I walk into Rose's room and she is still the exact same as earlier - unmoving and hooked up to countless machines. Standing beside her is, who I assume, the healer. He's an odd looking person - pointy ears and eyes so blue they don't look real. "This is Maximus, the healer," the woman says and gestures to the man. He bows his head. So it is him...

This man, Maximus, is going to return Rose to me but also take her away, I don't know if I can go through with this anymore. Not when the risk of completely losing her is so high.

"I will make sure this hurts her as little as possible," his voice is mellow. Hurt?

This is going to hurt her?

"What do you mean hurt her?" I can hear the hint of anger in my voice, anger rattling my bones - consuming me. No one is going to hurt her.

"Healing doesn't come without a cost... someone will be hurt just as much as her if not more. Nature doesn't let you take without restoring, it doesn't work like that. You must give back what you have taken," I can't believe the words coming out of his mouth.

He is bat crazy.

"How do you know that this man's work is real, how do you know that he is authentic and isn't apart of the rebels?" I turn towards the doctor.

"I know this is overwhelming... but I can assure you that his work is authentic and very much real - I have seen it with my own eyes, experienced it," she says and I pinch the bridge of my nose.

"You do anything you shouldn't... I will break your bones," I point at Maximus and he stares blankly at me.

"Very well then, we shall begin," he brings both his hands to her temples and closes his eyes.

My heart races as he begins muttering things under his breath. What bullcrap. I swear to the heavens that if this is some hoax or idea of a joke - many people will not come out of this room alive.

The doctor leaves the room and I slump into the seat next to Rose's bed. I watch attentively, watching every move. "How long will this take?" I huff and Maximus sighs.

"A few hours, give or take," he says and continues with his work.

I glue my eyes to his hands to make sure he isn't doing anything sketchy. If I have to sit here for a few hours then so be it, I am not leaving her side, not leaving her with this stranger.

***

It's been about an hour and I feel as though my eyes are deceiving me when I see her eyebrows furrow. My heart feels like it is slowly being pulled back together, slowly being stitched back up and mended. The relief that washes over me is indescribable.

Until she stops moving again.

"Her body is fighting me, like it doesn't want me to heal it," Maximus says with a strained voice and my heart breaks all over again. Shattering in my chest.

"Well try harder," I press and Maximus laughs to himself.

"I am dancing with death when I am doing this, it drains me. If I work any harder I'll die and then you would be in quite a predicament wouldn't you," he says breathless and I stand from my chair, almost knocking it over.

"You stop and you'll die, I'll make sure of it... either way you will die so you may as well go trying," I grit my teeth and he closes his eyes again, focusing back on Rose.

So I thought.

I hate that this it what everything has come to, Rose shouldn't have to live like this. A small part of me hopes that she will forget me, that I can rid her of me.

She deserves so much more than what I can give her.

But there is also the selfish part of me that wants her all to myself, that won't let anyone go near her or touch her. That wants to be the only man to ever taste her and touch her like I do, to ever love her like I do. The only one to feel the curves of her body and her lips against mine.

The only one.

I place my hand in hers and squeeze it, begging and pleading with any higher power that they will grant me a life with her. I need more time, we need more time.

I don't notice it at first but then it's too hard to ignore. Her breathing is erratic and shallow - not normal. "What's happening?" I ask and he ignores me.

Pain, she's in pain.

Every bone in my body is telling me to make Maximus stop, to eradicate this pain he is inflicting on her but I need her. He said he would make sure he kept the pain to a minimal. With the little trust left that I have to offer, I have given it to him. I don't know what I will do if he misplaces it.

Her hand holds mine firmly, her grip so tight that I'm scared it's going to cut my circulation off. But I don't care... she is responding, she is holding my hand. I don't let myself hope too much because I know how quickly that hope can be taken away.

"I'm almost... there," he strains and his face pales. If he gives up before she wakes up, I will sentence him to a long and torturous death. I don't give mercy.

"Keep going!" I shout and he is gasping for air. I never realised how deeply the poison had embedded itself into her veins. My heart is racing as I watch her, I can see her trying to fight, trying to cling onto the hope of being healed.

To see this and not be able to do anything to help her pains me in many more ways than I can handle. "Is there anything I can do?" I ask frantically as he wheezes.

