65. Lost

Nicole walked through the front door of Shorty’s and sighed as she sat down at one of the stools. After setting her Stetson on the bar in front of her, she looked around for Wynonna, but didn’t see her. Typical.

“Evening, Officer. Is there something I can get you?”

Nicole smiled. She knew that voice better than anyone’s. She looked up and instantly noticed Waverly standing in front of her, wearing a Shorty’s shirt that was short enough to expose her midriff with sleeves that went midway down her forearms. Her high-waisted shorts rested just above her hips, and were so tight that it sent a shot of arousal straight to Nicole’s core. She eyed her girlfriend up and down with a giddy grin.

“Okay, is this some sort of roleplaying game? Because if so, I’m all for it.” Nicole shook her head as she bit her bottom lip, eyeing the brunette’s cleavage.

Waverly blushed and used the rag to cover her chest. “Um, I don’t really know what you mean, but let me know when you’re ready to order.” She gave a small smile as she walked to the other end of the bar to help another customer.

Nicole shrugged with a small smile. Maybe this wasn’t roleplaying and Waverly was covering Wynonna’s shift for some reason. But whatever the reason, she was enjoying the view of that outfit. She made a mental note to ask Waverly to keep it on for later.

Nicole grabbed a menu and scanned her eyes over it. She squinted when she noticed the addition of sweet and sour soup with a dollop of peanut butter. With a light chuckle, she shook her head. “Waverly,” She whispered to herself in amusement, figuring the brunette must have convinced her aunt to put her favorite food on the menu…despite how gross it sounded.

“Hey Nikki!” Sam greeted as she slid into the stool beside Nicole and slung an arm around the redhead.

“You’re never going to stop calling me that, are you…”

“Probably not.”

Nicole rolled her eyes and bit back her smile. As much as she truly didn’t like the nickname, she did enjoy their occasional banter over it.

“So, you on a lunch break?” Sam snatched the menu out of Nicole’s hands and began to look over it.

Nicole furrowed her brow. She suddenly realized that she had no recollection of how she got there, or what she was even doing before. She figured it had just been a long day, so she shrugged it off. “Yeah, I must be.”

“Cool. Me too.”

“Um, lunch break from what?” Nicole snorted. “Bartender dude?” She wiggled her eyebrows suggestively.

Sam looked at her in confusion. “No, a lunch break from work, duh. And who’s bartender dude?”

“You know, the bartender from the other night. The one that you slept with? I don’t know his name…”

Sam’s eyes widened as she placed the menu down on the laminated counter. “What are you talking about? I would never sleep with another man! I only have eyes for Danny!”

Nicole could tell that her friend was getting really defensive, which only confused her even more. “Are you having second thoughts?”

“Second thoughts about what?”

“About your separation with Danny?”

Sam slowly shook her head as she looked at Nicole in confusion. “Nicole, I have no idea what you’re talking about, but Danny and I are happily married. I’ve never once thought about leaving him.”

Nicole looked around for a moment in thought. “He was the one who left you though. You know, because you don’t want to have kids and he does? Is none of this ringing a bell?” She waved her hand around.

The brunette aggressively jumped off of her stool and scowled at Nicole. “I don’t know what’s been going on with you lately, but I’d appreciate it if you stayed out of my marriage.” She stomped towards the door, leaving Nicole sitting there, looking stunned.

“Sam, wait!” She paused for a moment in thought as some words from earlier finally hit her. “And since when do you work around here?” She shouted, but Sam was already gone.

“Figure out what you want yet?”

Nicole turned back around to see Waverly looking at her impatiently. “Did you hear all that?”

“Um, hear what?” Waverly quirked an eyebrow as she ran her hand through her hair.

A quick sparkle from Waverly’s hand as it brushed through her hair caught Nicole’s eye, and the redhead immediately noticed a ring. But not just any ring, the ring. The ring she had picked out for Waverly. Her heart began to race. She couldn’t remember proposing to her. And yet, Waverly was wearing the ring. Why was she wearing the ring? And why couldn’t she remember giving it to her? She stared at the piece of jewelry as Waverly brought her hand down to rest on the counter.

“How did you find this?” Nicole asked as she grabbed Waverly’s hand.

The brunette squinted in confusion. “Huh?”

“Hey baby!” A deep voice called out, followed by the approaching sound of bulky footsteps.

