The next six months flew by, with Nick and Holly becoming inseparable. Each time he was home, he was spending every moment he could with her. He spent Christmas Eve at her family's house and she spent Christmas day at his house with his family. He had completely fallen in love with her and she fell just as hard. She still wasn't much of a wrestling fan, now because she didn't want to see him in pain. He understood why she didn't watch him and never made a big deal out of it. She finally confided in him about her ex and the reasons she was so leery of getting involved. She confessed that at first she was terrified of how good Nick made her feel. He told her about his exes as well, and how much they had hurt him. Holly saw all there was of Nick, the complete package and realized how right Matt was. Nick is a good man with a big heart who never found a woman to love and that would show him the devotion back that he showed her.
Holly's family adored Nick and thought he was the perfect match for her. They were thrilled he knew sign language because her other boyfriends always seemed to feel left out. Nick's mom, Kelly was delighted that her son had found someone that could handle his personality and that made him happy. She liked Holly and saw that she genuinely was as in love as Nick was.
Holly was at home waiting for a call from Nick after the SmackDown taping in North Carolina. She wanted to know when to expect him back. When her phone rang, she was surprised at the female voice on the other end. "Hey, Holly. It's AJ."
"AJ? Uh, hey. What are you doing with Nick's phone?"
"He got a really bad concussion during a match tonight. He has been with the doctors the past hour. He is pretty out of it."
"Oh my God!"
"Don't panic, I mean he is going to be okay. He has a severe headache and he doesn't know where he is right now, but they said that should pass. E and I will keep an eye on him tonight and make sure he gets on the plane in the morning. You will need to pick him up though."
"Definitely. I will take the day off work so I can take care of him. You are sure he is okay, AJ?"
"Yeah, he will be fine I am sure. He is going to the hospital to get checked out, but Doc Sampson is certain that he will recover in a few days with some rest."
"How did it happen?"
"He got kicked in the head. He finished the match so we didn't know how bad he was. Hey, I gotta go. We are going to ride with him to the hospital. I will call you later if anything changes."
"Okay, thank you. Tell him I love him."
"I will. By the way, before I forget, he will be landing about 11 in the morning."
"I will be there. Thanks." Holly hung up and started to cry. Nick getting hurt was her worst fear and she couldn't be there to take care of him. She was glad AJ and E were with him but wished it was her instead. Later on, she thought about calling, but decided he needed to rest. She called her boss and told him he needed to find a replacement for the rest of the week because she wouldn't be at school. She said she would fax lesson plans for the sub. She tried to sleep that night, but couldn't because her mind was on Nick.
The next day, she was waiting for Nick at the airport when he arrived. He saw her and smiled and she was relieved to see him. She hugged him gently and walked him out to the car. "How are you feeling today?"
"I still have a terrible headache. I can't remember anything from the past two days. Everything just feels fuzzy around the edges. I still feel a little woozy too but I am glad to be home."
"I am glad too. I am taking you back to my place and will be your slave until you are better."
"You know you don't have to do that."
"I know, but I want to. I want to take care of you and make you all better. You scared the shit out of me, Nicholas, so I have to keep an eye on you."
"Okay, I will let you play nurse and tend to my every need," he said grinning.
"Oh I will have to get a nurse costume or a candy striper outfit or something, once you are on the mend." He laughed and leaned back in the seat, closing his eyes. She looked over concerned at him. She was trying to keep his spirits up, but she was really worried about him. She couldn't believe he had been hit hard enough that he lost his memory.
They made it back to her condo and she made him sit on the couch. She took his clothes and put them in the washer then told him she would go to his house and get some more of his things later. "Holly, come here and sit down." He saw that she was nervous and trying to keep busy. She sat beside him and he took her hand, "this is all very kind of you, but I don't want you to be so worried about me."
She bit back her tears, not wanting to upset him, but he could tell. "Babe, don't cry on my account."
"I just don't want anything to happen to you," she told him, her voice cracking.
He pulled her into his arms, "it's not. I will be okay as long as I have you here with me." The tears began to fall and Nick felt bad for putting her through this. "I'm sorry."
"No, don't apologize. I am sorry for being so emotional. I should be comforting you," she said, wiping her eyes.
"We will comfort each other, okay? That is how this works right?" he asked with a soft smile.
"You are right. Why don't we go upstairs and take a nap? I know you are tired and you need your rest. I will make us some dinner later unless you are hungry."
