Hope you like it. Thanks for the reviews on the last chapter and I'm glad someone picked up on a little subtle thing I dropped in the past few chapters.
- - -
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
When Dylan came back, barely twenty minutes later, Alex was still talking with his room buddy, Nigel. She stopped when the guy winked at her and Alex grinned. "Hey."
"Hi," she replied, "I'm Dylan."
"Yeah, Alex told me. I'm Nigel, nice to meet you," he said to her, holding his hand out to her.
"Nice to meet you as well." She took his hand after moving round to his bed.
"You're much prettier than I thought you would be." Dylan went red as Alex slowly ate the sandwich she'd given him, not feeling all too good from the pain killers he'd been given earlier on. "TV makes you look much more harsher."
"Thanks. So, how you feeling? Both of you?"
"I'm better now they've get everything back in place," Nigel answered. Dylan sat down on Alex's bed and put her hand on his leg. Every wrestler feared injuring their legs. They all knew those type of injuries could lead to the end of their career but that's the price they paid for doing the stunts they did and taking the risks they took.
She glanced at Alex. "Good. Painkiller are helping."
"I'm going to ask them for a blanket, unless I'm not allowed to stay in here," she said, more or less talking to herself.
"Stay on here with me," Alex told her and didn't see the other man smile at the very blatantly obvious look on Alex's face.
"I can't. I'll be right back."
Alex watched her go and Nigel chuckled. "You got it bad, little dude," he stated.
"Got what bad? She's my friend," he defended himself.
Nigel scoffed. "Yeah sure. Every time she is in the room you are staring. Whenever she leaves you act like you've been deprived of your favourite toy."
Alex groaned, letting his head drop back. "Am I really that pathetically obvious?"
The other man chuckled. "You can see she cares for ya man."
"Yeah- as a friend."
Nigel smiled. "I wouldn't be so sure about that." He saw the simple gesture between both Alex and Dylan. There was more to their relationship than just friendship. "Plus, you never corrected the nurse this arvo when she called her your girl."
- - -
Dylan came back with two blankets and a pillow one of the more kinder nurses gave her. Alex watched her curl up in the chair on the side of his bed closest to the door. "Dylan."
"I'm fine just please get some sleep."
Despite he wanted her to join him, Alex reluctantly switched off the light as did Nigel.
- - -
Morning found Dylan being woken up by the sound of laughing. Opening her eyes, she found a young boy peering at her from Alex's bed. She sat up and found Nigel had a few visitors and some of which were now watching her. Alex was sitting over with Nigel. The boy held a pen out to her and a piece of paper. Alex had already signed it and she smiled.
"What's your name, kiddo?"
"Daniel." She wrote a little message and signed it.
"Hey, she's up." Dylan smiled at Nigel and then at the rest of the group.
"Has the doctor been, yet?"
Alex nodded. "Yeah, he said when I'm dressed and ready I could go."
She picked up the boy and lifted him off the bed as Alex came over, limping slightly. He was sore, stiff and still groggy but felt a hell of a lot better than when he'd woken up yesterday.
He shut the curtain and stepped round to her side of the bed.
She'd managed to get a singlet on him to save him from more than likely being gawked at and had decided to leave that on him. The rain had disappeared and been replaced by a warm, sunny day so that was good.
She looked at him. As uncomfortable as this was for her, it was just the same in his case but she could do this. He needed the help even if part of her was screaming at herself to just give in to the urge and kiss him.
It had been a week since he'd even remotely tried anything and as hard as she tried to tell herself that she just wanted him as a friend something was telling her a completely different thing.
- - -
Alex had, had Chris drive him to the hospital and so Dylan was able to drive him back to his house without having to worry about his car. As he directed her to his house he noticed she kept tapping her hands against the steering wheel as if nervous.
"If you're nervous or worried, you don't have to do this," he said after watching her do it again a few more times.
"Its not that. I'm happy to help you, its just I got some things on my mind," she answered.
- - -
Dylan was slightly taken back by how clean and nice Alex's place was. Tyson's house was a mess even when she cleaned up. This place however was completely clean. PS2 and Wii consoles were placed near the television and entertainment stand. Tyson had controllers and leads lying halfway across the room. There were no empty beer bottles on the ground or hidden between the couch pads. She bet there were no women's underwear laying in his bed either.
"Wow!" she exclaimed.
"What?" he asked, turning to look at her.
"Everything is so nice. Even my dads isn't this nice." He grinned as he shut the door. Just as he made to take her coat off her, Dylan pulled away. "I'm fine. You need to go and rest."
He sighed but did as she said, walking into the lounge room, locating the television remote and then surfing the channels.
- - -
Come Wednesday night, Dylan was slightly worried about Thursday. Alex's mother had called and told him that she would be there early. Since his operation on Monday, Dylan had changed his dressing, kept him fed and even watched the moves he wanted to watch. They actually weren't bad. The only thing that she really had troubled with was when it came to changing his bandages and trying to not stare at his body.
Whenever he showered, she had to help him get dressed, thankfully he was able to get his underwear on without her help. The stitches were clean and the waterproof patches that they'd been given made sure she didn't need to worry about when he did shower.
She was in the kitchen washing the dishes when she felt him.
Her breathing hitched slightly as she felt him standing directly behind her. Turning to face him she watched as he took hold of had hand and lead her to the table. "What are you doing?" she inquired.
