A/N Thanks again for all the reviews! I'm loving them.

Disclaimer: Not mine.

SPOV

I felt a lot more like myself when I woke up on Saturday morning. A slightly washed out version of myself due to all the drugs I'd taken, but at least I wasn't in pain anymore. I could also feel Eric, who was obviously awake because he was running a hand across my hip and nuzzling my shoulder.

I shuffled myself around so I was facing him. "Hi" I said.

"Hey" he said, stroking my cheek with his thumb and looking concerned. "How are you feeling?"

"Much better thank you. And thank you for looking after everything yesterday." I leaned over and kissed him.

"Oh, that's OK."

"Did they drive you nuts?" I asked. Eric looked like he didn't know what to say. "Um" he said finally, "not all the time."

I laughed. "How was the supermarket?"

"We went to St Luke's. It was crazy."

"You went to St Luke's? That's brave. It's a week until Christmas."

"It was raining. I needed somewhere that had covered parking. It seems to be pretty uncommon around here."

"Yeah. Sorry. I should have got up and gone and then I could have just run in somewhere."

"Nah its fine. We survived. There was ice cream."

I laughed. "I wonder who suggested that?"

"If I have to give you a hint then I'm really worried about what those drugs did to you."

"Yeah, they do knock me out. I once took some before going to a work Christmas party, which was a cruise round the harbour, and ended up asleep downstairs in the cabin of the boat while everyone partied above. I have no memories of any of that night." I kissed Eric again. "Thank you though. You're really great. I…" I kissed him again "…am very lucky to have you."

I looked into Eric's eyes and he had that slightly puzzled look again. Maybe, a hurt look? "What's wrong?" I asked.

Eric shook it off. "Nothing" he said. "I was just worried about you."

"Oh don't be. This happens every few months. Although the pill helps. I should maybe think about starting that again." I looked over Eric to see what the time was. "Hey, we might be early enough to shower together. Give me a minute to go to the loo and I'll see you in there, OK?"

"Yep, sounds good." Eric sounded a bit off though, which was worrying. I hoped nothing too bad had happened while I was out of it the previous day. I headed off to the bathroom hoping that he'd cheer up a bit.

EPOV

I watched Sookie go into the bathroom, and then lay back on the bed. "Fuck" I muttered under my breath. She'd said that she loved me, but now she couldn't fucking remember it. Maybe it was just the drugs talking and it wasn't really true? She wouldn't lie to me though, would she? I lay there going over and over everything. I was pretty sure she wouldn't lie, she was always so worried that people might think something about her that wasn't true, she surely wouldn't be fucking lying to me.

No, I finally decided, she wouldn't lie. She just didn't know she'd said it, which was a whole other fucking problem. I wasn't quite convinced that if I said it to her first she'd say it back. I was out of ideas. And I could hear the shower running. I got out of bed and went to distract myself with the deliciousness that was a wet, naked Sookie.

SPOV

Eric seemed to take a long time to appear in the shower, which was really unlike him. I wondered what on earth was going on in his head, but my thoughts got cut off when he actually arrived and started kissing me. When I was allowed up for some air he said "Did it come?"

I was a bit lost and just said "Mmm?"

"Your period."

"Oh. No, not yet. I guess it will later on today."

"OK." Eric said and then he kissed me again and kind of pushed me up against the wall of the shower, managing this time avoid the shelves.

I was feeling decidedly breathless, and it wasn't just because Eric was kissing me like there was no tomorrow. All this contact with a naked Eric was making me feel hot and squirmy.

Eric was looking a bit breathless as well. He cupped a hand over my breast and rubbed the nipple with his thumb. Then the hand continued down my side, and rubbed my backside, before coming across to settle between my legs. He started rubbing in gentle circles, which made me arch my back and encouraged Eric to take one of my nipples in his mouth. I ground against his palm and he slid one, then two fingers inside me. I moaned Eric's name and he brought his face up to kiss me again. And then I came and I just felt like all my bones melted away.

