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AJ spent the next couple of days going back and forth between his house and the hospital. He tried to get in time with his son but he was afraid to leave Alissa for too long. He didn’t want her to wake up and see no one there.

 

Sitting next to her one afternoon, he realized how tired he was and decided to try and doze in the chair for a while before heading back to the house to feed James. He had just closed his eyes when he heard a voice. His eyes snapped open and he stared at Alissa. She hadn’t moved so he thought he was just hearing things. He closed his eyes again and started to doze off.

 

“A…J…”

 

His eyes flew open again and he lost his ability to talk. Alissa’s eyes were opening little by little and she kept trying to say his name. Tears filled his eyes and he pressed the call button for the nurse.

 

“I’m right here Liss, right here.” He sat down next to her on the bed and smiled. She finally opened her eyes and they connected with AJ’s.

 

“Hi beautiful.”

 

She saw AJ started to cry and she didn’t understand what was going on.

 

“A…J…” She tried to grab his hand but she didn’t have much strength.

 

The nurse walked in to ask what was wrong and when she saw that Alissa had woken up, she darted out to get the doctor.

 

AJ could barely talk. His heart felt like it was going to explode and he couldn’t stop staring in her eyes. He had missed too many days not being able to see the look on her face and hear her say his name.

 

The doctor came in and smiled when he saw that his patient had opened her eyes finally.  “Well Ms. Emerson, it’s nice to have you back. You’ve given everyone the scare of their lives.”

 

Alissa shook her head. “I…don’t….” Her voice was cracking and it was hard to speak.

 

“You had a tube in your throat to help you breathe and it’s probably causing you some pain. It should go away in a few days.” The doctor turned to AJ. “I’ll give you a few minutes and then we need to get some scans done.”

 

AJ just nodded. He had so much to say to Alissa but all the emotions that had built up over the last few months just came crashing over him and he started to sob. Tears filled Alissa’s eyes.

 

“I’m…sorry….”

 

AJ looked at her through his tears. “You have nothing to be sorry for Liss.”

 

Alissa shook her head. “You’re…..crying….”

 

AJ smiled. “I’m crying because I love you and because I’ve missed you.”

She looked confused. “Missed…me?”

 

“You’ve been in a coma for more than two months Liss. Something happened when you had the baby…..”

 

Alissa started to panic. “Baby!”

 

“Shhhh.” AJ said running his hand down the side of her face. “James is fine. He’s at home with my mother.” He paused for a minute. “He’s beautiful Liss. He has your eyes.”

 

Her eyes filled with tears and she started to cry. She remembered that they had decided to name the baby James and the thought of seeing him overwhelmed her.

 

“See…him?”

 

AJ nodded. “Of course you can see him. Let the doctors do their tests and I’ll bring him to you.”

 

She gripped his hand a little tighter. AJ grabbed it, raised it to his face and pressed it to his cheek.

 

“God Liss, I’ve missed you. I love you more than anything and I was so scared you weren’t coming back.”

 

“Never…leave…you.”

 

Alissa ran her finger across his face. AJ started to cry again and he leaned down to kiss her. He felt the spark that he had missed and he just wanted to hold her in his arms. The doctor came in and let AJ know that the scans would take an hour or so.

 

Alissa looked up at him. “Stay?”

 

AJ smiled down at her. “Where else would I go?”

 

Alissa smiled weakly at him and they wheeled her bed out and took her down to the radiology wing.

 

As soon as she left, AJ called his mother and told her the news. He asked her to bring James to the hospital as soon as she could.  She said she would leave as soon as she packed things up and hung up. AJ sat down in the chair and felt like a heavy weight had been lifted from him. He didn’t always believe in praying but he thanked God for bringing Alissa back. There was no way he would let her go again.