Chapter 27: Hold Me

            Chance awoke the next morning with a pair of arms wrapped about her waist. She twisted around to find Darren peacefully sleeping beside her, his head resting beside hers on the same pillow. She vividly remembered the night before when he unexpectedly showed up at her doorstep in the pouring rain just to see her. Chance smiled as her hand ran through his still damp hair, her mind continuing to recall the previous night.

            Celia insisted that Darren stay the night since he had nowhere else to go and gave him the room next to Chance’s to sleep in. He must have crept in during the night because she had fallen asleep alone thinking about him. Her eyes stared at his resting face noting how much it had changed. She could see the dark circles beneath his eyes suggesting that he hadn’t had sleep in a long time. His cheeks were puffy red, which meant either that he had a bad dream that night or he might be getting sick.

            Chance used the back of her hand to feel Darren’s forehead. He was a bit warm, but she wouldn’t worry about it until he told her he wasn’t feeling well. Instead, Chance took the rest of the time to watch him sleep and lock in every single one of his features in her mind. She noticed the smile on his soft lips curling around the edges of his mouth, and the sweet scent of his body as she snuggled closer to him. Chance closed her eyes again letting the images burn into her mind. When she opened them, she found Darren staring back at her.

            “Good morning,” she whispered.

            “Hmmm…” Darren moaned.

            “Something wrong?” Chance asked, her voice changing into a more serious tone. He nodded. “Do you feel sick?” Again, he nodded. “Oh, poor Darren,” she replied, kissing his forehead. He held onto her more tightly, not wanting to let go.

            “I’m going to go get Grandma and see what she can do for you,” Chance said as she tried to release herself from Darren’s hold.

            “No, don’t go,” he begged. Darren pushed his face into her chest signaling that he needed her.

            “Okay, I won’t go yet,” she replied, laying back down beside him.

            “Thank you,” he said. Darren looked at her and replied, “You look so different without your long hair.”

            “I know, but you’ll get used to it,” Chance answered. She unconsciously ran her hand through her hair to check and see what was so different about it. She had the time to get used to it after waking from her coma, and wasn’t as strange to her as it had been in the beginning.

            “You’re still beautiful, though,” Darren commented.

            Chance smiled as she softly kissed his deep red lips. It was then that she noticed Darren was burning up. She pulled away suddenly and said, “I’m getting Grandma. Don’t move.”

            As Chance stood up from the bed, she could feel her legs wobble as she tried to reach her crutches, which were propped up against the nightstand beside the bed. She soon wobbled out of the room and into the kitchen where Celia was making breakfast.

            “Grandma, come quick. I think Darren might be catching a cold,” Chance said as she rushed back to Darren’s side. He was still lying on her bed when she came into the room, but his eyes were closed and he was shivering beneath the blanket.

            “Darren, sweetie?” she quietly asked, placing her hand on his shoulder. He coughed, opening his eyes to painfully look at her. Chance felt the life being sucked out of her as she watched him slowly fade away as she had Scott. “No,” she nearly began to cry. “I’ve lost too many people. I’m not losing you.”

            “You’re not losing me,” Darren whispered. “I’m just a little sick, that’s all.”

            “I hope you’re right.” Chance lay back down beside him and rested her head on his hot shoulder. “Just keep talking to me so I know you’re still there. Tell me everything that’s happened these last few weeks that I haven’t been all here.”

            “So many things happened,” he began. “While you were in a coma, I was in hell. I thought I had lost you forever. When Dan found out, he was just as devastated. I had never seen him cry up until the day we were allowed to see you. He was so shaken up that Colby couldn’t even comfort him.”

            “Colby?” Chance interrupted.

            “Oh, I knew I missed something. She came out here for a business trip and happened to bump into Dan at the airport. They came to the hospital, and I ended up forgiving Colby for everything and vice versa. She’s now engaged to a lawyer in Sydney, but we agreed that we would still try and be friends.”

            “Well, that’s great. What else has happened?” she continued to urge him to keep speaking.

            “Well, Dan left to go back to his girlfriend in Australia.”

            “Michelle?”

            “No.”

            “He broke up with Michelle?” Chance was more than surprised to hear that.

            “Yeah, they’ve been broken up since the end of the Affirmation tour. You didn’t know?”

            “Apparently not. Who’s he dating now?”

