Robbie watched Laura doze quietly for a few minutes. The nursing staff had turned the lights down in the cubicle and he studied her in the half light. Even visibly poorly, he considered Laura to be utterly beautiful. A little pale at the moment, but beautiful. He was fraught with concern for her, and an occasional tremor ran through his knee. Ambulances, at least the inside of them, made him feel seriously queasy. And a blues and twos trip through Oxford had hardly endeared them to him, though he was profoundly grateful for the NHS. He rubbed his thumb over her knuckles in what he hoped was a comforting gesture. He was relieved that the neurologist thought it was neither a stroke nor an aneurism. That had to be good news. He hoped this dose of medication would make Laura feel a little better, though he didn't fully understand the meaning of all the neurologist had explained. Laura squeezed his fingers and he allowed a small smile to appear at the sides of his mouth. "You're alright, love," he murmured, and Laura squeezed his fingers again. He glanced at the clock. Somehow, sitting here, just watching Laura doze, half an hour had passed. She opened her eyes and their gaze met steadily. "Thank you," Laura said quietly and Robbie leant forward, capturing her fingers into both his hands. They smiled at each other and Robbie noticed that her smile was more even, as though her face wasn't slumped any more. Robbie half smiled, half grimaced sympathetically at her and Laura shifted slightly so that she was lying on her side, facing him more. "How are you feeling?" Robbie asked and Laura sighed. "Better," she replied and he let go of a breath he hadn't realised he was holding in. "Thank god," Robbie replied and Laura snorted. "Something like that," she replied and he gazed at her, his thumb caressing her knuckles gently. "Your speech is better," Robbie observed and Laura nodded. "I feel slightly more human. I think the caffeine's kicking in," she said and Robbie stifled a chuckle. "Aye, best not to let too much blood into your caffeine stream," he replied teasingly and Laura snorted derisively. Their gaze met for a few more moments and Robbie leant his forehead against their clasped hands and inhaled shakily. "God, Laura," he began and Laura found her eyes filling with tears. Robbie looked up at her and grimaced when he saw her tearful expression. "Don't, Robbie," Laura whispered, a tear threatening to brim over "not here." Their gaze met for another few seconds before Robbie pressed a kiss to her fingers and nodded. "Alright," he said softly.
"How are you feeling?" he asked, the faintest hint of anxiety present in his voice and Laura inhaled slowly before wriggling her fingers. "Well, my hand is back to its usual self," she observed "and the headache is subsiding. I still feel as though my head if full of candy floss. But I can talk, so I'd say I was well on the way to back to normal." Robbie nodded, his thumb caressing Laura's knuckles. "The, er, neurologist said you trained together?" he asked and Laura nodded. "Haven't seen him in ages - not much interaction between forensic pathology and neurology really. I was quite good friends with his partner, husband, I mean, when we were still in college, but I haven't seen either of them since, goodness, not even sure when," Laura replied. "Do you think they'll let you go home today?" Robbie wondered and Laura looked appalled. "Goodness, I'd have thought so. I expect they'll want their resus bed back," she said firmly and Robbie stifled a broad smile. "Well, when you put it like that," he remarked and Laura smiled to herself. There was a rustle at the curtains, and it was pulled back to reveal Damian and a couple of nurses. Laura began to sit up a little, and Damian flashed her a smile. "You're looking a bit brighter," he remarked and Laura nodded. "I feel much better," Laura replied and Damian quirked an eyebrow at her. "Ah, good, so your speech is getting back to normal," he remarked and Laura rolled her eyes. He perched on the bed, opposite Robbie and Laura pushed herself back so that she could sit up. "Now, how's this right arm of yours getting on? Mind if I run through the whole rigmarole?" Laura dutifully held out her hands, and went through the range of tests which Damian wanted to run. Robbie sat back in his chair, watching the interaction, an increasing sense of relief coursing through him. Even he could see the vast improvement in Laura's condition since he'd found her a couple of hours previously.
Damian's voice broke into his musing, and he glanced at the doctor. "You are clearly much improved,' Damian told Laura and she arched an eyebrow enquiringly, "but I'd like to keep you here for another hour or so, and then, you can almost certainly go home. I'll refer you onto the neurology clinic - they paged me out of lectures for you, so I'd best see you in clinic and see if we can get on top of these migraines. Can I get someone to bring you a sandwich, something to eat?" he enquired warmly and Laura glanced at Robbie. He nodded, barely imperceptively and Laura smiled. "Can I send Robbie over to the hospital shop?" she asked and Damian grinned at Robbie. "Ah, husbands, useful for so many things, eh?" he remarked "of course." Robbie snorted and Laura chuckled. "Robbie's not my husband," she said wryly and Damian shook his head. "Sorry, my bad," he said easily and Robbie raised an eyebrow. Laura caught his glance and sighed. "Right, Laura, get something to eat and I'll come back and discharge you in an hour, alright?" Damian pronounced, and he stood up and grinned broadly at Laura and Robbie. As he exited the cubicle, Laura drew her knees up and wrapped her arms around them, laying her cheek against her knees. "He's the third person today to declare me to be your husband," Robbie observed ruefully, meeting Laura's gaze and she bit her lip. "I suppose it's a reasonable assumption, given you're listed as my next of kin," she replied, feigning disinterest. Robbie chuckled, and then leant in to press an affectionate kiss to her cheek. "Let me go and see what I can rustle up for lunch, eh?" he suggested and Laura smiled. "Thank you," she replied warmly.
