Page 24 of Love and Memories

She looked up at him, and the vulnerability in her eyes stabbed him right in the chest. Why did he have such a soft heart for her?

“I don’t know,” she said, turning her attention back to the blanket draped over her lap.

Travis reached for the Bible on the tray. “Where’d you get this?”

“The girls brought it yesterday. I guess I should call and thank them.”

Travis turned the Bible over in his hands. He’d studied the Bible a lot over the last few years, and the weight was a comfort in his hands. “Have you read any of this?”

Bella linked her hands together. “I read some of the Psalms yesterday.”

“Do you normally read the Bible or go to church?” he asked.

Bella’s head tilted slightly as she eyed the book in his hands. “I know I’ve been to church before, but I don’t know about recently. I remember some of the stories, like Jonah and the whale and Noah and the ark. The only person I found mentioned in Psalms yesterday was David.”

“King David. A man after God’s own heart,” Travis said.

Bella’s eyes narrowed. “What does that mean?”

“It means King David was anointed by God to be the leader of His chosen people. We’re going through 1 Samuel in our Bible study group right now, and it’s shaping up to be my favorite subject.”

She rested back against the pillow behind her head. “Why?”

Why did he enjoy hearing about David’s history? His life was full of action and betrayal. He was the underdog who became a famous warrior–a man who made mistakes, then repented.

“I think it’s because David had a good sense of right and wrong. He was all the things God wanted a king to be, but he was just as fallible as the rest of us. Most of the time, he turned to prayer first, but when he didn’t, he was crippled by guilt and humbled himself before God.”

“I tried to read some last night, but it was difficult to understand and my head was hurting. The doctor said it’ll be hard to concentrate for a while.”

“You should rest,” Travis said.

“I feel like that’s all I’ve been doing.” She looked back at him. “You said Bible study. Do you take classes?”

“Nothing that formal. I just get together with some people from my church to really dig deep into what the Bible says. Thankfully, some people know a lot more than I do, and I get to learn from them.”

“I don’t think I’ve ever heard of anyone really studying the Bible like that,” Bella said. “What I read yesterday was hard to understand. It would be nice if someone could explain it to me too.”

“You’re always welcome to come.”

Bella huffed. “I don’t have a car. I don’t have anything.”

Travis picked up a notepad on the tray and started flipping through the Bible. “Just call me if you want to go somewhere.”

There was a knock on the door, and a nurse walked in. Her smile was bright, and she held her arms out wide. “Good news! You’re being discharged.”

Bella sat up straighter, and her eyes widened like a deer in the headlights. “That’s good,” she whispered.

The nurse came in and started typing on a computer. “You should be out of here by noon.”

“That soon?” Bella asked, as if she couldn’t process the information.

“Everything looks good. You have some bruising, but nothing else that concerns the doctors. We’ve been over what to expect from the concussion, but you’ll get some paperwork so you don’t forget anything.”

When she finished her reports, the nurse turned to Bella. “You need anything?”

Bella’s strained grin was back. “No, but thank you.”

“I’ll try to speed up the process,” the nurse said as she disappeared out the door.

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