A/N: So. I know that this chapter is very delayed and everything, but a bout of writer's block combined with no internet access equals a delayed posting. Sorry! But. This story is coming to an end, so there should only be a chapter or so left, so it will be out soon, because of having no internet, I have been writing up a storm, so soon it will be up!

Thanks to Wolf Babies, sarah12345, Vanessa-Wolfe303, EagleGirl12, Kiara212, Ms. Disturbance, Anaeli, Lizzxotwilght, HarunoRun, meggi115, abbie12333 and Jenniedvm for your awesome reviews!

Disclaimer: I do not own The Host or any of its characters; they belong to the lovely Stephenie Meyer. Vanessa-Wolfe303 is responsible for the plot; I just brought her idea to life.

Ian POV

Very gently I lifted Wanda up off the ground and tried to balance her in my arms, letting her head rest on my left arm, careful not to drop her.

"Careful," Melanie hissed at me and I gave her a look.

"Right. Like I'm going to let her go," I whispered back sarcastically, looking down at Wanda's sleeping face.

She looked very peaceful, lying across my lap, fast asleep. I freed my right hand from beneath her and brushed her bangs back out of her face. I felt horrible for what had happened to her and wanted more than anything for the roles to be reversed so that she could enjoy her special night and not have to be sick like this.

I could hear Mel sigh beside me and I glanced over to see that she had her hand on Wanda's leg, giving it a soft squeeze.

"Why wouldn't she say anything?" she wondered out loud and it was my turn to sigh.

"Because it's Wanda. As much as I hate to admit it, you know how stubborn she is. She would have wanted to keep this to herself and not let us worry about her."

"I know, but still. Sometimes she irritates me when she does things like that. This is one of those times."

I couldn't help but chuckle a little bit at her comment and look down at Wanda's face again.

I just wished that I knew what exactly was so wrong with her that she was so sick, so that I could make it go away. I noticed that there were light beads of sweat glistening across her forehead and I wiped them away with the back of my hand. When my hand touched her skin, it felt like it was on fire, but she also shivered at the same time and I could see goose bumps forming on her skin. I held her closer to me as she shivered again and I rubbed my right hand up and down her arm, trying to make them disappear.

"Where the hell is Jared?" Mel demanded, looking off in the direction that he took off in. "It seriously shouldn't take this long. I swear, sometimes I wonder about that boy."

I couldn't help but smile at her impatience.

"This is not funny, Ian," she reprimanded me and I apologized as footsteps were heard coming towards us.

"Finally," Melanie muttered.

Jared rounded the corner, but so did two other figures. It wasn't until they got a little closer and I could clearly make out their faces in the lamp lights that I saw that he had brought Doc and Jeb with him.

"Took you long enough," Mel said to Jared once he came over with the cleaning supplies.

"Yeah, well I had to drag these two out of the party as well. I figured that we could use their help sooner or later," he explained and she gave him a little smile.

"Good thinking. But now you can clean this up," she told him, nodding towards the bile that was on the floor and he made a face, but diligently got to work.

I cradled Wanda closer to my body as Doc kneeled down beside us and took her left hand in his, searching for a pulse.

"Can you tell me what happened, Ian?" Doc asked once he had assessed her vitals and began to check her over.

I told him all that I knew and Mel piped in with some information as well, most of it matching what I had told him.

Just then Wanda groaned and woke up, gagging again. Doc backed up away from her as I quickly sat her upright.

"Oh no she doesn't!" Jared yelled out, racing over and placing a bucket in front of her.

Within seconds she had leaned over it and emptied her stomach again. I felt so useless to her as the only thing I could do was hold her hair out of the way and wait for her to finish. She moaned pitifully and leaned back against my bare chest again, wiping her mouth on the bottom of my shirt.

"Wanda?" I asked her and she incoherently answered me, her eyes closing again, falling fast asleep.

"Never mind, love; go to sleep," I told her, kissing her temple and wrapping my arms securely around her.