Eric removed his hand and just looked down at me, like he wanted to say something. But he didn't. "Your turn?" I asked instead, reaching down to grasp his penis, he closed his eyes briefly and then opened them again, staring down at me. I kept my hand moving then brought my other hand in to join it. All the while Eric just kept his eyes locked on mine. It was intense. Maybe too intense.

I decided I'd try something else and I knelt down so the water was beating on my head and took Eric's penis in my mouth, which got a moan of "Sookie" out of him. I worked my mouth up and down the shaft, running my tongue around the head each time. Eric moaned my name again, and then placed his hands lightly on my head. Then with a shudder he came.

When he finished pulsing I released him from my mouth and stood up. Eric smiled at me. "You're still fucking fantastic at that" he said.

I giggled, and reached for the shampoo. "Come on" I said, "it's a race now to see what lasts longer, the hot water or the kids staying asleep."

We made it out of the shower in time to hear Amelia and Felicia both shout for attention. Amelia appeared wearing her good dress and had to be sent back to change, which caused a lot of pouting, but she cheered up a bit when I promised her she could wear it to the barbecue later on. Felicia just alerted us to the fact of her being awake by yelling "Bubbubbubbubbub" really loudly.

I had kind of missed the pair of them. However they didn't seem to have missed me all that much, it was like I hadn't spent most of the day in bed at all. Oh well. I guess no one's completely irreplaceable.

The rain was thankfully easing up, and there were only a couple of showers early in the morning before the sun broke through. I was glad because otherwise we would have ended up in the house at Judith and Calvin's which would have been a bit squashed. I really couldn't face being trapped in a small space with Lorena at the moment.

I made pasta salad to take with us while Eric took the kids to the park. I checked he would be OK on his own and he looked at me like I was just insulting him. Yeah, I thought, I guess St Luke's a week before Christmas is probably worse. He did look a bit confused when I handed him a towel before he left though. "For the swings and slides" I said "because they'll be wet from the rain still."

"Oh" Eric said. "That's a really good idea."

"Well, see. You still need me around for something!"

Eric laughed. "I need you around for lots of things." Then he kissed me and the three of them headed out the door, with Amelia saying "Why is Felicia coming? She's just a baby!" and Felicia going "Bub! Bub! Bub!"

It was quiet without them. I made the pasta salad and another batch of Christmas mince pies. And a bacon and egg pie. I started to get a bit worried. What could go wrong at the park?

Eventually they all arrived back. They had apparently detoured home to get ice cream at the dairy. And Amelia was clutching a handful of rather bedraggled daisies which she'd obviously picked off a grass verge somewhere. "We got you flowers!" she announced brightly.

"Oh, thank you sweetheart." I said, carefully picking them out of her hand before going off to try to find something small enough for me to put them in.

Eric lifted Felicia out of the pushchair and put her on the floor. "There's bacon and egg pie for lunch" I said.

"Oooh" said Eric "See that's definitely what I keep you around for."

"Thanks very much!" I said.

"Oh, come on" Eric grabbed me in a hug. "You know I lo...like all sorts of things you do, but I am really fond of that pie." Then he kissed me.

Mid afternoon we got everyone in the car and headed over to Judith and Calvin's. Amelia was wearing her dress and was thrilled. Felicia was wearing a t-shirt and shorts and couldn't care less.

I just wanted this over with. I didn't have great memories about the last time we'd done this and I was just hoping nothing went spectacularly wrong tonight. Maybe Lorena would be too sick to come?

EPOV

I'd come really fucking close to blurting out to Sookie that I loved her. I should probably have done it. But I wasn't sure what I'd get back. Fuck.

Sookie seemed a bit tense going to the barbecue. I guess she didn't want to hang out with Bill's family either. I was at a bit of a loss why we were but I'd figured out by now that it didn't pay to question it. I was better off just going along with the plan and making sure everyone got out in one piece.

We unloaded everyone and everything; not only did we have all the stuff for the kids, but there were a truck-load of presents and food as well. Thank fuck it had stopped raining so we could at least be outside. Sookie had said something about having to put the barbecue in the garage if it was still raining, which sounded bizarre, but apparently this is Auckland and it wouldn't be the first time. OK then.