Nicole immediately looked up. As soon as she saw who it was, she felt rage fill her entire body. She shot up so quickly that the stool she had been sitting in fell over onto the floor, attracting the attention of everyone in the bar. “What the hell are you doing here!” She fumed, hoping that there was no mistake in the threatening tone of her voice.

Champ drew his eyebrows together. “Uh, just saying hey to my girl? Is that a crime?” He chuckled as he wrapped his arm around Waverly.

Nicole narrowed her eyes at him and reached over the bar to push him away, causing him to stumble back. “Get your fucking hands off of her! You don’t get to touch her ever again!” She attempted to jump over the bar to kick the shit out of him – she didn’t care about her job at this point. She was too furious that he had the audacity to not only come back here, but to put his arm around Waverly like that – but was stopped by a couple of hands on her shoulders pushing her back.

“What the hell is wrong with you?!” Waverly barked.

Nicole looked up, and that’s when she noticed it for the first time. That look that Waverly always had in her eyes whenever she looked at Nicole wasn’t there. She had never not seen that look. Even with that very first time she walked into the coffee shop after moving to Purgatory, it was there. She didn’t know what it was back then, but it was there. Now, there was nothing. Her eyes were just empty.

“Waves?” Nicole asked in a soft voice. Something was different.

Waverly instantly dropped her hands by her side as anger took over her features. “No, you don’t get to call me that anymore. You lost the right to do so when you broke up with me.”

Nicole’s eyes widened. “Broke up?” She asked barely above a whisper, but Waverly had continued speaking.

“I’m with Champ now, and we’re getting married. You moved on, and so did I. I don’t know what you’re trying to do here, but if you think you can just weasel your way back into my life after leaving me like that, then you’re wrong. Now get the hell out of my bar!”

“Uh, babe, I think you mean Curtis’s bar.” Champ stated matter-of-factly.

“Can you just go and clean the bathrooms like I asked please?” Waverly replied, trying not to sound too mean. But the hurt in her voice from previously yelling at Nicole was still present.

“God, it’s so hot when you boss me around like that.” He gave her a quick peck on the cheek before grabbing the mop and bucket, and making his way towards the bathrooms.

Nicole just stood there, trying to wrap her head around everything. First Sam and Danny are still together and are apparently living in Purgatory, Now Waverly is engaged to Champ, and Nicole had broken up with her? Nothing made sense. She didn’t have any memory of any of those things, and yet it felt like maybe she did.

With the look Waverly was giving her, she knew that her best bet was to leave for now and figure it out somewhere else. She grabbed her Stetson from the bar, not once taking her eyes off of the woman she was in love with, before turning around and slowly walking out the door.

When she pushed opened the wide double doors of the saloon, she was oddly led to the front porch of her house. She looked around and saw her squad car in the driveway behind her, but didn’t remember even driving it here. Everything was becoming more confusing by the minute. She shook her head and pushed the front door open. When she walked inside, she froze. She looked around the room at the packed boxes and lack of furniture. It was exactly like she last saw it. When she found…her; in bed, with that guy.

“There you are sweetie! Home from work already?”

Nicole’s keys slipped out of her hand, causing them to make a harsh sound against the wood floor, as her eyes widened. “M—…Marissa?” After all this time, Nicole was staring directly at the one person she never thought she would see again – her ex.

The woman chuckled. “Oh, are we going by first names now? Well, Nicole, dinner is going to be ready in a few minutes. I was going to unpack some boxes while I wait for the casserole to finish cooking in the oven. Want to help me?”

Nicole swallowed thickly. This didn’t make any sense. None of this made sense. She shook her head in confusion before finally asking, “What are you doing here?”

“Uh, I live here, silly,” Marissa chuckled.

“With…with me?” Nicole stuttered.

The woman quirked an eyebrow. “I mean, yeah? You’re my wife now, so of course we live together.” She smiled.

Nicole looked down at her finger and for the first time saw a ring. It was big, and bulky, and not at all the type of ring she liked. She suddenly felt sick to her stomach. This wasn’t right. It couldn’t be. She felt like she was in some alternate reality that she didn’t belong in, and yet somehow, she knew that it was real. This was her life. She didn’t know how she got to this point, but this was her life now.

“Her vitals look very good,” The doctor said with a smile as he wrote something down in Nicole’s chart on his clipboard.

