Author's Note: Sorry for the delay for those of you still reading. I'll try to wrap this up in a few more chapters so you don't have to keep waiting forever. It's definitely something I will finish because I don't want to abandon it, so thank you for your patience while I struggle through this horrendous writer's block and lack of time.
xxx
The Next Morning
Bo held back the groan filling her throat. An agonized complaint hovered on the verge of escape but her unwavering tightened jaw refrained from letting out even the quietest sound. Her eyes watered from the pain in her shoulder but she refused to cry, scream or even move from her current position. While the fire chief could control her outward expression of the pain she felt, Bo had no control over her body's other responses. Her heart beat escalated as quickly as the sweat formed across her face. She tried to keep a calm breathing pattern but she huffed the oxygen in and out through her nose while she tried to manage the pain. The doctors had told her it would hurt for several more days until it recognizably lessened: boy they were not kidding.
Waking up from sharp pains surrounded by throbbing was not something Bo looked forward to on future mornings, but she desperately wanted to avoid pain medication as much as possible. Taking any of it would simply make her groggy and emotional, and not in a good way.
When a moment of reprieve came about, Bo rolled her head against the pillow and glanced to Lauren's side of the bed. The doctor was swallowed up in a mound of pillows. Usually the blonde would be wrapped around Bo, but due to the fire chief's injuries, Lauren intentionally laid a row of pillows down the middle of the bed to keep her from rolling on Bo during the night. As much as Bo wanted Lauren cuddled against her, the thought of anything jarring her shoulder at the moment made her nauseous.
Her struggle to get out of bed was enough to pull that pain to Bo's lips. She grunted through pierced lips while pushing herself off the mattress, and that sound was loud enough to pull Lauren out of her deep slumber.
Bo stumbled into the bathroom as the sickness in her stomach began to quickly overtake her defiance of it. She kept the light off, preferring darkness as the thought of bright light made her feel worse. The cool tile on the floor felt comforting as her bare feet crossed the bathroom. The sensation was brief as she dropped to her knees and felt the swell of sickness rising in her throat.
Dry heaves followed, and unfortunately the physical motion of such tensed all her muscles and sent jolting pain through her arm and shoulder. Her mind cursed the beam that fell on her and the universe for allowing it to happen. She had been a great firefighter and an even better fire chief. Why did this have to happen? Why did it have to hurt so badly? One by one, the questions filled Bo's mind and tore down her emotions.
It was a mix of crying and attempts to throw up that brought Lauren to the bathroom to check on Bo. She pushed the door open and felt her own heart break at the sight. Quickly, she grabbed a wash cloth and ran it under the coldest of water. Lauren squeezed out the excess water and knelt down beside her fiancé. Without words, she patted the cold cloth on the back of Bo's neck as the brunette sobbed and coughed and tried to regain control over her body.
With a careful hand, Lauren moved the cloth to Bo's forehead as her heaving subsided. She felt the heat radiating off Bo's face and hoped the cool cloth would make her feel better.
As Bo regained a bit of composure, her breathing evened out but she remained on the bathroom floor.
"You okay, Bo?" Lauren whispered.
Bo wiped her chin with the back of her hand.
"Now I realize why the hospital pumped me full of pain medicine for the past few days."
Lauren nodded as she gained understanding of the situation. Bo was in pain. Being a doctor, Lauren was familiar with the pain an injury like this could trigger. There was very little Lauren could do outside of encourage Bo to take something to ease the throbbing, but that didn't stop the doctor from trying to think of alternatives. Lauren moved back to the sink and ran the wash cloth under the cold water again. Returning to Bo's side and with the gentlest of motions, Lauren began to dab the back of Bo's neck once more. She wiped her forehead, down both cheeks and even the bridge of her nose. It was the tiniest offering of assistance but she hoped it would ease Bo's mind a little.
"Thanks hon," Bo whispered.
Lauren forced a smile despite her heart breaking for Bo. "You're welcome. I know you said no pain meds, but one won't hurt. I'm home all day and Cassie will be here to help with Charlotte. We'll be able to manage while you take some time to rest and heal."
