Shawn felt as if the earth had opened up under his feet. He gaped blankly at the doctor who was giving him a quizzical look in return.
'Well?' he questioned.
'What…' began Shawn and then cleared his throat, forcing his voice to straighten itself out. 'What exactly do you mean?'
The doctor started to laugh in disbelief and then abruptly stopped as he took in the faces of the six individuals wearing identical expressions of shock. 'Oh my God' he sighed. 'You all had no idea, did you?'
Shawn was ready to tear his hair out in frustration. 'Will you please get to the point? What's going on, I need to see Angela now!' Niceties of society were the furthest thing from his mind.
He got a stony look in return. 'You're Shawn Hunter, I presume? The boyfriend?'
Shawn took an immediate dislike to him and to the way he seemed to relegate his position in Angela's life to that of an insignificant speck. He felt his anger bristle and struggled to rein it in. 'I'm the man who loves her. And I want to go see her immediately.'
'Really? Then as the man who loves her, you'll be knowing that Angela had suffered through a nasty fall and some horrible bruises.'
A stunned silence resonated throughout the tiny waiting room.
It was Topanga and Rachel who first recovered. Cory and Eric were looking at each other in shock and Shawn's eyes were unnaturally fixed on a random spot beyond the doctor's shoulder. Jack had placed a hand on his brother's shoulder and was slowly trying to coax him to talk.
'I don't understand, please tell us what exactly you mean. Angela, having a fall? When did that happen?' Topanga spoke anxiously.
'And how is it possible that we didn't know?' continued Rachel, wringing her hands helplessly. 'I'm her roommate for God's sake, and she…well, the only time that she didn't seem well to me was today morning, and she said that was because of a fever.'
The doctor placed a hand to the bridge of his nose and answered, 'Well, it was last week – that's what she said. After quite a bit of coaxing, though.' He leveled a stern gaze at the group, 'Anyone know what's going on? She doesn't seem like the kind of girl to take a wrong step and trip that badly.'
Shawn forced his feet to move. He wanted answers and he wanted to see Angela. And by God, he'd force his way past if he had to.
He stepped up to the doctor. 'I'm going in to see her right now. I need to know that she's alright and what has happened.'
The doctor raised an eyebrow, 'I don't recall her asking for you, in particular.'
Shawn grit his teeth in anger and registered the increased pressure from Jack's hand on his shoulder, 'Well, we'll see when I go in, then.'
And he set off. He strode past the bemused physician, vaguely registering the increased flurry of questions being directed at him by the rest of his friends and made his way down the corridor towards the room where he'd seen Angela being wheeled into.
Pausing outside the door to calm himself, Shawn took a few deep breaths and willed himself to appear outwardly composed. She was hurt in there and the last thing they both needed was for one of them to freak out. He told himself over and over to be rational, to be patient and above all, to put her needs first at this time. Oh, he'd make sure she told him the truth, but first he wanted to ensure that she was completely unharmed
Knocking lightly on the door, he pushed it slightly ajar and poked his head around the frame. 'Angela?'
His eyes soon landed on the bed in the far corner of the room and he nearly lost his resolve to be patient as he saw a sight that he'd never ever wanted to see. Angela was looking back at him through half-sleepy eyes, a groggy smile curving the corners of her lips but all Shawn saw was the woman he loved – an independent, feisty, active and vibrant Angela - now looking so disconcertingly subdued and vulnerable.
It made a wave of protectiveness surge through him, and Shawn nearly collapsed at the anger that rode through his system. Anyone who hurt her would have to answer to him.
He let the wave carry him over to the bed. Angela's dark complexion was a stark contrast to the white sheets she lay on and it just made the extent of her condition worse. Shawn suddenly noted that she was clothed in what appeared to be a full-length nightgown, completely covering her from the neck, instead of the usual hospital gown that he'd seen his father wearing.
He tucked that troublesome thought away at the back of his mind as his hand gently stroked one of her cheeks. 'Hi' he whispered.
Angela gave off a small moan, tilting her cheek further into his hand and Shawn couldn't resist any longer. Bending over her, he placed a gentle kiss on her forehead and then lightly pressed his lips to hers. He knew that Angela was still very weak but the urge to feel her alive, and with him was paramount at the moment.
And Shawn felt as if he could scale the tallest mountain on the planet when her lips pressed back in return, albeit for barely a few seconds. He pulled away but kept his gaze trained on hers, as his hand moved to rhythmically stroke her hair. His other hand came up to grasp her own and he rubbed small circles with his thumb on its back.
Angela's eyes fluttered as she fought to fully open them and ultimately they did. Looking up into Shawn's blue orbs, she murmured, 'I wanted you in here so badly, but they wouldn't listen to me.' Two tears slid down her cheeks and Shawn's heart ached at the fear in her voice. He could imagine her scared, and apprehensive, and hated the fact that he hadn't been there when she needed him.
It felt good to be needed by her. Sometimes he thought that he always took much more from her than she from him, and he'd always vowed to be there for her, especially when she wanted him around.
'How're you feeling, baby?' he questioned, keeping his voice soothing and gentle. He made sure to reaffirm his physical presence to her through constant touches and little caresses and smiled at how adorable her answering grins and little mewls of enjoyment were.
'Umm…ok, I suppose but I feel like I've been run over by a truck. Can't wait to get out of here, though.' She looked down at her hand, held in his larger one and Shawn followed her gaze to the IV that had gone into the vein and was now creating a slightly darker shade of purplish bruising around the tube.
'Does that hurt much?' He noticed the wince on her face she attempted to move her hand and resumed stroking her cheek. He wanted to see that peaceful expression back on her face.
'Not unbearably, just enough to be truly annoying.' Her voice was a bit stronger now and Shawn realized that she must have been given a light sedative. Looking up, he also saw that the IV in her hand was connected to what seemed like a glucose drip.
'Honey, you want to tell me why they're giving you glucose?' His eyes bored into hers and Angela sighed resignedly. She knew that Shawn wasn't going to take no for an answer or let her evade him.
She gestured for help in sitting up and Shawn promptly complied, propping her up slowly against two pillows. He then sat next to her and raised an eyebrow, kissing the knuckles on the hand with the IV.
'Well, my blood sugar is low, hence the glucose drip' Angela spoke quietly, eyes looking all around the room. Anywhere but at Shawn.
Shawn's own eyes narrowed.
'Angela, please tell me what is going on. I'm not above begging and being totally annoying to get some info out.'
She cracked a watery grin at his self-deprecating comment and tiredly ran a hand through her hair. 'I..fell down the stairs in the dorm last week. Thought it was pretty ok, but apparently I hit myself in all the wrong places. No sleep at night due to the body ache and thus, the low blood pressure and the blood sugar, thus in turn leading to my fainting in class today. See? That's all there is to it, ok?'
Shawn laughed in disbelief. 'Are you kidding? Angela, I can see right through you! This is me, remember? Will you please tell me what really happened?'
Angela huffed as she crossed her arms. 'Shawn, I'm telling you what really happened. I did fall down, I did think I was ok, but the mistake was in not going to the doctor sooner, that's all.'
Shawn nodded absently, but he wasn't entirely convinced. Unless-
'So, where does it hurt then?' he questioned softly, reaching towards her waist. It was an automatic movement, he usually stroked Angela's shoulders or hips or waist whenever he held her, but her reaction stopped him short.
She wrapped her hands around herself and Shawn didn't miss the fear that crept into her eyes as he neared her. While his heart broke on seeing that and the fact that she was pulling away from him, he also knew that this was proof that she'd been lying to him about her fall.