Wow, I don't even know how to begin to apologize for how late this is. I've been trying to find time to write but it's literally been impossible, buuuuut I promise I'm not giving up on these stories! It may take me some extra time but I will continue updating. Now that I got this chapter out of the way I can work on the last chapter for On the Run, which I will post as soon as it's done!
Just in case I disappear again (which I will try not to), I'm using my bio as a way of communicating with you guys and letting you know what's going on. If I'm being held up for whatever reason I'll let you guys know! I will finish these stories and I have a lot of new ideas so I plan to keep writing, even if it takes me forever to update haha sorry guys.
Hope you like this new chapter! I didn't proof read it before posting so sorry for any mistakes/awkward language. I have to get back to studying, but let me know what you think! I love reading your reviews, and if you guys have any suggestions as to what you'd like to see in this story feel free to leave a comment or PM me! I don't really have a set plot line for this story so I can play around with it a lot more.
Sorry about the delay again!
Enjoy! xoxo
Zzzz. Zzzzz.
My eyes opened with a jolt when I felt my phone vibrating on the bed. I hadn't even realized I'd fallen asleep. I'd been watching over Emily for a few minutes, running my fingers through her hair, and at some point I must have dozed off.
How long have I been out?
Zzzz. Zzzz.
I grabbed my phone, checking to make sure it hadn't bothered Emily. She'd turned over in her sleep, now laying on her side with her back to me. Something so casual like that would mean nothing normally, but Emily never moved in her sleep, especially if I was in bed with her. She'd told me she wasn't sleeping well, so I had to figure out what was making my mermaid so restless so I could get her to sleep at least a few good hours.
Zzzz. Zzzz. Zzzz. Zzzz.
My phone vibrating for the third time made me roll my eyes. The screen flashed four new text messages from Aria, Spencer, and Hanna, the last two being from the impatient blonde. Unlocking my phone made our group text pop up on screen.
Aria: Let us know how Em's doing, Ali!
Spencer: Please!
Hanna: And if she needs anything!
Hanna: And my mom says to remind you that she's around if you need any help.
Emily mumbled something softly and shifted under the blankets, my eyes immediately falling to her to watch for any sign of distress as my hands absently typed up a quick response to the girls. A few moments passed without her moving, so I let myself give the message I'd typed a quick once over before sending it.
Me: Sure thing, girls. She went back to sleep once her mom left so I'll see how she's doing during the day. And thanks, Han. I'll let you know if she needs anything.
Suddenly Emily whimpered and she sat up harshly with a gasp, eyes wide and alarmed, sucking in desperate, uneven breaths.
"Emily!" I cried, scrambling to sit up as her breaths quickly turned to deep, chest wrenching coughs. She twisted to face me quickly, her eyes calming down significantly once they landed on me even as her coughing continued. I cupped one of her cheeks in my hand as I ran the other up and down her back soothingly. "Breathe, baby, breathe. That's it, slow breaths, Em."
Her eyes stayed glued to mine as she tried to match my breaths, her coughs slowly but surely dying down. It took a few minutes but they finally stopped, leaving her panting with her eyes closed in exhaustion, leaning into my hand that was still on her cheek.
"Look at me baby," I urged quietly, cradling both of her cheeks when she looked up at me. "Are you okay?"
"Yeah," she panted, nodding carefully. I let my hands drop as hers reached up to rub at her eyes wearily, and it struck me how vulnerable she looked like this. "I'm – I'm fine. It was just a stupid nightmare again."
I felt myself frowning in worry. "Since when are you having nightmares?"
Emily laid back down against her pillow, curling up on her side facing me. "Mostly just this week. My mom says it's probably because of the fever."
Immediately I reached out and placed my palm against her cheek again, feeling her temperature. She was still warm, but her pills had brought the fever down considerably. "Is that why you haven't been sleeping?"
She nodded sleepily, turning her face into my hand and kissing my palm. "The nightmare wakes me up, but the coughing keeps me up a while."
I sighed dejectedly, bending down to kiss her forehead. She was never going to really get better if she didn't sleep, but if the fever was the main reason behind her insomnia then there wasn't much for her to do other than just ride it out.
"What time is it?"
I reached for my phone where it lay forgotten at the edge of the bed, hitting the home button so the lock screen would light up. "Almost ten thirty." Damn, I'd slept for almost two hours. Feeling my stomach grumble and figuring it was a good idea to get some food into Emily anyways, I threw the sheets off and swung my legs off the bed. "Do you want to stay in bed for a little while longer or do you want to come downstairs with me?"
Emily reached out for my hands and I helped pull her to a sitting position. "Downstairs. I've spent enough time in bed this week." She pushed herself to her feet and arched her back, stretching her arms above her head. "Give me a sec to change and go to the bathroom."
