MAXIMILLIAN

I sit in a chair and look at the hospital bed on which lies one of the bravest and strongest women I know, and I know quite a few of them. The great Dr. Nicole Bennett is now just a little scared of her little girl who might be lost in her worst nightmares. Her body now seemed so small and unprotected to me, and only that face so pale and sad. Still beautiful, regular facial features, neither too mild nor too strict without a shred of makeup. This way while I was looking at her I would never have given her thirty years, because she looked at least five years younger.

It hurt me that she had to survive all this today, and it hurt me that there was nothing I could do to protect her. And I was there next to her, helpless and angry at myself and the whole world.

Watching her today, I remembered everything I had learned about her past. When I first met her, I couldn’t resist the force with which she attracted me and tied me to myself, so I decided to check her out. I was interested in who that girl was and found out through my detective without much trouble. In less than 24 hours, I had her entire biography in my hands, from birth to the present day.

Reading her life, I realized what it was like to become and what kind of pain and suffering was behind that cold face.

I admired fifteen-year-old Nicole almost as much as I admired the girl lying in front of me. An exemplary student from the beginning to the end of school. A very polite and cheerful girl until the death of her parents.

I also watched a copy of a police report on that fateful night when she and Stephanie lost their parents. Today Nicole survived it all again. I knew that the second I looked her in the eye. I knew very well the fear in people's eyes when I saw it. In her eyes today, I saw something much bigger and scarier than just fear. I saw all the pain she was feeling and would give anything I could to at least take some of that pain on myself. If I could, maybe she wouldn't be lying so unconscious in front of me now.

In the report from the scene of the accident, only Nicole was conscious after the car crash. Her physical injuries were small, almost insignificant, but the psychological traumas that followed as a result of everything she saw and felt that day were immeasurable. Nicole never sought psychological help and refused to talk to psychologists. With everyone except one psychiatrist, who didn't have much to say about that conversation with her, she probably had, but she kept quiet about it. I tried to find that woman, but she lost the battle against breast cancer a couple of years ago and died. No one but Nicole and that woman could tell me what condition she was in after the accident.

But there was no need for anyone to say anything, it was all seen in her actions further. Her fighting spirit for Stephanie was something that is not seen every day. She refused the custody of as many as five families who wanted to adopt them, and with the help of her old grandmother, she took care of herself and little Stephanie. Throughout high school, Nicole worked non-stop, even several different jobs during the holidays. After that, she and Stephanie move to another city because of Nicole's college, and Stephanie also enrolls in high school there.

Nicole didn't live in a dormitory like all other students but in a smaller apartment with her sister. By then their grandmother already died so they are left alone, but that does not change their situation. Nicole continues to work for a few years with stronger and stronger intensity. They live a calm and peaceful life, and I see it very successful considering what these young girls without parents are today.

What is still very interesting about Nicole is the fact that nothing is known about her love life. I have a list of all the places she has worked, for how long and for what money, and the list is quite long. Every part of her life, all the grades and absolutely everything about her, but not a single piece of information about her sympathies or loves. Not even a single name, except William Limberg who just appeared out of nowhere determined to screw up my life.

I walk over to the bed and stroke her long brown hair.

She will wake up! She has been unconscious for hours, and doctors say she suffered something resembling a nervous breakdown or coma. But that with proper care she will be fine.

As much as I was glad that she would finally wake up and that I would look into those beautiful eyes of hers, I was so scared because when she wakes up I won't have anything to tell her. Nothing is still known about Stephanie and Leo, because they disappeared without a trace, and their mobile phones were turned off.

I watched her as she opened her eyes and enjoyed the beauty of the scene.

"Max..."

"Are you okay, Nicole? How are you feeling?"

"My head is killing me, but Max what happened? Where are we?"

"You're fine, calm down."

She looked around and almost jumped on me from the bed.

"Oh my God!!! Max where's Stephanie? What happened? Tell me?"

"Calm down, the doctors said you shouldn't be upset."

"I don't care about the doctor! MAX WHERE IS MY SISTER?!"

"Calm down, everything's fine." I repeated as I pressed the button above her bed, calling the doctors.

"Car! I saw a burned sports car!"

"I know, I checked. Don't worry it's not theirs."

"How do you know the car if it is almost completely destroyed?"