Bo tried to stand when another sharp pain shot through her shoulder. She started to sweat again but held back further tears, desperate to fight through another wave of nausea. The fire chief squeezed her eyes shut and breathed slow, deep breaths until the pain lessened slightly.
"I can't do this Lauren. Good gods I feel like I'm going to die."
Careful to keep her tone balanced between sympathetic and clinical, Lauren responded.
"I know it feels like that, but you're not going to die. You're the strongest woman I know, and you're going to get through this."
Bo shook her head, mumbling between fresh tears and sadness. "I don't feel strong. I can't even get up off the floor. I'm not going to be able to hold Charlotte. I'm not going to be able to work out. I'm not going to be able to do my damn job."
Lauren placed her hand gently on Bo's lower back. She maintained the contact as she spoke, hoping desperately to help Bo get through this moment of struggle.
"We're going to do everything we can to get you able to do all those things. When I say you are the strongest woman I know, I don't just mean physically. You have always been determined and driven, Bo. That's still in you. It hasn't gone anywhere. It's perfectly acceptable to feel down and sad, pissed off and angry. But part of this needs time, and I know that's hard because you just have to wait. No matter how long it takes, I'm right here with you."
Lauren didn't know if her words would help or not, but Bo wiped her tears and found some of that inner strength to regain some composure while slumped on the bathroom floor. It was only a few minutes until Bo finally accepted Lauren's earlier recommendation.
"Okay can you give me something light? Nothing prescription, but I feel so damn awful that I may not be able to hold it down anyway."
Lauren nodded. "Maybe a piece of bland food will help. Want me to help you up? Or you want to stay right there?"
Bo accepted Lauren's help off the floor. She whimpered a bit until she was on two feet again. She even allowed Lauren to put some toothpaste on her brush so she could try to rid her mouth of a very nasty taste. It was not a few moments later that Lauren guided Bo back to the bedroom and help her get propped up in the bed with her arm nestled safely in a giant stack of pillows.
Lauren retrieved some mild over the counter pain medicine from the bathroom and a bottle of water from the kitchen. She even grabbed a plain bagel from the counter and took it to Bo, unsure if food or medicine on an empty stomach would trigger her nausea again. It was difficult to see Bo in such pain. From the time they had met, Bo had always been the rock: the solid, steady one in the relationship. She was Lauren's support through good and bad times, and now to have the roles reversed simply terrified the blonde. Lauren was frazzled. She wanted to do everything right to help Bo, but seeing her in such agony tore away at Lauren's heart.
Bo took the medication and ate a few bites of the bagel while Lauren sat on the bed next to her. The doctor wiped her face a few more times until Bo finally relaxed and seem to get in a less painful place. Lauren listened to Bo's breathing calm as they just sat there, quiet but with full attention on one another.
"Would you like to watch some tv?" Lauren finally asked.
Bo glanced to Lauren and formed the faintest of smiles.
"Aww thanks baby. Maybe in a little bit. Can you put the remote by my good hand?"
Lauren did just as Bo asked, making sure she could reach it without barely any movement.
"I think the medicine is helping," Bo whispered. "I don't feel like I'm going to die on the bathroom floor anymore."
They both smiled despite the sadness lingering between them. For Lauren, it was hard to watch a loved one go through pain. For Bo, it was just as hard to be in a pain that her strength could not overcome immediately.
Lauren placed a gentle kiss to Bo's forehead. Her lips lingered close to Bo's skin as she whispered. "Good. Hopefully it will keep the edge off enough to keep you from having another bathroom floor moment."
Bo tilted her chin upward, glancing at Lauren with a smile.
"Thank you Lauren. Really, for everything. I don't know what I would do without you."
Lauren placed her hand on Bo's cheek, caressing it lovingly as she replied.
"You don't have to thank me, Bo. I love you. I'm here for you. I'm going to stay put, right here in this house, until you are feeling good enough to move around on your own. I'm in no hurry to go back to work. I'm going to be right with you every step of the way, okay babe?"
Breaking their conversation, a little voice echoed through the baby monitor. Morning baby talk from little Charlotte pulled smiles from both women.
