After a long sleep, Ashley came out of the darkness she slipped into. But before she came out, she had a dream. It was a long one but it was different.

It was happier, simpler. It made her heart feel free.

But it was just a dream. And it ended as soon as a scratchy noise from the outside world took over the laughs of the cute baby she was cuddling in her happy world while Dave helped her.

Shutting her eyes more, Ashley pushed for the scene to continue. Even though Dave was not in her life anymore, having him in her dreams was more than enough to keep dreaming because, for some reason, it made her feel safe.

It seemed like her safe place was back after a long while. Her dreams didn’t turn into nightmares as they used to once upon a time.

But after some minutes, her attempts to continue the dream became useless. Ashley thought it would be better if she just opened her eyes.

Her lashes danced indecisively and she recalled the last thing that happened before she passed out. So, she wasn’t surprised that she was waking up in what seemed like a private hospital room.

The only thing she wished to know was the identity of the person in the room with her.

But the thing was that her heart already knew the answer, most of her senses did. But her eyes wanted to be sure.

So, she gently turned her head to the right.

And there he sat, his hair looking expensively styled even though it was just a man bun.

Dave was almost falling off the iron chair he was seated on and from her view, it was obvious he hadn’t had much of a clean wash. But he undoubtedly still looked good but in a rough way.

As she wondered how long she had been out, Ashley managed to help herself up. But in the process, she ended up causing a huge pain in her head, she just had to groan and that woke Dave up from his slumber which was almost changing its location to the hospital’s cold floor.

“Ashley… You are finally awake.” He kicked the chair aside and quickly found a space on the comfortable bed, his fine face inspecting hers carefully.

“For how long was I out?” she asked, her voice timid.

“About two days.”

“Is my baby fine?” She did not let that question get cold at all. She kept her eyes on Dave and waited for his reply. But Dave did not give a response at first. “Dave…”

His eyes which he darted to the side met hers and she noticed the weariness on his face.

“Ashley…” He was reluctant and Ashley hated that.

“Is our baby fine, Dave?” Ashley put the question differently in case the fact that she was with a child was still a surprise to him. “Can you please give me an answer?”

The way he shook his head dejectedly didn’t sit right with Ashley.

“Ashley… The doctor…” His voice was thickening and Ashley hated the suspense more.

“Wh-why are you being like this?” Ashley was almost laughing bitterly at his reluctance and at the same time, she was approaching tears because of the magnitude of his silence. “Will you please tell me what the doctor said?”

He sighed. “I am so sorry…”

“What happened to my baby? Don’t… Can you just talk? Please…” Her legs began to dance with impatience and her eyes welled while her lips wore a sad smear.

“The baby uh… didn’t… The baby…”

“What? What? What?” Ashley hurried him.

Dave sighed and closed his eyes. “The baby didn’t make it.”

Instantly, Ashley felt empty. A blank mind was all she had. She had no idea how to process what Dave just told her. Absolutely no idea.

Without blinking an eye, Ashley slipped off the pillow supporting her.

Slipping further into the sheets that smelt rather homely, Ashley suddenly let out a small cry. She tried to keep it in, but it just could not be helped.

And… that was all she could do at that moment. Cry.

“I’ll leave now…” Dave whispered to Ashley who was now laying on her right side.

Ashley didn’t turn to face him, she just stayed muddled into the sheets, her hand over her mouth to keep her tears in as though they were not meant to be heard or sensed.

~

‘So much for sweet dreams.’ Ashley almost scoffed as she thought about the one-second moment of happiness she had in her sleep before she woke up to the news that ruined it all.

It was funny though. The events of her life played out as though the universe was playing games with her. Games that made her crumble with nothing but devastation.

So, yes, her life was sad. The saddest it had ever been.

Taking a look across the room for the first time, Ashley noticed how dark it looked and she was about to get off the bed and have the window blinds up when Dave quietly entered the room.

