This follows directly on from the previous chapter, with a car speeding towards Jem.


Chris jumped off the bench that he was sat on as his brain registered the car zooming towards the young man, "Jem, look out!" he yelled

Jem glanced to his left to spot the car only a few metres away so he threw himself forwards out of his wheelchair and skidded on the pavement in front of Chris. The car hit the wheelchair violently as it stopped and the driver jumped out, having felt the collision.

Chris raced over to Jem and bent down to help him, "Are you ok?" he gasped

Jem sat up slightly, grimacing at the pain, "Yeah, I'm fine" he assured Chris, then glanced over to where his wheelchair lay, "It's my wheelchair I'm more worried about, that thing's expensive!"

The driver - a middle-aged man who was clearly distraught - rushed over to them, "I am so sorry, I honestly didn't see you there" he explained earnestly, "I'll pay for any damages and I'll take you to the Hospital so you can get checked out"

Jem shook his head, "I'll be fine, honestly" he replied, "I'm tougher than I look"

Chris looked doubtful, "Well you should go to the Hospital, just in case"

Jem sighed, "If it gets you to stop fussing, then fine"

The driver exhaled deeply, "Ok, let's get you in the car"

Chris and the driver put Jem's arms around them and lifted him up before carrying him to the car. Chris kicked the damaged drinks out of the way and grabbed the wheelchair from the middle of the road before clumsily folding it up and stowing it in the boot.

xxx

Chris paced the waiting room of the Hospital. He had never been here before, but he knew that this was where Lucy planned for the birth to be. Besides, with his history of accidents, it was likely that he'd be in there quite a lot as well, so he managed to get a good look around the place. Eventually a nurse emerged from Jem's room and Chris approached her.

"Hey, how's Jem?" he asked fervently

The nurse narrowed her eyes at him, "Are you related?"

Chris hesitated, "Uh, not really, but-"

"Sorry, I can only give out information to family members" she interrupted

Chris shook his head, "His family aren't around" he informed her, then paused before lying, "I'm his boyfriend"

The nurse stared at him for a moment and Chris hoped that he had been convincing. "I'll be back in a minute" she informed him, before returning to Jem's room.

Jem was slightly panicked that the nurse had returned so quickly and was unnerved by her suspicious expression, "There's a young man outside claiming to be your boyfriend" she told him

Jem was confused, but then realised what was going on and smiled slightly, "Send him in"

She nodded and left the room for a moment before Chris entered sheepishly.

Jem grinned at him, "So, you're my boyfriend?" he asked teasingly, "Did I get concussion or something because I'm sure we've only just met?"

Chris smiled coyly, "Well I wanted to know how you were and they're not allowed to give out information unless I'm connected to you somehow"

"Couldn't you have said that we were brothers or something?" he suggested

Chris gestured between them, "I don't really think they'd buy that" he replied, referring to their contrasting appearances and accents.

Jeremy nodded in agreement, "True"

"Well what's the problem?" he asked, then pause, "Unless you actually have a boyfriend"

Jeremy shook his head, "No, I'm single" he assured him, "Though according to you I'm not"

Chris put his hands up in a joking gesture of surrender, "Hey, if you don't want a fake boyfriend, we can always fake break up"

Jeremy shook his head, "Nah, the whole fake relationship thing is pretty cool"

Chris chuckled then remembered the reason for him being there, "Anyway, how are you feeling?"

"Fine, thanks to you" Jem replied softly

Chris looked confused, "What did I do?"

"If you hadn't yelled at me, then I wouldn't have seen the car, then I wouldn't have jumped out of the wheelchair and I would be a lot worse off" Jem reminded him, "So thanks for… yelling at me, I guess"

Chris chuckled, "Any time"

Chris wanted to stay at the Hospital with Jem, who was being kept in overnight as a precaution. However, Jem has insisted that he go home as usual, before swapping mobile numbers with him and thoughtfully watching him leave.

xxx

At work, Chris couldn't stop thinking about the young man that he had met and felt an instant connection with. However, he didn't want to be in a relationship so soon after his break-up with Nate, and he didn't want Jem to be his rebound either. Chris was conflicted about what he should do, but threw himself into work to distract himself from having to think about his love-life.

A couple of days after Jem's accident, Chris was at work, sneakily scrolling through his mobile when he should have been sorting out a guest's booking on the computer. He had hoped that Jem would contact him to let him know when he was being discharged, but he hadn't heard from him at all. Lost in his thoughts, he didn't notice Jem entering the hotel, carrying a bouquet of flowers.

Jem recognised him instantly but was confused, "Chris?"

Chris glanced up and immediately smiled upon seeing Jem opposite him, "Jem, Hi. You're out of Hospital"

Jem nodded, "Well yeah, it was just some cuts and bruises, not a coma"

Chris shrugged in agreement, "But what are you doing here?"

"I was wondering that about you" Jem commented, "I thought you're a mechanic"

Chris blinked at him blankly before realising that he had told Jem about working at a garage when they had first met, "No, I used to be" he corrected, "But I got injured and I had to give it up a while ago"

Jem frowned, "That's a shame, but it's quite a career change, isn't it? Working at a garage and now a hotel"

Chris considered this, "I guess, but I do enjoy it" he replied, "Anyway, I asked you first, what are you doing here?"

Jem waved the flowers in front of him, "I'm delivering these" he told him, "Though if I'd known that you work here, I would have brought another one"

Chris smiled coyly, "Who are they for? I can deliver them if you want"

Jem shook his head, "Actually, they're for the Manager"

Chris looked surprised, "Lucy?"

Jem nodded, "I found out that she's pregnant, so these are to say 'congratulations'"

"That's sweet" Chris replied hesitantly, "But I didn't know you guys were friends"

"I wouldn't go that far, but we're quite close" Jem shrugged, "Why, is that a problem?"

Chris shifted awkwardly, "Look, I wasn't really expecting to tell you this so soon, but I'm the father of Lucy's baby"

There was a pause before Jem blinked at him, "Well, I wasn't expecting that" he admitted and extended his arms that were holding the flowers, "Then I guess these are for you"

Chris took the flowers gratefully, "Thanks, I'll let Lucy know you said 'congratulations'"

Jem smiled briefly, slightly uncomfortable about the fact that Chris was the father of Lucy's baby. The idea was quite strange to him, and it started to change Jem's perception of Chris.

"Look, I'd better go" Jem began quietly, "But I'll see you around"

Realising that Jem felt uncomfortable, Chris wanted to reassure him but wasn't sure how. Instead he just nodded and quietly said 'goodbye' before Jeremy wheeled himself out of the hotel. Chris watched after him regretfully, then glanced down at the flowers before heading off to put them in some water.


Thanks for reading! I hope everyone's enjoying this so far, and I'll have the next chapter up soon. Apologies to Tori, who gave me a great suggestion for this chapter, though I'd already written it beforehand: thanks for the idea, but it would have meant a massive re-write if I had gone along with it (though there will be plenty of opportunities later for you to give more ideas, so please do!), and also because Chris has been injured far too many times on the show. Anyway, as previously mentioned, if anyone wants to put their own ideas in, I'll definitely take them on board. In the meantime, reviews are always welcome!