"Sounds like that's my cue," Lauren replied. She leaned over and placed one more gentle kiss, this time on Bo's cheek. "Be right back."
xxxx
Bo slept most of the morning. It gave Lauren ample time to bathe and feed Charlotte, clean up the house, selectively reply to some work emails and read a new journal article about some experimental procedures going through trials on nerve damage. All in all, it was a very productive morning for the doctor.
It was almost noon when she decided to finally make a phone call that was on her mind all morning. While Cassie was playing with Charlotte in the living room, Lauren stepped out the sliding glass doors to the back patio. Lauren looked around, appreciating the privacy of their property before she walked off the patio and into the grassy yard. With intention, Lauren walked quite a distance away from the house to ensure no one could hear her on the phone. Satisfied she had walked far enough, Lauren ducked behind a large tree and quickly dialed her best friend's number. While she hoped this call would be different than the last several, Lauren frowned when, as usual, the call rang and rang until voice mail picked up.
Prepared for the very result, Lauren waited until the beep and then spoke.
"Um hey Tamsin, it's me. Uhhh, I miss you. Come home. Soooo...Bo was hurt, and she was in the hospital for a few days, but you may already know this is Evony got the information to you by now. Anyway, she's home now, and she asked me to marry her. Marry her Tamsin! To which I replied yes, of course. Well anyway, there's no way in hell I can marry her without you present, so get your ass home. Please! I know your work is important, but I'm gonna be the neediest friend in the world right now and tell you to please just tell your work to fuck off." She paused before ending with, "And be safe. Your niece Charlotte misses you too. And we all love you to pieces. Hurry home. Bye."
Not a moment later, Lauren dialed a second number. She listened to the phone ring three times before she heard the familiar voice of her soon-to-be sister-in-law, Kenzi, finally pick up.
"Hola, doc. You must have ESP!"
"ESP? Why's that?" Lauren replied.
"'Cause I'm pulling into your driveway right now."
Lauren immediately began walking back toward the house. "Oh okay Kenz. I'm in the back yard. I'll meet you inside."
"Roger that, doc."
Kenzi ended the call and with quick steps, Lauren crossed through the back yard and returned inside their home through the sliding glass patio doors.
Kenzi was already in the house, dumping her personal belongings on the dining room table.
"Hey Kenz, how's it going?" Lauren asked as she hugged her future sister-in-law.
"Oh not too bad. Just left my appointment with the good ole therapist. You know, someone has got to keep my head screwed on straight, right?"
Lauren released Kenzi from their embrace and smiled at her. Kenzi's voice was full of sarcasm and humor in that statement, a typical trait she held since Lauren first met her. There were moments when Kenzi didn't joke too much about therapy or her progress, but those were the moments that usually concerned Lauren. One thing the blonde had learned about Kenzi over the years was that she was in a good place when she joked. It's when she stopped that people needed to worry.
"Appointments going well?" Lauren asked as they pulled out chairs and sat down at the dining room table.
"Yep. It's taken long enough, don't cha think?" Kenzi quipped.
Lauren held her smile but reached across the table and took Kenzi's hand into her own.
"There is no time frame on healing, remember?"
Kenzi squeezed Lauren's hand in return and nodded. "I know. It's just sometimes I feel like this will haunt me forever. I mean, I don't feel my heart race anymore that I'm in a bad place, and I don't push furniture against the doors at night anymore."
Lauren remembered those nights. It was a battle she and Bo worked through with Kenzi on many, many occasions, when they would show up to see Kenzi and it would take twenty minutes for the scared young lady to remove the barricade inside the door just to let them in.
"I am glad you feel safer now than before," Lauren stated, careful not to push the conversation too far beyond her own abilities. After all, she may have been a doctor but Lauren was not a doctor who had her specialty in therapy of this nature.
Kenzi leaned back in her chair and nodded again.
"I do feel safer." She gulped hard before continuing. "Rationally, I know he's dead and I am alive. Just sometimes I'm terrified that I'm going to get sucked back into that world and not ever find a way out again."
Lauren was cautious with her replies, showing support and care for what Kenzi experienced every day.
"You're stronger than you realize, Kenz."
The younger woman shrugged as she glanced across the room. "Eh, maybe. But enough about me. How's my big sister doing? Is she trying to get back into the gym already?"
