A/N: Sorry about the wait on this chapter! Thank you for everyone who has been reviewing. It means a lot to me that you guys are liking this story.

With a knock on his door, Tristan jumped about ten feet in the air. It was the first time he was going to see Rory since he had moved out, and he had to admit, he was more nervous than when he had moved into her place. He took one more look around before heading towards the door.

"Hey." He said with a smile as he opened the door.

"Hello." She smiled and gave him a kiss. "So this is the place?" She said as she took off her jacket.

"This is it." He said as she strolled past him, ready to inspect the place. "Come on in." He muttered to himself.

"It's big." She realized.

"So I've been told." He smirked. She turned around to show just how amused she was by his joke. "Dinner is almost ready, do you want something to drink?" He asked, changing the subject. "I've got some wine in the fridge."

"Sure. I'm going to keep looking around, if it's okay by you." She said as she wandered down the hall. She found his bedroom, the bathroom, and what looked like it could be an office, but it was still completely empty. When she moved back towards the kitchen, there was a glass of wine waiting for her on the counter.

"And?" Tristan asked, wanting her opinion.

"You did good." She said. "It's nice. The spare room is a little empty though."

"Yeah, I haven't quite figured out what to do with it yet." He said.

"Oh, I got you a house-warming gift." She said, reaching into her purse. "But you don't have to take it."

"Why wouldn't I want to take it?" He asked suspiciously.

"I wasn't sure how literal you were being about the 'No help from Rory' situation." She teased as she handed him the envelope. He rolled his eyes briefly before opening his gift.

"A gift certificate to a massage parlor." He raised one eyebrow. "You've been talking to Josh and Drew." He knew instantly.

"I just assumed that after all that moving, you could use a stress-reliever. Why? What do they know?" Rory's curiosity was peaked.

"Nothing. I just told them that my shoulder was bothering me."

"Since when?" Rory wanted to know.

"Since a building fell on it." He joked. Again, Rory didn't find the joke quite as amusing as he did. "Thank you." He kissed her chastely to change the subject. "I will most definitely use this." He set it down on the table.

"Can I ask you a serious question?" Rory asked.

"Can I stop you?" He said with a grin.

"Have you really been in pain since the accident?" She asked. Tristan shrugged.

"It comes and goes. Some days I get stiff and sore, others, I don't even notice that anything has changed. Lately it's been worse."

"Have you told your doctor?" She asked.

"Ror, I had a building collapse on top of me, not to mention multiple surgeries in multiple countries, some soreness now and then is to be expected."

"I guess." She sighed.

"Do you want to kiss it and make it better?" He offered, rolling up the sleeve of his t-shirt. She fought the smile that came with his ridiculousness.

"Maybe later." She said. "Right now, I'm starving."

"That I can fix." He said with a proud smile.

OOOOO

"Come here." Tristan said, grabbing Rory's arm and pulling her into his lap. She left her legs hanging over the arm of the sofa and placed her head on his shoulder. "Are you mad at me?" He asked, entwining his fingers through hers and examined her hand.

"No." She said, surprised by his question.

"You've been at least a foot away from me all night long." He was met with silence.

"I didn't realize." She sighed. "I guess I'm just not sure what the rules are now."

"The rules?" He questioned, moving his stare from their hands to her face.

"You know, regarding you and me. I'm trying to give you a little space, and I know that this whole thing has made me miss you like crazy so I guess, subconsciously, I'm preventing myself from being too clingy." Tristan smiled.

"Just because I moved out doesn't mean that I don't want you all over me. Quite the contrary, actually." He clarified. "That's why I asked. I haven't seen you in over a week and yet you've barely been in the same room with me since you've gotten here."

"I'm sorry." She squeezed his hand to show that she meant it.

"So do you have plans for tomorrow?" He asked slyly.

"No." She shook her head. "Why?"

"I'm just wondering if you're going to stay the night." She glanced at him.

"Do you want me to spend the night?" She asked, not willing to give him an answer.

"Do you really have to ask me that?" He raised an eyebrow.

"This whole independence thing was your idea. You tell me."

"Do you honestly think that sleeping together is going to make my life worse?" He asked, laughter in his voice. "Because that thought is ridiculous."

"Alright." She said, standing up. "You want to get your feet back on the ground, American-style? You're going to have to work for it, like every other man in America." She said, moving to the other side of the couch. He smiled confidently as he slid next to her. He threw an arm over her shoulder so he could whisper in her ear.

"Challenge accepted." He whispered, sending chills down her spine already.