            “A girl by the name of Alexia Potter, who, if I may correct myself, is now his fiancé.” The hostility in Darren’s voice had risen as he mentioned her name.

            “They’re engaged! Why the hell don’t I ever get to find these things out?” Chance questioned. She hated being the last one to know about important things. “How long were they even going out?”

            “Only two months, and I hate her!” he replied. “She’s evil.”

            “Oh, come on, Darren. You’re being jealous of your best friend because he’s found the love of his life. That’s not fair,” she tried to contradict him.

            “There’s a good reason behind it. She’s a con artist,” Darren explained. “I found out just yesterday after reading a newspaper article about her in one of the local papers out in Sydney. She’s pulled a lot of stuff out in New York City, and she’s doing it to Dan now, but I can’t do anything about it because he’ll think the same thing you thought.”

            Chance stared at him for a while in disbelief. She could see the truth in his eyes as he stared back looking for some kind of agreement. “I want to see this paper,” she said before even thinking about doing anything. Darren stood up, shaky at first, then headed towards his room. He returned with a newspaper in hand. Turning the pages to the correct one, he showed Chance the picture first.

            “Alexia looks exactly like her, but with blond hair,” he said, then pointed to the short list of names mentioned as aliases. “And take a look at that, Alexia Potter.”

            Chance could feel her jaw drop as she stared at the picture and the name. “Oh, no,” she heaved. “We have to tell him somehow. He needs to break off the engagement before anything happens and she takes all his money.”

            “But what are we going to do? He’s going to get pissed at me for telling him, and then he won’t believe me.”

            “Okay, this is what I’m thinking. We scan the article, then you send it to him via email. I’ll give him a call to tell him that I’m doing fine and to check his mail because there’s something important waiting for him. I’ll also make sure to tell him that he needs to be alone when he reads it because the information is top secret and no one else should know about it until the time is right,” Chance thought out loud.

            “Baby, you’re a genius,” Darren complimented as he kissed her cheek.

            “I know,” she replied. “Now sit down and tell me about everything else that’s happened.”

            Darren slipped beneath the covers and wrapped his arms around Chance as he continued with the rest of the story. “Um, where was I? Oh, I remember. I started losing hope that you’d wake up. I led myself into a downward spiral of drinking and depression. That’s when I decided to leave and go back to Australia. I couldn’t stand watching you slowly die in the hospital. I packed up all my things, and before I left, I went to your room to tell you a few things.”

            “I know, I heard you,” Chance quietly whispered.

            “You heard me?” Darren asked in disbelief.

            “Yes, but I only remember one thing that you said,” she replied, taking his hand and brushing his fingertips upon her lips. “I remember you telling me that you loved me.”

            Darren smiled realizing that he had done the right thing by going back to America. In that moment, all the pain and anguish that he had been harboring evaporated, leaving his heart in the mercy of Chance’s hands. He pulled her close, gently holding her in his strong arms, and kissed her with the all the pent up passion he had been waiting to release.

            Chance pressed her body against his, her own desires being explored in her mind. She held onto him for dear life thinking that even if she died the next day, she would die happy. The kiss ended minutes later when Chance realized that her grandmother had walked into the room. She slowly slipped away from Darren, the smile on her face becoming evident.

            Celia stared at the two in anger and disbelief. As she held her hands on her hips, she said, “Well, that was uncalled for.”

            “Grandma! We were just kissing. It’s not like you and grandpa never did it,” Chance retorted as she loosened her grip around Darren.

            “Back in my days, it was considered a sin to kiss before you got married,” Celia responded. “And why is he in your bed? I never slept in the same bed as your grandfather up until we were married.”

            “Oh, Grandma, this is the 21^st century. The times have changed. You don’t have to overreact or worry. We weren’t doing anything wrong. Darren just came in here because he felt sick and wanted my comfort. Besides, we haven’t seen each other in so long, it was kinda nice to wake up beside him this morning,” Chance explained. By now, she was sitting up on the bed, her hand gently resting in Darren’s.

            “You kids and the modern times. Lets just forget this whole thing happened. Now you,” Celia said, pointing to Darren, “what seems to be ailing you?”

            “The usual, soar throat, coughing, sneezing, shivering, fever,” he named off. “Its an open and shut case. I have a cold.”

