Part XXXVI
Alex had her eyes closed but she could feel and hear everything around her. The hospital's PA, wheels of possible wheel chairs, doctors passing by giving their latest assessments on their patients. How many days had it been?
One?
Two?
Alex didn't really know anymore.
She didn't really care.
As of the moment there was only one thing in her mind.
She wanted to go home to her fiancé.
Her thoughts were stopped by fingers fixing her blanket. Alex didn't open her eyes, but one would see her eyebrows furrow as if confused. Alex then smelled a scent, that plush scent of flowers that only one person carried around her.
Marissa.
A smile slowly crept onto her face as she opened her eyes ever so slowly. She gazed onto her fiancé who was about to give her a kiss on the forehead. Marissa stopped midway and smiled at her.
"Hey there sleepy head..." Marissa bent to capture the blonde's lips.
"I love you…" Was Alex's reply.
"I love you…" She said once more feeling that once was insufficient.
"I love you too… But…" Marissa finally replied taking a seat beside her fiancé's body.
"But what?" Fear was evident in the blonde's tone.
Did Marissa want to call off the wedding?
"You've been lying to me… You've been keeping things from me…" Marissa said softly taking a magazine on her hand. It had Alex's picture on center page. An inset of her and Marissa kissing on the sidelines was also visible.
It said something in bold letters too.
IS THIS THE ROLE MODEL YOU WANT FOR YOUR DAUGHTERS?
"You told me everything was fine… That I don't have to worry about you… But here you are… Missing probably the one of the best, if not the best, game of your life… Just because you're stressing on this..." Marissa pointed at the magazine once more and tearfully looked at Alex.
"I went home, thinking that you were right. I needed to talk to my father. I know I did. But you didn't tell me they were bugging you already. That you received hate mails. Beth doesn't even know. Not even Summer." Marissa added obviously trying hard not to break down.
Alex just laid there in silence.
"Aren't we supposed to share everything…? Even pain? Even hatred? Did you think I can't handle it?"
"It's not that…" Alex finally spoke.
She slowly sat up with Marissa aid and held the brunette's hand.
"You were already dealing with a lot of things… I didn't want to bother you with that…"
"I AM your fiancé… I deserve to know… It's not a bother… It's my right to know…"
"I know… And I'm sorry… I just… Didn't want you to just pick me over yourself…"
Silence.
They just stared at their entwined hands for, which seemed to them, forever.
"There are some things I want to try and deal with alone…" Alex said softly, turning her head to gaze straight at Marissa's eyes.
"You don't have to be alone. I'm here. Stressing about things don't help you... At all…"
"Maybe… But it's something I want to learn to deal with…"
"You'll kill yourself trying to deal with IT!" Marissa snapped and took her hand away from Alex.
She clenched her fist and Alex could see her gritting her teeth in frustration.
"Come back here please…" The blonde begged and saw Marissa turn her heels to stand beside her hospital bed.
Alex took Marissa's hands and kissed them gently. Marissa sighed and closed her eyes. She opened them again and saw Alex looking back at her in pure determination.
"I'm not going anywhere Miss Cooper. I promise you. I will have at least a hundred years under my belt, that you would go tired of me."
"I could never grow tired of you…" Marissa replied choking in sobs.
She flung herself to Alex's arms and cried.
"I'm going to be fine Marissa. I'll always be with you… I promise…"
----
"Stop walking. It's making me dizzy…" Bianca complained as she took Beth's hand.
The latter was pacing outside Alex Cohen's hospital room in worry.
"Why didn't she tell us? We could sue them for that..." Beth replied scratching her head.
Bianca couldn't tell whether her girlfriend was angry or confused.
"You can't force the decision to be always for her. She knows she's sick. But she isn't handicapped."
"But she can't take it. Look where it brought her…"
Frustrated, Bianca stood up and cupped her girlfriend's cheek staring straight into her eyes.
"Would you deny me the right to find myself in such things to make me grow even if it would cost us both a lot more?"
"I don't want to lose you… Not again…"
"It's just the same thing… I know we don't want to lose her. But there are some things we need to deal with alone. She'll ask for help if she needs it. We can't put her in a protective bubble. She'll suffocate."
"Hate us you mean?"
"Yes." Bianca tiptoed and kissed her girlfriend's lips.
"What should we do then?" Beth asked holding Bianca by the waist.
"Wait. And prepare. You'll never know when she would really need us."
"Alright…"
----
By sundown the team came to visit Alex Cohen in the hospital. They were set on the trip back to LA for the remaining 5 games.
"Did you guys win?" Alex asked as she held a glass of water which was handed by Marissa.
"We did. But barely." Jill replied sighing as she took a seat right across Alex's bed.
"I don't think luck can bail us next time." Inna added sighing as well.
"It was a good thing Juvy drained that last point…" Luisa added as well making Juvy beam in delight.
Marissa saw this but just shrugged the thought of wringing the woman's neck like a piece of cloth.
"I'll try to be there next time." Alex finally said before drinking her medicine.
Suddenly, Alex hand shook a bit, allowing the water to flow opposite the direction of her mouth. She was still feeling a little weak. She ended up with a puddle streaming down her neck.
Quickly, Marissa searched for a towel. When she turned, Juvy was wiping Alex with her hanky.
"I'll do that." Marissa said trying to hide the anger in her voice.
"It's fine. I'll do it." Juvy replied with no utter care, fear or whatsoever.
Marissa could feel her blood pressure rise. But Alex took her hand.
"It's fine Juvy. Marissa and I can take it from here."
Luisa tugged Juvy by the arm and shook her head in dismay.
The look seemed to say: Juvy, you're at it again.