OOOOO

The next morning, Tristan's shoulder was feeling even worse. He glanced down at Rory, who was sleeping angelically next to him, and he cringed as she shifted on his arm. He felt like it was so apropos of what he was experiencing. Here she was: sleeping blissfully, completely ignorant of her surroundings all the while looking gorgeous; meanwhile, he was painfully awake, broken, and unable to talk to her about it. The last thing he wanted was to ruin that for her, because once she woke up, there was no going back.

OOOOO

"So I've been doing some research and I believe that I have come up with a brilliant plan in regards to your job search that doesn't require you to do anything morally reprehensible or illegal in any way." Josh said as he sat down next to Tristan.

"Sounds too good to be true."

"I know. But it's not, I promise." He said.

"Okay, hit me." He said.

"What about teaching ROTC?" He asked.

"Um, I left the Army, remember?" Tristan pointed out.

"I know but this would be all of the military without any of the actual combat. You could have a relatively normal nine to five job, have a cozy desk to hide behind, and you could keep wearing the uniform which would insure that you keep getting laid." Tristan glared at Josh.

"I should have never told you that story."

"But you did." Josh smiled, letting his mind wander.

"Back to the job." Tristan requested.

"Right. Where was I?"

"A desk to hide behind."

"Right. Anyway, this guy I know at BU told me that they have a great ROTC program and that they were interested in hiring you."

"Have you been job searching for me?" He asked his friend.

"Maybe." He said. "Anyway, here is his card." Josh said as he reached into his wallet. "There you go. Give him a call, just ask what he does all day."

"I'll think about it." Tristan said as he got up from the couch and went into the kitchen. He grabbed a glass of water and reached into his cupboard for his new muscle relaxers. Today was a bad day.

"What are you taking now?" Josh asked as he grabbed the bottle from Tristan and sat down at the table to read the label.

"They're for my shoulder."

"Why?"

"The Doc says it's a lost cause."

"What are you talking about?" Josh had that same concerned look that Drew had when Tristan had mentioned it.

"The rest of me is healing, healthy even, but my shoulder isn't."

"Does it bother you?" Tristan nodded as he swallowed the pills.

"They think it's going to keep bothering me for a while."

"They can't do another surgery?" Josh asked.

"Nothing left to put together. It's string cheese as it is."

"Jesus. Why didn't you say anything?"

"It's not that big of deal. I'm just going to keep taking the meds and manage the pain that way." Josh closed his eyes.

"Does Rory know?" He asked, knowing that she didn't.

"She was the one who told me to go see the doctor, but no." He said. "You know how easily she freaks out about things like this. If I told her I stubbed my toe she would be over here in ten minutes."

"Because she loves you." He said. "Look, I know that you want to be independent again, and you will be, but you can't keep something like that a secret."

"I'm not. I'm going to tell her. I just have to find the right time." Josh gave him a look of pity. "Relax, it's just some pain. All things considered, I can handle it." He reassured him.

OOOOO

"Ror, I gotta tell you something." Tristan sighed and tried again. "Rory, we need to talk." He rolled his eyes. "Can I talk to you for a second?" He sat down dejectedly on the bed. This was not going to work. She was going to freak out. There was a knock on the door. He cursed under his breath.

"Tristan?" Rory called out as she opened the door.

"In the bedroom." He said, standing up. She met him in the hallway and smiled.

"Still getting ready?" She asked as she kissed him.

"Something like that." He said. She noticed how uneasy he looked.

"What's wrong?" She asked.

"I've got some news." She tried to swallow away the sinking feeling in her gut. Instead, she put her game face on and walked with him back towards the living room. Tristan saw the change.

"It's about my shoulder." He told her. "It's shot and they don't know if it can be fixed." Rory sighed.

"Tris," She said, reaching for his hand. "I'm sorry."

"It's fine. I'm just not really in the mood for that movie." He said. She nodded in understanding.

"We can do it some other time." She said. "Do you want to talk about it?" She asked. Tristan shook his head.

"I'm so tired of talking about it." He said, letting himself pout for the first time since he found out.

"I understand that." She said. "Do you want me to go?" She asked, not wanting to leave him sad, but wanting to respect his needs.

"Absolutely not." He said, pulling her closer to him. He gave her a kiss that lit up her soul, and allowed them both to forget what they had been talking about.

"God, you're good at that." She smiled.

"It's a gift." He muttered before kissing her again.

"Are you sure you're okay?" Rory asked.

"I will be." Tristan said, hoping that it was true.