“You look like you haven’t had that much of a good sleep,” Ashley pointed out, her voice still weak.

“Well, it seems like you have been crying a lot,” he replied to her and Ashley gave him a soft smile as he approached her. Once he sat beside her, he continued, “Asking if you are fine will be a stupid question.”

Ashley sighed and adjusted her position on the bed. Looking down at the tiled floor, she said, “I know you have a lot of questions.”

“Will you answer them?”

“I think I can.”

Dave swept off a strand of hair that sat on his forehead. “Are you sure?”

Ashley drew her breath in before nodding. She had really missed that look of concern that always drew across his face whenever he asked her a serious question. “Why didn’t you tell me about your pregnancy?” he gently asked.

“I just didn’t want to.”

“Ashley…”

Ashley pushed even further. “Why would I bother myself with such? You have a life already. A life I had no idea of.”

“I…”

Ashley faced him and she saw how desperate he was to tell her his mind.

But before he could do that, she spoke.

“Do you know how much it hurts to know that you are married? For the first time after my divorce, I was feeling different. I felt happy. I was happy with you. But you just had to be separated from your wife with whom you have a son. Trust me, Dave, I can be many things, but I am not a homewrecker.”

“You definitely are not. Because there is no home to wreck.” Dave shifted closer and Ashley realised more how much she missed him. “True, I have a son and a crashed marriage, but that is all it is. That chapter of my life closed way before I met you. And… meeting you…” Dave gave a huge smile that lit up his face. “It is the best thing that has happened to me after a long while. And I would not do anything to ruin that.”

“You…”

“I am not just attracted to you Ashley. I have fallen in love with every part of you. Do you know why I offered to help you out of your misery? It saddened my heart without thinking twice when I saw your beautiful eyes crying for help. I instantly wanted to help. I wanted to be with you without thinking. I know I sound unbelievable, but I know it too. But it is the truth.”

“Dave…” Ashley was finally experiencing the confirmation of his feelings for her and it felt so good to hear it.

“So, Ashley, please,” he reached for her hands and she didn’t toss him away, “don’t kick me out of your life. I want to continue to be part of it. My divorce is almost finalised and soon, I will prove to you that I am more than willing to leave everything behind so that I can be a part of your life. So,” he squeezed her hands, ”please, don’t kick me out of your life.”

“I don’t know if I can do that,” Ashley replied and she looked away because she began to feel fear in her soul. “I don’t know if I want that. Life has become so scary, I just want to be alone.”

“But that is dangerous. This is not the time to be…”

“Alone. I know.” Ashley smiled at him. But it was a weak one. And in reaction, Dave made sure to give her hands another squeeze. “The thing is I don’t know what I want right now. I don’t know what to do next.”

“I can help you find that out.” Dave let go of her hands and found home on her cheeks. Cupping them with affection, Dave moved inches away from her face and teased her upper lip with his breath as he said, “We can go away from here to somewhere else, somewhere different. Just stay with me, okay?”

Ashley sighed again when she saw that Dave’s eyes were teary. And she drew the sheets around her waist closer to her chest. “I will think about it.”

“Okay. I will leave you to your thoughts.” Dave was reluctant with his action, he almost didn’t leave. But before he did, he kissed her forehead.

As soon as he left, Ashley lay down and stared into the poorly lit room.

She lied earlier.

She wasn’t going to think about it. Not because she didn’t want to, but at that point, her mind was an empty slate that was not willing to be filled with knowledge.

And there was the fact that she was too scared to think.

But as she replayed Dave’s words and mannerisms, something within her seemed to change. The fact that he reciprocated the love she felt for him made her sad, mourning heart jump quietly. So, maybe, just maybe, she could consider Dave’s suggestion.

Anyhow it was going to play out, thanks to Dave, Ashley felt hopeful, and that feeling was what drove her to sleep. And till she slept, the table beside her that had a stuffed bear seated on it was all she saw till her eyes closed.

And that was her best sleep since her baby left her.