Nodding, I sat down at her window sill for a few minutes while she was in the bathroom, hearing the toilet flush and the sound of running water in the sink. Emily came out, looking slightly more refreshed and awake, and headed to her dresser to pull out a fresh set out clothes. She had her back to me as she yanked off her pajamas, standing only in her panties. My eyes traveled down her strong, bare back, over the curve of her underwear and down her long, lean legs, desire clenching in my stomach.
I smirked to myself, almost hearing Hanna's voice in my head should she know what I was thinking.
God, Ali, the poor girl's dying over there. Keep it in your pants.
That thought sobered me up quickly. My poor girl had been dying all week. She looked like she'd lost a little weight, and I remembered a conversation I'd had with her mom on Thursday when I'd come to visit, when she'd told me Emily had been basically skipping two, if not all, of her meals every day since the start of the week, and the little she did ingest was usually thrown up several hours later.
I had to get her to eat again, but first…
Pushing myself to my feet, I silently padded over to her. She was trying to decipher the tangled mess that was her shirt when I wrapped my arms around her naked waist. Her skin felt unnaturally hot against my cold hands and she shuddered at my touch, but I couldn't see her face so I couldn't tell if her goosebumps were fever-induced or Ali-induced, though hopefully the latter. I brushed her hair to the side, exposing her neck to me, and started trailing kisses down to her shoulder.
"Mmmm." Emily sighed, leaning into me.
I smiled against her skin as her head dropped back against my shoulder. It was crazy how responsive she was to my touches.
"As amazing as this feels," she breathed, making me pause. "I'm about two seconds away from kissing you senseless, and I don't want to get you sick."
I giggled, leaving one last kiss right behind her ear for good measure before stepping away. "Sorry, couldn't resist." I grabbed the shirt from her hands and started untangling it myself as I said, "Besides, any more of that and you'll catch pneumonia in this freaking cold."
Emily nodded her agreement even as she shivered while she pulled up her sweatpants. Finally I handed her back her shirt so she could quickly slip it on before throwing a sweatshirt over it. She turned to me, hands coming up to rest on my neck as she pressed a long kiss to my cheek, smiling against my skin as she nuzzled softly with her nose.
"That's the best I can do for now."
I smiled as she pulled back, brushing a lock of her hair out of her eyes lovingly. "You're more than enough for me, sweetie."
A deep shudder ran through her again, breaking our little moment. My brow creased in worry as I bit down on my lower lip, not liking how much this cold was affecting her. I pried one of her hands off my neck to lace our fingers together and pull her to the door.
"Do you need to bring anything downstairs?" I asked, suddenly thinking she might be more comfortable with actual pillows and her duvet.
Emily shook her head as we descended the stairs. "My mom basically set up a twenty-four hour day bed in the living room so it's fine."
Sure enough, as soon as we stepped into the living room I caught sight of the overflowing amount of blankets and pillows settled neatly on the couch.
"I think your mom didn't want us spending too much time in the bedroom," I said with a smirk, wagging my eyebrows playfully.
Emily laughed. "That's probably so true."
I brought our joined hands to my lips and kissed her fingers before nudging her to the couch. "You get settled in, I'll be right back."
"Where are you going?" she pouted as she sat down.
"To the kitchen," I laughed, already half way out of the room. "You need to eat, babe."
Emily scrunched up her nose at that, shaking her head with an obviously fake shudder. "Ew. Please, no food."
"You need to eat, Em." I repeated in a firmer voice, raising an eyebrow challengingly.
"I'm really not hungry, Ali." she insisted, almost as a whine.
I sighed, rolling my eyes, choosing to ignore the issue now and save the argument for later. With a wave of my hand that told her I'd be back in a moment, I strolled to the kitchen and grabbed the list of instructions Mrs. Fields had left on the fridge for me.
1.Ibuprofen – morning and evening
** check temperature reading before giving her liquids
**thermometer is on the counter
2.Decongestant – 1 a day, preferably at night
3.Cough drops – when needed, in the fridge
4.Antibiotic – 1 a day with meal (usually around lunch)
5.Ear drops – if necessary follow directions
6.FOOD!
**please make sure she eats as many meals as possible during the day to keep her blood sugar levels normal, if she skips she'll get dizzy and she'll try to hide it.
**lots and lots of fluids! Orange juice, smoothies, water…whatever she'll take.
The amount of detail in this list of instructions had me chuckling to myself. "Geez, Em. Your mom OCD much?"
I heard her laugh from the living room. "What, you mean her list?"
I called out an "Uh huh" as I gave the list another once over. She'd already taken her morning pills so I just needed to get her to eat a decent meal before giving her the antibiotic. Getting her to eat, though – that would be the problem. I love my mermaid more than my life, but get us to disagree on something and we'd spend hours arguing if that was the case. Something I learned quickly about Emily during our relationship was how strong she'd become, and how freaking stubborn too.
