" I have a surprise for you, Aly!", Carla thunders in the room, overexcited.

"No more surprises, Carla! I'm done. Remember what your last suprise did to me!" I don't want to remember the last night.

"It's better than last time, I promise"

"Okay! Tell me what is it?", I ask uninterested.

"Come in, guys!"

The doors part. Three young boys and two girls enter. They are in casual attire. Obviously, I recognise them.
They are my school friends!! I know some of them since kindergarten!

" Greave..Jordan..Sam...Jess...Kate. I'm so happy to see you guys!" I was in tears almost.

"Hey Aly! My love!....Woah! You look hot in hospital gown"

"Stop it! Sam! For god's sake! She's in hospital. You can give a break to your flirting! ", interrupted Jess and punched him on arm.

"Ow! That hurts Jess! Aly likes it. Don't you darling?"

I laughed. Sam is unimaginably flirty. He likes to tease me like this. And he is wrong! I don't like his flirting. But at the present moment, he was cracking me up.

" Forget him Aly! Tell me, How are you feeling? I miss your stupid dance moves!", Jess said.

" Whose dancing did you just call stupid? I dance well. Not so good like you, of course. But, better than Carla!" , I snickered at Carla. She gives me a dangerous look.

"I miss our night outs, Aly", says Kate.

"I miss all of you, idiots!", I say with smile creeping up to my lips.

The room now radiated happiness. The dark and despondent room was now filled with laughter and positive atmosphere. I realise, I'm genuinely happy, after many days.

"So, Are you coming with me to the club at night?", asks Kate.

Kate is a partyholic. She is always ready for a night out! She loves partying to such an extent that you can't imagine a party without her. I missed all the nights we spent together.

"No Kate, I'm sorry", I say.

"I'm just kidding Aly. You know, Greave has his state swimming finals in two weeks ! ", Kate says smiling.

"Wow! Good Luck Greave! I'm sure you will bag the win"

"Thank You, Aly. I hope you will be there to cheer me up and witness the win"

"I hope so", I say.

"Let me talk to Aly. Clear out the way, everyone! You're boring her" , Sam pushes Kate away and sits on my bed.

"So, did you miss me Aly?" He winks. "I know you did. Look at your face. So lifeless. Just because you didn't see me for so many days"

"That's not tr-" I say when Sam interrupts me and places a finger on my lips silencing me.

"You don't need to say anything. I know the effect I have on you. On all the girls. I'm all aware of my charm. You know, girls are dying out for me . But, I can ignore them if you want to be my girlfriend, you know, since Ala-"

" Sam!", Jess interrupts him. She stares at him and gestures him something which I don't understand. Her face has this nervous look and she interrupted Sam as if he was about to spill some secret.

"So, Aly, What say?", Sam says.

" It's enough Sam! Have a break! Stop flirting with her", Jess scolds him. She is always protective of me whenever he teases me.

" Ohh..Jess! I just remembered something. Should I tell your secret?", he smirked.

Jess's eyes widen. She nervously says, " What secret? I d-don't have any s-secret!"

"Tell me", I urge.

"There's n-nothing A-Aly. You know how Sam is. He's always joking around", Jess gives a killer look to him.

"Oh really Jess! Stop acting innocent. So guys, listen up everybody !

JESS is seeing a GUY!", Sam reveals.

"Woahh!! You kept that a secret Jess!", Greave complains.

"What! Whom? Since when? Is he from our school?", Kate burdens Jess with her questions.

"Jess, is that right?", I ask.

"Yes", she replies shyly.

"Who?"

"He's from -", Jess is interrupted by my mother.

"That's enough catching up , folks. Aly needs rest. The doctor also want to examine her. You can come again tomorrow if you want. I'm grateful that all of you came. Look, Aly's face has lightened up and the glow is back"

"Bye Aly, take care"
Everyone leaves except Jordan.

Jordan walks towards my bed. His face is blank. Expressionless. Too hard to read. Only thing on his face which is communicating to me is his EYES. He's staring right into my eyes. As if trying to read me. As if searching for... answers.

His intent gaze makes me nervous. He bends towards me. He wraps his arms around me in a hug and whispers into my ears,

" Till how long are you planning to continue this? This game of yours ... pretending that you have forgotten the accident ?"

I'm suddenly clueless. I stare wide eyed at the door while Jordan's arms are still wrapped around me. He withdraws and squeezes my arm a bit harshly. His eyes are filled with....what it seems ....rage.

"Jordan, you're not making sense. I don't know about any accident"

He sighs and shakes his head. For a few seconds, he stares blankly at the opposite wall and then again look at me. His eyes have a different look this time. They reveal the sadness beneath. As if he's broken deep within. Hurt. As if he's pleading the answers to questions which neither of us know.

*********
A/N :

Friends reunion!!! Was it fun to read?

What do you think of Jordan?

Which one of the Alicia's friends did you like the most? ("Obviously me", Sam gives his collars a flicker)

Did you like the chapter ? I hope you do because I had fun writing this!

Comment and vote :)