Once everyone was settled, Sookie gave me a cooler full of meat to take over to Calvin, who was standing by the barbecue. "Hey, Eric man!" he said when he saw me. "How are you?"

"Great, yeah. Thanks." I got a handshake and he handed me a can of something. I took a look. Bourbon and coke. Fuck. Yeah, that's what I was drinking at the last barbecue. I wasn't sure if I could risk it. Could I? Yeah, I'd be OK. I'd just sip it.

I opened it and took a drink. "So, you're staying in Auckland then?" Calvin asked.

"Yeah, I need to get residency I guess."

Calvin snorted. "Yeah, I got mine through Judith. Having Jessica helped. Will Sookie sponsor you?"

I shrugged. I didn't know. "Possibly."

"Yeah, it's a good way to go. Hey Jessica, don't carry the kitten like that!"

I looked over to where Amelia and Jessica seemed to be torturing some poor kitten, which Jessica was currently carrying upside down. Fuck. I bet Bob was glad he was too fat for that. Calvin carried on "We got her that for a Christmas present. She loves the thing. It's called Fifi apparently. Although that might change tomorrow. Hey! Jessie! I said no!"

Jessica dropped the kitten. On it's head. It rolled away without a problem though. Kittens were tough apparently.

"Still, you're in a much better position for residency than some. My mate Charles.." at this he gestured to some guy standing over by the sister who liked God but who's name I couldn't remember, "…is single and doesn't have the skills that will get the right number of points so he's pretty fucked. He's trying to find a way around it with an immigration consultant at the moment."

"Oh, right."

Calvin put some more steaks on the barbecue and I looked over to where Sookie was carrying some of the food out to the picnic table. I was lost in thought contemplating whether she loved me enough to sponsor me when I realised Calvin was talking to me again "Hey Eric" he said "do you run?"

SPOV

So far the barbecue seemed to be going OK. Amelia and Jessica weren't fighting because there was a kitten to distract them. Portia had found some new guy, a South African friend of Calvin's, to try to convert, Sarah and her family weren't here yet, of course, and Lorena was keeping out of my way.

There had been a lovely moment when we first arrived. Eric carried Felicia in and Lorena went to say hello to her, but she burst into tears. I didn't blame her. Eric said "Oh, she's just having a clingy stage" and walked off to put Felicia down on a picnic rug. Go Felicia, I thought.

Since then he'd been hanging out near the barbecue with Calvin. And drinking. Although he didn't seem to drinking too much. He was watching me a lot though. An awful lot. There was still something going on there.

I helped Judith with the food, and took a phone call from Sarah who swore she was 'just walking out the door now' which meant we could expect her in about an hour, given she was a good thirty minute drive away. God she was useless. We'd have to serve the food soon and just hope they got here in time to hand out presents.

I was watching the kids for a bit to make sure that poor kitten made it to Christmas when that friend of Calvin's, Charles, came over to me. We chatted for a bit. He seemed really lonely. I guess it's hard at Christmas when you don't know anyone, although apparently he now had an invitation to Portia's church on Christmas day.

He was actually kind of boring. After a while I realised he was really really boring. Maybe he would be a good match for Portia? I wanted to get away and talk to someone normal, like Eric, but I couldn't think of a polite way to do it. I glanced over at Eric who was just starting at us. Well, actually he was mostly staring at Charles. Like he wanted to kill him. Oh, good grief, I thought. Can I not even talk to another man without him going all jealously homicidal?

By the time I did finally manage to extricate myself from Charles who was busy telling me how much nicer it was in South Africa (so why he was moving here was beyond me) I was so fed up with Eric's dirty looks that I'd lost all desire to talk to him at all. I went back inside again to see if there was anything else Judith needed help with, but apparently she was good, and she was going outside now. So I had no choice to turn around and go back out again. Where I just about ran straight into Eric. It may have been PMT talking but I couldn't help myself. I just looked at him and said "What the hell is your problem?"