Lauren laughed at the statement. "Well not yet, but I imagine that will be something she says in the next day or two. Actually, today she had a bout with the porcelain god."
"Oh no," Kenzi cringed.
"Her pain is a ten, and she's stubborn on taking any strong pain meds."
"Yep. That's Bo, for sure." Kenzi commented.
A silence hung between them for a beat, not that it was uncomfortable at all. The two women had grown to know each other well over the years, so the sounds of nothing except for Charlotte and Cassie playing in the next room over was not out of the ordinary. Kenzi reached for her purse and opened it, digging around for something momentarily. She removed a square brightly colored card and began to read aloud.
"Fifty percent off the entire store this Friday, Saturday and Sunday only!"
Kenzi handed the card to Lauren, who immediately recognized the department store name on the card. It is where she and Kenzi had shopped for evening attire for last year's Firefighter Ball.
"I think we should go shopping this weekend. The big night is not that far away and mama needs a need pair of shoes AND a dress!"
Kenzi's excitement was evident, but Lauren remained reserved while she thought about going out shopping for a dress. Bo had just come home from the hospital. Lauren had responsibilities here with Bo and Charlotte. Hell, Lauren didn't even know if Bo would still want to go to the ball. She immediately felt prepared to defend the possibility of not shopping at all.
"Looks like a great sale, Kenz."
Kenzi cocked her head and narrowed her brows. "I feel a 'but' coming on."
Lauren took a deep breath. "But...I can't go shopping this weekend. I need to be here for Bo and..."
A raspy voice echoed over Lauren's shoulder and interrupted her statement. "And Bo can handle a few hours on her own while her lovely fiancé goes shopping with her lovely sister."
Both Kenzi and Lauren directed their attention to Bo, who stood leaning against the wall under the archway to the living room. Her hair was a mess, sticking up in multiple directions. Dark circles weighed heavily under her eyes, and the old t-shirt she was wearing did little to conceal the fact that Bo was not wearing a bra. It was difficult to not laugh, but both Kenzi and Lauren snickered at the sight of Bo looking so disheveled.
"Fiancé! Wait what?! When did that happen? And shit, Bobo you look like hell," Kenzi announced.
"Kenz!" Lauren shot back.
Kenzi shrugged. "What? Look at her. She looks like she just came out of the clothes dryer after an hour long cycle."
Lauren allowed a laugh to escape. Even Bo laughed as she tried to smooth out her hair.
"Thanks Kenz, I love you too."
Kenzi smiled back at Bo, who was now moving toward the table to join them. Lauren quickly pulled out a seat for her.
"Thanks babe," Bo replied as she sat down at the table.
Quick to divert the subject off of shopping, Lauren spoke. "How are you feeling, hon?"
Bo leaned back in the chair and nodded. Her sleepy eyes told Lauren a lot, but she waited for Bo to divulge more than just what her appearance told the doctor.
"I don't feel like I'm going to die anymore, so that's good."
Kenzi placed her hands up, palms forward. "Hold the phone buster. Let's go back to your fiancé statement!"
Bo allowed a smile to form as she looked to Lauren, who smiled back at her. The love between them was evident as a glow surrounded the pair.
"I asked Lauren to marry me, and she said yes."
Kenzi threw her hands up in the air and rolled her eyes. "It's about freaking time!"
They laughed together. Bo grabbed at her shoulder briefly when her laughing caused a bit too much movement, but she quickly brushed it off as they continued the conversation.
"So when are you going to tell the world? You both know I can only keep a secret for so long!" Kenzi added.
"I don't know; we really didn't discuss a formal announcement, did we?" Bo asked Lauren.
Lauren shook her head. "No we didn't, but I'm open to whatever you'd like, dear."
Bo tilted her head to the side, deep in thought. "What about at Sunday Supper? Let's have everyone over on Sunday and we can tell them."
"Are you okay with a houseful of people so soon after leaving the hospital?" Lauren asked.
"Yes, but I think we'll need to order take out unless someone else wants to cook."
Kenzi stood up quickly. "Good lawd, you want me to keep my mouth shut until Sunday?! Sheesh! This is going to take effort. Okay, I can do it. Plus, I'll take care of the food and alerting the usual suspects to come over at the usual time."