            “I know that, honey. Here, take two of these and see how you feel later on today. Jack and I are going to town and buying groceries. We’ll be back in a couple of hours. Breakfast is waiting in the kitchen. Be nice, and don’t burn the house down.” Celia threw him a bottle of aspirin and proceeded to leave the room, not catching Chance roll her eyes at her last comment.

            She lay back down beside Darren and said, “Grandparents can be so weird.”

            “I know,” he agreed. “So, is there anything you would like to tell me about?”

            Chance frowned. She wasn’t expecting that part of the conversation to come up just yet.

            “What’s wrong?” Darren asked, noticing her change of mood.

            “I…I…I lost my gift,” Chance whispered, her eyes filling with tears.

            “That’s not possible.” Darren stood up and retrieved the guitar case beside the bed. He handed it to Chance and added, “Try again. You just need to practice.”

            “Darren, that’s not the only gift I lost. I can’t even sing.”

            “Prove it. Sing something to me and I’ll tell you if you’ve lost your gift or not.”

            Chance formulated a few lyrics in her mind and began to sing, “Don't, don't let me be the last to know. Don't hold back, just let it go. I need to hear you say you need me all the way. Oh, if you love me so, don't let me be the last to know.” Her voice sounded as if she had swallowed a frog. The noise that came out of it prompted Darren to jump back and nearly begin to cry. Her angelic vocals were gone.

            Chance could see his horrific reaction and buried her face in her pillow, hot tears running down her cheeks. She hated him for saving her life, but couldn’t tell him. Her thought focused on her voice. Would she ever get it back? The answer in her mind was always no.

            “Oh, Chance. I’m so sorry,” Darren said as he lay down beside her and wrapped his arms around her waist.

            Chance pushed away. “Could you just leave me alone?” she cried, standing up and heading towards the kitchen.

            “Wait!” he called to her, but she kept walking. “Chance! I know a way we can solve this together.”

            Chance stopped short of the stairs and waited for him to say what was on him mind. “I can teach you how to sing again,” Darren added, walking up to her. “And I’m sorry I hurt you with my reaction. I was just stunned, that’s all.”

            “You’d better not do that again,” she pouted.

            “I won’t. I promise.” Darren and Chance walked down to the kitchen together and began to eat their breakfast of poached eggs, bacon, toast, and orange juice. For most of the time they sat in silence, waiting for someone to start a conversation.

            “So?” Darren asked.

            “So,” Chance replied, stuffing a mountain of eggs into her mouth.

            “Did you drink out of this orange juice, or is it still good?” he joked. She laughed knowing what he meant. Darren had caught Chance the last time she did this, but that was so long ago.

            “You don’t have to worry about that. This is my grandparents’ house, so I can’t do the same things here that I could do at home,” she answered.

            “Speaking of home, when are you going back?”

            “I don’t know. Probably sometime soon. My shrink thinks I’m suicidal, but now that you’re back in my life, I don’t I’ll ever want to kill myself again.”

