Hee hee, my stories are growing!
Disclaimer: They ain't mine. What else is new?
This chapter is for Oliviafan, Illcoveru42, gerfan, kateBA, spacemonkey1129, Laurapetry, cheersbabe16, Hope06, lallyb1743, and of course, I have an idea. Thanks for the reviews, my bunnies!
Bellevue Hospital, room 216
Thursday, January 24th
8:42 pm
The next night, Mike and Carolyn walked into Alex's hospital room, where they were treated to a touching sight. Bobby was sitting in the chair, his legs crossed and a book in his hands. He was running two fingers along the page as he read, and as the two came closer, they could hear him reading softly to his unconscious partner.
"Hey," he said softly, startling Carolyn and Mike. He didn't turn his head as he murmured, "She's still not awake."
Carolyn quickly stepped across the floor to stand beside Bobby's chair, and she placed her hand on his shoulder, saying, "How are you doing, Bobby?" He shrugged his shoulders and closed the book, then looked at Mike and Carolyn.
"I'll be fine just as soon as she wakes up," he answered, and Mike nodded knowingly.
"Bobby, do you want me to get anything from your apartment?" he asked, and Bobby looked up at him with his head tilted to the side. "Something tells me that you aren't going to be leaving her side anytime soon, so I figured I'd stop by your place and pick you up a few changes of clothes, and anything else you might need."
Carolyn was surprised by her partner's non confrontational attitude toward their somewhat odd colleague, and her heart was warmed by it.
"Are you sure you don't mind?" Bobby asked softly, and Mike shook his head. "You're right, I'm not going to leave her. She's not going to be able to see, and I'm not going to let her wake up alone and terrified," Bobby said determinedly. "Okay, I'll stop by your apartment in the morning on my way up here and bring you some clothes. You okay for tonight?" Bobby nodded, and Mike placed his hand on Carolyn's hip and guided her to the door.
"Night, Bobby," Carolyn said, and Bobby nodded at her as she and Mike walked out of the room.
Bellevue Hospital, room 216
Sunday, January 27th
10:32 pm
A small moan startled Bobby out of his light nap, and he quickly sat upright and took Alex's uninjured hand into his, caressing the back of it with his thumb, desperate to let her know he was there. "Eames, can you hear me?" he questioned, gently cupping her cheek in his big hand.
She let out another small moan and shivered, and Bobby watched as she turned her head slightly in the direction of his deep voice. "Bobby?" His name rolled off of her tongue as little more than an exhaled breath, but he heard it nonetheless.
"I'm right here, Alex," he murmured, moving his hand from her cheek to take her right hand into his. "Just… just take it easy. I'm not going anywhere." He felt her good hand squeeze his, and he smiled and gently laced his fingers through hers, then brought their joined hands up to rest against his stubble covered cheek.
She stiffened for a moment, then he felt her thumb move across his cheek slowly, and he was suddenly selfishly glad that she couldn't see the tears in his eyes. For a minute, they just sat there, drawing on the comfort that the other's presence provided.
"Where… where am I?" she asked quietly, and he swallowed thickly before answering her. "You're in the hospital, Alex. You've been unconscious for about three days," he stated, and she nodded slowly.
The door opening startled them out of the reverie they were in, and Bobby turned to look at the intruder. Stephens quickly walked across the floor to stand on the side of Alex's bed, opposite Bobby. Alex suddenly froze, and her grip on Bobby's hand tightened as she realized that they weren't alone. "Who's there, Bobby?" she whispered, her voice trembling.
He squeezed her hand reassuringly, then moved his other hand to caress her cheek. "It's okay, Alex," he said softly. "It's just your doctor, Dr. Stephens." Her grip on his hand slowly relaxed, but she didn't let go, and he was fine with that.
"Miss Eames?" Alex slowly turned her head in the direction of Stephen's voice. "It's good to see you awake. How are you feeling?"
"Tired. What's over my eyes? Why can't I see?" she asked suddenly, reaching her hand up to touch the bandage. Bobby could detect a note of panic in her voice, and he gently grabbed her hand and held it in his. "Bobby, what's wrong with my eyes? What happened?" she whispered, and Bobby looked helplessly at Stephens.
"Alex, do you remember what happened before you woke up?" Stephens asked, and she gave a small nod. "You had mace sprayed directly into your eyes. The bandages are there because any light right now could cause you to lose your eyesight permanently"
"Permanently?" she repeated, and Bobby felt her hand tighten around his. "I'm… I'm blind?"
"Most likely this is only temporary, but yes, you are blind. However, believe me when I say this: we are doing everything we can so that you will regain the full use of both of your eyes. So don't give up," he said, giving Bobby another glance. She nodded robotically, and Stephens checked her vitals, then walked back out of the room.
As soon as she heard the door close, Alex emitted a weak sob that tore painfully at Bobby's heart. "Oh God," she cried, turning away from Bobby and curling up into a small ball, her tiny frame shaking with withheld sobs.
He scooted closer to the bed and rested his elbows on the edge of the mattress. "Eames… Alex. It's going to be okay. We're going to get through this," he promised, splaying one big hand out over her waist. She just continued to tremble, and he closed his eyes and he began to rub circles over her soft skin. "I promise."
2:00 am
Alex awoke with a start, her heart pounding wildly in her chest and her breaths coming in short gasps. Beside her, something moved, and she froze, then hesitantly reached out one trembling hand. Her hand come into contact with something soft, and she sighed as she ran her hand through her partner's curly hair. She hated to wake him up, but she needed to hear his voice, to hear him say that she would be fine, that they would be fine.
"Bobby?" she whispered, and she felt him stiffen beneath her hand.