I checked the time on the microwave. It was getting close to eleven already, so either breakfast or lunch could go well. Emily usually preferred a good breakfast over lunch, but I didn't want to go assuming anything since her messed up appetite was pretty unpredictable.
"Em?" I called hesitantly, mentally crossing my fingers, hoping she'd go along with me.
"Yeah?"
"Sweetie, do you want breakfast or lunch?"
I didn't hear a response right away, but I could imagine her sighing. "I really don't want anything right now, Ali."
With a frustrated groan, I placed the list back on the fridge and walked back to the living room. Emily had already settled comfortably on the couch, her body barely visible under the heap of blankets. I smiled despite myself because really, she couldn't look any more adorable if she tried. Emily's eyes landed on me as soon as I walked in and she sent me a weak smile. I sat down on the edge of the couch cushion by what I assumed were her hips and grabbed one of her hands in mine, holding it to my chest.
"Emily, I really need you to eat," I begged, widening my eyes in what I knew was my best pleading look. "For me, baby?"
The torn look on her face almost made me laugh. I knew she couldn't resist me when I looked at her like this, so I could practically see the internal battle raging inside her between her mind and her body.
"Don't do this to me, Ali." she pleaded.
I let myself laugh once, bringing the hand I was holding up to my lips for a kiss. "I have to, sweetie. The last thing I want is for your blood sugar to drop, and if it does, it'll be on me." My lower lip jutted out in a playful pout as I batted my eyelashes. "Please? I'll make your favorite French toast."
Surprisingly, she made a face and shook her head. "My mom tried making them for me last week and I barely got through half before I threw up."
Damn, that was my best shot. I bit the inside of my cheek as I ran through the list of Emily's favorite breakfast foods in my head. "Pancakes?"
"Ugh, no."
"Waffles?"
"Nope."
"Cereal?"
"Had it yesterday."
I raised an eyebrow. "So?"
"Twice."
I rolled my eyes. "Eggs?"
"God, no."
Easy, Alison. I closed my eyes for a moment, scrambling internally for patience. There had to be something, anything, for God's sake, that she would be willing to eat. I was tempted to let her have her way and just give her food whenever her body asked for it, but the memory of the last time her blood sugar levels dropped flashed before my eyes and quickly put that thought to rest.
That day had been a nightmare. She'd been up late studying for a Calculus exam the night before and overslept in the morning so she'd skipped breakfast. Then the swim coach called her in during lunch for an impromptu meeting before the big swim meet that afternoon and didn't give her time to grab any food. Hanna had to nearly shove a coffee down her throat as she was leaving for the swim meet, and she'd promised she would grab something on the way over. But apparently that never happened because Spencer got a call about an hour later from Paige, saying Emily had collapsed half way through the meet and needed us to come and get her. We had all been studying at Hanna's when the call came in, so the four of us packed into Spencer's SUV barely before the call was over.
The fact that Paige had been the one to call hadn't even bothered me, something that Hanna so nicely pointed out to me as we were on our way to the meet. I barely paid attention to her at the time since my mind was solely focused on Emily, hoping she was alright. Yet when we finally entered the meet and my eyes landed on Emily, surrounded by the swim team and Paige, who'd been stroking her hair and holding her up as Sydney fed her sips of her red Gatorade, I literally felt as if my head were about to explode. Spencer still talks about how the shade of red I turned was far from natural. But when Emily's eyes locked on me, every ounce of anger in me faded, and all I could focus on was how fragile she looked. Her face had gone pale and she was shivering in eighty degree weather. Sure, we got some food into her and after a while she was fine, but after that day I promised myself I would never let that happen again.
Then it hit me. Of course. She hadn't been able to stomach anything particularly heavy so soon after she'd collapsed that day, so one of the parents that went to watch the meet had gone and bought her a Jamba Juice to get her back on her feet so she could leave and get some actual food. God, why hadn't I thought of this before?
"How about a smoothie?" I asked tentatively.
Emily's lips parted as if to speak but she paused, her eyebrows rising casually. "That doesn't sound too bad, actually."
Finally. I grinned. "Perfect. Your mom left everything, right?"
She looked at me pointedly. "You do know my mother, don't you?"
"Fair enough," I chuckled, leaning to kiss her forehead before standing up. "Sit tight, babe. I'll be right back."
I was half way out of the room when the doorbell rang. I turned to Emily who looked just as confused as I felt.
"I'm not expecting anyone." she said, brow knitted in confusion as she made to get off the couch.
"Don't get up," I told her. "I'll get it."
Strutting quickly to the door, I peered out the window before opening and caught a glimpse of a beige trench coat standing on the porch. I sighed in relief, thinking it was just one of the girls coming to check on Emily, so I swung open the door without hesitation yet instantly felt myself go stiff.
"Hi, is Emily – oh. Alison."
Clenching my fist behind my back, I did my best to give a tight lipped smile.
"Hi, Paige."
