The Accidental Wife (Emily and Julian)

I'm in so much pain. I feel like I have been hit by a truck. With all the strength I have in me, I open my eyes but instantly close them due to the blinding lights. Where am I? We don't have such strong white lights like these in our bedroom. I try to move my neck, but it seems like something is hindering my movement. I bring my aching hand to my neck, trying to figure out what's wrong. My hand touches a hard plastic thing, causing me to frown. Is it a neck brace? Why the hell am I wearing

it?

I try to open my eyes again, but this time, I do it slowly, not wanting to be blinded again. I can hear the beeping of a strange machine that I'm certain we don't have at home. I look around me after my eyes get adjusted to the bright lights and my frown deepens. Surely, this is not our bedroom. Our bedroom isn't this white. It's a mixture of beige, gold and pastel green. It's green to me, but Rosie told me that it's called pastel green.

Rosie.

Where is she?

"Welcome back, champ. How are you feeling?" I look at the man who is talking to me. He must be a doctor, because it's clear that I'm in a hospital.

"Like a train has run over my body," I rasp, looking at him. I want to know what happened to me. "What happened? Was I in an accident?"

"No, you got injured during one of your games," he tells me, and instantly, memories of the charity game flood my mind. The game was going at a normal pace, but then something happened between the two teams during half-time which made the game more aggressive. What happened that made the game that aggressive? Oh, I remember. Zack, our teammate, is dating the ex of a player from the other team and that player made a bad comment. They almost had a fight on our way to the locker rooms, but the captain of our team had to hold Zack back since we didn't want to start a fight at a charity game.

"Can I please see him? I swear I'm not going to exhaust him." I hear my wife's voice. I try to find where she is and due to my

position on the bed. I manage to catch of glimpse of her through the half-open door and the moment her eyes meet mine she lets out a small smile.

"Can you please let my wife in?" I ask the doctor as he checks my pulse.

"Sure." He nods at the nurse, giving her the green light to let Rosie in.

My wife walks inside, and I can tell that she has been crying.

"Hey, cupcake," I mumble, looking at her and reaching for her hand.

"Hi," she whispers, taking my hand in hers. One of my fingers refuses to bend and I don't understand why./

"What's the last thing you remember?" the doctor wonders, looking at me.

"We had a charity game, and I had the ball with me. I was close to scoring a touchdown, but all I know is that I never made it. One moment I was running, the second everything went black. I take a deep breath and ask the question I'm afraid to know its answer. "Are my injuries bad?"

I want to ask if I will ever be able to play football again or not, but it's so hard to form the words for such a heavy question. There's still so much I want to achieve, and I cannot imagine not being able to play football again.NôvelDrama.Org holds text © rights.

You had a strong concussion, so we had to keep you asleep for two days to monitor your brain activity. Luckily, nothing is wrong, but you need to be careful, because if you get another concussion, the consequences will be bad." Just a concussion? Well, that's good,

right?

17:1 Tue, Nov 19 R B

"Anything else?" I just need to make sure that my future as an American football player is safe.

"You tore your ACL." I close

my eyes upon hearing the words and I feel Rosie giving my hand a light squeeze.

"You're going to be okay," Her soothing voice penetrates all the dark thoughts in my mind. "You're going to be okay," Her soothing voi

"You're going to have surgery in two weeks, then your recovery journey will start," the doctor fills me in.

"What's the expected time for recovery?" I ask. I know the answer, but part of me hopes for a different answer.

U

"From six to ten months." Am I really going to spend all of this time without playing football? I remember having a sprained ankle once that kept me away from training for a month and during that time, I was close to losing my mind. How am I going to spend ten months without training? "It's okay. We're going to spend that time together. We will make the most out of it," Rosie tries to make me feel better. I know this isn't going to happen.

"You have your job, Rosie. You're not going to spend all of your time with me," I quietly say.

I have never stayed away from a football field all of that time. How am I going to survive? How am I supposed to spend all this time? Should I play video games all the time? Am I going to watch every single movie on every platform? "When can we go home?" Rosie asks the doctor, not letting go of my hand.

"We're going to keep him here for two more days to make sure that he's okay, then he's free to go home," the doctor says. The moment he leaves, my wife looks at me for a second before bending down and placing a kiss on my forehead. "I'm so glad you're okay. I was hysterical when I saw those players landing on top of you," she tells me.

"I'm far from okay, Rosie," I'mutter, looking away from her. I'm not used to her seeing me this vulnerable. She has always seen the strong version of me who is ready to protect her against everything in the world. Right now, I'm just a useless man who won't be able to walk without limping for the foreseeable future.

"I know how hard it must be for you, but I want you to know that none of us cares if you never step onto a field again. We're all glad that you're okay. You are our priority, not you as a football player," Rosie says, keeping her eyes on me.

"I care, Rosie!" I snap, causing my poor wife to flinch. "I'm sorry I sigh, putting the hand she's not holding over my eyes. don't know what I am without football, Rosie. It's my whole life. I don't think I can ever do anything in my life except for being a footballer."

friend and you can "You're a great person without football, Silas. You're a loving husband and an amazing son. You're a great frie do a lot of things in your life." Again, she tries to make me feel better. I really appreciate her attempts, but all that she's saying isn't helping at all.

think you can leave me alone for a little while?" I know my wife well and I understand that she is hurt by my "Rosie, do you sudden request, but right now, I can't make her feel better, because I need somebody to help me make me feel better

"Okay. I'm going to inform our families and friends that you're awake." She lets go of my hand and offers me a small smile before walking out of the room, leaving me to my own devices and horrible thoughts.