A/N: What can I say but thank you! You all are the greatest! There's a little drama and some humor this time around. Hope you like this latest installment.

/

Marissa was jolted from a sound sleep by her cell phone ringing. She checked the time. It was 2:45 AM. She looked at the caller id and saw it was Bianca.

"Bianca. Is everything ok…"

"Marissa?"

Her heart stopped when she heard the voice on the other end. "Miranda? What's wrong, sweetie?"

"It's Mom. She's sick."

Marissa was already out of bed, grabbing a pair of jeans to put on. "What do you mean by sick?"

"She's been in the bathroom for a while, and I can hear her getting sick."

"Okay. Is there anything else? Did she say if anything hurt?"

"Her right side was hurting her before."

"Have you called your Aunt Kendall or anyone else?"

"No. Mom didn't want to call her. She doesn't know I'm talking to you. Marissa, I'm scared."

"It will be okay. I'm on my way now. How's Gabby?"

"She's still asleep. I didn't want to scare her. You promise Mom's going to be okay?"

Marissa knew she was taking a risk, but she didn't know what else to say. "I promise. I'm going to stay on the phone with you until I get there, okay? Will that make you feel a little better?"

"Yes."

Marissa continued to soothe the child as she ran into AJ's room to wake him up. After he put his shoes on, they ran to her car, and Marissa put Miranda on speaker phone so she could use both hands. She needed both because she was shaking so much. She was able to keep her voice calm so not to scare Miranda any more than she already was. What was normally a 20 minute drive was done in less than 10 minutes.

"Miranda, we're pulling into the driveway now. I need you to unlock the front door."

The girl ran down to do as she was told. When Marissa and AJ entered, she pulled Miranda into a tight hug. "Is your mom still in the bathroom?"

Miranda nodded.

"Okay. You two wait here, and I'll go check on her."

Marissa walked quickly to Bianca's bathroom and knocked on the door. "Bianca?" She heard a painful moan on the other side and opened it immediately.

For the second time that night, her heart stopped. Bianca was on the floor, curled up in a ball, in obvious pain. Marissa knelt beside her. "Bianca, I need you to tell me what's wrong. Where do you hurt?"

"I'm okay really. It's just a bug."

"Bianca, you're burning up. Miranda has said you've been getting sick for a while. I can tell you're in a lot of pain. This is not a bug."

The brunette started to protest but was stopped by another sharp pain.

Marissa couldn't stand to see her in such pain. She made a quick decision that she knew Bianca probably wouldn't like, but she'd deal with that later. "I'll be right back." She ran downstairs to Miranda and AJ. "Miranda, I need you to wake up Gabby and get her shoes and jacket on her, okay?"

"Where are we going?"

"We're going to take your mom somewhere to help her feel better."

Miranda nodded and ran to get her sister.

"AJ, do you remember where Bianca keeps her keys?"

"Uh huh."

"Good. I want you to get them."

AJ ran off to get the keys.

Marissa hurried back up to Bianca's room. "Bianca, are you able to walk?"

"I think so."

"Okay, we're going to the hospital."

"But…"

"I'm not arguing with you on this. Miranda is scared and so am I. This isn't normal. I'm either driving you to the hospital or calling an ambulance. You choose."

"No ambulance."

"Driving it is. Let me help you up."

The kids were waiting by the front door as the two women made their way slowly down the stairs. Bianca did her best to hide her pain from them, trying not to scare them anymore than they were already.

Marissa spoke to them. "I need you all to head to the car. We'll be right behind you."

The two older children each took one of Gabby's hands and hurried out the door.

"How are you doing, Bianca?"

"I've been better." Another pain hit her causing her to almost send the two down the stairs. Marissa managed to steady them.

"I've got you. I won't let you fall. Lean on me some more."

Bianca nodded as Marissa almost carried her the rest of the way to the car.

The children were already in the car and belted in when the women finally reached it. AJ handed his mother the keys, and Marissa helped Bianca in and fastened her seatbelt. She opened the back door to check on Gabby's booster seat, making sure she was in securely. She gave a quick kiss to each child and made her way to the driver's side. As she fastened her seatbelt, she could see the fear in the girls' eyes. "Your mom is going to be okay. She's not feeling too good right now so we're going to take her to hospital so they can make her feel better, okay?" The girls nodded.