"Nicole, I know a lot about cars, and I've checked with experts. The car is sporty, but the Porsche is also yellow. So one hundred percent it's not their car."

"Then where are the two of them?"

"I don't know, but don't worry. We'll find out soon enough."

"Are you sure?"

"I am."

"Aren't you lying?" She asked in a low voice, tears still streaming down her face.

God, she looked so perfect that I would now prefer to pull her into my arms and never let go again. Until the end of life…

"I'm not lying, I promise they'll be fine."

I was about to approach her and hug her tightly to show her that I was there with her, but just then her handsome doctor appeared at the door.

"Nicole..." He called, and who else but Dr. William Limberg.

"Will!"

Nicole jumped off the bed and threw herself into his arms, and he was ready to welcome her, holding her in the air, raised from the ground and back on the bed. In all this, he did not move her away from him for a second, and she did not show a desire to do so.

They were saying something, and I was not able to hear what, because all my attention was occupied by his hands on Nicole. He touched without pardon, paying no attention to me or the group of nurses who were jealously watching Nicole.

He wiped away her tears, kissed her forehead, smelled her hair with his hands greedily passing over her body.

Shoulder, arm, leg, back, knee, head…

Is there an end?! So what kind of way is that, what kind of friend is that?!

Darkness fell on my eyes from that scene, so I went out in front, closing the door of the room. I tried to stay calm and resist the urge to pull the snout of that womanizer.

But my attention was drawn to the possibility of murdering Stephanie and Leo, who were making their way through the crowd in the hallway.

"Well, are you two crazy ?!" I yelled the second I saw them.

"Max, is everything okay?"

"No! NOTHING FUCKING IS OK. Where have you been?!"

"We..." Leo tried to find an excuse as Stephanie just stood quietly behind him, looking at the floor accordingly.

"Okay, I'll deal with you later, but where were you, young lady?! You don't care that your sister had a nervous breakdown because of you?"

"Nicole, is she okay?"

"It's not good, Stephanie, that girl died of worrying about you, and you didn't even bother to answer the phone."

"I..." A tear came out of her eye, but I didn't care. If she was my sister, I would now slap her on the face and she would remember it for life, but it doesn't matter, all that will be paid for by the jerk from her boyfriend who caused all this confusion.

"Get inside and you better have some really good explanation for all this!"

We entered the room, where Nicole was still in the arms of her “best friend”. That man that took her eyes off me, what a friend…

"Stephanie!!" Nicole separated from William and ran to her.

"Sister, are you okay? What happened to you? Are you hurt? I died of worry! Let me see, are you okay? Stephanie! Oh God you're fine... Thank God..."

We all stood spotted and watched as that mountain of women broke before our eyes.

Her face was red, tears streaming down her cheeks, and her hands were trembling. For a moment she hugged Stephanie, for a moment she moved away from her, examining her body from head to toe to make sure she wasn't hurt. So she would pull her tightly into her arms again, repeating the same thing.

She asked her a thousand questions, so many that Stephanie could not answer all of them. She just kept saying, "I'm fine, Nicole, calm down."

Of all of us, Stephanie was most hurt by such a sight of her sister. She stared lost at Nicole as tears streamed down her face. She couldn't believe what she saw like any of us, and she couldn't help it.

When she was convinced that Stephanie was alive and well. Nicole calmed down a bit, so we left them alone to talk.

As soon as we stepped out into the hallway, I grabbed Leo by the bloody neck pulling him against the wall.

"DO YOU NOW SEE WHAT SHIT YOU MADE!?"

"I know I'm sorry, I didn't mean to! I didn't know you'd think something had happened to us. We didn't even know about the accident until we got back..."He justified himself.

"What didn't you know, what do you think?!"

"How could I know that?"

"Why did you turn off the phones, and do you have a grain of consciousness in your head to see what the hell you did to Nicole and Stephanie today?!"

"I just wanted to surprise her ..."

"You could have been killed!! You almost got hit by the truck, later that accident..."

"Come on, we survived it!" He laughed proudly.

I swung my hand to hit him and barely restrained myself from doing so.

"Hit, I know I deserved it."

I’ve never hit him in my life, and he deserved it many times. I folded my arms, leaned against the wall, and then collapsed on the hospital floor.

"Brother, are you okay?"

"Get out of my sight, Leo. I swear to God I'll hurt you."

Ignoring my words, he knelt beside me and put his hand on my shoulder.

