well Casanova, she's eighteen and a freshman in college. Why, are you interested?"
Jeff could hear the mirth in her voice at his expense, but instantly realized she was only teasing him. "Sorry, I think that might be a little young for me. I only got a quick look at her in the alley. She is very pretty, but I didn't have any idea how old she actually was." With the mention of the alley, his mood darkened. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to be insensitive."
"Please, the last thing you have to worry about around me is being insensitive. You're right, she is very pretty. She was homecoming queen, head cheerleader and had requests from a local modeling agency. Dad wouldn't even let her consider it. She was going to college," she paused awkwardly. "Like me," she finished quietly.
Jeff was almost certain she was hinting at something difficult because of the tone of her voice. He decided it was best to change subjects.
"The thing in the alley is just so awkward. I'm glad I was there to help, but I always feel like I'm going to say something that will make her relive it. I'm just not sure how I should handle it. She's such a sweet kid. I don't want to say anything to hurt her."
Sarah cringed as the doctor's words were proven true so quickly. "I understand. Don't worry about what to say to me. I'm not exactly the take offense type." She tried to sound casual but still make sure he understood her point.
"Say whatever's on your mind, or you can relax and I'll catch up on my reading. I'm here because I'm the one without the commitments." She quickly realized that didn't come out the way she intended, so added, "Everyone wanted to be here to make sure you were OK, I just had the most availability."
They talked for almost an hour before he was finally exhausted. She peppered him with questions about what he liked, what he had been doing before that night and assuring Jeff that he should tell her if he needed anything, including privacy. The only thing she didn't do was talk about the alley or how grateful she was about him saving Paige. He wouldn't be able to understand how thankful she was anyway.
As he drifted off, he realized his bad mood from earlier was gone. He was honestly glad she had kept him company.
The next day, at five o'clock sharp, she arrived at his room. "Hey good-looking', how are you feeling today?"
Jeff smiled as he realized how good it felt to hear her voice. "I'm a lot better than before. I think I've finally gotten past this stupid in and out of sleep thing. I've actually been staying awake longer and have even been able to listen to the news. Paige is right. They've mentioned me several times. It's so strange to hear somebody talk about me like that, I feel like I'm in an episode of The Twilight Zone."
"Well, don't get too cocky. You're not going to get any hero worship from me," she said, obviously teasing him. "I've got a present for you."
A present? he thought, thoroughly confused. He heard her rustling through a bag and making some assembly noises. He was about to ask what was going on when he heard a pair of speakers blast, "Ladies and gentlemen, please welcome Sam Kinesin." He grinned broadly as one of his favorite albums started.
"Did you buy me a CD Player?"
Sarah smiled as she saw her gift had the intended reaction. "Better, I got you an MP3 player and had some friends fill it up with stuff for you."
She spent the next hour acquainting him with the technology and how to operate it without being able to see. She had bought a pair of powered computer speakers so they could listen together or he could plug in the headphones. She had bands, comedians and even weird internet stuff he had indicated that he liked. Jeff didn't know that last night she had written down everything he told her. It cost her a pretty penny and took all day, but she managed to get most of it downloaded.
He smiled and thanked her profusely for the thoughtful gift. "Now I have a present for you. Since you've never listened to Sam, just sit down and enjoy."
Sarah spent the next hour laughing until tears streamed down her face. Several times she was embarrassed by things she heard, but she understood why Jeff had expressed such fondness for the strange man with the wild hair. As they laughed together, she thought to herself how glad she was that she volunteered to make sure he was taken care of. Paige was right. He was perfect.
Debate Series
"No, that's the craziest argument I've ever heard. The guy's a crook and should have his ass run out of Washington!"
Sarah felt herself getting flushed. Jeff had a way of getting her aggravated over things. She realized early on it was because he wasn't just passionate about what he thought. He educated himself on issues ranging from politics to sports to just about everything she could think of. When he challenged her, she really had to dig deep to make her points without him tearing them apart.