“Good, now wake her up.” Wynonna demanded as she folded her arms across her chest.

“I’m afraid I can’t do that.”

“Well why not? You’re supposed to be a doctor! So be a doctor and wake her up!”

“Wynonna.” A small, hoarse voice said from the chair in the corner behind her.

Wynonna turned around to look at her sister. It was the first thing she’d said since they found out that Nicole came out of surgery in a coma last night. Her face was red and puffy from crying so much. She looked like she wanted to cry, but she didn’t have any tears left. So instead, she just sat there; quiet and broken. After moving to stand beside her little sister, Wynonna reached out and grabbed Waverly’s hand and gave it a light squeeze before looking back at the doctor. She just looked at him, silently begging him to do something to fix this; to fix the love of her sister’s life.

“I wish there was more I could do,” He sighed as he flipped the papers over on his clipboard and held it down by his side. “Her surgery went very well, and there are no signs of any physical issues. Right now, it’s up to her to wake up. I’ll keep you updated if her condition changes.” He gave a small smile of sympathy and a short nod of his head before walking out the of the room.

Wynonna gritted her teeth and she sighed in frustration as she plopped down in the chair beside Waverly. She knew the circumstances and that there was nothing that could be done, but being angry at the doctor made her feel better. She looked at Nicole, just lying there in the same position she had been in for the past twenty-four hours, looking no different. It was as if time for her was frozen while everything else moved around her. Wynonna shook her head and stood up. “I’m going to go to the cafeteria to get something to eat. Wanna come with me?”

Waverly shook her head as she looked down at her lap.

“Well, do you want me to bring you something?”

She shook her head again.

“Okay,” Wynonna replied as she placed her hand on the back of Waverly’s head and gently kissed the top of it before walking out of the room.

As soon as Wynonna was gone, Waverly quickly shut the door and dragged her chair over towards the bed to sit beside Nicole. It was the first time she’d had some privacy with her since everything went down. She knew that she wasn’t the only one who was worried, and she didn’t want to ask anyone to leave because of her own wants; she thought that would be too selfish. So, she patiently waited for her time alone; for this time alone.

As she sat down in the chair, she immediately took Nicole’s hand in her own, intertwining their fingers. Her hand was cold. She hoped that Nicole was warm enough, but was afraid to pull the blanket over her arms in case she got too warm. She brought Nicole’s hand up to her lips and inhaled through her nose, breathing in the natural scent of the redhead, before giving it a long and lingering kiss. A small smile formed across her face at the familiar smell, and almost immediately tears began to form in her eyes. She opened them, releasing the tears and allowing them to fall down her face.

“I hope you’re okay in there,” She whispered with a smile as she placed her free hand on Nicole’s cheek and gently brushed her thumb across it. She pushed some of the red hair out of her face before returning her hand to its previous position on her cheek.

“I know how strong you are, and I know you’d never give up without a fight. The doctors say that everything is okay with you, and that it’s up to you to wake up now.”

She took in a shaky breath and quickly wiped the tears from her cheeks.

“I don’t know how any of this works, but it’s okay if you need a little break. You went through a lot, and they weren’t sure if you were even going to make it to the hospital. But you did. And they said they lost you for a bit during the surgery, but you came back. So I know you’ve been fighting a lot.” Her voice became shakier as the tears fell harder.

She closed her eyes and tried to steady her breathing before opening them back up to continue.

“But I need you to wake up. It doesn’t have to be now, but eventually. I need you to come back to me, because I can’t do this without you. I don’t know how anymore. So please. If you can hear me baby, come back to me.”

“You called me?” Nicole said as she entered the sheriff’s office.

“Huh?” Dolls looked up from his papers in confusion.

“Didn’t you just say to come back to you or something?”

He quirked an eyebrow. “Uh, no?”

“Huh.” Nicole scrunched her face before shaking her head. “Sorry, it’s been a weird few days. Sometimes I wonder if I’m going crazy.”

“You’re not going crazy. You’ve just been through a lot lately. With the funeral and then having to plan a wedding…it’s a lot for one person to take on in such a short amount of time.”

Nicole nodded. “Yeah, maybe you’re right.”

“Here, sit down,” He smiled, and watched as Nicole plopped into the chair before rubbing her eyes with the palms of her hands. “How are you doing with it?”