Marissa drove as fast and as safely as she could to the hospital. She knew Bianca was still in pain, but she was doing her best to keep the girls from seeing it. When Marissa pulled up to the emergency room entrance, she had everyone wait in the car while she went to get help. An orderly followed her back outside with a wheelchair and helped Bianca into it. Marissa got the kids out of the car, and they followed Bianca inside. The redhead spotted Jake and called over to him. "Jake, it's Bianca!"

The doctor rushed over to them. "What are her symptoms?"

"Nausea, vomiting, fever and intense pain on her right side."

"Let me take a look and run some tests. I'll need you and the kids to wait out here. Try not to worry."

Easier said than done, Jake. Marissa led them into the waiting room, and they sat down on a couch. She looked at the girls. "Dr. Jake is a really good doctor and is going to take very good care of your mom. She's going to be okay." Marissa pulled Gaby, who was confused about what was going on, onto her lap and then had Miranda and AJ squeeze in tight on either side of her. She explained that the tests being done would help the doctors figure out what was making Bianca sick. Once they knew that, they would know what to do to make her feel better. They sat quietly waiting for word on Bianca's condition.

Jake found them some time later, and he asked to see Marissa privately. She promised the children that she would be right back and would let them know what was going on.

"It's her appendix. It's pretty inflamed. We're going to do an emergency appendectomy. Do you want me to talk to the girls?"

"No, I'll do it. What about her pain?"

"We've given her something for it, and she's resting comfortably."

"Can we see her before surgery?"

"We'll finish prepping her, and then I'll take you back. You'll only be able to see her a few minutes."

"Thanks, Jake."

Marissa put on her best poker face, went back over to the children and knelt in front of them. The redhead explained everything that was going on as honestly as she could. She told them that Bianca would need surgery, but it would make her feel much better afterwards. Marissa told them that they would be able to see Bianca before she went into surgery, and that they needed to be extra gentle around her right now. The doctors had given her some medicine to help her with her pain, and she might not seem like herself because of it. By the time Marissa finished, Jake returned to take them back.

It took every ounce of strength she had not to react when she saw Bianca. She looked pale and so fragile, nothing at all like the brunette normally did. Marissa led the kids to her bedside and lifted the girls onto one side of her bed while standing with AJ next to them.

Bianca slowly opened her eyes and offered a small smile. "Hey. Are you guys okay? I don't want you to worry. I'm going to be okay. I want you to be good for Marissa and do what she says, okay?" The girls nodded. "I love you both, and I'll be better in no time at all. I promise." Tears started to well in her eyes.

Miranda leaned forward and gently kissed her cheek. "I love you, Mom."

"I love you, Mommy." Gabby said as she planted a kiss on her mother as well.

Marissa lifted girls off the bed, and AJ moved closer to Bianca. He leaned forward and gave her a kiss too. "Love you, Bianca. Feel better, okay?"

"Hey, AJ. I love you too. I will."

Marissa gently wiped a tear from Bianca's cheek and took her hand. "Don't worry about them. The girls will be fine. I'll take good care of them. Everything will be fine. I'll be right here."

"Thank you."

Jake entered. "I'm sorry, but it's time to go."

Bianca was wheeled out of the room and down the hall to the OR. Marissa picked up Gabby and took Miranda's hand with AJ taking his friend's other hand. They walked to the waiting room and found a quiet corner. Once there, Marissa knew it was time to make a call she had been dreading. "I need to call your Aunt Kendall. I'm going to go over there and do it. I'll be right back, okay?" The children nodded as she pulled out her cell phone. When Kendall answered, Marissa told her where they were and what was happening with Bianca. Kendall had been frantic at first upon hearing of her sister's condition. Marissa did her best to assure her that Bianca would be fine, but she wasn't sure if that helped calm her down or not. Marissa wasn't sure if she had even helped her own self. She only knew that she had to stay calm for the kids. She took a deep breath and returned to them. Gabby climbed back onto her lap, and Miranda and AJ returned to her side. She knew the kids needed sleep so she came up with an idea.

