A little warning first. Unfortunately, I'm so much into hurt/comfort fics, that I couldn't leave it out of this one either. Sorry…

Chapter 3: Residence

Sean flickered through the papers, in fact really wondering if Christian would show up. He was worried about Julia's reaction, but perhaps it would all fall back to they way they were, the three of the, in a close together relationship, for seventeen years. He wished it would be like that again, and was quite sure Christian wished the same too. He was reserved when they met, but then again, that was to be expected. All the same time he knew his friend that much to believe that there was something else wrong with him, something that Christian needed help with and something that he would be willing to offer if asked. But he also knew his friend enough to know that if there was something like that, he would not tell him immediately. The sound of the doorbell interrupted his contemplation. He stood and rushed to answer the front door before Julia could get there. Although he had already told her Christian might come, he wanted to monitor her reaction when they met. Both their reactions, actually.

"Are we early?" Christian smiled awkwardly and he glanced back towards Gina and his daughter, "hope you don't mind that we all came."

"No, you're fine. Come in," he told them politely led them through the kitchen into the living room.

Julia fiddled nervously with the cutlery she was setting up, her eyes darting between the three men as Matt shook his father's hand, then hugged him in a friendly manner.

Christian looked at her and made one step forward, and for a moment she regarded his handsome figure and reserved smile. He was thinner, which made him even more handsome and his eyes looked greener than ever, making a contrast with his paler face than she remembered. Possibly he didn't seem to have spent so much time under the sun, then he used to. There was only one feasible thing to do. She hugged him too, strongly and lovingly, but let go of him very quickly and went to stand by her husband.

"Annie, honey, why don't you bring down your old toys for little Christina? The ones we put up the top of your dresser, cause you don't use them anymore."

"Please, sit down," Sean told his guests ceremoniously and they filed to sit down on the couch they could once sit on without an invitation. Christina cuddled into his father shyly.

"So? How are you doing?" Julia asked.

"We're ok. How're you doing?"

"Fine. Annie won a science contest at school last week and Matt is at college. Physics college," she nodded, "when's the baby due?"

"Around Christmas," Gina smiled, putting on her best behaviour grudgingly for Christian's sake. After all, these were the people that caused her not being able to splash out anymore as her husband didn't earn as much as he used to. But of course, it was in her best interest to get friendly with them again, as soon as possible, "we went to find out the sex of the baby. It will be another girl," she started the non committal, awkward and trivial conversation they practiced all evening about differences in the weather in the two parts of the country they lived in, television programmes and which shop sold the nicest dresses for little girls, conversation that usually strangers had with strangers.

Everybody felt relieved when Christian asked after dinner if he could use the bathroom before they left. Annie had asked permission to put on her favourite show on the telly, Sabrina the teenage witch, and somehow they all ended up being intrigued by the fact that the central character of the show faced the wrath of Zeus when she used her magical powers to help her ex boyfriend, rather than trying to find another topic of conversation with Christian's still "recovering" sex addict wife. Sabrina had already started serving the punishment Zeus gave her when Gina started to rock her moaning daughter to sleep, "can somebody check on Christian? If I go now, Christina will wake up and you don't wanna hear the screaming that would cause…"

Sean nodded and stood up, he was wondering himself what his friend was doing for so long in his bathroom. He only hoped he wasn't masturbating right there at the sight of Julia. Getting close to the downstairs toilet, he picked up weird sounds coming from behind the door, so he stepped in without knocking first. He was surprised to find Christian on his knees being sick. He was covered with sweat and pale, merging with the wallpaper. The man of the house managed a confused "Christian? I know Julia can be pretty unpredictable with her cooking, but it wasn't that bad," he joked.

Christian stood up quite quickly hearing his ex partner, and went to the sink to freshen himself up, "just give me a couple of minutes," he urged him out.

"Is he ok?" Gina asked in a worried voice when Sean returned back into the living room.

"I…think so. He'll be back soon."

"Yeah, right," Gina glared at him, "he's been sick hasn't he?" To Sean nodding she started raving frantically, but enough in control to make her voice low enough not to wake the little girl up in her arms, "again! Again! I can't do this anymore! My pregnancy had been hard as it is! I can't take care of him seven month pregnant and with a two year old! I had enough! I really had enough!" She raised her voice a bit angrily.

"Take care of him?" Sean asked confounded.

"He has Crohn's disease," she shook her head disapprovingly, and sighed, "it comes and goes, but this time he hasn't been able to go to work for four month," she laid her now sleeping daughter down on the couch, placing a dummy into her mouth, "could you please watch her till I go see Christian?"