"Thank God I got there in time," Jared said. "I'd bust a cap if I had to clean that up again." He came over to sit beside Mel and she wrinkled her nose.

"You smell like puke," she told him, inching away.

"Awe, come on Mel. You're the one that made me clean it up," he whined, shaking his head.

"Shut up and go take a bath," she instructed him and defeated, he got up and took the cleaning supplies with him as he took off in the direction of the washroom.

"Well, that was certainly an experience," Jeb commented and I glared at him. "Oh, calm down, Ian. I didn't mean nothing by it."

I ignored him and addressed Doc instead.

"Do you know what it could have been that made her so sick?" I asked him and he shrugged.

"There are a couple of possibilities, but I can't be too sure which one it is," he admitted, looking at her again. "Do you know if she was in any pain?"

Mel shook her head and looked over at me.

"She never said anything about pain to me."

"I...she... she did say something to me about the pain," I recalled slowly, thinking back to our conversation before she threw up the last time.

"Really?" Doc asked, leaning forward towards us a little as if he was trying to hold onto my every word.

"Yeah, she did," I replied, looking down at her sleeping face and touching her cheek lightly.

"Well, what did she say?" he asked, looking right in my eyes as I made eye contact with him again.

"I... she...." I stopped and thought for a second before answering him. "She said that it felt like her stomach was being ripped apart in pain. Then she proceeded to... you know... throw up."

"So she was in pain?" Doc asked, stroking his chin, trying to make a connection, I supposed. "Anything else?"

"Well, she was burning up pretty badly and before she fell asleep, she told me that it was still hurting her. I don't know what it could be, but I really want to figure it out so that I can help her get better. I just feel so useless only being able to tie her hair back and hold her." I paused for a second before speaking again.

"Do you think you can figure it out?" I asked Doc, hopeful that he would know what was wrong with my Wanda.

Doc shook his head and I could literally feel my face falling. I just wanted Wanda to feel better and I was willing to do anything.

"I'm sorry, Ian. I'll do my best to try and solve this, but it would be better for me to observe her when she is awake, you know. When do you think that she will wake up?"

I shrugged and looked down at her again, noting that she was growing warmer by the moment.

"Could we wrap this up? I'd like to take her back to our room so that she could be a little more comfortable," I told them and everyone nodded.

"Yes, let's get her into bed so she can rest and when she wakes up we'll ask her some more questions," Doc agreed, standing quickly.

"Please don't interrogate her," I pleaded, looking up at him. "That's the last thing she needs."

"Of course," he agreed, nodding his head.

"I'm going to go ahead and clear tha hallways, alright?" Jeb asked us, taking off before we could respond.

I moved Wanda so that she was lying horizontal in my arms and began to stand.

"Do you want me to—" Doc started to say holding out his hands to me, but I shook my head cutting him off. I didn't want anyone holding her but me.

I stood up and wobbled a bit; not that she was the least bit heavy, but I just had to regain my balance and I felt Mel's small hand gripping my upper arm in a vice-like manner. I smiled my thanks to her; to which she nodded and we started on our way, Doc carrying the bucket.

"Are you sure that you want her pukey breath in your bed though?" Mel asked once we started walking.

I glanced sideways at her and gave her an 'are you insane' look and she rolled her eyes.

"I'm just saying," she held her hands up defensively. "If it was me, I would kick Jared out of our bed."

"I know you would," I replied, laughing slightly. "But he would do the very same thing and I'm doing to Wanda, were it you."

She thought about that for a second as we crossed the main plaza.

"I know that, but it's different."

"How so?"

"Well, the guys are supposed to look after the girls; it's like, law. But how do you expect small, delicate little beings like Wanda and me to care for you great big oafs. I mean, there is no way that I could lug Jared around like that," she nodded towards Wanda who I cradled protectively against my chest.

"Course not," I said. "But the fact that you would be there would mean to world to Jared."

"You think so?"

I raised my eyebrows and nodded at her and I saw Mel look away, deep in thought.