Jeff tried not to smirk as she lost her cool. It had been three weeks since she had begun watching him and he couldn't get over how amazing she was. She was intelligent, passionate, tender, funny and incredibly open. When he was able to point out a flaw in an opinion she held, he sat dumbfounded as she actually considered his argument and sometimes changed her mind. He had rarely met anyone so willing to be open-minded about their opinions.
She had told him she didn't like comedians who worked blue. The first night with the MP3 player, she didn't make it through 45 seconds of Sam's concert before he actually heard her snort. He loved the way she laughed. It was so full and without any consideration for propriety. They actually forced a nurse come in and ask them to keep it down.
Now they were having another political debate. He was an Independent, uninterested in the politics of an issue, but only on what he considered the truth of it. She was a confirmed Democrat who found it hard to believe that someone could make her rethink positions she'd held for years. To Jeff, the best part about the debates was how heated they could be without any hint of acrimony. When they finished this discussion, she'd probably tell him he was an ass and then they'd check out a new comedian or movie. He knew they'd laugh and joke until it was time for her to leave, then he'd have to go to sleep without her.
He hadn't told her how hard it was for him when she left. It had only been a few weeks and he warned himself it was at least partially because of his condition, but he was hopelessly infatuated. He didn't say anything because he didn't want to scare her off. She was like his lifeline to the world. He could be in a bad mood and she'd listen patiently. If he was happy, they'd laugh and fight about politics. If there was a game on, she'd watch while he listened, often with her cheers drowning out his. Most of all, when she wanted to talk, he was thrilled to listen. He wanted to know every detail about her. She was fascinating.
The only time he hit a wall was when he talked about her past. He suspected she had been divorced. There was a point in the past she would talk about, but not a day further. Jeff wouldn't push her about it because he didn't want to force her to relate something painful. He didn't want to think about such a truly good hearted person having to deal with hardship.
He had never felt this way about anyone and had been trying to figure out a way to ask if she was interested in more. It was difficult because he knew if she said no, it would make things so awkward he might lose what he had with her.
On the other hand, if he didn't say anything, he might lose her because she didn't know he cared. The bandages were supposed to come off in few more days and the doctors thought he'd be leaving one way or another within a week. Once he was out, he was afraid she might drift away. Jeff didn't want to use his situation to make her feel sorry for him, but he also realized that she had committed to visiting him every day while he was there, and he might never have that chance again.
Suddenly he realized she had been talking to him, but he hadn't heard a word.
"Hello, is there anybody in there? I said if you could actually take a stand on principle, maybe you'd see why you were wrong."
Sarah's smile faded as she noticed something wasn't right. She never got the impression he wasn't listening, he was the most attentive person she'd ever talked to. True, part of it was his status as a captive audience, but Jeff was completely genuine. She didn't doubt he would be the same anywhere.
"Sarah, I really like you. Once I'm out of here, could I take you out?" Jeff held his breath. He couldn't believe he actually said that out loud. He hadn't meant to, it just tumbled out and now it was too late to take it back.
There was a painful silence. In reality, it wasn't long, but to him it felt like hours. "Jeff, I'm sorry," she began.
He didn't even hear the rest. There was a pounding in his head as he realized he had just ruined everything. He was so embarrassed he misread her. Since losing his sight, he found that he was really good at picking up on people's intentions and thought he knew Sarah's.
Now what do I do, he thought helplessly.
"Jeff, please understand, I really like you, but it's just not possible."
Sarah was on the verge of tears. She had been dreading this for over a week. She could tell how strongly Jeff felt for her, but it was nothing compared to the way she felt. The question was how to let him down easily. He couldn't know why she wouldn't date him. She couldn't force herself to have that discussion. She just hoped they'd make it through him getting out of the hospital. Now she knew that wasn't a possibility.
"Look Sarah, I shouldn't have put you in that position, I'm sorry. I; I think I should be alone."
He felt so stupid. Here he was, lying flat on his back completely helpless. How was she supposed to answer him? If she said yes, it might have been out of sympathy. If she said no, he just made her feel like a monster. Now he had to ask her to leave because all he could do is lay there.
She tried to talk to him, but he insisted she leave. As she sadly walked out the door, she wished her life could have been different.
To be continued, on Part 2
By S Des, for Literotica