"We are not ordering pizza, Kenz," Bo replied sternly.
"Pizza!? Do you think moi would ever order pizza for Sunday supper? Have no fear! I'll take care of everything!"
xxxxx
The remainder of the day passed by quickly. The sun had worn out its welcome and slowly receded on the horizon. Bo's exhaustion had taken hold once more, forcing her to retreat to the bedroom, where she currently sat propped up on the bed. The television was on but muted, not that Bo paid much attention to the random show anyway. Instead, she sat happily watching Lauren play with Charlotte next to her on the over-sized bed.
Charlotte kept pulling the blanket over her head, giggling when Lauren vocalized how Charlotte had disappeared. Her stuffed otter toy remained firmly in her little hand's grip, flooding Bo's mind with happy memories of their many, many trips to the zoo. Bo suppressed the yawn that fought to escape, not wanting to ruin their family time by dozing off. She always loved these private moments with family. Truthfully, the three of them did this a lot: playing, smiling, laughing. It was not uncommon for Bo, Lauren and Charlotte to just sit and enjoy playtime, whether it was with stuffed animals or coloring books, walks through their back yard or yes, even just playing peek a boo with the bed sheet. Bo would not change these moments for the world; well, except for her current physical state at least.
Bo knew patience was something she had to maintain while her body healed. It was a struggle, but she had to focus on keeping patient. After all, she wasn't the only one struggling. Bo appreciated every extra task and every extra moment Lauren took to help her get through this. She certainly didn't want to put more on Lauren than she already had. It just wasn't fair of her to do that. If anything, Bo wanted to heal quickly so much of this burden was sitting on Lauren's shoulders. Taking care of Charlotte and Bo, not to mention her job and running their entire household, was an incredible task. The Fire Chief was grateful they had Cassie to help out, but ultimately, Bo wanted Lauren to get some much needed "Lauren time" no matter what else needed done.
"Lauren?" Bo whispered to get her attention.
Lauren poked her head around the pillow she was hiding behind with Charlotte. "Yes?"
"I really want you to go shopping with Kenzi this weekend."
Lauren's smile didn't fade, but her heart was struggling with going out to enjoy the day while Bo's injury was so fresh.
"I'm not sure this weekend is great timing, hon."
Bo interrupted quickly. "It's actually the perfect weekend. You are off work because of, well, because of me, and Cassie is around, plus I'm not feeling sick in the stomach anymore so I'm certain I'll be able to assist Cassie with Charlotte duties while you enjoy the day."
"But..."
"Lauren, please."
Bo's voice strained on the word please. She grew quieter as she said it. Lauren was not mistaken as she saw tiny pools of tears well on Bo's lower eye lids. She felt the weight of what Bo was saying. It wasn't that Bo wanted her to go spend the day shopping; it was that Bo wanted their lives to be just like they usually would be had the accident not happened. She wanted them to maintain some semblance of normalcy despite the situation being anything but normal.
Lauren figured this type of thing would happen eventually. "This thing" being Bo wanting to pretend there was no injury; there was no accident. Lauren knew Bo well enough to know she would need to still remain "Bo." She just didn't expect it so quickly after Bo came home from the hospital. She figured Bo wouldn't push Lauren to go do "her thing" until at least a week has passed. Boy, was she wrong.
The doctor picked up Charlotte and the stuffed otter. She scooted closer to Bo on the bed and placed a gentle kiss on the brunette's cheek. She directed her gaze directly at Bo's eyes.
"Are you sure?" she asked despite already knowing the answer.
Bo nodded in the affirmative. "Absolutely sure."
Lauren exhaled deeply, resolved to the fact that Bo would win this conversation.
"Okay. I'll text Kenzi and let her know that our shopping trip is on."
Lauren placed another gentle kiss to Bo's cheek, this time lingering closer to her ear before she spoke again.
"And when I'm shopping for a sexy dress to wear to the ball, I'll text you pictures from the dressing room."
Bo instantly blushed and smiled wide. The threat of any tears flooding forward was gone, replaced immediately by a smile as the very happy Fire Chief had a wave of dirty thoughts run through her mind.
"That will be a great Saturday for me too, then."
xxx