"Miranda, you're mom told me you liked my special song. My dad used to sing it to me when I was your age. Would you like to learn the words?" The girl nodded and moved in closer. Marissa started to sing softly.

"All through the night, near and far, we will be together. So hush, don't you cry. You will be in my arms, forevermore."

By the time Kendall arrived, the children had all nodded off. She had rushed into the waiting room ready to start demanding answers, but she stopped when she saw the sleeping children. She quietly approached and pulled up a chair by them. Speaking softly to avoid waking the kids, she asked, "Any word yet on how things are going, Marissa?"

"Not yet. Jake said she would be in surgery for at least two hours. It's been about an hour now."

"Why didn't you call sooner?" Kendall was trying to hide the irritation in her voice, but Marissa caught it.

"I'm sorry, Kendall. Everything happened so quickly after Miranda called. I should have called you once we got here, but the girls were scared. I thought it was best to take care of them first. By the time I was able to do that, I thought I should wait until we knew something. I'm sorry."

Kendall looked at the redhead and knew she couldn't fault her thinking. She had thought of the girls first, and that's exactly what she would've done. "No, you're right. I'm sorry. You said Miranda called you. I wonder why she didn't call me."

"Bianca told her not to. I'm guessing she didn't say anything about not calling me. That's why I got the call."

Kendall smiled at her oldest niece. "Splitting hairs already. Looks like we have the makings of a lawyer."

"It looks like it. I'll make sure to teach her some of my amazing debating skills."

The tension eased, and Kendall asked, "How are you holding up? You had more than your hands full tonight."

Marissa swallowed hard and fought off tears. "I'm hanging in there. If I start talking about it now, I'll lose it, and I can't afford to do that right now around them."

"Well, I'm here to help now so we'll get through this together, okay?" Kendall gently moved AJ and took the seat next to Marissa. She placed his head in her lap and stroked his back.

They sat quietly until Jake finally came into the room.

He spoke softly. "Bianca's fine. Everything went perfectly. We were able to do a laparoscopy so her healing time will be quicker. Barring any complications, she should be able to go home tomorrow."

To say that the two women were relieved would be an understatement. Both asked at the same time, "When can we see her?"

"She's in recovery now, and we'll be moving her to a private room shortly. I'd say maybe 30 minutes. I'll have someone come get you."

"Thanks, Jake."

Marissa looked at the girls and AJ. "I'm thinking we should let them sleep as long as possible."

"I think that's a good idea."

"What about Erica? She's still in Paris, isn't she?"

"Yeah, I'm thinking I'll hold off on calling her until we see Bianca."

"I've been thinking. Bianca's going to need some help for a few days when she gets home. She won't admit to it of course. She's also going to need to take it easy, and she's going to fight us on both of those things."

"Ah, you know my sister well. Any ideas?"

"I have a couple, but I don't to step on any toes."

"Marissa, after tonight and everything you've done, trust me, that's not possible. What do you have in mind?"

"Well, I was thinking of combining our resources."

"I'm listening."

Marissa started to lay out her plan when the children started stirring. She told them that Bianca was out of surgery and was going to be okay, and they would get to see her very soon. She would be sleepy when they saw her, and they still had to be careful around her because she would be sore.

A nurse came by to get them a short while later, and they all headed back to Bianca's room.

/

A few hours later, Bianca opened her eyes. It took her a minute to get her bearings, and she realized she was in the hospital. She turned her head and saw Marissa asleep in a chair close to her bed. Bianca fixed her eyes on the redhead. She started to remember bits and pieces of the last several hours. She remembered being in a lot of pain and nearly passing out in her bathroom. The next thing she could recall was Marissa being there, helping her up off the floor and practically carrying her to the car. Bianca recalled Marissa's words. "I've got you. I won't let you fall. Everything will be fine. I'll be right here." Marissa's presence and those words somehow made their way through the pain. They gave her something to hold onto, helping her handle the pain and remain strong for her daughters. I should be surprised that she's been here the whole time, but I'm not. I knew she would be. Was that the reason I didn't tell Miranda not to call Marissa? Did I somehow know that she would be the only one to help me get through it? What the hell am I thinking? Bianca shifted in her bed and let out a small gasp from a twinge of pain.

