A/N- Thanks for the reviews again. The complication does not come until the next chapter but it might not be what you all are thinking. In the meantime, here is chapter 4.

A few hours later Nick came in to see a nurse leaving Greg's room. He smiled when Greg waved him in. He came in and took a seat. "Hey, you are doing okay?"

Greg shrugged. "She was just giving me my shots."

"You're shots?" Nick wondered.

"Yeah, my chemo comes in the form of shots. I usually administer them myself but when you're here they do them for you," he explained.

"So I hear they are setting you free at 5 pm today."

"Yes, back home. Glad I did not have to stay here too log. I was here almost two weeks due to the surgery," he told him. He gazed at Nick a few moments. Nick noticed his apprehensive look.

"What?" He asked.

"I was wondering if you were going to come over to my place once I am home," Greg said meekly.

"If you want me to I can but isn't your mom staying with you too?" Nick asked, wondering what exactly he was asking for.

"Well, yeah she is in the spare bedroom. I was just thinking for a little while anyway you could come over, but if you rather not…." He looked down at the blanket, thinking he was asking too much of Nick after he lied to him for the last month and a half.

"I'll come over. I want to spend time with you. Besides it gives your poor mom a break," he grinned.

He looked at the dark haired Texan, his eyes a little glassy now. "Yeah true, I guess. Good."

Nick smiled at him but then he noticed him grimace in some sort of pain. Greg's mouth parted a bit and he seemed to slowly be taking in breaths. He became alarmed. "Are you okay? Do you need the doctor?"
Greg shook his head and seemed to relax more again. "No, it's just an affect of the chemo and cancer. I get these little shooting pains in my abdomen occasionally. It passes."

Nick frowned. "Oh okay. You are sure?"

"Yes, I am sure. It's nothing compared to the pain I had before the surgery."

Nick never realized he had been in so much pain back then. "Oh." He could not think of anything else to say. He still felt a bit out of touch with it all.

"I hid it really well from you then," Greg admitted to him, feeling a bit ashamed.

Nick sighed. "It's okay. I know now that's all that matters." He smiled at him and intertwined his fingers with his partner's thin, long ones.

They passed the time talking about everything but his illness until it was time for him to be released. His mother drove him home and Nick followed in his truck. Greg was quiet on the drive home. She knew he was tired again.

He went to sit down on the sofa once he was inside. His mother went to drop off his medications on the kitchen counter and then started making dinner.

Nick came in and sat in the side chair by the sofa. "Wow, I can tell your mom's living here. I've never seen this place so clean," he smirked.

Greg glared at him a moment before turning on the television. "Do you want to play some Guitar Hero?" He asked him, wanting to do something he knew he excelled at.

Nick chuckled. "Sure, so you can kick my ass, why not?"

"Are you staying for dinner then?" Mrs. Sanders asked Nick.

"If you don't mind, I got nothing better to do."

After Greg did beat Nick at a few rounds of Guitar Hero, dinner was ready. Nick watched as the younger man ate his soup but picked at his baked potato and canned pears.

"You're hardly eating again, honey," His mother said, also noticing.

He looked up at her and then at Nick and frowned. "I'm feeling queasy. I don't think I should eat anymore. I'll just end up throwing it all up anyway."

"Greg, you remember what Dr. Rob said you need to eat and not be afraid of throwing it up," his mother said.

"Fine. I will eat it but do not be surprised if I get sick later on," he moped.

Nick looked between mother and son and had a feeling this little argument had happened before. He decided to stay out of it since he was still new to the whole situation.

While his mother cleaned up, Greg headed off to his bedroom to take a shower. Nick sat in the living room, feeling rather useless, since his arm was still in a sling.

It was not until he heard some noise from the bedroom area that he jumped up. It sounded like glass breaking.

"I'll go check on him," Nick told Mrs. Sanders as he went into Greg's room. As he went in there he could hear retching coming from the bathroom. He placed his hand on the door. "Greg, are you okay? Do you need anything?" When he did not get an answer he opened the door. He was not expecting to see Greg clad in only boxers and truly seeing just how much weight he had lost. He was on his knees, bent over the toilet, breathing heavily. He could see his ribs defined by his thinness.

As Nick stepped in closer to him, Greg lifted his head to the side. "Watch out for the broken glass on the floor," he warned.