"I know it's hard for you to see Nicole in this condition."

"And who brought her to this state?"

"I'll apologize to her as soon as she gets better."

"If Nicole kills you, I'll help her hide your body, just so you know."

"Fair!"

"Where have you been at all? How did you avoid the accident?"

"Fine, we've passed through that road before."

"You couldn't..." For so far... I looked at him, and he frowned. God knows how fast he drove…

"What can I do? You know how I'm behind the wheel."

"Do you know what Nicole is like when she's angry?"

I didn't even say it when Nicole opened the door furious as a lynx. She grabbed Leo by the collar of his jacket and pulled him hard on his feet against the wall. She put scissors under his throat, and Stephanie and I died of fear. But we didn't want to interfere in her work, or hang out with her while she was angry, so we just stood quietly behind her, in support.

"Listen to me, you spoiled rich brat! If something had happened to Stephanie, I would have killed you up with these hands, is that clear to you, you stupid jerk?! Don't you dare to approach my sister ever again..." She pressed the scissors harder on his throat and Leo turned pale with fear.

"Ni...Nicol..."-Leo tried to say something.

"Shut up, when I talk!"

"Was that clear to you?!"

He just nodded his head, and Stephanie and I looked at each other.

"Make him understand what he did, or I will do it..." She turned to me, then turned and left.

“She was joking, wasn’t she?” Leo asked us palely.

When no one answered, he kept asking the same question until I patted him on the shoulder with the words, "You did well, man."

I enjoyed it, and fear in his eyes was his punishment. He was not afraid for himself, not even close to how much he was afraid that he would lose Stephanie because of that mistake. He knew that Nicole was serious and that she was not in the habit of forgiving mistakes.

Stephanie went to the doctor because she was worried about her sister, and I was left alone with Leo again. As I stood with him, he told me how they avoided the truck accident and calmly went to the cottage as planned. Leo bought Stephanie a birthday present and they planned to stay there, but they were worried about us so they came back to see where we stopped. When they reached the scene of the accident, they asked what had happened and the police sent them to the hospital.

They were both without a phone. Stephanie forgot hers, and Leo was left without a battery  which is not at all strange for him. Who else goes on a trip without a phone or without a battery and charger?!

"Where's Nicole?" Stephanie and William asked aloud when they returned.

"I don't know, she left while you were still there." Leo answered.

"She must be in the bathroom, I'm going to look for her." Stephanie said and disappeared.

While talking to Leo, I noticed that Nicole got into the elevator, and there was only one place she could go, because her doctor's office was on this floor.

I followed her to the roof of the hospital. I assumed she was heading there because she wanted some time for herself.

As I had expected, she was there, but I did not find her as calm and happy as I had hoped, as her sister returned alive and well.

Nicole stood on the roof of the hospital, clutching the railing all by herself and looking like she was going to collapse at any moment.

I called her but she didn’t respond, so I approached to help and support her. She was crying, and her face and eyes were red from crying, while her body was shaking, but not from the cold.

Her gaze was distant and lost, just one look in those eyes and I knew what was going on.

She didn't hear me. She wasn't even aware that I was there with her and was far in her past at that moment. Deep that night when another car crashed into her father’s car and killed her parents, trapping her on her younger sister.

She was breathing hard, barely catching her breath as if about to suffocate. Her eyes were wide open and I knew the scene she was looking at then was terrifying. I tried to summon her, shake her, but nothing. There was nothing to show that she was aware of this moment and the fact that she was in my arms.

Until for a moment, she hit her head on my chest on her own and sobbed loudly. Each of her sobs tore my soul to the smallest sharp pieces that immediately afterwards pierced my heart.

I couldn’t describe the pain I felt because of her, and I was completely helpless.

All I could do at that moment was be with her and I was. I hugged her tightly, and she drowned in me, dipping her head into my neck. I let her calm down, I didn't say anything and neither did she.

She calmed down and miraculously did not move away from me. She let me hug her and I knew she enjoyed it.

I wouldn’t have separated myself from her even an inch if she hadn’t stirred in my embrace.

"Are you okay? I didn't crush you." I asked.

She just shook her head and looked up.

Those weeping eyes, the red nose and those juicy lips lured me to myself.

I couldn't resist them this time.

I joined my lips to hers and that day suddenly became the best day of my life.

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