Chapter 11
"Baby, I missed you!" Sadie said as she threw her arms around Tom's neck. He peeled her arms off of him and put them back down at her side.
"You missed me? Your sister is in there lying in a hospital bed and you tell me you miss me? You should be in there begging her for her forgiveness for being a shitty sister, Sadie!"
"Beg her for forgiveness? Please she should be begging me for mine." She said flipping her hair and walking past Tommy. He caught onto her, grabbing her arm, spinning her around.
"Where the hell do you get off saying that? What has she ever done to you?"
"She kissed you Tom. She kissed you and she still wants you. That is the only reason my own sister wouldn't come to my wedding. And she has this control over you that I hate, that I wish I had. And you! You just give in to it! What do you want from me Tom? What would you like me to do?"
"Go home" he said through gritted teeth, "Go home, and we'll finish this conversation there. Unlike you I'm able to push things aside and be there for the people I love. Needless to say I'm tired and I'm stressed and I do not need this on top of everything else. So just go, and I'll be home in a little bit"

Tom walked back into Jude's room and she looked up at him and smiled.
"Everything ok?" she asked.
"Ya she's going to go home and wait for me to get there. I didn't want to finish that conversation here."
Jude looked around the room, unable to look in his direction. She didn't want to ask this question but she couldn't stop herself.
"But you are going to finish it aren't you?"
"I think so."
"You think so?" she asked in disbelief.
"It's complicated Jude you know that…I mean she did come here, it took her a little longer but she did come…I don't know Jude I just need to talk things over with her."
"Tom not this again…" She sighed and leaned her head back, looking up at the ceiling.
"We are going to talk and everyone will be happy and it will all work out. Ok?" He said taking her hand and patting the back of it. She didn't look at him, she couldn't look at him, she hurt too bad...and not from her accident, her heart hurt.

Tom walked into his apartment and fought the urge to pick up the first thing he saw and launch it across the room. Sadie was an incomprehensible, first class, bitch.
"SADIE!"
His angry voice echoed through the halls. The blood rose up into his face as the vein that ran up his forearm started to protrude.
"Baby?" she said, as her high-pitched voice sounded like shrill ringing inside of Tom's head.
"You home?"
"How the hell can you ask that so innocently?"
"What?" she said. Her head was cocked to the side as she held a green shirt in her hands. The same damn green shirt she had yelled about when packing. Tom had a mental image of Sadie's head turning into that of a Shih Tzu, with her ears perked up. He closed his eyes and rubbed over them.
"How can you not care? How can you just dismiss the fact of what happened to Jude. She is your sister Sadie? The same blood that runs through her veins runs through yours too!"
Sadie continued to unpack her bag and never looked up at him.
"Hello? Are you just going to ignore all of this? Ignore me, ignore Jude?"
Sadie looked down, her lips pursed together. She dropped the shirt on top of the suite case, looking up at him. Anger was evident in her eyes this time.
"Yes, I'm going to ignore it all. The accident, Jude, and the fact that you practically fucked her on the dance floor the night of your birthday. Then…you left, she left…what am I supposed to think Tom? I don't know anymore, so I'm ignoring it, and I came back for you. To try and save our marriage, because I do love you, and whatever is going on, you're the one who's going to have to live with it, not me."
Tom walked away from Sadie without another word… but in the back of his mind, he knew she was right. But how could a wife live with the fact that she couldn't please her husband? That she continually pushed his buttons, causing him more stress then happiness. He shook his head and walked to his favorite place in the house. His big chair with his headphones, and Jude's voice.
"Figures" Sadie said as she saw him an hour or two later. She didn't care what he did at home, as long as he was at home. She went into their bedroom and closed the door.

Tom rode up the elevator, and felt like banging his head against the doors, just to see how bad he could dent them. His feet felt like weights, slowing him to a painful pace. He approached Jude's room and went in. Jude was wiggling around in the bed as best she could without hurting herself.
Tom smiled, "Is everything…ok?"
"My ass is numb! AND IT ITCHES!"
He laughed at her outburst.
"Can't I stand up or something...PLEASE? It's been a long time since my surgery."
"It's only just now been a week. Let me go find a nurse and we'll see about flipping you onto your stomach or something."
"HURRY!" she yelled as he walked out of the room.

Once Jude was better situated on her stomach, Tommy took a seat on he end of the bed and picked up her foot to rub it.
"How was everything?" Jude asked from the other end of the bed.
"I don't want to talk about it; I just want to be with you." Jude sat up on her arms and turned her head around to look at him.
"Did something happen?"
"We might have to cool things down for a little bit...maybe. I can't spend so much time here anymore…I don't know we'll see"
"What happened?"
"Sadie, she saw us the night of my birthday party Jude. She saw us leave, and come back." Jude buried her head face first into her pillow. "Don't worry about it Jude, everything will be ok."
"But let me guess," she said turning her head to the side, "She forgave you didn't she?"
Tom's hand stayed still on her foot and he sighed.
"Maybe I should go."
Jude couldn't believe what she was hearing from him. She should have known better.
"Fine just go"
Tom turned to leave, looking at her sadly one last time, before he walked out.
"Close my door," she said to him.
He shook his head and did as he was told.