Marissa immediately opened her eyes and was at the brunette's side in an instant. "Hey, are you okay?"

"Yeah, it was just a twinge. I guess I moved a little too fast. Where are the girls and AJ?"

"Kendall took them home to get something to eat and take a nap. They'll be back in a little while."

"How long have I been asleep?"

"About a couple of hours. How's the pain? It's okay if you need something. It's actually past time for another round. Be honest, Bianca."

"I could probably use something for it but just a little bit, okay?"

"I'll be right back." Marissa returned with a nurse who administered another dose of pain medication after checking the brunette's chart and then left.

"You should feel better in a few minutes. What can I do to help take your mind off of it until you do?"

"Well, you could tell me what happened. I'm remembering bits and pieces but not everything just yet."

"Okay. Miranda called me a little before 3:00 this morning. She was scared because you were getting sick. God, Bianca, she's a little you! She is an incredible little girl. She helped take care of Gabby and stayed so strong the whole time. I know that you're already proud of her, but she outdid herself."

Bianca smiled and wiped a tear away from her cheek. "So, she called you?"

"Well, she said you told her not to call Kendall. AJ and I came over. I knew things were bad when you didn't put up too much of an argument about coming to the hospital."

"I seem to remember you threatening me."

Marissa smirked. "I would call it more like strongly encouraging you. We got here, and I saw that Jake was working. He took care of you right away, and did some tests. They had to remove your appendix. I called Kendall once I found that out, and she came over while you were in surgery. They did a laparoscopy."

The pain medicine started to kick in. "They did a whatoscopy?"

Marissa couldn't help but laugh.

"What's so funny?"

"Nothing. You're kind of adorable when you're loopy. A laparoscopy. Basically, you'll be able to head home quicker and heal faster with no big, ugly scar."

"I can go home quicker?" She was starting to feel drowsy again but was fighting it.

"Jake says you should be able to go home tomorrow. Go ahead and close your eyes. I'm right here."

Marissa watched as Bianca finally drifted off again. She said a silent prayer of thanks that Bianca was going to be alright and looked at her again. The tears she had somehow managed to hold off all this time started to fall. She looks so peaceful now, so beautiful. You scared the hell out of me. I thought I might lose you there for a little while, and I don't know what I would do without you in my life. I don't ever want to find that out. You are so special to me and mean so damn much. Marissa was startled with what she was feeling and struggled to put a word to what those feelings exactly were. No, I can't… She was interrupted by Kendall poking her head in the room.

"How's our favorite patient? Marissa, are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine. She's doing better. The nurse gave her something for the pain, and she just nodded off again. Where are the kids?"

"AJ is back at my house with the boys. JR called when we were getting ready to head over, and he wanted to talk to him. I hope that's okay."

"Yeah, he misses his dad. He's been out of the country on business for a while so it's understandable that AJ would want to talk to him. No matter how much of a jackass JR is to me, he loves his son."

"Good. The girls are charming the nurses, and showing off the get well cards they made for Bianca along with the ones the boys made too. I have an idea. Why don't you go get some rest? You won't be in any shape to deal with this one when she gets home if you don't."

That explains it. I'm just exhausted. Some sleep will clear my mind. Bianca is my best friend and nothing more. Everything from the last several hours is finally catching up with me.

"Earth to Marissa."

"Sorry. That's a good idea. I'll head over to Wildwind, grab a couple of hours of sleep and get things ready over there. Did you call her assistant?"

"Yep. She's on board with our plan. Are you okay to drive? Bianca will kill me if something happens to you."

Marissa smiled. "I'm fine. Tell her I'll be back to check on her later."

/

Bianca was bored. She had been home from the hospital for three days and was bored out of her mind. There was nothing on TV especially since they cancelled the soap opera that she used to watch. It was a guilty pleasure that she had allowed herself and now it was gone. An idea came to her. She looked at the clock on the mantle. Marissa would be back soon from a quick trip to the office to drop off some files and pick up a new batch. Kendall would be here in an hour after picking up the girls and AJ from school and daycare. The two had been taking turns staying with her and helping with the girls since she had gotten home. While one stayed with her, the other was in charge of transporting the kids. Bianca picked up the phone and called her office. Her assistant, Jan, answered on the second ring. "Hi, Jan. How are things going?"