“With being married, or with watching the man who was like a father to me get shot in the stomach in the bar owned by my ex-girlfriend’s uncle?”

Dolls dropped his smile and looked down at his desk with sad eyes, and Nicole sighed.

“I’m sorry, I don’t know why I said that.”

“It’s okay, I get it.” He nodded down towards his desk before looking back up at her. “When I heard the news, I didn’t believe it. I can’t imagine actually watching it all go down; having that memory replaying in my head.”

Nicole shrugged. “It’s a part of the job.”

“Watching your boss die in front of you is not part of the job. Or at least, you don’t think it is until it happens.” He shook his head as he pursed his lips. “Sometimes I don’t even feel like I belong here. Sitting in his chair, working at his desk…it feels wrong. Anytime someone calls me sheriff, I look around for him first, and then realize that they’re talking to me.”

Nicole reached out and took his hand. The feeling of a hand in hers felt familiar, but she couldn’t place it. She shrugged it off and looked up at him. “You do deserve it. You earned this job fair and square. I know you’re still trying to get over shooting that kid—”

“What? What kid?” He asked curiously.

“Huh?” Nicole replied in confusion as she pulled her hand away, but it somehow still felt like it was there; like her hand wasn’t empty.

“You said I shot a kid?”

“I did?”

“Yeah, just now.” His face quickly changed from confusion to concern. “Are you sure you’re alright?”

Nicole sat back in the chair and shook her head. “I guess I’m just stressed.”

“Speaking of, how’s married life?” He smirked as he picked up a paper ball from his desk and began tossing it back and forth between his hands.

“It’s okay I guess. I just never thought that Marissa and I would get back together after she cheated on me with that guy.”

He froze. “Whoa, wait a minute. Marissa slept with a dude?!”

“Yeah. I came home one day and caught her in bed with him.”

“Wait, I’m confused. Didn’t you two just move in together last week? Was this recently?”

Nicole looked over in thought. She couldn’t exactly remember when it happened. “It must have been recently, but it feels like it was so long ago.”

“You sure this wasn’t a dream?”

“I don’t know. Maybe? I’ve been getting these weird thoughts lately and I have no idea where they’re coming from.”

“You might want to get that looked at,” Dolls said in a serious tone of voice.

“You know how much I hate doctors,” She rolled her eyes.

“I know, but this could be serious. You have to see a doctor. Go to the hospital and they can help you. You have to go because they’re waiting for you. You have to come back.”

Nicole shook her head. “Come back where?”

“What do you mean?”

“You just said I have to come back. Come back where?”

“I said that?” He continued to toss the ball back and forth between his hands.

“I think so? Didn’t you?”

“I don’t remember,” He shrugged.

“Oh.” Nicole blinked a few times as she rubbed her eyes with her hands some more. “What were we talking about again?”

“I don’t remember,” He shook his head.

Nicole sighed as she slowly stood up from the chair, careful not to hurt her stomach. “I’m going to get back to work.”

“Okay.” He said shortly as he continued to throw the paper ball from one hand to the other in perfect rhythm.

Nicole groaned and snatched it out of his hand. “And would you stop with the paper balls already! It pisses me off when you and Lonnie mess around with those things.” She threw it in the recycling container.

“Who’s Lonnie?”

She shook her head and sighed. “I don’t even know anymore.”

As soon as she stepped out of Dolls’s office, she looked around the bar. Everyone was silent. She locked eyes with Waverly, who was standing beside Wynonna. She felt an initial feeling of fear, but she didn’t know why. She shook it off and walked over towards the younger Earp before sliding into the stool as the chatter of the customers progressively filled her ears.

“Know what you want yet?” Waverly asked in a tone that sounded like she was slightly annoyed.

“Can I get an Americano with a little bit of half and half steamed in, and a dash of cinnamon?” Nicole asked as she gave her most charming smile.

Waverly shook her head and bit back her smile. When Waverly handed the to-go cup over, Nicole reached out and grabbed it, brushing her fingers against the brunette’s. The electricity that surged through her entire body was enough to light up an entire city. Before she could even say anything, Waverly pulled her hand away, and Nicole frowned. She was about to say something, when the words on the cup caught her eye.

“Why does the cup say ‘The Grind’ on it?” She asked curiously.

