*AN: Here's a chapter in advance, to make up with y'all! :)

Chapter 7

Days have passed... Five days. Almost a week.

Patrick couldn't help but think about what she said "We can't... At least not here", "Just give me some time". What were those supposed to mean? He wasn't sure... He had no clue. No hint. Nothing. But he was going to find out. Soon enough. He was being discharged today and that only meant he could finally go and see her.

Of course he tried calling her. Several times, even. But she never came back. She never returned any of his calls. It was like she disappeared. Like she was trying to show him that she wasn't feeling anything for him. He kept thinking about this since she left. And this... This was eating him inside-out. But now... Now he needed to know the truth. He needed to see her and talk to her. And there was only one way to do that.

On the other side, she... She was feeling empty. She was in her bed, tossing and turning. She didn't sleep all night. She couldn't. Not when her brain was full of thoughts. Not when memories came back in flashes. When the guilt and worry were wrapping around her.

She was trying to stop thinking about him. She stopped visiting him since then. But how could she when she felt like she gave him false hopes? She made him think that they might have a chance. And then what did she do? She ruined it all and ran away. Like she always did... But then again... How could someone turn his back to the good things in life and make wrong decisions over and over again? She. She could. Now... now there was nothing left to do than leave it all in the arms of fate. He probably thinks she doesn't care anymore. And that's good, isn't it? It means she can now live her life, okay maybe her full of guilt life, without worrying. But it also means that she is nothing but a coward... She never should have left. She never should have given him false hopes. She never should have done anything. She never should have called him that day. What if it was her fault? What if she caused the accident? She never thought about it this way. She heard him crying and she did nothing. She should have told him to come at her house. She should have told him not to drive. She should have done something for God's sake!

In a violent move she got up in her sit. She looked around her. Chris wasn't there. She didn't remember him crawling out of bed this morning. She crawled out of bed and went to the bathroom. She did her morning routine then went downstairs. There was no one home. Then she remembered. Today was the day they'd discharge Patrick. She told Chris she won't come, therefore they went without her. Stella liked spending time with him and when she heard he had an accident she got worried. Well, as worried as a 5 year old can be. So of course she wanted to see him, now that he was okay.

At least that's what she thought.

She looked at the clock. It was almost 1 o'clock. They should've been back until now, so she took her phone and dialed Chris. He wasn't answering. She tried several times, still nothing. She was worrying and there was only one thing to do. She had to call Patrick, but first she needed to find the guts to do that. She dialed his number. She felt like she was using him, she only hoped that he wasn't feeling the same.

"Ellen?" Patrick answered, his voice visibly full of surprise.

"Patrick, hi. Look, I know I haven't returned any of your calls lately, but now, this call, it isn't about us..." she paused for a second. She didn't know how to express herself. She froze.

"But?" he asked curiously seeing that she didn't continue.

"Huh? Oh, yeah... the call." She continued, stammering. "Uhm, I was wondering if Chris and the girls are still there, it's kind of late and he is not answering my calls. I figured his phone was on silent mode so it won't disturb the other patients."

"Still here?" Patrick asked confused. "They haven't even been here... Ellen, what's going on?"

"Wait, what?" she was in shock. "What do you mean they haven't even been there? They weren't here when I woke up and yesterday when Stella found out you were being discharged today she told us she wanted to come and see you. Shit, Patrick, what am I going to do?!"

He could notice the worry and anger in her voice. Not only Chris left, but he left with her girls and he knew she cared about her girls more than anything.

"Ellen, calm down, please. I was just getting in the car. Is it okay if I come at your place and help you find them? Please, I need to know you're okay. I need to know you're not going to do anything stupid. Please..." he said full of concern.

"Okay, I'm going to dress up and try to call him again. See you!" she said. He never failed to make her feel better.

"See you!" he said and then hung up.

That was it, for a few minutes there were no problems between them. They weren't fighting anymore. They even talked. They were okay. For now. Patrick knew that he had to talk to her about them, he needed to bring this up, at least for his sake, but for now, he figured he should let the faith decide.

Ellen got dressed. She tried calling Chris again, but he wasn't picking up. She heard the doorbell and went downstairs.

"Hey!" Patrick said smiling when she opened the door.

"Hi." She answered with a faint smile. "Come on in." she sighed and then she talked again.

"I think I have an idea. They could be at his place, although I don't know why would they be there, but it's a possibility and we should try there first."

"Okay." Patrick nodded. "Shall we use separated cars or...?"

"Umm, I guess not, it'd take too much time. Are you more comfortable using mine or yours?" she asked. She was being hesitant. Tensed up and hesitant. She'd never acted like that in front of him.

"Ellen, we don't have to do that..." Patrick sighed and cocked his head.

"Do what?" she asked knowing what he was referring to, but she couldn't get close again. It was like she was on the edge of a cliff. And she was getting closer to free falling. And she didn't know if her body could take another fall. So she preferred to be hesitant and distant, even though the sand under her feet was getting hotter and hotter she needed to resist the temptation of jumping into the lake that was right there... right in front of her. Right before her eyes, under the cliff.

