I'm Not Her - A Familiar Feeling (8.)

"It was just a dream," she admonished herself silently over and over again, hoping he would believe it, and perhaps he would have believed it most fiercely if his voice hadn't come from the other room.

"I'll stay here with her, but please go home and sleep! You need to regain your strength for the next few days," he was probably just saying to Melissa, which was confirmed a moment later.

"You're right." There was a creak of a chair. "But let me know if anything happens."
That strange feeling came over Anna again when she heard Melissa's tired voice. Damn, instead of me taking care of her, she has to take care of me! Oh, no! With a jerk, she put her hand down, revealing herself in the same motion.

Strange, I don't even realize I'm huddled in a white blanket, she thought as she pulled herself up to a sitting position.

Ouch! She gasped and was already reaching for the back of her neck. Oh great, the leg is... wait! Anna made a movement with her feet. Oof! She let out a quiet sigh of almost relief when she found that her leg was relatively fine and the pain was between a two and a three, which Anna considered normal.

"I'll be going then. Call me if you need anything. Oh, and make sure she switches!"

"No, no wait!" She yelled out, almost shrieking at herself while she began frantically looking around for her cane. "Damn, who gave it to me so far away?" she cursed as she spotted the thing leaning against the wall on the other side of the room. Oh great, she hissed. It must have been Michael because Mel knew I had to keep the cane close at hand.

Anna rubbed her totally stiff neck while she heard the two in the shop say goodbye with words that left no doubt that they were indeed a couple.

Anna squeezed her eyes together and put her hand down. She didn't know what to feel at once, sadness or anger. For it was more than clear to her that this was going to end in disaster sooner or later. Where had these two even met? She began to rack her brain, her hands digging into her hair again and her elbows resting on her knees. Her desperate thoughts swirled over each other. She probably would have sat there for a long time if she hadn't heard the creak of the door and immediately afterwards a deep tone.

"And look who woke up." His voice was laced with gentleness, but also something she'd only experienced once with him. That familiar feeling began to spread through her body at that moment, sending her heart racing and her pulse racing.

Hell, no! She lifted her head and opened her eyes. A loud crunch echoed through the room which was both her bedroom and living room.

"I told Mel it wasn't a good idea to have you lying on those ornamental pillows." A strange gleam appeared in his eyes. "May I?" He added. Before Anna could blink, he was sitting next to her.

"I still have that effect on you. I'm flattered." His lips parted into a soft smile, which didn't help Anna relax one bit.

"And for that, you're still the same cocky guy," she said in a relatively calm voice, or at least she tried to, sitting up a little as his proximity made her quite uncomfortable. She felt like a fly caught in a net.