Sadie smiled when she heard the apartment door open and close. She had won this time and what could poor Jude do beside lay in bed? Nothing…

Jude sat down in the wheel chair as the nurse helped her prop her leg up on the stirrup. Tom said he would try to come, but that was the last time that she had talked to him. Two days had passed since then, since the last time she saw him, with no word from him so she didn't know what to think.
"Honey is someone coming to get you?" Jude wondered that to.
"Um, no, just the car I think, it will take me to where someone is waiting for me."
The nurse nodded then opened the door when the car pulled around and Jude gasped when she saw the dark haired person in the car.
"What are you doing here?" she asked with a smile.
"If you don't want me here I can always just give this Jr. bacon cheeseburger to the bum I saw two streets back." The nurse helped her out of the chair into the car were she smacked him on the arm before she hugged him.
"Kwest you wouldn't dare!" He laughed and helped her prop her hurt leg up on his lap.
"So…" she said awkwardly, "Why are you here?"
"Tom called"
That was all she needed to hear.

She ran her hand through her hair over and over again as she lifted it over her shoulders and put it up. She tilted her head from side to side, trying to stretch out some of her tight spots. It didn't help and she gave in to the tears that started to well up in her eyes. Why had Tom left when she needed him most? She knew why he did, to save what little relationship they had left.
"You ok girl?" he asked as he saw his friend and the obvious distress she was in. She moved her leg off his lap and leaned her body into him. He wrapped his arms around her and held her tight as he just let her cry out her frustrations.
"Kwest? Why? What do I not do for him?"
"I don't know Jude, maybe it's what he can't do…" Jude lifted her head and sniffled. The car came to a stop and she knew she was home finally. The driver came and opened the door and she went to get out. Kwest jumped out the other side and opened the trunk to get her wheel chair. Once she sat down he went to pick up her bag and started to push her.
"Kwest, I think I can do this by myself."
"It's ok Jude, I don't have anywhere to be," he told her.
"I know, I just, I need to learn to do things like this by myself…I need to learn to be by myself." He nodded slowly and placed the bag in her lap, and before he could say anything else, she was already wheeling herself inside.

She picked up the telephone
All she heard was dial tone

Jude rode the elevator all the way up to her floor with her bag on her lap. Tom wasn't there when she got there; she didn't expect him to be. Ok well maybe she did expect him to. She was lying down in bed with her leg propped up. This wheel chair stuff was not the easiest when nobody was there to help you. She had thought about calling Kwest, but decided against it. She just wanted Tom.

She really thought she heard it ring this time
She said what am I thinking? I must be only dreaming

She laid there starring at the ceiling with the phone in her hand. She picked it up, pressing the 'talk' button only to hear the dial tone in her ear. She squeezed her eyes tight and lay there, trying to control her breathing and not get upset, that wouldn't be good for her lungs or her ribs.

Or maybe it's the hundred times he's crossed my mind
Just tonight

She started to calm down as she felt herself drifting off into a dream state…She herd Tommy's voice in her head telling her everything was going to be fine. Her leg was aching, but her heart hurt her worse. Was he deciding between her and Sadie? Or was he just going to give in and give up?

She said maybe I miss your lovin'
Maybe I miss your kiss, just a little bit

She did miss him. He had only been absent from her life for two days. 48 hours. She didn't know it was humanly possible to miss a person as much as she was missing that man right now.

Maybe I miss your body, lyin' right next to mine
Maybe I miss your touch, a little too much

She was roused from her daze when she felt the bed shift. She opened her eyes and saw Tom, sitting there above her.
"Hey baby" he said smoothing her hair with his hand.
"Um, Hi"
"Scoot over; I'll lay down with you."

Tossin and turning, her skill still burning
From the fire, in his hands

She snuggled up next to him and sighed when she felt him playing with the bottom of her t-shirt, rubbing his fingers against the smooth skin of her abdomen. She took a a deep breath and inhaled his scent. That smell hitting her brain made her start to cry again, this time against him.
"Where were you earlier?" she asked him crying.
"I was busy…I'm so sorry Jude, I didn't want you to have to leave by yourself…" She looked up at him. "I didn't Kwest came..."
"What?"
"He said you had called…"

Runnin on empty, she needs somebody
But somebody wouldn't understand

"We'll I called to tell him just what was up," he said.
"So he came on his own then"
"That was um, nice of him," he said as he wrapped his arm tighter around her protectively.
"You almost sound jealous…" she said laughing through her tears.
"No just…"

Then the telephone rings

"Please," she said, "I don't want to argue about this, you'll never win. Not this one." How come all the women in his life were always right?
"I know, it's my fault. If I had been there, then he wouldn't have been"

They talked about Savannah, sweet home Alabama
And how he missed the way she always smiled

He kissed the top of her hand and held her hand in his.
"I missed you."
"Did you now?" she asked playfully, forgetting her tears.
"Yes I did…but your still hurt, so don't tempt me."

Are you coming back soon, by the harvest moon?
If I have to walk every mile on my knees

"I don't have to tempt you Quincy, you want me no matter what." He smiled and rolled over on his side and kissed her lightly.
"You're right about that baby…you're right about that"

Maybe I miss your touch
A little to much