“I don’t know,” Waverly said dryly with a shrug. “Is there anything else I can get you, officer?” She asked with a raised eyebrow as she folded her arms across her chest.

Nicole sighed. “Can we talk?”

“Here?”

“I was thinking more like somewhere private.”

“Nobody’s here.” Waverly replied as she waved her hand around.

Nicole looked around the bar and saw that it was completely empty. There wasn’t a single other person in the room. She turned back to look at Waverly. “You’re right. Here is fine.”

“So what do you want to talk about?” She leaned over the bar so that her face was about a foot away from Nicole’s.

Nicole sighed as she looked at Waverly’s ring. She reached out and took the brunette’s hand as she ran the pad of her thumb over the diamond. “Do you want to get married?”

Waverly stood up from her previous position and frowned. “I don’t know how to answer that.”

“Why are you engaged to him and not to me?”

“Because, you broke up with me.” She pulled her hand out of Nicole’s and began to wipe down the bar with a rag.

“I didn’t mean to.”

Waverly shook her head and chuckled. “Yeah, right. You didn’t mean to leave me. Sure.”

Nicole furrowed her brow. “What do you mean leave you?”

She threw the rag down on top of the bar and sighed as she ran her hands through her hair in frustration. “You left me, Nicole. We were happy, and then suddenly you were gone. You left me all alone. It’s okay if you needed a little break, you were fighting. But you left me. And you’re still gone.”

Nicole shook her head in confusion. “I’m right here baby. I didn’t go anywhere.”

“You’re here physically, but you’re not here with me. And now I’m with Champ. And you’re with Marissa.”

“I don’t want to be with her, I want to be with you,” Nicole shook her head.

“But you’re not with me. You wanted to get engaged to her, not me.”

“I didn’t know you then!” Nicole shouted.

Waverly shook her head. “What are you talking about?”

Nicole sighed. “I don’t know. I just…look, I know I messed up. But I can fix this.”

Waverly slung the rag over her shoulder and shook her head. “It’s too late. You weren’t here. We could’ve been together if you had been here, but you were late, and now you’re gone.”

“Waves, wait! I’m still here! Don’t leave me! I can’t do this without you!” She watched as Waverly faded away into the darkness of the bar. Suddenly, she felt her heart painfully beating in her chest. She clenched her uniform shirt over her chest and looked down to see blood falling from her stomach and onto the wooden floor in front of her. She cried out as a sudden sharp feeling of pain filled her chest. She fell out of the stool and dropped to the floor, writhing around in agony, calling out Waverly’s name to help her.

“Help! Somebody, help, please!” Waverly shouted as she scanned her eyes around at the machines beeping rapidly. Something was wrong, but Nicole wasn’t moving. She looked exactly the same as she had been, and yet according to the monitors, something was really wrong.

“Code blue!” One of the doctor’s shouted as he ran into the room, followed by a couple of other doctors and some nurses. “Ma’am, I’m going to need you to step back,” He said as he urged Waverly out of the room, but she pushed him back.

“I’m not leaving her! I promised I wouldn’t leave her!”

“Ma’am, please. Let us do our jobs. We’ll keep you posted, but right now you have to go so we can help Nicole.”

“No!” She pushed around him as hard as she could and ran over towards Nicole. She grabbed her hand and shook it in an attempt to wake her up. “Baby, it’s me. Please wake up. I know you’re in there, you just need to wake up!” Tears were streaming down her face as she tried so hard to wake up the redhead, but it was no use.

“Someone get her out of here!” A female doctor beside her yelled.

“I’m on it,” The previous doctor grabbed her again and took her out of the room and led her towards the waiting area.

Waverly immediately plopped down into the chair and began to sob as Wynonna rushed down the hallway towards her sister with two coffees in her hand. “What happened?!” She demanded as she sat down beside her sister, setting the cups on the floor by her feet.

“I’m sorry, but we’re doing everything we can. I promise we’ll update you as soon as we have any news. But for now, it’s best if you both wait here.” The doctor gestured in their direction as he swiftly turned around and headed back towards the room Nicole was in.

“Hey, hey. What’s going on? What happened?” Wynonna cooed as she raked her fingers through Waverly’s hair.

“She…I was just sitting next to her. I was just talking to her, and she looked like she was about to wake up maybe. But then she…” Waverly dropped her face in her hands as the sobs took over once again.