"This. All of this. Stop avoiding. Stop hesitating. Stop being so distant, please. Just for a moment. Just for a second, let's just be our old versions of ourselves again, please, because I swear if you're going to keep doing this, I won't be able to keep my sanity. I will not be able to survive. I get it, you might not be feeling the same, but what I'm feeling can't be stopped so at least have a little mercy, and stop avoiding me. I can live with the thought of you not loving me back, but I can't be here, near you with you acting like that. I just can't. It's hurting me too much and I'm afraid that if you keep pushing me this way, I'll fall and I will not be able to get up. I just won't make it."

She could tell he was hurting by the look in his eyes and the tears forming there. And she didn't want to. Not anymore. Not ever again.

"Okay." She said softly, a tear rolling down her cheek.

He saw the guilt in her eyes and slowly he erased the tear with his thumb and hugged her tight. After a few moments Ellen broke the silence and the hug, grabbing her bag and keys on the way to the door.

"Well, then let's go!" she said smiling brightly, while she opened the door.

Patrick followed her out and they hopped in his car after she locked the door. They didn't talk too much on their way and before they knew it, they arrived at Chris' house.

"Look, you have to stay in here, I don't want him to see me with you, I barely convinced him that nothing's going on between us and I don't want to pick a fight again, please" she told Patrick with a pleading look.

"Okay, but if I hear things I don't like I'm coming there, okay?"

"Okay."

She got out of the car and when she tried to open the front door, it was locked. She stood there and listened for a second. She could hear something. She wasn't sure if they were giggles or something else, but oh, she was going to find out. She knew where he kept the spare key so she took it and unlocked the door silently. Yeah, they were definitely not giggles. She went upstairs. The sounds were coming from his bedroom. She knew what she was going to find there. The anger was filling her slowly.

She opened the door in a violent push and there he was. With another woman. In his bed. In the bed in which they had spent so many wonderful moments together. In the bed where she was sitting when he proposed to her. All those memories were being covered in a shadow of hate and dishonesty created by this new 'memory'. Her heart broke into a million pieces and tears flooded her eyes.

"Chris, what the fuck?!" she spat.

He jumped at the sound of her voice and opened his mouth to say something in defense but he was cut off immediately.

"So I am not fucking allowed to visit my co-worker at the hospital after he had a car accident. A FUCKING CAR ACCIDENT, CHRIS! But you are allowed to come here and screw whatever whore you want?!" she yelled. She was angry. She was so angry that she would've punched him in the face if he wouldn't have disgusted her so much in that moment.

"And where are the girls, you asshole?!" she spat even angrier than before. "Where are them, you piece of crap?! Answer me!" she yelled and pointed at him.

"They- they're with the nanny. I- I told her to go with them in the park." He answered scared. He had never seen her so angry in his life. She was red and broken, he could see that.

"Well, thank you." She said sarcastically. "And excuse me, I will go and get my girls and while I do that you might as well take your stuff out of my fucking house. I will have my lawyer discuss with you the terms. We're getting a divorce, do you hear me?!" she yelled while she left the house.

She threw his key away in the grass and jumped in the car.

"Let's go!" she told Patrick, while tears were streaming down her face.

He looked at her in shock. He could see that she was more than angry. She looked down and began crying.

"I said let's go, what are you waiting for?! Do you want me to teach you how to start a fucking car?!" she spat between sobs.

"Ellen, calm down, please." He said starting the car. "So, where are we going?"

"In- In- In the park." She could barely form a sentence.

They arrived in the park. Patrick stopped the engine and looked at her. He cupped her face with his arms and looked into her eyes.

"Honey, please, would you tell me what happened?" he asked with puppy eyes cocking his head.

"He- He- That fucking bastard cheated on me." She sobbed. "I caught him. And he didn't- he didn't even say that he was sorry. He didn't even look like he was sorry. He looked scared." She paused and then "Damn it!" she spat and hit the board of the car with her fist.

"It's okay, it's okay..." he said softly while unbuckling both of the seatbelts. Then he hugged her tight, rubbing her back and held her until she stopped crying.

She looked down at her. She had puffy, red, bloodshot eyes, but he still saw her as the most beautiful woman on the planet. She was hurt and broken, but he hoped he could repair her.

She took a deep breath, erased her tears, broke the hug and said:

"Well, let's go and take my girls home."

Patrick got down from the car, opened the door for Ellen and they both went to search for the girls.

"Look, I think that's your nanny, right?" Patrick said and pointed to a woman with a baby stroller on a bench.

"Yes, that's her and most likely the baby in the stroller is Sienna, but do you see Stella?" Ellen asked with a frown scanning the park with her eyes. "Oh, look, she's in the swing." She said with a sigh.

They both went and took the girls home. It was almost 5 o'clock when Patrick pulled into her driveway.

"Patrick thank you so much for helping me today." Ellen said taking Sienna out of her car seat.

"No problem, I'm always here for you." He said with a smile, while pulling out the stroller from the trunk.

Ellen unlocked the door and went upstairs to put Sienna in her crib, Stella went into her room and started playing with her dolls, all while Patrick brought the stroller inside, locked his car and closed the front door. When Ellen came down she motioned to him to come into the kitchen. They both sat down around the table.

"So..." Ellen started. "You didn't get much rest today so I was wondering if you'd like to stay overnight and for dinner. I mean, I did put you to kind of a lot of work today. It's the least I can do for you and-" she was rambling but she was shortly cut off.

"I'd love to." Patrick smiled and cocked his head.