"What's Crohn's disease?" Matt asked as Gina disappeared down the corridor.

"The cause of Crohn's disease is unknown, but heredity factors are suspected," Sean told him the most relevant feature of the issue he could think of in relation to the young man, who was, as far as he was concerned, for all intended purposes, his son, despite him finding out that his biological father was his ex partner, "although that doesn't mean you'll get it too. More like a higher risk."

"Dad, that's not exactly what I asked."

"Oh, right. It's basically inflammation deep into the lining of the small intestine. It can be a minor ailment or it can be require constant drug treatment and surgery. It's not really curable, but it can be kept under control and patient could be symptom free for years…it's not life threatening if that's what you're worried about," he added noticing the confused looks.

"Need to phone for a cab," Gina came back and picked up her bag. Christian followed sitting down without a word or any interaction with anybody.

"You're not with the car?" Julia enquired, leaning forward.

"We left the car in San Diego," Gina replied offhandedly, gesturing with her mobile, then pressed some buttons on it.

"I'll drive you," Sean offered, "you just need to tell me where your sister lives. I believe the wedding wasn't at her place?"

"No, we need to get a hotel room somewhere, there are still to many guests at her house just now…"

"For Goodness' sakes," Sean nodded, "you could stay here tonight. We have two guestrooms empty next to each other. Christina is already asleep. Why wake her up? Julia will show you were you can put her down until I get Annie's old cot down from the loft so she doesn't fall out."

Gina looked at Christian raising her eyebrows and nudged him for a response. He frowned, "we shouldn't really bother you…"

"Why don't you have a rest and I'll examine your stomach," Sean ordered him, rather than asked. He gestured his friend to follow upstairs, leaving the women to sort out the rest.

Christian complied, lying down was the only thing he could wish for at that moment. He only started resisting when Sean sat down next to him and took his hand to take his pulse, "what's that for?" He pulled his hand away.

"Vomiting is not a typical symptom of Crohn's disease, more likely some complication."

"It is so, if your most affected area is your pylorus," Christian argued.

"Ah, so…but you seem to have a little fever running."

"I do sometimes. No big deal. Just the usual."

"It means the inflammation flared up," he tried to talk sense into his doctor colleague, "unbutton your shirt!"

"If it makes you happy…" Christian obeyed.

Sean moved the indigo shirt out the way, getting a bit of a surprise to find a roughly two month old surgery scar in his left upper quadrant. He crunched his eyebrows, "complications?"

"Obstruction," he looked away.

"Any pain just now?"

"Uhm."

"Same place?"

"No. Epigastric area."

Sean employed the top of his first three fingers and a soft, dipping manoeuvre to gently examine his friend, trying to figure out what was going on this time. Sensing muscular resistance, he placed his other hand on his fingers, "is this where it hurts?" At the same time, he changed to use the palmar part of his fingers for a deeper palpation.

Christian winced and pushed his hands away, "well, that was fun."

"Okay, it doesn't seem to be too bad just now. I'll check it later on again. Do you mind if I take blood samples?"

"I do. Mind. There's no need. I have been examined systematically and painstakingly several times, thank you. We all know what's wrong with me."

"Unless there are complications…" Sean reminded him, but didn't argue further, "what medication do you take?"

"Pentasa…they are in Gina's bag."

"You due to take some?"

"No, but I managed to get rid of the last ones…"

Sean stood and came back with a tablets a couple of minutes later, handing them over with a friendly smile, "here you go."

"Not that I'm complaining or anything, but what happened? You told me with the occasion of our last conversation that you will never forgive me."

"Friendship and forgiveness go hand in hand," Sean answered simply, but changed the topic, "by the way, what's the score with Gina? I was really surprised when I found out you were together."

"What happened? Christina happened. She's mine, but they wanted to take her away from us anyway, unless we could prove we had a secure home for her. Neither mine or Gina's records were good enough for them. But together we stood a chance to keep her. After that, I dunno. We both wanted kids. She can't stay with one guy, but who else than me would disregard that? And who else would accept my take on the romantic life style."

"I mean, how can you stand her?"

"She's not ghastly, Sean, she just messed up. We're both messed up, we need each other."

"I need some sleep, that's what I need," Gina walked in and took her shoes off, "before Christina wakes up again."

"I'll leave you to it," Sean nodded slightly and shot the door behind himself. There were so many things he wished to talk to Christian with, but it wasn't obviously gonna happen that night.

Tbc

Sorry again about that conversation not happening, but it will in the next chappie, I promise.