"Tommy, you have to see a doctor."
"Jude, no. It's just a flu. A heaven." He coughed. "forsaken." He coughed again. "flu."
"You have a fever, you've been coughing so much it's a wonder your lungs haven't exploded. You've been like this for two weeks. You get nosebleeds, for sobbing out loud! You know that's not normal. C'mon."
He shook his head. "Nope."
"And why the hell not?"
He grinned sheepishly. "Needles."
She stared at him for a second, totally thrown off by the admission. "Are you serious? The Lil' Tommy Q? Afraid of needles?"
He watched her, irritated by her amusement. "Not afraid. Just… I hate needles."
She burst out laughing.
"I don't see what's so funny, seeing as how in five months, someone's gonna stick a needle in your spine just so you can have a baby without exploding. See how unafraid of needles you'll be then."
She grinned and went to kiss him. "Our. Baby." She pulled back slightly as he turned his head, succumbing to another fit of coughing. "I promise that if they have to stick you, I'll hold your hand."
"How sweet," he muttered sarcastically between coughs. "Still not going."
"Stubborn as an ass," she told him. "No pun intended."
He chuckled, which turned into more coughing. When he recovered, he told her, "Bad joke, Harrison."
She handed him a mug of one of those TheraFlu teas. "Don't complain about the taste or so help me God, I'll knock you out and drag you to the hospital where they'll promptly fit you with an IV."
He shook his head. "That's cruel, babe." He took a sip and made a face, but he didn't say anything.
"Better not," she muttered under her breath as she turned back to her dishes.
He watched her in amusement. "Or what?" he was rewarded with a slew of cold water in his face. "Jude! What the hell?"
"Drink your tea, damn it."
He frowned. "Tyrant."
She grinned. "You bet."
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Jude woke up in the middle of the night with the sudden urge to pee. My pregnancy and I have a love/hate relationship, she thought bitterly as she untangled herself from Tommy's arm. He's burning up. I better wake him up so he can take some more medicine or else he'll cook himself. She hurried to the bathroom and when she was done, she went to shake him awake. "Tommy. Baby, wake up, you've got to take something for that—Tommy?" She panicked when she heard silence. He was unusually still, seeing as how he usually tossed and turned a lot in his sleep when he was sick. "Tommy Q. Come on, baby, wake up." She reached up to turn his face and brought her hand back as if she had been burned. She studied her hand and saw the blood glinting in the moonlight that shone through the window. She ran for the light, and flipping it on, she gasped. "Oh my God." His nose had been bleeding again, and it had spread all over his face and seeped into his pillow. She started to cry. "Tommy, please… please just wake up…"
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"Jude! What happened?" Kwest burst into the emergency room and, upon seeing her, practically pounced on her, cupping her face in his hands, then holding her at arm's length in order to examine her. "Are you ok? The baby--?"
"We're fine, it's Tommy."
"What happened?"
She shook her head and he noticed how ghostly pale she was. "I don't know… he wouldn't wake up."
Kwest frowned. "When can you see him?"
At that moment, a young doctor with black hair and kind eyes called out Tommy's name, and Jude jumped to her feet. "Is he ok? What happened?"
"We have his fever under control, and we got his nose to stop bleeding. He's regained consciousness and has been asking for 'his Jude' for the past fifteen minutes."
Jude got angry. "Why didn't anyone get me sooner, damnit?! Where is he?"
The doctor saw the fire in her eyes and recoiled slightly. "Right… uh, right this way."
They followed the doctor through the mess of halls, nurses, and equipment until they finally walked into the small room.
Tommy wearily turned his head and his tired eyes brightened when he saw her. "My Jude. Hi, my Jude."
She rushed over to him and climbed into bed with him, not caring what Kwest and the doctor said. "Hi baby," she breathed.
He buried his face in the crook of her neck and pulled her close to him, wincing as he bent the arm with the IV. "You promised no needles," he mumbled into her hair, and she chuckled lightly.
"I love you so much," she whispered.
"I love you too."
"Miss Harrison?" She and Tommy turned from their position to see the doctor dismissing another doctor. Both of their expressions were grim and devoid of any good news.
"Do you know what's wrong with me now?" asked Tommy weakly.
The doctor nodded, her eyes darkening. "There's uh… no easy way to say this…"
Jude glared at her. "Out with it!"
"Mr. Dutois, you-- you have leukemia."