Wynonna immediately wrapped her arms around Waverly and rocked her back in forth as she continued to run her hands through her light, brown waves.

“It’s been three days. Why is this happening now?” Waverly managed to ask.

“I don’t know baby girl. I don’t know,” Wynonna replied softly as she stared down the hall at the door of the room, watching the shadows of everyone through the blinds over the window. Suddenly, she knew exactly what was happening. She swallowed thickly as she watched the shadows of all of the doctors raising their hands in the air.

“Clear!”

Nicole looked around at the beautiful flowers surrounding her. She inhaled through her nose and smiled at the sweet, familiar smell of lavender. She looked ahead at the unmoving water of the lake in front of them. There were no clouds in the sky, but it wasn’t hot. In fact, it was a comfortable temperature. Everything was perfect.

“Why are you here?” A man with salt and pepper hair asked. He picked up a rock and skipped it across the lake.

Nicole shook her head as she watched the rock hit the water three times before disappearing underneath the surface. “I don’t know,” She shrugged. She sat on the grass beside him with her knees bent in front of her and her forearms resting on top. “It’s nice here.”

The man looked over at her. “You don’t belong here, you know.”

She shrugged. “Maybe I do.”

“Why do you say that?”

“Because, I was careless. And reckless. I wasn’t thinking and I just reacted.”

“To what?” He skipped another rock, which bounced three times again before sinking.

Nicole shook her head. “I don’t remember. But I know it’s true. I messed up, and now Waverly thinks I left her.”

He held his hand up to throw another rock, but paused with his hand in the air for a moment before resting it back down on his knee. “Did you leave her?”

“Not on purpose. But now I can’t find her, and I’m just so lost. But I found this place and…I like it here. It’s nice; peaceful.” She ran her hands along the soft green grass beside her.

He inhaled through his nose and nodded as he fidgeted with the rock. “Do you love her?”

Without hesitation, Nicole turned to look him dead in the eyes and replied, “More than anyone.”

He nodded as a small smile grew. “Ever since she was a little girl, all I wanted was for her to be happy. That’s all Gus and I ever wanted for her. You see, she was special. She wasn’t like Willa or Wynonna. Something about her was just…so bright. I loved Willa, and I loved Wynonna, but Waverly and I just had this special bond. And I just wanted to protect her from everything. I wanted her to live a happy life with someone who really loves her and cares about her.” He looked over at Nicole. “And it’s pretty clear that you’re the one for the job. So, you can’t stay here.”

Nicole sighed as she shook her head, when she felt a rock being put in her hand. She looked down at it with a furrowed brow before looking up at him.

“Try it.” He gave a quick nod before skipping his own rock – three skips – and then looking expectantly at her.

She studied the rock curiously for a moment before throwing it as hard as she could. It bounced three times…then four, then five, then six, and so many more until it continued to skip out of sight. She watched in confusion as she shook her head. “I don’t understand.”

He chuckled with a smile and nodded. With his hand on top of hers, he leaned over and said, “You don’t belong here.” He punctuated his words with a wink before pushing himself up off the ground and reaching his hand down for her to take. “Come on. I’ll take you to her.”

Nicole looked at his hand for a moment in hesitation, before slowly taking it. As soon as their hands touched, Nicole looked around and saw white walls with baby blue trim. There were no other people around, only empty chairs. She realized where she was – the hospital waiting room – and sighed before folding her arms over her chest and sliding down in her seat until the back of her head was comfortably resting on the back of her chair. She closed her eyes and began to drift off, but just before she could fall asleep she felt a hand on her shoulder. She quickly opened her eyes and saw a doctor standing in front of her. She didn’t recognize his face, only his voice. She didn’t know where she recognized it from, but she knew she had heard it before.

“They’re ready for you,” The doctor said.

Nicole slowly sat up in her chair. “Who’s ready for me?”

He smiled as he began to walk away, urging her to follow with a few waves of his hand.

She pushed herself out of her chair, groaning at the pain in her stomach as she did so, before rushing over to catch up with him. When he opened the double doors, all she could see was a bright white light. She covered her arm over her face and squinted as she proceeded through the doors, and into the unknown.