"Eames?… Alex, what's wrong?" he demanded, grabbing her hand and holding it firmly in hers.
"I just… I had a nightmare," she confessed, and she could feel the muscles in his hand relax. He brought his hand up to tenderly tuck a strand of stray hair behind her ear, and the gentleness and caring in the simple gesture made a lump rise in her throat. He was standing there with his arms wide open, ready to catch her. All she had to do was take the first step into his loving arms.
"Bobby," she started, her voice small and uncertain.
"What is it, Alex?"
"Could you… Could you hold me?" Her voice came out as little more than a whisper, but he heard it nonetheless, and he was more than willing to comply. Rising to his feet, he carefully enveloped her in his arms, holding her gently against his broad chest. She wound her good arm around his neck and rested her chin on his shoulder, sniffing quietly. He held her for the rest of the night, murmuring soft words against her skin.
CICICICICICICICICICICICICICICICICICICICICICICICICICI
Bellevue Hospital, room 216
Thursday, January 31st
9:00 am
"I want to go home," Alex stated quietly one morning, and Bobby lifted his head and looked sadly at her. "I know you do, Alex," he assured her, gently grasping her hand. She jerked her hand away and turned her head away from the sound of his voice, and he sighed and scrubbed his face with one calloused hand.
"Alex-"
"Don't 'Alex' me!" she snapped suddenly. "I may not be able to see, Bobby, but I can hear it in your voice. You're only doing all of this because you feel bad for me. Well, I don't need your sympathy, Goren! I don't need it at all!"
Her words stung his heart, but he knew that this was coming. Stephen had warned him about the possibility of her lashing out at whoever was closest to her, and it was him. He also knew that she didn't mean what she was saying. It was all the frustration of being blinded escaping, and Stephens said that this was when she needed him the most.
So he stood up and carefully sat on the edge of her bed, laying one big hand on her waist. "Look, Alex, I know this must be hard on you, but I'm here for you, no matter what you might think. I'm not going anywhere anytime soon."
Suddenly she whirled her head around and pushed him away, shouting, "Just leave me alone, Bobby! Go away!" He looked at her for a long moment, then slowly stood up and walked out of the room.
Alex heard him leave, and she curled up into a tiny ball on her side and let out a miserable sob. Burying her face in her pillow, she mumbled over and over again, "I'm sorry. I'm sorry."
Outside of the room, Bobby leaned against the wall, breathing heavily. His knees buckled, and he slid to the floor and buried his face in his hands. "God, I'm so sorry, Alex. I'm sorry," he whispered, letting a lone tear fall from his eyelashes onto the floor.
Once her sobs subsided and her breathing returned to a normal pace, Alex slowly lifted her head out of the pillow and listened for signs of her partner. The room was silent, save for the sounds of her own breathing, and she called out for Bobby. "Bobby? Where are you?" She received no answer.
Pushing herself to a sitting position, Alex carefully rose to her feet, her right hand extended out in front of her. She heard something rustle behind her, and she let out a strangled gasp and lost her balance, tripping over the chair and falling to the floor with a dull thud.
Bobby was still sitting outside of Alex's room when he heard the strange noise, and he launched himself to his feet and darted into her room. "God, Alex," he muttered, falling to his knees beside her where she was laying on the ground crying and trembling. "Come here, Alex," he murmured, gently tugging her into his arms and cradling her against his chest.
Alex heard the door open, then footsteps and her partner's soft, tender voice as he lifted her into his arms and held her close. "What were you trying to do?" he questioned softly as he rocked her back and forth. She shivered a little, then answered, "I'm sorry, Bobby. I didn't mean those things I said earlier. I didn't mean them."
He froze, then held her tighter against his chest as he rose to his feet and carefully laid her on the bed. She almost called out for him again, but then she felt the bed dip as he sat down beside her on it, and she relaxed and laid her head on the pillow.
"I know you didn't mean it," he stated quietly, running his hand over her side and pulling the blanket over her shivering form. His hand found hers, and she squeezed it and laced her fingers through his. "I talked to Dr. Stephens earlier, and I have some good news. He says that you can go home tomorrow morning, as long as you keep the bandages on your eyes at all times and keep the appointments with your ophthalmologist. Does that make you feel better?" he murmured, leaning over to kiss her cheek.
She rolled onto her side, keeping her hand in his as she said, "It does, but there's a catch, isn't there?"
He sighed. "Yes, there is. You can't live by yourself, obviously, so you need to be released into someone's care temporarily. I… I want you to come stay with me, Alex"
She let out a choked laugh, and a confused look appeared on his face. "And I suppose I don't have a choice, do I?" she asked sarcastically, and he shook his head.
"Not unless you want to stay here or with Deakins until you get your sight back." The look of distaste that appeared on her face made him laugh. "I don't seem like such a bad proposition now, do I?"
What he didn't mention was that Deakins, Mike, and Carolyn had already cleared out the spare bedroom in his apartment and fitted it with a queen sized bed, then went to her apartment and filled several suitcases with clothes, blankets and other trinkets to make her feel more at home. He had not seen it yet, but he knew they had tried as hard as they could to make her comfortable in her new home. It was up to him to do the rest.
"So, that's the plan, huh?" she asked suddenly, snapping him out of his thoughts.
"Yeah, pretty much," he answered, and she nodded slightly, then curled herself around him with his hand still in hers. As he watched her chest rise and fall slowly, he reached one hand out and gently touched her hair, saying, "I'll just be glad to get you home, Alex. So glad."
TBC...
A/N: Okay, I know that that was fluffy, even for me, but this story is sooooo far from over... (evil laughter) Ahem. So, review my bunnies!