"I need to draw from your strength, if I don't... I will die and she will... remain in... this state," I can see that he is trying hard to stay alive but obviously not hard enough.

"What do you mean draw from me?" this is the most supernatural crap I have ever seen.

"No questions..." he breathes and latches his hand onto my arm. If this was any other situation I would curse him out and make him regret laying a finger on me but it's for her.

I am a weak man for her and I hate myself for it.

My head feels like it has detached from my body and Maximus relaxes from beside me, I'm obviously doing all of the work for him now. I have no clue how any of this is possible and to be completely honest, I don't think I want to know.

***

Rose

Everything in me is trying to cling onto whatever is pulling me out of this deep slumber. I am holding onto something, a hand? It feels so familiar but I don't know how. I am trying so hard to pull myself out, to swim to the surface. My heart feels like it is going to explode in my chest.

I can hear shouting but it feels as though it is miles away, I am so tired and just want to fall back into the darkness. It was peaceful there, I didn't have to think about everything. The everything that I just can't seem to grasp. I can remember it but I can't. It's like a vivid dream.

I gasp for air as I snap my eyes open, to meet with bright lights above me. I am heaving and gasping for air that I can't seem to inhale enough of. Like all of the oxygen has been taken from the atmosphere.

"Rose," a voice I've never heard before says from beside me, I look over and see one of the most gorgeous people I have ever seen. He has the most beautiful eyes, so green that I feel like I am staring into a forest. "Please say you remember me," his hands cups my face and a faint buzz of electricity warms my cheeks from his touch.

He looks so familiar but I don't know how. I feel like I should know him, I wouldn't ever forget a face like that.

"I..." I'm not sure what to say, I don't want to give him false hope.

I have no clue who he is.

His hands drop my face and he steps away from me. Did I do something wrong? "Give her this, you can put it into hot water, it's like a herbal tea. I haven't tried it on anyone before but it could restore some parts of her memory," another man says beside me and hands the brown haired man a glass filled with purple stuff.

"She's not a test subject!" the brown haired man shouts and the other man slowly closes his eyes and takes a deep breath.

"I am trying to help you Colton," the name sounds so familiar, like it's just on the tip of my tongue.

"Colton..." I whisper to myself. Nothing. I want to remember him, I feel like I need to. "Where am I?" I ask quietly. Colton's eyes meet mine and he looks broken to the core. I can't imagine why. There's something so familiar about being near him; I can trust him.

He sits down on the bed and puts his hand over mine. I should retract my hand but it feels comfortable with him.

It's odd... to know someone in touch but not in memory.

"You... really don't remember?" he asks and rubs circles on my hand with his thumb. His eyes brim with tears and I should feel sad but I don't. I don't know him.

"I'm sorry," I whisper and look down. He brings his other hand to my chin, lifting my head so I am looking at him.

"It's not your fault," he says gently. A tear falls down his face and I bring my hand up to wipe it away but he pulls back. "You'll remember soon... you just have to drink this," he holds up the same glass jar that the other man gave him.

It's then I realise that the other man had left the room. I never saw him leave.

"What happened, why can't I remember you?" I ask and he takes a deep breath.

"I'm not going to tell you everything otherwise we will be here all day, that's what this is for," he gestures to the glass jar. "But long story short... the rebels, who we have been fighting against, put a chip of sorts into you when they took you hostage and the chip had been releasing poison into your veins at a very slow rate," he explains and I nod. "There was too much poison in your body and... you went into a coma. They called in some healer who did god knows what to you but the stuff worked and I'm just glad you're not dead," he says and runs a hand over his face.

"Are you important to me?" I ask hesitantly and his face drops. I'll take that as a yes.

"I'd like to think so," he whispers and I feel awful.

"I'll remember you... I couldn't forget someone like you," I say softly and he smiles a little.

"I hope so, love," as soon as that word left his lips something flickered in me. Love?

He looks at me confused.

"You'd call me that?" I ask and his eyes go wide. The words left my mouth before I could even process them. I know that he used to call me that. But that's all.

"How'd you know that?" he asks, hope clear as day in his eyes.

"I... I don't know," I pinch the bridge of my nose in frustration. He pulls my hand away from my face and smiles softly.

"It's okay, we'll get there," he says although his eyes say something different.

As if he didn't believe the words coming out of his own mouth.