Thanks for the wonderful reviews, hope you enjoy this one, like I said I'm trying to update more often so here goes!
Hope it's okay, I know it's shorter than usual; so sorry about that. 8-) Oh and don't skip to the end!
Chapter 20.
Brax and Ruby sprung up from their seats as Sid Walker approached them with a clipboard.
"Twice in one week, I take it the Bucktons quite like hospitals." Sid smiled softly at the pair stood before him, Brax smiled weakly at his attempt at sarcasm before looking at him expectantly for news on Charlie's condition. "At first we thought Charlie might have suffered from some sort of brain damage or memory problems due to the fall and the bump to the head she took, but she's come around and she knows my name, and she's been asking after Ruby and Zoe, so we've come to the conclusion that she's fine. We've also carried out several scans and x-rays to reveal there's no damage to her spine or any abnormalities."
"Thank god." Ruby and Brax breathed a sigh of relief, "Can we see her?" Ruby asked hopefully.
Sid nodded, "Of course, just ensure she stays calm and relaxed, she needs to rest so don't keep her talking for too long."
"No, we won't Sid, thank you." Ruby smiled before she moved past Sid and towards Charlie's room, shortly followed by Brax.
"Hey honey." Charlie glowed as she looked up to see Ruby walk into her hospital room.
"Hey mom." Ruby grinned before running to the side of Charlie's bed, hugging her tightly, "I was so scared for you, after Brax called all I could think about was the worst happening to you."
"I'm fine now baby, just fine." Charlie smiled as she held her daughter close to her, placing a soft kiss on her temple.
"Are you okay?" Ruby asked as pulled away and looked up at her mother. Charlie nodded, "Brax told me what happened."
The second mention of his name within seconds caused Charlie to burst into tears, "H-he keeps stuffing up." Charlie sobbed.
"Charlie, seeing you with Matt at the hospital broke his heart; he just used Ali for comfort."
"Let me guess, he told you that." Charlie snapped.
"No, no Charlie, I saw how he looked at the pair of you the other day, it broke his heart because I can finally see it now, he loves you so much, he's in love with you, and I don't think for a second now that he ever fell out of love with you."
"Then why is he acting like this?"
"Because he's lonely Charlie, so lonely, and it's worse when he sees you getting comfort from another guy."
Ruby stopped talking as Charlie looked up to see Brax in the doorway, a small, sympathetic smile on his face, "Get out." Charlie whispered as he stepped closer.
"Please Charlie, I just need to know you're okay."
"I'm fine, now go." Charlie snapped as she sat up in her bed defensively.
"Nuh." Brax said adamantly as he glared at Charlie.
"GET OUT!" Charlie screamed, alarming both Brax and Ruby as the machine monitoring her heart rate suddenly increased, "I HATE YOU, GET OUT!"
Ruby stood up abruptly as she watched the doctors and nurses flood into Charlie's room, "Ruby we said not to get her worked up." Sid sighed as he prepared an injection for Charlie.
"It was Brax, I'm s-sorry, what is that?" Ruby asked, pointing to the needle,
"It's a sedative, to calm her down and help her sleep." Sid said softly before injecting Charlie with the fluid, and soon enough, her body went still and Charlie drifted out on consciousness.
x-x
A few hours later, Ruby and Brax were still seated in the hospital, right outside Charlie's room, waiting for her to wake up, "Brax I think it's best if I talk to her first, alone." Ruby said softly.
"Rubes I just-"Brax trembled.
"Brax I know." Ruby interrupted. "But she's devastated, you only have to look at her to see how upset she is, please just let me go in and calm her down first." Brax nodded before looking into Charlie's room,
"She's awake." He said softly as he leaned back into his seat.
Ruby gave him a soft smile, running her hand up and down his arm before she walked back into Charlie's room. Charlie instantly looked up and Ruby knew she had been crying, already, "R-Rubes." Charlie muttered, "Why does he keep breaking my heart?"
"Oh, mum." Ruby sighed before quickly rushing to her mother's bedside, taking her in her arms as she gently rocked and soothed her. "He's hurting too, Charlie, so much... he just needs to see you to know if you're okay."
Charlie nodded lightly in acknowledgement of Ruby's words before she wiped her ears and looked up at her daughter, "So, how are you coping looking after Zoe?"