Waverly sat by Nicole’s bed with her arm resting on the mattress beside Nicole, and her cheek resting on her arm as she traced hearts on the top of Nicole’s hand. It had been nearly a week since the shooting, and she had spent every single day by Nicole’s side, despite everyone telling her she needed a break. They were adamant, but she was stubborn, and she always won that argument. And even though with every passing day the chances of Nicole waking up were getting smaller and smaller, she never once gave up hope.

She sighed as she looked up at Nicole’s face, and instantly noticed the redhead’s eyelids slightly moving. She quickly jumped out of her chair and hovered over Nicole’s face as she held her cheeks in her hands. “Nicole? Baby, can you hear me?” She asked rapidly.

The redhead’s eyes slowly fluttered open, and Waverly gasped. “Wynonna! She’s waking up!” She yelled, hoping that she was loud enough for her sister to hear from the waiting area. There was no way she was leaving Nicole’s side, not even to go outside the door to properly call for her sister.

The sound of leather boots swiftly hitting the floor grew louder until Wynonna was in the room. Waverly instantly turned around and smiled, tears of joy rolling down her already tear-stained cheeks from crying so much over the past few days. “Her eyes are opening. She’s finally waking up. I told you she would.”

“I’ll get the doctor,” Wynonna said firmly before running out the door. It was only a matter of seconds before she appeared with the doctor by her side, hurrying to check on his patient.

“Nicole, can you hear me?” The doctor said.

Nicole recognized the voice. It was the voice of the doctor that took her from the waiting room. The sound of a groggy voice came from the redhead’s mouth as her eyelids opened halfway and closed a few times, trying to make everything less blurry and more clear. She looked over at Waverly and struggled to lift her hand, and desperately trying to latch onto any part of the brunette that she could reach.

Waverly grabbed Nicole’s shaky hand and held it tight as she raked the fingers of her free hand through fiery locks. “I’m here baby. You’re okay. I’m here.” She smiled, trying to reassure her girlfriend.

“C-curtis” Nicole rasped.

Waverly scrunched her eyebrows in confusion and slowly shook her head. “Curtis? Uncle Curtis?”

Nicole slowly nodded a couple of times as she made small incoherent sounds.

“What about him? I don’t understand.” Waverly shook her head, wanting all the answers, but trying to convince herself that she wasn’t going to be able to get them anytime soon, judging by the state of her girlfriend.

“She may be a little disoriented,” The doctor explained as he shined a light in each of Nicole’s eyes before putting the small flashlight back in his coat pocket. “Her responses seem to be fine. But she’s very weak right now. It may take her some time to be able to really speak, or to fully get her memories back.”

“Her memories?” Waverly questioned. “You mean, she might not remember anything? Or…us?” She squeezed Nicole’s hand tighter, and the redhead tried to squeeze back, but she was too weak.

Nicole laid there, helplessly. She had so much she wanted to say. She wanted to tell Waverly that she remembered everything. That she remembered who she was and where she was, and what happened at Shorty’s – however long ago that was. It felt like it happened last night, but the lack of strength in her body was telling her that it may have been longer. But most importantly, she wanted to tell her that she was sorry for being late, and for handling the situation poorly. She shouldn’t have drawn her gun like that on a kid who was obviously scared. She wished she had done everything differently. She wanted to say all of that, but she couldn’t. She knew that she only had enough strength to get a few words out; and she wanted them to be the right words. The words that she had been wanting to say for so long, but was just waiting for the right time. She wasn’t sure if this was the right time or not, but she didn’t care. She had to say them. She squeezed Waverly’s hand as hard as she could and groaned to get the brunette’s attention.

Waverly looked down at Nicole’s hand in her own when she felt the slight pressure, then she looked up at Nicole, who was looking at her like she was trying to tell her something.

“What is it baby?” Waverly leaned down and gently rested her hand on top of Nicole’s before placing a small kiss on her forehead. “I’m here, tell me.”

Nicole swallowed, wincing at how dry her throat was before taking in a couple of deep breaths. She wanted this to come out right. She didn’t want to have to repeat her words, so she prepared herself to physically speak. As she looked into Waverly’s eyes, she saw it – that look. Her eyes weren’t empty like before, but rather full of love and desire, and it gave Nicole the strength to say what she needed to say. With her eyes locked onto Waverly’s, and their fingers intertwined, she opened her mouth and in a hoarse voice asked…

“Will you marry me?”