"I kinda need to explain my mother to you. She doesn't watch me wrestle, in fact she hates wrestling period. She only ever calls me Patrick, no matter how much it annoys me. We Catholic and she has a thing about tattoos but don't worry too much cause I still like yours," he started, making her blush, "She doesn't know you're here so if she's-"
"Alex, don't worry about it, okay. I'm sure everything will be alright. I'm not some blood letting demon harpy bitch troll from Hell."
Alex started laughing at her description in reply before watching her get up and go back to what she was doing.
- - -
Alex had just gotten changed into a pair of long camouflage pants and a singlet when Dylan got up that Thursday morning. "Alex," she whined, seeing what he was wearing.
"What? I didn't pull the stitches or nothing," he told her, knowing exactly what she was complaining about. He chuckled when she shook her head and did something unexpected. He kissed her cheek. "Don't worry so much."
She went slightly red as he leaned down to kiss her again but the moment was broken as the doorbell rung. She headed for the door while he followed. Dylan was slightly taken back by the action he'd just shown her when he had been so- friend only since his operation.
Opening the door, she found a woman and a young girl standing in front of them. Alex spoke before Dylan could.
"Hey mom, sis." Dylan smiled at the two women who both looked surprised to see her. "Mom, Jen, I'd like you to meet my friend Dylan Mackenzie. Dylan- this is my mom, Judy and my kid sister Jenny."
Dylan held her hand out and smiled at the young girl who immediately took her hand. "Dylan Hardy? TNA Knockout?" She nodded and saw his mother look at her a little more harshly.
She turned her handshake to the woman who simply nodded at her and brushed by her. Despite that it made her feel uncomfortable Dylan smiled up at Alex who glanced at her in worry.
- - -
Dylan kept out of the same room that Alex's mother was in the entire morning. She was sitting out the back on one of the chairs when Alex found her. "You alright?"
"She doesn't like me, does she?"
Alex sighed. "Don't take it personal, Pixie."
- - -
Jenny stood in the kitchen, watching silently as Alex and Dylan spoke outside. Her mother came up behind her.
"Eavesdropping Jen, that's not a nice habit."
"Why do you need to treat her so cruelly, mom? Can't you see Pat likes her and she likes him?"
Judy shook her head. "Jenny, your brother could find a nice, non-tattooed girl who dresses nicely and knows how to talk to another person."
"Mom! You've been avoiding her all day."
- - -
Dylan stood up and watched as Alex followed suit. "I think I should go and come back once she's gone."
"N- Where will you go?" he asked, knowing if she wanted to leave he couldn't stop her.
"Sabin's. He needs some good female company for the day and I promise I'll be back," she told him, leaning up to kiss him on the cheek.
"Please don't go," he pleaded. The reason he didn't want her to go was because he knew the moment she left, he wouldn't be able to do anything. His mother would put on some stupid Soap Opera television show and would complain about something. That's what he liked most about Dylan. It wasn't some prima ballerina. She was herself. A rough and tough girl with a great personality.
She left him standing on the back porch and sighed before following her inside. Jenny met them at the door and said goodbye to Dylan and hoped she'd see her again. Dylan said the same thing and the siblings watched her go.
As he sat down on the couch, he groaned when Jenny sat on the side which was not occupied by his mother. "So, she is a wrestler?" his mother inquired.
"Mom, couldn't you just be nice for one day? She is a good friend and you made her uncomfortable."
Jenny laid her head down on his good shoulder. "Aw, Alex has a crush on his friend," she said, laughing.
He shoved her away. "Get lost, Jenny."
"I knew it!" she exclaimed.
"Patrick, can't you find a girl like the last one? She was nice."
Jenny and Alex both rolled their eyes at the same time.
"Yeah, until she screwed around with her best girlfriend on him. I like Dylan. She is really nice. And hey mom think of it this way- any girl who can look after Pat for two weeks on her own is dateable material for him in my books."
"Your opinion don't count, cause you're only seventeen," he told her in reply.
"Bull it doesn't. I'm your sister, besides she likes you just as much as you like her. You kissed her yet?"
Alex didn't want to be stuck in this conversation and as such used the excuse his shoulder was aching and he was going to go and lay down in bed.
- - -
Chris opened the front door and stopped when he saw who stood there. She quirked one eyebrow and gave his appearance a once over before bursting out laughing. He frowned at her. "I don't look that stupid do I?"
He had his nephew for the day and they'd gotten into a ritual of playing cowboys and Indians. The game had gotten to the point where both of them had costumes of their own and Chris was always the Indian. Hence why he was only dressed in an Indian style costume. The strip of cloth came down to his knees and that was all he had on. And some war paint covered his bare chest, arms, naked calves and his face.
"You don't look stupid," she stammered out between laughter. "I just never pictured you doing something like that. What are you doing anyway?"
"Playing- with my nephew. I'm the Indian and he is the cowboy, and he is hiding around the backyard somewhere with two toy guns," he explained to her, leaning against the doorframe, crossing his arms across his chest.
"Cute," she said.
"So has Alex driven you crazy in just three days?" he inquired.
She shook her head. "His mom and sister are there. Judy doesn't like me all that much."
Chris nodded and then pulled her inside. "Well, you know what? I'm the bad guy and the bad guy always steals the helpless maiden," he said, wriggling his eyebrows playfully before picking her up over his shoulder. She yelped when he ran through to the back of the house and called out that they had an extra person to play with them.