Disclaimer: All characters belong to EL James.

Christian

Fuck, my head is pounding. What the hell happened? And just then the memories slowly return. Elliot and I on the way to the hospital... chasing Elena and then the crash. I sit up with a start and hear someone yelping, while I hold my aching head in my hands... note to myself: avoid quick movements!

"Fuck, Grey, you scared the living shit out of me!" I hear a somehow familiar voice and blink until my eyes adjust. I'm in a hospital room and sitting in a chair is Kate, fuck is this some weird dream, because she is knitting something.

"It's a baby hat and if you ever tell anyone that I like to knit I will kick your ass." She says and puts whatever she is making down.

"Why are you here?" I ask and she rolls her eyes. Christ she is annoying as shit.

"Your Dad went home to get some sleep, Elliot had to get his car after the police released it and your Mom is checking on Ana, I offered to sit with you so you are not alone when we wake up. Don't worry your fine, just a concussion and a cut on your forehead."

"How is Ana?"

"No news, but your mother assured me no news are good news, same goes for the baby, hence I decide to knit the baby hat... Ana will probably need a lot of help and won't be able to decorate the nursery and buy baby stuff, I love your sister but if you don't want your kid to wear pink ruffles despite the gender give me a call and I can do some baby shopping... or whatever else Ana needs. I know we don't get along, but she is my best friend and I can tell you love her and she you, so whatever it is you need I'm just a phone call away. From now on you can consider me the best friend you never wanted to have." She says and I find myself laughing at her last statement.

"So she was right, you do have a sense of humor you like to hide from the world." Kate says and I shrug.

"I like to keep people at a distance, but I guess seeing you are Ana's best friend and my brother's girlfriend I can make an exception for you. Where is Elena?"

"Safely tucked away in jail, bitch got stitched up here and had her hearing this morning, the judge denied to let her out on bail. Funny enough every lawyer in town the bitch called to be her lawyer told her he had no time, now she has some fresh out of college wannabe kid that has been assigned to her by the court." Kate says with a very satisfied smirk, which I am sure matches mine.

"I need to see, Ana." I try to get up and the room starts to spin.

"You need to stay in bed, wait until your Mom is back, she will get a wheelchair so you can see Ana, but you have to take things slow, you hit your head pretty hard."

"I don't give a fuck, I need to see Ana, I need to explain to her what she saw..." I stop, not liking that I am about to spill my guts to Kate Kavanagh.

"What do you mean, what she saw, what are you talking about?" Kate asks and I sigh, she'll find out anyway and I am too sore and tired to argue.

"Ana came to my place before Elena ran her over. Elena was there too, she tried to tell me to get over Ana, before I knew what was going on Elena took her coat off, dropped naked to her knees and tried to open my pants. That's what Ana saw when she came in, she ran. I knew running after her would only end up in another fight, so I kicked Elena's naked ass out of my apartment and Taylor filled me in on the fact that Elena has blackmailed Ana to break up with me."

"What a cluster-fuck... you know I really want to be mad at you, but I can't, it's irritating the hell out of me." Kate huffs.

"And why can't you be mad?" I ask even though I don't really care, all I want is to see Ana.

"Because it's sad."

"Sad?"

"You're one of the most successful people in this world, when it comes to success and wealth you have it all, but you're a loner and that's not healthy. Now that good awful woman you considered your only friend turned out to be a bitch, the woman you love is in a coma and the life of your unborn child hangs in the balance... and here you are in the hospital with no friends to visit you... man, you need to find yourself some loyal friends... and before you give me some crap that this is none of my business, it is my business, because I happen to love your brother and he is upset because he knows deep down you are not happy with your life."

"I thought you are a journalist not a shrink." I mutter irritated.

"A good journalist has to be good in reading people, one look at you and I know where you are headed if you don't find a balance in your life."

"And where pray tell am I headed?" I ask getting defensive.

"You'll keel over at fifty with a heart attack during a business meeting, you've lived on the fast lane since you've started your company, it's time for you to hit the breaks and enjoy life, settle down, make friends and just be a normal twenty something guy who is about to be a Dad, because that little one Ana is carrying will need you far longer than you think and I'm sure he or she would be happy for you to meet your grandchildren one day. Let me give you some advise. I'm the daughter of a work-a-holic. My Dad missed school recitals, father-daughter dances at school, hell even my high school graduation. It made me a tough cookie, but it also made me feel like my own Dad is a stranger for all of my life and just seeing Ana with Ray or Mia with Carrick makes me feel like I'm just not that important to my Dad. Don't become that kind of Dad."

