Love Amidst the Shadows

Karen's POV:

Beep.

That was my alarm clock, I hated that clock. Mom tells me I have to drop the habit of depending on an alarm clock if I want to make a good wife. I had decided to take a nap before my night shift at the hospital. It feels like it has just been 5 minutes.

I had a missed call. It was from Jon. Look who finally decided to call me. It was a routine. He called me at this time every week.

Should I for any reason miss this call, it meant waiting till the next week when he would call at his convenience. Never was I called that he picked but he expects me to always answer when he calls. He notices every other thing ranging from work to how he dresses except me.

This is the man I would be spending the rest of my life with when we are tied in holy matrimony 3 weeks from now.

Ours was not the dream marriage or wedding or spending the rest of your life with your dream man or woman. Ours was a match made by our parents. One that would unite both of our families for generations to come.

"Karen, glad you came to take over today," Luke said. Luke was the doctor I was taking over from.

"Off you go. Make sure you go back straight home to your wife," I replied smiling.

I was about to ask him the number of patients when someone bleeding profusely was rushed in.

A bad day of shift tonight. Not midnight yet and I already lost two patients. Terrible beginning to the shift. I hope this was for good.

Since everywhere seemed quite calm now, I decided to use the opportunity to go eat something. I was rushing to get here on time because I had not eaten at home. I had my mom package it for me.

Humming to Lana Del Rey's Young and Beautiful, I could not help but notice the subtle tone she used in singing the part that said,

"Dear Lord, when I get to Heaven

Please let me bring my man

When he comes, tell me that you'll let him in

Father, tell me if you can

All that grace, all that body

All that face makes me wanna party

He's my sun, he makes me shine like diamonds"

Times without number, I went back again to hear just that part. How she begged to let her man be with her.

Why was I any different? I was a woman too, one with fantasies, one with desires, and one with an emptiness waiting to be filled. Perhaps, not all of us were meant to experience this type of love, I concluded sighing.

I made my way to the elevator to go down to my car. If only I had taken my mom's advice to not always rush. I would not have left the food in the car. Now, I had to go all the way down to get it.

"Wait!" Nurse Meghan shouted running towards the elevator. I wondered what was so important. I just hope it was not another patient.

"You left your phone and your fiancé would not stop calling. He makes me so jealous. I wish I had someone to do it to me like that." She was smiling way too much.

Like she knew more. If only she knew how boring some of it was. She would not dream of it or want what I have with Jon.

"Thank you," I whispered to her, waving her off before dialing Jon's number. Something had happened.

"Hello Jon. I'm surprised you're calling this evening and today,” I started.

"I called you earlier. Why did you not return the call? I have been calling for the past five minutes as well. Where are you?" He asks.

"You never pick up my calls. So I did not bother to call back. If I remember very well, when we spoke last week, I told you this week was going to be a night shift for me."

"You did?" He asks again. It was clear that he had forgotten.

"Looks like you forgot, again."

"Anyway, that's not important right now. The reason I called..."

"My work is not important? How could you say that?" I fired.

"You are misinterpreting me," He says.

"Exactly how am I misinterpreting you? Tell me, Jon. Help me interpret your words well.”

"Can we not do this now?"

"Okay. Fine. When can we do this?"

"Any day but today."

"It's the same every time. You say 'any day but today’ and we never talk about it."

"Go on. Tell me why you called," I said when he went silent.

"The disrespect!" I shouted rather too loud to myself. Thank goodness I was still in the elevator. He hung up. Jon hung up on me because I brought up matters he did not consider "important".

Pacing up and down the car park, I thought about what to do about Jon. It was not just the fact that I did not love him. It was how he treated me. Like I was absent. Like I was nothing. Like I was not there. I wish I could just call the whole thing off. Go to some new country where no one knows my name or face, and start my whole life afresh. A new face, name, and environment were all I needed.

"Are you alright?" Someone had asked to bring me back to the present. He must have noticed how lost I was in the garage. I could see the concern on his face. What if he thought I was into auto theft?

"Yes, thank you. My car's right over there," I said, showing him my keys and going towards my car. I had almost forgotten where I had parked it.

With my head on the headrest, I took a deep breath. No need to bother me about Jon. He would come around. I mean, he was marrying me anyway.

Something in the rearview mirror caught my attention, more like a shadow. I imagined I was seeing things until I heard gasps. It seemed there was someone in my car and whoever it was was struggling to breathe.

I could feel my heart rate increase as I thought about which was the better option; to turn and see who it was, to scream, to run out of the car, or to help this person.

Something was pointed to the back of my head. I could tell it was metal and I knew better than to try anything stupid.

"Drive!" was all the stranger had said coldly. From his thick accent, I could tell he was Italian.