We reached our room and Doc slid the red door out of the way and we all stepped inside. I carefully made my way over to the bed and gently lay Wanda down on her back, pulling the covers up to her chin to try and stop her shivering. Just as I was about to turn and grab a chair from somewhere to sit beside her, a hand shot out from under the covers and grabbed my hand. I jumped a little at her ice-cold touch, but turned to her.

"Ian?" her voice croaked, and she tried to open her eyes to look up at me.

"Yes, Wanda?"

"Staywifme."

I frowned slightly, not completely able to understand what she said to me, but Mel clarified.

"She wants you to stay with her," she practically yelled.

"I'm not deaf," I told her and she smirked.

"Of course I'll stay with you," I turned back to Wanda and talked to her. "Let me just go and get a—"

I stopped talking when she shook her head.

"Just stay," she said, and patted the bed beside her.

I smiled a little and hopped up, resting back against the wall that served as our head board. Wanda never let go of my hand and I couldn't stop myself from reaching out to her and brushing the hair off of her forehead again. I then let my fingers slide through her silky hair, repeating the motion over and over again. I could faintly hear Melanie and Doc talking about something, but I tuned them out, not really caring about anything but my Wanda.

As I was stroking her hair, she started to subconsciously move closer to me until her head was practically in my lap. I let her stay there until it became too unbearable for me; her hot breath was breathing onto my groin and making me think inappropriate thoughts. I released her hand from mine and stopped stroking her hair, reaching behind her grabbing under her arms and lifting her up my body until her back was resting on my chest. I knew that I still didn't have a shirt on, but I didn't care; Wanda needed me and that was all that I thought about.

I saw a very small smile creep up on her face and I kissed her head before pulling the covers up on top of both of us.

Wanda POV

As I was lying there in Ian's arms, I was vaguely aware that there were people around me, but I couldn't stop myself when I started to gag. Someone shoved a bucket near me and I immediately threw up into it. I was too sick to be embarrassed about the fact that I had just showed whoever was there the contents of my stomach. Ian said something, but I didn't have time to respond; I was sleeping again.

I didn't dream at all; I was just totally unconscious. My body was spent, between the pain that I experienced and the constant upheaval of my stomach. I heard voices again and thought stupidly that I was floating before slipping back under again.

I started to come out of my sleep when I felt softness under my back and knew that we were back in our room. I felt someone pull the covers up, probably about to leave, but I wanted that person to stay with me. By the roughness of the calloused fingers that grazed my chin, I knew that it was Ian. I removed my hand from under the covers and grabbed his. His skin felt like lava under my hand, but I ignored the feeling as I addressed him.

"Ian?" I asked him, my voice sounding absolutely pitiful.

"Yes, Wanda?"

"Staywifme," I commanded of him, on the verge of sleep again.

I could tell that he didn't understand me as there was a long silence that followed my comment. I was too tired to try and repeat it, but luckily for me, Melanie was there and she seemed to understand what I said and clarified it for Ian.

"Of course I'll stay with you," he told me, starting to let go of my hand. "Let me just go and get a—" I shook my head almost too violently, making me a little queasy. I hoped they brought that bucket I had used earlier.

"Just stay," I pleaded with him, feebly patting the bed on my right side, willing for him to say yes.

My prayers were answered when I felt the bed sink down beside me as he sat down. I refused to let go of his hand and my insides started to melt when I felt his hand stroking softly through my hair. I couldn't help but to slowly move closer to him until I knew that my head was lying on top of him and my left arm was across his legs or something.

I felt him stop rubbing through my hair and I frowned a little until I felt his hands under my arms and he pulled me up so that I was lying on top of his chest. I could feel his strong arms reach around me before pulling the covers up until they were once again under my chin. Then he wrapped me up in a close embrace and I fell asleep.

This time around though, I slipped into dreamland and my dreams were bright and very vivid. In the beginning they were random and stupid and included purple lambs flying through fields of that strawberry cake that I had earlier. As they progressed, they made more sense.