Once Robbie had made his way out of the cubicle in pursuit of sandwiches and coffee, Laura leant her head back against the bed and exhaled shakily. God, she thought, today had been a horrible shock to the system. She was so relieved it had turned out to be the most minor option on the table. And it had been remarkably soothing to have Robbie there, holding her hand, for the duration. Bless him. He had looked utterly terrified but the moment he'd appeared in her office, she'd felt relief course through her. Laura knew that when push came to shove, Robbie would always be there for her. He had an uncanny ability to tell when she needed him, could be relied upon to text or phone or just appear in her office when she was having a bad day at work, when she needed a cup of coffee and a friendly face, or a G&T and a hug. He'd seemed bemused to be assumed to be her husband. At least he wasn't repulsed, Laura mused. Perhaps it was time they addressed this unspoken connection between them. But what to say? Robbie, I've had a horrible day and I just need you to take me home and cuddle me on the sofa until I'm ready to face the world again. It seemed like a bit of a stretch but really, it was all she wanted. The medication had begun to kick in nicely, and she was shattered. She reached for her phone, rooting in her jacket pocket which someone, Robbie presumably, had had the foresight to bring with him. There were several messages, a couple from her team informing her that they'd taken her off roster, and wishing her better soon. Laura thought she ought to let Emma know at the very least that she was feeling much better.
In the spring sunshine, Robbie rather enjoyed his walk over to the hospital shop. Gone were the days of the WRVS and formidable little old ladies policing your sandwich choices. Like many hospitals, Oxford General had recently acquired both a Costa and an M&S Food which made the options for lunch far more palatable. He strolled into the foodhall, and reviewed the sandwich offerings before choosing a couple of options and picking up some crisps. Coffee, he thought, he'd acquire on the way back to Laura. Laura. He was so relieved she was alright. His heart had been in his mouth half the day and he was so grateful that she was going to be okay. He was a little more bemused that everyone assumed they were married. To his surprise, the assumption didn't bother him at all. The last few hours had cemented his resolution that he wanted more than pure friendship with Laura. If she preferred to keep things platonic then he'd live with it, but he had to know if she might want more. He hoped he hadn't read it wrong, but he thought she might. But only time would tell. The sensation of her fingers curled within his had sent a pang of longing through him, and he wanted to get back to her. Hopefully they'd let her home, and he hoped she might let him head home with her, make sure she was settled before he left her be. He paid for their food, and picked up the bag before walking back via the coffee shop. He suspected Laura wouldn't thank him if he reappeared without some form of liquid refreshment.
Glancing up at the enormous A&E sign over the doors, he made his way back to the ward and was relieved to find Laura sat up on the bed, waiting for him. Laura smiled broadly as Robbie came into the cubicle and then set two steaming takeaway cups of coffee down on the countertop. He gently dropped the bag of food onto the end of the bed and studied Laura's expression. "Feeling better?" he asked and she nodded. "Thank you," she replied and he smiled. "Coffee?" Robbie said, offering her a cup and Laura took it gratefully. Robbie retrieved the sandwiches and offered them both to Laura. She bit her lip unconsciously as she made her decision, picking one sandwich, and then flashed him a smile as she opened the packet and began to tuck into her sandwich. "Goodness, cheese and pickle has never tasted so good," Laura said fervently, and Robbie chuckled. A swishing of the curtains revealed Damian and a nurse who smiled at Laura. "Hobs," he said cheerfully "you're looking much like your usual self." Laura arched an eyebrow at him, amused. "Well, I can't say I've worn scrubs to med school reunions recently, and I've usually had time to apply some make up, but I'll take that as a compliment," she replied and Damian chuckled. Robbie watched the conversation, entertained. Damian glanced at his colleague who looked at him quizzically. "My apologies, this is my colleague Sarah. She's one of our nurses, and she has a special interest in migraine so I brought her along. I hope you don't mind?" Laura shook her head and Damian continued. "Dr Hobson and I were at medical school together. She's the Chief Pathologist for the City of Oxford, and for Oxfordshire Police, and as a general rule, if you run into Laura, you know it's all gone horribly wrong." Laura snorted softly, and shook her head. "Laura was formidable as a medical student. I imagine she's in a whole league of her own these days where it comes to indomitable," Damian observed and Robbie chuckled. Laura glared at