"Bianca! It's really good to hear from you! Things are fine here. We're managing without you, but everyone misses you. How are you doing?"

"I'm doing much better. Thank everyone for the flowers. So, is there anything I could do to help?"

"I thought you were supposed to take it easy for two weeks?"

"Yeah, but it doesn't mean I can't handle some minor paperwork." There was silence on the other end of the line.

"Um, I'm sorry, Bianca. I'm not allowed to give you any work."

"What do you mean you're not allowed to give me any work? Who told you that?"

"Well, your sister came by the other day and said we weren't supposed to give you anything in the way of work no matter how much you asked. She said that she and Marissa were handling things until you were cleared to come back to work. We know she was just thinking of you, but she was a little intimidating to be honest. Marissa just stopped by and reminded everyone that Kendall was serious. I'm sorry, but no one wants to cross your sister or even Marissa for that matter."

Bianca took a deep breath and said, "That's fine, Jan. Don't worry about it. Tell everyone that I said hi and that I'll see them soon." She hung up and started to stew over this bit of information. There wasn't much time to do so before Marissa arrived.

"Hey, Bianca. I'm back." The redhead froze in her tracks when she saw the look on Bianca's face. "Is everything okay?"

"Actually, no, it's not. I just had an interesting conversation with Jan. It seems that she's not allowed to give me anything in the way of work. You wouldn't happen to know anything about that, would you?"

Marissa took a deep breath. She knew she was busted so it was best to face this head on. "Yes, I do. Kendall and I thought the best way for you to heal was to actually relax and not do any work. I know it's a foreign concept to you."

"I can't believe you two! My sister and my, and you conspire against me! You go behind my back and tell my employees to basically ignore me! I'm not a child! I'm perfectly capable of doing something!"

"No one is treating you like a child. I'm sorry if you feel that way. All we've done is try and get you to rest so you can heal and get back to work faster. If you think that's conspiring against you, then we're guilty, but you have to admit that you are a bit of a workaholic. You've only been home for three days, and you're already bugging your staff for work! Come on, Bianca. You have to admit that's pretty bad. We're just looking out for you."

Bianca let out a frustrated sigh. "Fine. It's just that I'll be buried in paperwork when I get back."

"No, you won't."

"What do you mean? There's the day to day business of The Miranda Center and the fundraiser on top of that. I'm going to be swamped."

"I mean that Kendall and I have it covered along with your staff. She's keeping an eye on the day to day things, and I've got the fundraiser. While we aren't you, I think we're maybe a distant second and doing okay keeping up on things."

Bianca felt the anger drain from her. "I'm sorry. That was kind of bitchy, wasn't it?"

Marissa laughed. "Just a little. I really am sorry we went behind your back, but we're just trying to help."

"I know, and you have. I really appreciate everything you've done. So, you're handling the fundraiser. I don't suppose I could do anything to help, could I? Help me out here, Marissa. I'm bored out of my mind. There's nothing on TV, and I can only take so many naps."

"Sorry, but I don't think so." Marissa turned to move her briefcase.

"Please, Rissa!"

Marissa stopped and turned to look at Bianca. She saw those brown eyes looking at her with a mix of amusement and pleading. Damn it! "I can't believe you're playing that card. You have absolutely no shame, and you don't fight fair."

Bianca smirked. "Desperate times call for desperate measures."

"Yeah right. Fine, I'll give you one thing to work on." She removed a file from her briefcase and handed it to the brunette. "I'm only doing this to keep you from pestering your staff, and I can keep an eye on you to make sure you're not doing too much."

"Thank you!"

Marissa rolled her eyes. "Wipe that smirk off your face and don't let your sister find out I caved. If she does, I'm totally throwing you under the bus and telling Kendall that you went into my briefcase and took the file."

Bianca smiled in reply to the threat and quickly hid the file under a cushion as her sister and the kids burst into the house.