"Actually, I'm not." Ruby admitted.
"Then who is?" Charlie jolted upright at Ruby's words.
"Brax has taken her over to his place for a few nights while you heel up, and get better."
"Well, bring her home." Charlie snapped defensively, "I don't want her anywhere near him."
"Charlie, you're being a bit extreme, he's her father."
"Ruby-"
"No Charlie." Ruby snapped, "I'm sick of this, all those times I told you not to see Brax because he was an awful guy, and all those times you promised me he was better than that, now what? It's all gone out the window because you are jealous that he can move on if you say no? You're being selfish Charlie, and it isn't fair to punish Zoe for whatever's going on between the two of you, she loves Brax and you know that, you can see it clearly. And in fact he's the only one who could get her to stop screaming and crying when she thought her mamma was gonna die, so you should be thanking him!"
"I... I'm sorry." Charlie mumbled quietly, "I just miss her, and I want her to be looked after."
"And Brax will do that, Charlie, better than anyone else." Ruby took hold of her mother's hand and gave it a gentle squeeze, "Anyway, why won't you let me bring her in? She wants her mamma."
"No, she's been in hospitals too much lately, Rubes, first Cheryl, and then herself, me as well is too much for her, it's a depressing atmosphere."
Brax smiled as he stood at the doorway, hearing Charlie care so much about her daughter, she always put her children before herself, standing in the doorway, Brax made his presence known by giving a gently knock on the door, Charlie looked up, sending a tiny, faint smile as she saw him, allowing him to determine that it was okay for him to come in.
Ruby stood up and walked towards the door, "Brax, if you mess this up again, I swear to god, you can get out of our lives for good, including Zoe's." She warned harshly as she stood beside him.
"Don't worry." Brax smiled "I don't intend to."
Brax smiled lightly as he walked towards Charlie, taking a seat at the foot of her bed, "Why do you do it?" Charlie asked weakly as she tried to make herself comfortable.
"I don't know." Brax mumbled.
"Your only daughter, your only child was in hospital, and you were off fucking some slut? She could have died, Brax!"
"Charlie, I'm so so-"
"DON'T." Charlie yelled, her heart monitor beeping a tad faster and louder, "Don't insult me with your empty, meaningless apologies." Charlie let out a heavy sigh as she looked up at Brax, "It's a shame Zoe loves you so much, she can't see you for what you really are."
The words cut through him like a knife, although Brax was sure that Charlie still underestimated the impact her words had on him. Brax began shaking his head, determined to show Charlie that the man she fell in love with once was still there, and he was going to prove he could be a great dad. "I'm one big mess; you know that, the only thing that's ever held me together is you." Brax admitted.
"And in the two and a half years we were apart you couldn't adapt to look after yourself for once in your life, to hold it together yourself instead of putting all the blame on me because you're too weak to look after yourself?" Charlie held back her sobs as she watched the tears escape Brax's eyes as he looked down at his hands, playing with the index ring on his finger, "Brax, I love you." Charlie whispered in a defeatist manner.
Brax's head snapped up at her words, "W...w-what?"
"I love you," Charlie sobbed before she broke down and tears, "And once again, I was so, so stupid to let myself fall for you again because I thought you had changed, but who am I kidding? Bad-boys never change, do they? Criminals never change." Charlie wiped her eyes before looking over at Brax who looked like he could have exploded with anger with himself, "I was finally ready, Brax, I trusted you, I loved you, but that means nothing now, because I'm not doing this again."
"No." Brax shook his head before edging closer to Charlie, "Charlie, look, you love me... you finally fell in love with me again, now I can't let you go."
"You have to." Charlie cried, "Because I am not, not doing this again." Brax edged closer to her on the bed, this time taking her hand in his but Charlie was quick to rip it out of his grasp, "Five months, Brax, you've been back five months and in that time I've learned to like you, trust you, respect you and I've fallen in love with you all over again, but we can't be together now I don't trust you anymore, you're unbelievable, Brax, un-fucking-believable."
"Baby please," Brax pleaded, "I'll do anything."
"NO!" Charlie yelled, "No. You have the audacity to sit there and think I'm so gullible that I'll be taking you back again? Don't worry; I have well and truly learnt my lesson now."