him, and he hastily turned it into a cough. Damian grinned at this silent interaction and then began to explain the events of the day to Sarah who listened attentively. Laura glanced at Robbie and he smiled at her. She rolled her eyes at him and returned her focus to Damian as he concluded his observations. "It must be a huge relief to discover such unpleasant symptoms were relatively straightforward to treat," the nurse remarked sympathetically and Laura nodded wearily. "I think that you should probably consider this to be a warning shot," Damian observed and Laura considered him. "Clearly, you have a demanding job, which I have no doubt you undertake to the highest possible standard, and I know you publish on top of that because Jeremy reads every article you write with much interest and tells me about it. And I know you teach too. So cut yourself a little slack. Prioritise yourself a bit, Laura. Decent sleep, proper meals, some downtime," Damian told her and Laura arched an eyebrow at him. "Yes, Mr. Withers," she retorted and Damian grinned. "Does Jeremy actually read my research?" she asked and Damian nodded. "Faithful to the end," he replied "he was always prodigiously proud of you, and rightly so." Laura bit her lip, rather touched by this revelation. "Jeremy's my husband," Damian explained to Robbie and he nodded. "Damian and Jeremy and I were on the same rotation patterns when we were undergrads," Laura explained "but we ended up in different specialisms." Damian laughed. "Thank goodness. Laura would have outshone us all," he observed and Laura shook her head. "Honestly. You'll inflate my ego beyond recognition," she chastised and Robbie shook his head. "Impossible, our Laura's too modest for her own good," he replied and Laura glanced at him affectionately. "Anyway, am I alright to go?" she asked hopefully and Damian nodded. "Yes, do. You're clearly much better, and taking up a bed in my resus unit, so be off with you. I'll see you soon in clinic," Damian replied and Laura flashed him a smile before he headed back out, leaving Robbie and Laura to make their way out of the hospital.
As they walked, Robbie slung his arm around Laura's shoulders gently and she smiled and leant into him. "Thanks, Robbie," she murmured "what would I do without you?" He squeezed her shoulders affectionately. "Home?" he asked and Laura nodded. "Can I come with you?" Robbie asked and Laura nodded. "Fancy a takeaway? Maybe a DVD?" he continued and Laura smiled broadly. "Yeah, actually that sounds perfect. Not sure I'll be very good company," Laura replied and Robbie chuckled. "You are always good company," he chided "Right, now. Here's our lift." Laura looked up to see James' car waiting just ahead of them and she sighed. "James, you really didn't have too," Laura protested as she got into James' car and he glanced back at her, amused. "Dr. Hobson," he remarked "you are constantly sorting Inspector Lewis and I out from various scrapes. Really, a lift from the hospital is the least I could do." Laura met his gaze in the rear view mirror. "Glad to see that you are back on your feet," James continued and Laura sighed. "Does the entire station know?" she asked wearily, doing up her seat belt and James shook his head. "No, I wouldn't have thought so. But our friends in green do tend to set the cat amongst the pigeons…" he replied and Laura grimaced. Robbie shut the passenger door and quirked an eyebrow at James before turning to Laura. "Home?" he enquired jovially and James groaned quietly. "Don't spare the horses," Laura remarked wryly and Robbie chuckled. "Thank you Jim," Laura said, reaching over and squeezing his shoulder and he sighed dramatically and slid the car into gear before moving off. Their journey progressed quietly, the three of them sat in a companionable silence. James' attention firmly focussed on the road, Laura musing over how her day had unfolded and Robbie considering as to how he was going to get Laura to himself so that he could try and begin to talk to her properly, and wondering whether today was the time, and what he would say to James to explain and whether actually, he could overthink this situation any further. At length, James pulled up outside Laura's house and turned the engine off. "Robbie promised me an evening of takeaway and his dubious taste in films if you'd like to share the pain, James?" Laura enquired, unbuckling her seatbelt and James laughed. Laura perched forward on her seat slightly and James swivelled around to face her. "Thank you for that alluring prospect," he replied gravely "but it's rehearsal tonight, and the guys wouldn't appreciate me bailing on them again. I hope you're feeling 100% soon." Laura flashed him a smile and he nodded at her. Robbie opened the door for her and Laura got out, rooting in her jacket pocket for her house keys. As James turned the car, and then drove out of Laura's road, she turned to Robbie, head slightly tilted and he gazed down at her. "Shall we?" Laura asked quietly and he nodded, before she stepped towards her front door and he followed her inside, closing the door behind him.