I was sitting in a grassy park by myself, under a tree with pink blossoms hanging down off of it. I was dressed in a white dress. Mel came running up to me, yelling something.

"It's time! It's time!" she kept yelling as she got closer.

I looked up at her and smiled as she held out her hand to me and I took it, standing up.

"Let's go!" she screeched and pulled me along behind her as she ran back the way she came from.

We ran for what seemed like forever, yet staying in the same spot. The scene around us changed to a sandy beach, the sun high in the sky above everyone, where a few rows of people were sitting with a clear aisle in the middle. I stood still as Mel primped me and shoved a bouquet of flowers in my hands.

Some form of strange music started and Mel hugged me quickly before running down the aisle at top speed. I looked ahead of me and saw an arch decorated with flowers at the end and standing directly under it was an official looking person.

Ian was standing on the right of the arch with a goofy grin on his face. I focussed on it as I skied up the aisle towards him. When I finally got there, I stopped and tossed the flowers aside as we held hands. The minister in the middle of us started speaking another language while he said something and we just smiled at each other, lost in the moment.

The minister started talking again and it was time for us to say our 'I do's'. Ian went first and said it clear and looked me right in the eyes the entire time.

"I do," he repeated and I could feel tears in my eyes.

I could also feel the heat from the sun beating down on me. I knew that there was sweat pouring down my face, and felt like I was swimming in it. As the minister nodded at me to say my part, I felt a little dizzy and when I opened my mouth nothing came out.

Instead, when I opened my mouth in my dream, my eyes flew open and I sat up and dry heaved, feeling the acid burning up my throat again.

"Wanda, here," Ian said to me, handing me a small bucket lined with a bag.

I grasped it with both hands and proceeded to vomit into it again. I was disgusted that I could still have something left in my stomach to get rid of. I coughed and spluttered a few times and I could feel Ian's hand rubbing comforting circles on my back.

I dropped the bucket to the floor, making sure that it landed bottom down so nothing spilled out of it before sitting back on the bed.

"I'm sorry," I apologized to Ian as his hand continued to draw on my back.

"Wanda, don't ever be sorry. This is out of our hands; there's nothing we can do."

I sighed and nodded, wiping my forehead and noting that my bangs stuck to it in a really gross kind of way.

"Ugh," I groaned, noticing just how bad I must have smelled to everyone and closed my eyes.

"What is it, Wanda?" Ian asked, thinking something was horribly wrong. "Is there something I can do? Do you need anything?"

I shook my head and he stopped asking questions.

"I just feel really gross," I admitted. "I need..."

"Do you need something to drink?" Mel asked, already handing me a glass of water.

I took it and thanked her, gulping it down in two big gulps. After I finished it, I placed the cup on the floor and proceeded to move myself off of the bed, only to be stopped my two familiar arms that wrapped around me.

"Where do you think you're going?" Ian's voice sounded in my ear.

"I need to change."

"No you don't; you look just fine. Besides, I'm not letting you get up right now," he countered, pulling me closer, but I tried pulling at his arms anyways in a useless effort.

"I don't care how I look, Ian. I care that I've been in these clothes for a while and puked in them a few times. They're gross and I need to change."

"Oh," was his response as he clearly thought it over for a second. "Well..."

"Ian, I'm sick, not dead," I reminded him and heard a deep laugh from somewhere to see that it was Doc's. I didn't even notice that he was sitting in a chair until then.

"Oh, hi Doc," I greeted him, slightly embarrassed that he had now seen me sick as well.

"Hello, Wanda," he replied warmly.

Something light and feathery hit the side of my face, falling into my lap and I looked down to see that one of my crappy work shirts had been thrown there. I gingerly picked it up, giving it a whiff and the room exploded in laughter.

"Great, thanks guys," I grumped, shaking my head.

"Just shut up and change into that," Mel told me, now searching through Ian's clothes for something.

"I'm not changing here!" I practically screeched and then went red with embarrassment.