"I... I won't." I murmur and before my minds eye the picture of a sad looking little boy with my hair and Ana's eyes starts to build. Him sitting at the window staring out into a rainy Seattle day and Ana behind him telling him that Daddy won't be home in time to kiss him goodnight again... no, this will never be me... and in this moment I make vow to myself that Ana and our child will always come first.

"That's good and maybe just be open to meeting new people and making friends, everyone needs some down time... and I happen to know that your brother would be over the moon if one day you would not just call him your brother, but also your best friend." She says with a wink and gets up to leave when my mother steps in.

I'm sure Kate and I will never become best friends, but I might have misjudged her and I'm not too proud to confess it.

"You are awake... how are you feeling, darling?" My Mom asks and starts to shine a light into my eyes.

"How is Ana?" I ask instead.

"She is stable and her brain swelling has lessened more than we could have hoped for in so little time. The baby is doing fine too, she didn't even spot a tiny bit so far, it doesn't mean they are out of the woods completely, but we are cautiously optimistic that both of them will get through this." She says, but there is a slight frown on her face.

"Mom, what aren't you telling me?"

"The drugs we needed to give Ana to induce the coma... there is a risk that it affects the baby. So there will be a heightened risk that your baby might be born with a physical or mental disability. Some doctors advise to end a pregnan..."

"NO! Mom, no one is going to end this pregnancy, if the child is meant to be born then that's what happens and if the drugs have caused any long term effects then we will deal with it, I can afford the best therapy and doctors to help my child, but an abortion is no option."

"I know, darling. I never even thought Ana or you would consider it, I just wanted to prepare you that Dr. Greene might bring this option up."

"It's not an option. I want to see Ana now." I grumble and try not to think about the fact that my child might be disabled because a woman I considered my friend tried to murder his mother while she was pregnant with him.

"I'll get a wheelchair soon, first I need you to answer me a view question. Do you feel nauseous?"

"No, I have a fucking bad headache though."

"Language young man! Now tell me is your vision blurry?"

"Sorry, Mom and no, my vision is fine."

"Any dizzy spells?"

"No, Mom please, I need to see Ana. When will you get her out of the coma?"

"We don't know yet, it depends on the progress she is making, maybe three or four more days. We don't want to leave her in the induced coma for too long because of the pregnancy and because the longer she is in the coma the harder it might become for her to come out of it."

"Wait, so are you saying that maybe even without the drugs keeping her in the coma she won't wake up?" Fuck, I never even considered that she could drift into a real coma, one where we have no way of waking her up from.

"Christian, I need you to stay calm, most patients come out of a induced coma just fine, it might take a day or two for her wake up once we stop inducing her, but she will wake up. Her brain scan shows normal activity, so that is a very good sign."

"So, no brain damage at all?"

"So far we couldn't find anything that would lead us to believe her brain suffered severe injuries, but to be a hundred percent sure we need to make another scan once the swelling has gone back completely, which should be in a few days. I'll get you something for your headache and then I will take you to see Ana, but only for a little while, you were unconscious for nearly twelve hours, so you will have to stay here until tomorrow, no argument."

"Ana is here, so I wouldn't leave anyway."

Finally, after I have taken the pills my mother handed me, I sit down in the wheelchair, which my mother insists on and she wheels me down the hallway to the ICU and into Ana's room where her mother is giving me some time with Ana.

"Hey baby, you look a lot better, not as pale as you looked yesterday. We caught Elena, you are safe now, she is never going to hurt you or anyone else ever again. I... I can see it now, what she has done to me and that I let her control and manipulate me. I wasn't ready or willing to see it before. I wanted to believe that I'm in control that no one had any power over me, but I was wrong and I almost lost you and our baby because of it. I need you to know that I love you, both of you. It's still weird to say it, not because it's not true, but because I never believed in love. I thought it was nothing but a weakness and it scared me because love leaves you vulnerable and I know if I'm not the Dom in our relationship you will soon figure out that I am nothing but a fuck up... the fucked up son of a crack whore who is not worthy of you. Just... just don't give up on me, I'll try to be a better person for you and our baby." I stop and have no idea why I felt the need to get this all out, but somehow I hope that on an unconscious level she heard me... that we can find a way to someday be a happy family...

Coming up next: Ana wakes up!