"No, I think I want to lie down, if you promise to stay with me."
"I promise." She took his hand and helped him up, and led him up the stairs. She helped him get undressed and pulled back the covers for him. He got into bed and she scooted in beside him. He lay his head on her chest and she slowly ran her fingers through his hair. He closed his eyes, her touch soothing him. She whispered softly to him, telling him how much she loves him. She vigilantly watched over him, petrified of him going into a coma. She had become an expert on concussions since AJ told her Nick had one and she read everything she could find on causes, signs and symptoms, treatment, complications and prognosis. She remembered what it said about concussion victims sometimes becoming unconscious and slipping away.
She heard his phone ring and thought it might be important, like from his doctor so she eased out of his grasp and went to answer it. She looked at the screen and saw it was his mom. She stepped out of the bedroom and answered "hi, Kelly."
"Hello, Holly. How is my son doing?"
"He is okay. He is sleeping right now." Holly sat down on the stairs, not wanting to go too far from him. "He seems more to himself than he was from what AJ said, but he still has a bad headache."
"What did the doctor say? Will he be fine?"
"He just has to rest and they will retest him in a few days. He is supposed to meet with another doctor tomorrow who works for the Phoenix Suns to look at him. I am going to take off so I can go with him. I am scared for him to drive."
"He has never had a concussion like this, never. Not even through school, in any sport. It worried us when we heard he didn't know where he was."
"I know, it worried me too. But I promise I will watch over him and take care of him. If anything happens I will call you. I will be here with him, Kelly I swear."
"I know you will, sweetheart. I am glad you are there and he has you. Call me later."
"Sure thing." She hung the phone up and went back in the bedroom where Nick was still sleeping soundly. She slid back into bed and curled her arms around him. She wanted to protect him and make sure he was safe. She hated that she couldn't just snap her fingers and make it all go away. Nick was like her Superman, and it hurt her to see him like this.
She stayed with him a few more hours then got up to make dinner. She wanted to make him something he would really like and appeal to him. She made chicken cordon bleu with asparagus. When Nick woke up he smelled food cooking so he staggered into the bathroom and down the stairs. She glanced over and saw him stumbling and rushed over to him. "What are you doing? Are you okay?" She walked him over to the couch and made him sit.
He tried to stand back up, "I am okay, babe..." he said before he started to get dizzy. He plopped back down on the couch, "whoa. The room is spinning."
She looked concerned at him, "okay, no more of that. You stay put." She took him a plate on a TV tray and when he was done, she walked him back up the stairs and helped him in the shower. She washed his hair for him and bathed him since bending over made him dizzy. She dried him off when he got out of the shower, and massaged his shoulders and back with aromatherapy massage oil as he sat on the edge of the bed. She felt all the tension in his muscles and wanted him to relax.
The next morning she took him to his appointment. The doctor said a CT scan was not necessary, but he diagnosed Nick with retrograde amnesia. He told Nick that he wanted to see him again in a couple of days. Nick was worried because his head wouldn't stop hurting. They wouldn't give him pain medicine because they didn't want to disguise any changes in level of consciousness by sedating him.
By the next week, WWE flew Nick to Pittsburg to be checked out by a specialist since his symptoms weren't getting any better. Holly had to go back to work so she couldn't go with him, and felt horrible that he was out there alone. When he got back home to LA, Holly tried everything she could to cheer him up. He was starting to get depressed and she hated seeing him so down. She put up blackout curtains all around to keep it dark in the condo for him and she doted on him every moment she was with him.
As the weeks went by, he was still having headaches and slipping further into depression. Holly was very worried about him but didn't know how to help him. Nick's headache never went away no matter how long he slept and he told her he still felt woozy. When he first tried to get out of bed in the morning, he was unsteady on his feet and light-headed. He tried to hide it from his girlfriend, but she saw. He wasn't really the Nick she had come to love and that scared her. He wouldn't talk about what was really bothering him, not wanting to say it aloud. He was afraid that if his symptoms never subsided, he would never be able to be in the ring again.
Over a month had passed and the headaches were only minimally better. He was moody and crabby because they told him no physical exertion and also included sex in that. He despised being home with Holly and not being able to enjoy everything about being with her. He wondered if this was the end of his WWE career and how Holly would react if he had to give up wrestling. He honestly never wanted to do anything but be a wrestler and had no idea what he would do if he wasn't Dolph Ziggler anymore.
