Tom stood in the hospital's waiting room, not knowing where to look; the door opened and Karen came in.
"I got here as soon as I got your message." She looked even more worried than him, which confused him slightly. "Where is he?"
"They've just taken him to the ward." He crossed his arms over his chest. "Probably getting him to settle."
She nodded in acknowledgement. "I wondered where he'd gone."
"So you let him do that?" Tom put to her, horrified. "I thought you of all people would be trying to make him stop."
"Tom, this wasn't his fault." Karen protested.
"Wasn't his fault that he pretty much drank himself to death?" He suddenly came over more protective of Chris. "You know the states he gets in when he's had a few?"
"He was not drinking." She gazed at him steadily. "Charlie assaulted him."
He came over a little shocked. "B-but Karen…I found him outside. He looked drunk."
"Where did you find him?"
"Well…not far from where I live." Tom thought back. "Are you sure he hadn't been drinking at all?"
Karen shakily looked away, suddenly feeling sick. Chris had gone all that way, when he was badly injured...what on earth possessed him to do that? And why won't Tom believe her side of the story? He looked perfectly sober when he turned up! "Tom, I literally only saw him when he came over. As far as I know, he hadn't touched anything."
"Well, take a seat for now." He placed a hand on her back and helped her to sit down on the nearest chair; he positioned himself on the one next to her. "They need to get him settled first."

In the corridor lining the wards, Tom was talking with the doctor who had been looking after Chris, trying to get a better idea of how unwell he was.
After much talking, he came back over to her. "We need to let him recover."
"Tom, I need to see him." She insisted.
"We can't see him, he's not awake." He rubbed her back. "Give him a day or so…he'll wake up when he's ready."
She nodded weakly.
"He'll be fine, Karen…he's a strong kid."

A day had passed.
Karen could barely come into work, which bothered Tom; he went round to see her when the last of his sets was over, in an attempt to find out more about what was going on.
She let him in, not knowing why he was round. "Have you heard from the hospital?"

"No, still nothing." He sat down next to her in her lounge. "Is there something I should know about, Karen?"
"No. I don't think so." She flitted her gaze to the floor. "Something like what?"

"Like why you weren't in today would be a good start." Tom came closer to her. "It isn't because of Chris, is it?"
She nodded faintly. "I don't think I can work without him."
"But you're not without him. He's still alive." He put to her reassuringly, a bit confused at what Karen had said. "Has something happened between you guys?"
She closed her eyes in an attempt to stop the tears from falling. It didn't work. "Chris and I have been seeing each other, Tom."
Tom was shocked at this revelation. "What?"
"I know. I know it seems bad, but Charlie had been assaulting me, and I came to him for help."
"I think you wanted more than just help from him."
"Tom, please understand. Both of us knew what we were doing. I wanted to go slow with Chris, he understood that." She shuddered a little. "That's why I don't want him to get sicker."
"He won't get sicker. Not when he's got people looking after him." He assured her. "I can't help but feel what you guys are doing is a bit…risky."
"We weren't together." Karen peered back up at Tom. "Not when this happened."
Tom heard his mobile go off and he answered it. It was from the hospital, and he was on that call for some time.
She looked worried as he hung up.
"Doctors say that we can see him." He told her faintly.
A wave of relief washed over her. "Thank god he's better."
"Only mildly better for now." He had to remain cautious; as with any illness or injury, Chris could get better and then worse, and vice versa.
"Please take me up there." Karen pleaded with him.

Every muscle in his body felt heavy; his eyelids flickered unsteadily before he allowed them to open.
He sat up, feeling his back stiffen from being positioned in bed for so long.
"Relax, relax…it's ok now."
Two hands at each of his sides held him back down in bed, denying him the chance to get up and get out.
"Try and get some sleep…"

Karen shakily peered up at the doctor who had entered the waiting room.
"He's awake if you want to see him." He told her and Tom, who had been pacing the floor.
They waited outside the ward Chris was kept in, as a nurse came out.
"He's still very weak so try and go slow with him." She told them reassuringly.
Tom went in first, seeing the smaller male wrapped up in a few blankets; he looked pale and weak, but otherwise awake. "Hey there, mate. How are you holding up?"
"Feel so tired and sick."
Karen came in, immediately prompting Chris to want her to sit with him. "Thank god you're awake."
"Did he hurt you?" He peered up at her sleepily, as she slid her fingers through his dark bangs.
"He tried to rape me again, but I got away in time."
He nodded in acknowledgement. "Sorry."
She smiled softly. "Sorry for what?"
"For not stopping him." A wave of nausea hit his stomach, and he lay back down in order to ease it.
"Chris, don't worry about that. Try and get some sleep – so you can get your energy back." Karen planted a kiss on his forehead. "I love you."
Tom hovered by the door, overhearing their conversation, and also watching the way they were being with each other; they were unusually close, almost intimate.
God only knows what they do when they have their breaks together, he thought to himself.
He felt a stab of jealousy when he watched her slide a stray bang back to where it should've been. Why the hell did he suddenly feel jealous? Was it because of how close they were? Perhaps so. Or was it because of the sheer perplexity of why Karen had managed to get someone so young compared to her?
Either way, he had to get the jealous feelings to stop – before he got into her bad books, or before he destroyed his friendship with Chris.