Nick looked down and saw pieces of what use to be the black rinsing glass Greg used on his sink when he brushed his teeth. Nick bent down and picked up the pieces, putting them in the trash.

Greg was no longer vomiting so he flushed the toilet. He sat back and rested again the wall. Nick could now see the scar on his lower abdomen from the surgery.

He looked up at his face, his eyes were closed and he looked pale again. Nick sat next to him. "Is it always like this?" he asked quietly, wondering how bad it really was for him.

He opened his tired eyes and looked at him. "Yeah, more often than not. Not everyday though." He noticed Nick staring at his body and suddenly wrapped his arms around him in a self-conscious manner.

Nick saw the movement and felt a sad tug at his heart. "Do you want me to leave so you can get dressed?"

Greg nodded quickly. "Okay, I'll be outside the door if you need me." Nick got up and left him alone. As he closed the door, he felt tears come to his eyes. His beautiful boyfriend looked so thin it scared him even though he knew the chemo was working. The toll it was taking on his body was heartbreaking.

He heard the door opening a few minutes later and quickly wiped at his eyes. He did not want to have Greg see him upset over him.

Greg came out dressed in pajama bottoms and a t-shirt and shuffled over to his bed, without looking at Nick. He got under the covers before he finally looked at him. "Do you want to lay next to me for a bit?" He asked, shocking Nick out of his stupor.

"Uh, sure. Let me just let your mom know everything is okay." He was shocked by the request and needed a moment.

He came back in after informing Greg's mother. "She's going to bed. She's tired. She says to tell you to sleep well."

Greg stared at Nick, who was still standing. "Do you not want to be near me?" He asked, thinking Nick was having second thoughts now about being close to him.

Nick saw the sudden sadness in his eyes and shook his head. He moved to go lay on the bed. "No, I guess I'm just surprised you asked."

"I just miss having you near by when I go to sleep and wake up," he told him as he turned on his side to look at him.

"You want me to spend the night?" Nick asked. He was not sure he was ready yet.

"No, you do not have to stay the night. I was just simply saying, you know maybe someday again." He started biting his bottom lip, feeling stupid for asking and looked down.

Nick understood him wanting to feel close to him but he was afraid to touch him. When he saw how skinny he really was he realized the seriousness of it all. "Look, why don't you just try to get some sleep? You need your rest," Nick finally said to him.

Greg looked at him and saw the resistance from him to touch him beyond his hand. "Yeah. Okay. Goodnight." He couldn't look at him anymore. He turned over to sleep faced away from him. He now realized his fears about Nick knowing about his cancer was partially coming true. He seemed to scarcely want to be close to him or touch him. It ended up hurting him more emotionally than he dared admit.

***

Nick spent an hour next to Greg before getting up quietly and leaving his place. He figured he was better sleeping in his own bed since his arm was still in a sling. He wanted to go back early though so Greg would see him in the morning.

He got to Greg's apartment and knocked on the door. His mother opened the door looking worried. "What's wrong?" He asked her immediately.

She shook her head, trying to hold back tears. "He's having a bad morning. He's in the bathroom and won't open the door for me."
"Do you know why?" Nick asked her, wondering if he was throwing up again.

"I'm not sure. He just sometimes gets this way."

Nick wondered if it was because he was not there when he woke up. "Let me see if I can get through to him."

He walked up to the bathroom door. "Greg, it's me, Nick. Can I come in?"
"Just leave me alone," the younger man yelled out. Nick could hear in his voice that he was upset.

"Your mom is worried about you. Let me in or I'll force my way in." Nick said firmly. He eventually heard the door unlock.

Nick opened the door slowly to see Greg sitting on the side of his tub, looking in the mirror; his face very somber. Nick tried to figure out what was up. "What's wrong?"

He just remained staring at his gaunt self in the mirror. He suddenly ran his hand through his hair and then displayed his palm full of his hair to Nick. He looked at his palm full of hair and said, "it's getting worse. Soon there will be none."

Nick knew he always prided himself on his hair and now understood why he was upset. He went over and knelt in front of him, blocking his reflection in the mirror. "It will grow back. It's just temporary."

Tears started forming in his big brown eyes. "I look hideous. You hardly even want to touch me," he cried and buried his face in his hands.