"And why not?" she demanded, whirling around and putting her hands on her hips, holding a pair of Ian's grey sweatpants.

"Because...." I mumbled, looking pointedly at Doc and Ian, hoping that she would get the message.

"Oh my God, Wanda," she said, exasperated, clearly getting the point that I was making.

"What? What is it?" Ian asked but I just shook my head.

"Well, what did I miss?" Jared called out, entering the room and crossing it to stand beside Melanie.

"Great," I said under my breath, coughing a little and wincing in pain as it began to take over my stomach once again.

I glanced out at Mel who hadn't noticed my facial expression as she was talking to Jared and Doc at the same time and I noticed that they both turned around to face the rocky wall. Once they had turned, she looked back over at me, threw the pants onto the bed and motioned for me to get moving, holding up two fingers signalling that I only had two minutes to change. I sighed and turned to Ian.

"Umm. I'm a.... going to..." I couldn't finish as the pain overtook my stomach in a strong wave. I guess that he just thought that I was too embarrassed to continue, for he leaned close to me, kissing my cheek before tugging the big shirt out of my hands.

"It's fine, Wanda," he told me. "I won't peek, I promise."

This time, I did genuinely blush.

True to his word, Ian did close his eyes, but he also clapped his hands over top of them and I couldn't help but to giggle. I wanted to kiss his cheeks, but they were covered by his hands, so I settled for sitting up on my knees, pushing the dark hair off of his forehead and kissing it instead. I sat back on my heels and took off the nice green shirt that Ian had put on me the first time I decided to expel my bodily contents. I looked at it and wrinkled my nose a little before throwing it on the floor beside my bucket.

I looked down at the nice purple shirt that I was wearing and sighed as I slid it up and over my head, placing it gently on the bed beside me. I then started to struggle with the stupid blue top that Mel put on me, and remembered that there was nothing on underneath it. I decided that I would just have to be quick about it, so I got to work getting it off and got my arm stuck. I quickly looked over at her for help, but she was occupying Jared and didn't see me. I closed my eyes and counted to three, hoping that it would go away and that no one would see me there with my arm stuck in my 'shirt', half exposed to the world.

When my eyes opened, I was still sitting there awkwardly and Mel still hadn't noticed. I sighed and turned around to Ian and saw that he was still covering his eyes and I couldn't help but to giggle.

"What?" he asked me, grinning beneath his hands.

"You look cute," I admitted before blushing, glad that his eyes were covered so that he couldn't see this one.

"Aww, thanks Wanda," he replied, joking with me.

"Ian.... can you... I need..."

"Are you okay?" he ripped his hands from his eyes and they flew open, quickly noting that I wasn't exactly adequately dressed.

"Oh... Wanda, I'm sorry," he began apologizing at once, but I waved him off.

"It's okay. But can you help me out of this thing?" I asked him, masking my embarrassment.

"Of course I will," he quickly agreed, reaching towards me and trying to get a hold on the bottom of the shirt.

"No, wait!" I said to him fast, so that he didn't continue. Ian gave me an odd look and I knew I had to explain myself. "It's just that... I'm not wearing anything, uh, underneath?"

Ian obviously understood, as he nodded, smiling.

"I'd offer you my shirt, but I've already done that," Ian joked, gesturing towards his bare chest.

"I know, sorry about that too," I tried apologizing, but Ian placed his hand over my mouth to stop me. I sighed and rolled my eyes at him.

"Don't be sorry, Wanda. I keep telling you that, but when are you going to believe me?"

I shrugged and felt a little guilty. He spent half his life telling me the same things over and over again, and I hardly ever heeded his words. I resolved to listen to him from then on and looked up at him again.

"Sorry?" I couldn't help but to offer and he chuckled, kissing my cheek.

"Now, let's get this thing off of you," Ian stated, thinking at the same time. "How about we just... okay. I'll pull it up and over your head and you can quickly pull the blanket up to you and I'll pass you the new shirt. Does that sound okay?"