EPOV

I'd been watching Sookie talking to the total dickwad that Calvin had unearthed and invited to his barbecue. He spent most of his time talking to Sookie's chest. Fuck. I really hoped he wasn't thinking she was his ticket to residency in New Zealand. There had to be a way of keeping these assholes away from Sookie.

She finally left him to go inside the house and I decided it was probably an opportune time to make an appearance by her side. However, when I caught up to her she was pissed. At me. She asked me what my problem was.

"Nothing!" I said. "I was just coming to talk to you, that's allowed I take it?"

"Phft. You were coming to stake your claim. I've been watching you staring at me. Or at poor Charles more like. Am I not allowed to talk to anyone other than you Eric?"

"Of course you are. I just don't like to see other guys' slobbering all over you is all."

"He wasn't slobbering!"

"Sookie, he fucking was! The whole time you were talking to him his eyes didn't lift above your neck!"

"Oh Eric! Are we back to that again? Honestly, what are you going to do? Lock me away in case anyone else notices I have cleavage?"

"I don't have to fucking like it if he's staring at you."

"You don't have to fucking do anything Eric! Just butt out. Do you honestly think I'm going to run off with him or something? Just because I let you in the door I'm going take every other lonely foreign guy home with me? Shit, you always tell me I have to trust you, well you try fucking trusting me for once!"

With that Sookie stalked off. Fuck I thought. How did that happen? She just exploded and there was arm-waving and yelling and then poof, she disappeared.

I followed her and found her sitting on a bench by the fence. "What?" she said suspiciously when I approached.

I held up my hand in a gesture of surrender. "Look" I said "I'm not angry with you. I was a bit annoyed at that fucking dick, but it's nothing. Really." I sat down next to her. "And I do trust you. Of course I trust you."

Sookie glanced at me sideways and made a sort of phfft noise which suggested she thought otherwise.

"I do trust you! I wouldn't love you if I didn't trust you. I just don't necessarily trust everyone else. Because quite frankly that fucker's looking for a way to get residency." I looked at Sookie who was just staring at me.

"Back up a bit" she said.

"What to?" I asked.

"The 'you love me' bit." Oh fuck.

I looked at my feet. "Yeah, well…I do" I said quietly, sneaking a look in her direction.

"And you just decide to tell me now?"

"No. I've told you lots. You just haven't heard me. You did last night, before we went to sleep. And you said it back."

"I told you I loved you? While I was out of it on pain killers?"

"Yeah, you did. But I don't think it was the pain killers talking. Do you? Is it not true?" I was a bit fucking worried now. Maybe I'd done this wrong. Maybe I shouldn't have told her. Maybe it wasn't true and I'd fucking rushed the whole thing.

Sookie looked at me and blinked a few times. Her eyes glistened. Her lip wobbled slightly. Then she said "Fuck it!" really loudly and walked off again. I had no idea if that was good or bad. The only way I was going to find out though was if I followed her, so I did. I found her down the side of the house this time.

"Sookie, please don't walk off like that" I said, trying like fuck not to scare her off again.

She sighed and said "I did, didn't I? I did say it. I probably wouldn't have were I not partially doped up, but I did. Because it's true. Maybe those pills are like truth serum or something."

"So…just to clarify. You love me?"

"Yes."

"And I love you?"

"Why are you asking me?"

"OK, that's a yes then. And the yelling is over now?"

"What yelling?"

"OK. The bit where you talk slightly louder and tell me I'm a dick."

"Well, sometimes you are. But I love you anyway."

Sookie smiled at me and I grabbed her in a hug and kissed her. "OK then" I said "I think we're good. And we'd probably better get something to eat before it all goes." I put my arm around her shoulder as we started walking back to where everyone else was.

"Did you see how much steak there was? How is that all going to go? Honestly, South African's take this barbecue thing really seriously!"

"Yeah, Calvin does seem a bit keen on the whole thing."

Sookie laughed. "Well, you're his friend now so you'd know."

"Yeah, about that. I think I agreed to do a half-marathon with him. We start training on Monday. I have to be back here at 6am for a run."

Sookie started laughing so hard that she had to stop walking. "Oh Eric!" she said, wiping the tears away. "Good luck with that!"

Thanks for reading!