Brax looked at her with nothing but pure hurt in his eyes, her words were slowly killing him and they only made him angrier with himself for having not been honest with her again, even if she was angry when he told her he'd slept with Ali again, she could have forgiven him, and she couldn't have called him a liar because he was honest with her, he wasn't manipulating her. Brax shook his head again at a loss for words; he didn't know what to say, or do. He had waited so long for her to love him again, and just as they got the correct balance, the trust part of the equation got thrown out, destroying everything they had worked to rebuild together.
Charlie sighed sadly before taking Brax's hand and giving it a gentle squeeze, "Just do me one favour?" She begged.
"Anything." Brax said honestly as he kept a firm grip on his hand.
"J-just stop breaking m-my h-heart." Charlie muttered before bursting into tears.
Brax's heart broke all over again as he saw Charlie's devastation, realising how awful the consequences of his actions were, not only by her not being able to trust him because of his sleeping around, but because of him leaving in the first place, he had stolen Charlie's right to love and to trust, and he'd never forgive himself for that, he was the reason why she was so insecure, he was the reason why she was broken, and he was adamant to do everything in his power to put her back together again.
"I hate seeing you like this." Brax whispered as he moved to engulf Charlie in a hug.
"No," she whispered as she removed her hands from his and placed them on his chest, pushing him backwards, "Please don't do this, please don't let me get close to you again." She begged.
"Charlie, I'm sorry, but I can't leave you like this, I care too much about you, and as for not letting you get close to me again, we already are, and nothing's ever going to change that."
"It hurts so much, Brax." Charlie mumbled as he placed his hand on her left cheek, stroking it with his thumb, brushing away her tears in the process,
"I know it does, and I'm hurting too, but you've gotta let me in, Charlie, I know I've got no right asking that of you, but I can help you, I promise."
"B-but you've promised me things before, and not kept them, how can I be sure to trust you this time?"
"You can't." Brax took a deep breath before removing his hand from her face and taking hold of her hands again, "All I know is that I've just spent the past few hours thinking my entire world, minus Zoe, was gone, losing you... it just, it hurt so much thinking that it could happen, and it was so real, and I was petrified, Charlie, I thought I'd never see you again, see your smile, hear your laugh, hear your voice, or feel your touch." Charlie nodded before shifting over in her bed, letting out a small wince in pain, "Are you alright?" Brax asked as he jolted upright.
Charlie nodded weakly before patting the space beside her on her hospital bed, "I just want to be in your arms."
Brax smiled lightly before climbing onto the bed beside her, wrapping his right arm around her waist, he pulled her close to him gently, before using his other hand to clasp onto hers, giving her hand a firm squeeze before he planted a soft kiss on her temple.
x-x
Brax woke up a few hours later to Charlie stirring violently in his arms, her hands squeezing his before they flew up to his chest and grabbed his t-shirt for dear life, "No..." Charlie mumbled, "DON'T YOU TOUCH ME!" She yelled, alarming Brax as her fists pounded against his chest before flopping back down to her sides again, "YOU'RE POISON AND I HATE YOU!" She screamed, "YOU JUST CAN'T KEEP IT IN YOUR PANTS, YOU STAY AWAY FROM ME!"
Brax sighed before gently waking her, Charlie looked up at him with tired eyes, "Mm?" She asked.
"You were dream fighting with me." Brax sighed again. Charlie bit her lip, knowing the things she said probably weren't pleasant. Brax too remained silent before he leaned forward and placed a soft kiss on her forehead, before pressing his forehead against hers as he closed his eyes.
"I'm sorry." Charlie whispered as she gently ran her hand up and down his arm before drawing away from him and looking up, into his eyes, "Brax I need to tell you something."
"Shh, not now." Brax told her as he placed his arm around her again.
"No." Charlie told him as she pushed him away, "No... I need to tell you now."
"Charlie, no, not now, you need to rest."
"No Brax." Charlie snapped, "If I don't tell you now, I never will and you'll hate me." Brax frowned before slowly nodding his head, waiting for Charlie to speak. When she didn't, Brax jumped in again,
"Charlie listen, I'm sure it can wait-"
"I had a miscarriage." Charlie interrupted, causing Brax's eyes to widen, he stared at her longingly, pleading for her to carry on, "I eh... Zoe... she wa- she was a twin."