I nodded, grinning and waited for him to start. Ian looked me in the eyes before reaching towards me and placing his hands on either side of my waist, grabbing a hold of the shirt. I jumped when his cold hands touched my skin and he apologized. I nodded, waving it off before he started to inch it up my body.

"You won't look, will you? You know... in case something happens?" I whispered to him quickly, trying to keep my voice down so the others wouldn't hear me.

"Wanda, I would never do anything that you aren't comfortable with. Of course I won't look."

I nodded in approval and he swiftly guided the shirt off my stupid arm that was stuck in it and over my head as I quickly pulled the blanket on top of our bed up to my chest. Ian reached for the new shirt, but stopped and placed a hand on my cheek instead.

"You look awfully pale, Wanda," he said to me, looking very concerned. "Paler than normal, I mean."

I shrugged. "It's probably a repercussion of the whole puking my guts out thing," I tried to joke with him, but his face remained worried.

Just then, a cold wave of air passed through the room, making me shiver and goose bumps popped up all over my body. Ian noticed and frowned, removing his hand from my face and rubbing both of them up and down my arms, chaffing them to try and warm me up. Instead, I leaned towards him and rested my forehead on his bare chest and I could feel his arms around me as I melted into his touch and his body heat. Wrapped up in his embrace like that, I was suddenly too hot and I pushed myself away from him, swinging my legs over the side of the bed spluttering and coughing, clutching the blanket to my chest. Ian leaned over beside me and picked up the bucket, holding me tight just as I threw up again.

After I finished with that awful task, I groaned and held my hand in my hands, resting my elbows on my knees.

"Are you okay?" Ian asked and I nodded, looking up to see that Mel, Jared and Doc had crowded around us as well.

"Did you have to watch?" I grumbled, wiping my face with my hand, realizing that I still had only the blanket covering me and gasped, holding it tight to my body.

Someone ruffled my already messed up hair and I shook my head. Ian's arms pulled me back up against him and handed the old shirt to me. I took it in my hand and put on arm through it, strategically holding the blanket up while manoeuvring it over my head as well. Once I pulled it down, I let the blanket fall down and sighed, pushing the mop of hair off of my head.

"Wanda? Now that you're awake and everything, do you mind if I ask you a few questions?" Doc asked me, and I shook my head. "I just want to try and nail down exactly what I think is wrong with you," he explained, smiling.

"Yeah, that's fine. I want to know too," I said before wincing and clutching my stomach as another round of pain tore through my stomach.

"Wanda," Ian said, probably worried about me. He turned my head to look into my eyes before looking over at Doc. "Please do something. Isn't there anything that we can do to take away the pain?"

Doc shook his head. "No there isn't, I'm sorry. There isn't any No Pain left at all. I've already looked everywhere; we need another raid."

Jared nodded in agreement. "I even checked before I came up here and everything."

Ian sighed and I looked at Doc. "Aren't you going to ask me some questions?"

"Oh, right" he said, moving his chair over beside us and pulling a notepad out of what seemed like thin air.

"Alright Wanda, are you ready?"

I nodded and he smiled at me encouragingly.

"Okay, when did you first start noticing any symptoms?" he began his questioning and I sighed, starting to retell everything to him.

Ian POV

As Wanda was answering all of Doc's questions, I couldn't help but to sit back and just watch her. Lately I had taken to observing her more often, it seemed to be a bit of a habit now and sometimes I hardly realized that I was doing it. She just looked so gorgeous and I still couldn't believe that she would want to spend her life with me; after all, I was just a little old human in the grand scheme of life. I knew that she could do so much better than me, and I tried my hardest to prove my worth to her so that she didn't just up and leave.

That was why I planned the birthday surprise for her; to try and prove to her that the people in the caves really do love and care for her as their own, and also to impress her and show her that I can take care of her. Even Maggie and Sharon helped out, and that's really saying something, so I only hoped that she would want to stay here for the rest of her life. I knew that she had said that she wanted to stay here in the past, but I hoped that it still applied. It dawned on me then that the party would still be going on. I hoped that Kyle and the others didn't let it get too out of hand. If they did, I was going to refuse cleaning it up. I wondered if they even realized that Wanda was missing from the party.