Nick felt horrible. He realized he had been hurting him more by keeping his distance from him. He knew he had to do something to make it up to him. He pulled Greg's hands away from his face and pulled his face close to him to place a tender, loving kiss on his lips. He pulled back far enough to stare into his tear-filled, shocked eyes.

"You will always be beautiful to me. I did not think you wanted me to touch you," he tried explaining.

"No," he whispered. "I need you to touch me. I want to feel like I am still alive," he said quietly.

Nick's heart ached for him. "If I did not have my one arm in a sling right now, I would hold you tight."

"How about an one armed hug, then?" Greg suggested with a tiny smile.

Nick chuckled. "Okay, I can try that." He wrapped his good arm around him and Greg gingerly laid his head on his good shoulder. Nick realized how much he missed holding the younger man. He did not think about how thin he was or how sick he was. He just though of the love he had been trying to deny for the man he now held, the love he tried to deny when he thought he had cheated on him.

"Hey, I have an idea," Nick suddenly said. He broke the embrace.

"What?" Greg asked, his eyes still shiny.

"Well, it's summer and you know how I buzz my hair off pretty much. How about we get matching hairstyles?"

Greg smiled. "Yeah, I can do that with you."

Nick was glad he found a way to make him smile and feel better about his hair loss. "The only problem is I do not trust myself to do it with one hand. Maybe we can get your mom to help us out. Do you even own clippers?"

"Yes, I do from when I shaved the sides of my head years ago. I just have to find them," Greg told him.

"Good. I'll go get your mom."

A half-hour later Nick and Greg both sported super short buzz cuts. Since Nick had worn his hair that short before it did not bother him but he noticed Greg kept running his hand over his almost baldhead.

"Dang, it's just so weird feeling hardly any hair," Greg said as he looked at his new look in the mirror.

Nick was surprised that he actually looked good with it, but of course he preferred Greg's hair longer, something to grab onto, he thought fondly. "At least you don't notice the hair loss now."

"Yeah, mostly." He turned and looked at Nick and his mother. "Is it too late for breakfast?" He asked with a slight apologetic look to his mom for his behavior earlier.

"No, it's not too late. I'll whip up some eggs for you. Nick, you want anything?"
"Sure, scrambled is fine for me."

"Okay, I'll go make some for you boys." She left them alone in the bedroom.

Greg sat down on the side of the bed. Nick came to sit next to him. He looked at the younger man. "You feeling better now?"

Greg gave him a small smile. "A bit, thanks."

Nick raised his hand to Greg's face and caressed his cheek. "You're going to get through this, I promise." He leaned forward and pressed his lips against the chapped ones of his boyfriend. Greg parted his lips to allow the tongue probing them in. Their tongues dueled for dominance before Greg had to pull back to catch his breath.

"God, I missed you kissing me like that," he smiled.

"You would not have had to if you had told me the truth from the start," Nick said without thinking. He immediately regretted it when he saw his partner's smile fade. He had lowered his head.

"I said I was sorry," he mumbled. He stood up and started walking out of the bedroom. Nick quickly stood up and grabbed his arm. "Greg, I am sorry. I should have never said anything."

Greg turned to look at him. "No, I am glad you did. I need to face the fact that I made a huge mistake and you are not going to let me live it down. Now please let me go. I bruise easily these days." He was trying to keep his calm and not get upset in front of Nick.

Nick let go of his arm and let him walk out the door. He was not use to Greg being so sensitive with his feelings. He guessed the chemotherapy could cause a lot of the problems. Monica Sanders had told him about the various side effects it could have on him.

He walked out and saw Greg sitting at the kitchen table, sulking. He took a seat across from him and just stared at him. Greg's mother placing their plates of food in front of them broke up the stare down. They both quietly ate their food.

Monica Sanders could sense something was wrong between them but she did not want to butt in.

After they all finished eating she finally got sick of the silence between them.

"What did you two get into a fight about now?" She asked them, looking furious.

They both looked at her and then each other. Greg sighed, feeling a wave of fatigue come over him. "I got mad at Nick for no reason. He has every right to be mad at me for lying to him," he told her.

Nick was taken by surprise with what he said. "Greg, look I'm sorry. You do not need me hounding you right now; you have enough on your mind. Truce?"

Greg looked at Nick and smiled. "Truce. How about a game of Guitar Hero?"

"I'll play you but not that game. You always kick my ass. How about some Call of Duty?"

"You're on!"