            “That’s good to hear,” Darren said. He placed his fork in the empty dish then proceeded to the sink to wash it. “How about I give you a few voice lessons now that we’re done?” he suggested. Chance nodded and followed him to the living room, where for the rest of the day they spent working on Chance’s ability to hold a note.

~~~~~~~~~~

            Days easily turned into weeks as Chance and Darren worked on improving her singing ability and their relationship. Chance’s voice improved with every lesson Darren gave her. Their relationship also grew as the time they spent together lengthened. Within two months, they moved back to New York to live in the mansion. Chance began to do a few singing sessions at the studio and was able to record some of Darren’s new material. By now, winter had rolled in and thick snow covered the ground. The only thing that hadn’t seemed to come back to Chance was her ability to play guitar. She missed her jam sessions deeply and wished that she had someone there with her to help her learn again. At that moment, one person popped into her mind.

            “I wish Dan was here,” Chance said aloud one day at the studio as she sat on her stool waiting for Darren to join her in the booth.

            “Oh, shit! I nearly forgot about him!” Darren yelled in a panic. He searched his pockets for his cell, but when her found it, it nearly slipped out of his fingers like butter. He tried to grab a hold of it as it jumped around, until Chance finally caught it and dialed Dan’s number, laughing as she waited for him to pick up.

            “Hello?” came a sleepy voice from the other end.

            ‘It must be the middle of the night,” she thought to herself. “Hey,” Chance responded aloud.

            “Who is this?” Dan asked, confused.

            “I’ll give you three guesses,” she replied, making her voice sound as seductive as possible while she walked out of the studio and towards the office. Chance sat down on the leather chair at the desk and turned on the computer. Looking through the purse slung over her shoulder, she found the two-month-old newspaper clipping folded into a neat square in her checkbook, then placed it flat on the bed of the scanner beside the monitor.

            “Alexia?” Dan questioned.

            “No,” Chance answered.

            “Michelle?” he tried again.

            “Uh-uh.”

            “Colby?” Dan used his last guess.

            “Wrong again. I’ll give you one more guess, Danny,” Chance said, knowing that he’d finally recognize her when she called him that.

            “Oh my God,” came his slow reply after a long pause. “Chance,” Dan whispered.

            “Yep,” she replied. By now, the computer was done booting up and Chance had been able to scan in the article to send to him.

            “I thought you were dead!” Dan nearly yelled, his voice sounding more relieved than irritated. “I thought that since Darren didn’t bother returning my messages, he was pissed at everyone over here for sending him to give your eulogy. You have no idea how relieved I am to hear your voice. I missed you so much. Have you heard the good news?”

            “Yeah, you’re getting married. Congrats, Danny,” Chance said as she rolled her eyes at the thought. She was really beginning to hate Alexia for the spell that she put Dan under. “Look, I don’t have much time to talk. I’m sending you a very important email, top secret. Read it right now because I can tell you’re alone. Give me a call when you’re done. I’m at the studio. I’ll talk to you later. Bye!”

            “Bye Chance. It was good to hear from you again,” Dan replied. Chance hung up with a smile and proceeded to turn of the computer before she left the room to go back to Studio C.

            “I talked to Dan,” she said upon entering the room. Chance tossed the phone to Darren and sat back down on her stool in the booth.

            “And?” Darren asked.

            “He’s ecstatic. Oh, and I sent him the article,” Chance replied. She let her head drop as she continued. “Man, he’s gonna be devastated when he reads it. I’m expecting Lara to walk in here within the next few minutes with a message.”

            Seconds after Chance made her last comment, a woman walked into the room holding a cordless phone. “Chance, you’ve got a call,” Lara said, handing the phone to Chance, then walked out.

            “I wasn’t expecting it to be this quick,” Chance whispered to Darren. “Hey Dan,” she spoke into the phone without having to ask who it was.

            “You’re lying! This is a fucking joke!” Dan screamed over the phone, startling her. “Darren put you up to this, didn’t he? I knew he hated Alexia from the moment they met, but I wasn’t expecting him to stoop this low to break up apart and ruin our relationship.”

            “Don’t start dragging Daz into this right now. It’s between you and me. I mean, yeah, Daz found the article in a newspaper, but that’s not the point. We’re both doing this for your own good. We’re not trying to screw up your relationship with Alexia,” Chance explained in almost a yell.

            Darren stared at her wide-eyed. He had never seen her stand up to a challenge before. He gently placed his hand on her shoulder to stop her for dragging this further, but Chance pushed him away as she paced the room and continued.

            “This is not the Alexia I know,” Dan firmly replied.

            “Well, then, who is?” Chance’s ice-cold retort came as a shock to Dan and Darren. Both waited in silence to see if she had anything else to say.

            “Um…” Dan began, still recovering from her question.

            “You don’t know shit about her, do you?” she coolly asked.

            “Don’t go messing with my head!” he tried changing the subject.

            “Admit it, you don’t know anything about her, but she sure as hell knows everything about you, including all the information in your back account and your signature. Now tell me that you are going to confront her about this today after you check your balances and see if you’re missing any money.”

            “God, I hate you,” Dan said. He didn’t want the truth, but knew he should find out if Alexia was truly genuine, or a thief who stole everything, including his heart. “Fine, I’ll do it, but when I find out she’s not this person in the article, you’re going to apologize to both of us.”

            “Fine,” Chance confidently replied, then hung up without saying goodbye. She let the phone slip out of her grasp and fall to the floor as large crystal-like tears escaped her soft brown eyes. Darren wrapped his arms around her and gently rocked her back and forth to comfort her.

            “I can’t believe I just did that,” she cried, her voice becoming muffled as she pressed her face against his chest.