I sighed and went back to my observations.

Even though she was sick and sort of a grey color, she looked beautiful. It took everything out of me not to scoop her up in my arms and kiss her senseless right now in front of everyone, but I contained that emotion and leaned back against the stone wall. As Doc was asking another question while recording her answer from the last one, Wanda looked over at me and flashed me one of her smiles; the one that absolutely makes my heart melt and skip several beats.

I couldn't help but to grin back at her and open my arms wide, inviting her into my embrace. Lucky for me, she crawled over and leaned back against my chest; I needed to remember to put a shirt on, sighing as I wrapped my arms securely around her. She snuggled down a bit and my insides turned to jelly. Just to be able to sit there and hold this wonderful warm being in my arms was the single most wonderful thing ever.

Since I had tuned out their conversation, I began to play with her beautiful blonde hair. I twirled the ends of it around my fingers, making sure to brush out any knots that I made after, letting it fall gently against her skin again. Wanda let her head rest back against me and I noticed that she yawned. That was my signal to intervene before she fell asleep during the questioning.

"Alright Doc, I think you've got enough information," I said to him and he looked up from his notes, a little confused.

"You promised that you wouldn't interrogate her," I reminded him and he laughed.

"Of course I wouldn't, Ian. I was merely trying to get the most information about this as possible."

"Well, I think that's enough for right now," I told him and Wanda started to protest.

"But Ian, it's okay, I can manage," she said, trying to turn around to look at me, but I held her in place.

"I know that you can manage, but what good will it be if you fall asleep on him?" I asked her and the room fell silent.

"Just looking over my notes here," Doc started to say, flipping the pages at lightning speed, "I seem to have enough information here to start to form a conclusion from. If I just go and ask a few people some more questions, I'll have a definite answer for you very soon."

"Good," Wanda said. "I'm sick of being sick. I just want to know what's wrong."

"Okay then, I will go and get to the bottom of this for you. In the meantime, I want you to get some sleep. Your body will be spent from all the energy that you've had to go through and it needs to regenerate some. Ian, I trust that you will see to it that she sleeps?" he asked me and I nodded.

"Of course. I won't let her leave my side," I vowed and I could practically hear her scowling at me.

"I don't doubt that," Doc told me, getting up and crossing the room.

Jared slid the door out of the way and the pair of them stepped into the hall. I noticed that Mel was snoring lightly in one of the chairs that had been brought in some time; I didn't recall seeing that, but evidently someone had done so.

"I don't need a baby sitter, you know," Wanda complained from my arms and I chuckled, squeezing her once more before releasing her.

"I know," I replied, sliding down so I was lying on my back. "But you do need me and I promise that I'll take very good care of you."

I finished and opened my arms again. She giggled and lay down with her head resting on my left shoulder and I neatly tucked her into my side, wrapping her up tight and tucking the covers under her chin.

"Aren't you afraid of getting sick?" Wanda asked me and I shook my head.

"No, I'm not. The only thing I'm afraid of is that you won't get better, and that won't be a good thing, will it?"

Wanda let out a cute little giggle and shook her head.

"No it won't Ian. Don't worry. With all this sleep you're making me get, I'll be good as new in no time."

"I sure hope you're right, Wanda," I told her, kissing her forehead and then her nose.

It was quiet for a little while and I felt myself drifting off to sleep. I thought that Wanda was already sound asleep when she turned to me.

"Ian?"

"Mhm?" I answered sleepily.

"I love you," she told me simply and I couldn't help but to smile in my sleep-induced haze.

"I love you too Wanda. Forever and for always."

By the way, for those of you who were asking, Canada did win the game by a lot and it was a very proud moment in Canadian history winning five World Junior Championships in a row! : )

Review! : )