"How did Friday evening go?" Bilbo asks sitting down beside me in the waiting room.

"Great- perfect, actually. He was genuinely surprised. He really needed it, and I am thankful that everything went according to plan. It was worth it- seeing the smile on his face and his entire being just lit up with happiness. Though I fear that light will grow dim, once again, here soon."

It was the honest truth. This second week of therapy is going to be life-changing. New milestones crossed and yet others created. The race never ended. And then, Kili is worried about his hair. It seems like such a stupid thought, but now that it is approaching ever closer, it has become a harsh reality. I feel selfish for taking my health for granted, hair included. I can't imagine going through what Kili or the other patients are experiencing. I shudder at the thought.

"It will all work out in the end." Bilbo assures me. "I've seen patients go through this too many times to count. Some make it, some don't. But those who fail, choose not to fight. I know for a fact that your brother is going to fight until he wins. And if for the slightest second he begins to stop, I know that he has a fantastic support team who will pick him back up and force him to fight forward. Not everyone has someone who cares for them. Kili is very lucky, indeed."

"Thank you," I say with a smile.

Bilbo stands up and leaves the room. I check my watch and see that Kili still has another five minutes before he should be ready to leave. My mind wanders back to the events of this morning, which had been nothing compared to the rest of the weekend.

Actually, things had started to gradually go downhill Saturday. Kili had slept all day, and neither Thorin, nor I, had thought much of it. But, when he would wake up he would be confused. He started asking questions, like where he was and why his face was swollen. Thorin and I would try to explain and he would nod his head, but then a few minutes later he would begin with a new round of questions. Later that night, two in the morning to be exact, I was awoken by muffled screaming.

I jumped out of bed and ran across the hall to Kili's room. I stood above Kili's screaming body and latched onto his flailing arms. He gained some strength from his hysteria, but it still wasn't enough to fight me off. Eventually, I got his arms to stop and he recognized my voice. He calmed down some and stopped screaming enough to tell me that it was dark and he was blind. I tried to assure him that he wasn't blind. He wouldn't listen and started screaming about how he couldn't see. I jumped up and ran to the light switch by the door. The light turned on and Kili immediately stopped. I stayed with Kili for the rest of the night.

I told Thorin about all of this Sunday morning over breakfast. He was worried and so was I. The ordeal from the night had really scared me. Kili woke up and ate lunch with us. Thorin never took his eyes off of him. Kili was exhausted and hateful. He kept making snide remarks and insisting that he was fine and could do things himself. It was his normal behavior, but ten times angrier and with zero humor. He settled down as the day progressed and eventually apologized about everything. We assured him he was forgiven. He accepted gratefully and then we actually watched a movie together and enjoyed ourselves that evening.

But then this morning happened.

The second Thorin walked out the door, Kili collapsed into heaves on the kitchen floor. Neither of us had expected it. After he got rid of what little he had in his stomach, he dragged his weak body to the shower. I stood outside the door, carefully listening for anything that sounded like he was in distress. He showered and was getting himself dressed when he fell. I immediately opened the door and found Kili lying on the tile floor, shirtless and bleeding. Apparently he had hit the counter when he fell, which then broke the skin and caused the small gash on his chin. I got the bleeding stopped and then helped him put his shirt on. Kili was frustrated that he had fallen and was having to be helped in order to dress himself. This made him sick again. Thankfully, the toilet was right behind him. He finally got his body together and let me stand him up. From then on he took full control of himself.

I had definitely learned one thing from it all though: Friday was far too much for Kili to partake in at this point in time and even in the near future. His body could not handle it. What we all thought was going to be a happy weekend, ended with disastrous results. Proof that I am a careless idiot and that Kili is sick.

"Fili? Fee?"

I snap back to the present. I hadn't even heard Kili enter the room. But the tone in his voice suggests that he has been trying to get my attention for a while now.

"Can we go home now?"

Kili looks like he is on the brink of tears and collapsing.

"Yeah, Kee. Let's go home."

"Pull over!"

Kili's demand catches my attention and I spare a glance to see that his hand is on the door. I swing the car to the right and pull off the freeway. The second the car stops, Kili falls out the door and onto his knees.

I jump out of the car and run to the other side. Kili is getting sick and the heaving is jerking his small frame. It almost looks as if he will snap in two from the force. I wrap an arm around him and hold him up. My free hand I use to hold his hair back. The heaving turns to coughing and Kili finally stops all together, gasping for air. His strength leaves him and my arms catch him before he can face plant into his own vomit.

"Fee?"

"Yeah?"

"Today sucks."

"I know, Kee. I'm sorry."

"Me too."

"What in the world are you sorry for?" I say into the top of Kili's head as it rests on my shoulder.

"Being an idiot and thinking I was blind; screaming at you; yelling at Thorin; being a pain in everybody's butt; being useless and weak—"

"Kili, shut up. Don't say that ever again. You are not useless and you are not weak. You're sick. There's a difference." I stop before I start yelling. "You've always been a pain, but we wouldn't have it any other way." I add good-naturedly.

Kili gives a weak laugh. "'m good at it."

I chuckle and give him a one armed squeeze. "You're very good at it, dork."

We sit here on the side of the road, our backs against my car, for a few more minutes. I want to make sure that Kili's strength is coming back enough before I attempt to put him back in the car. I grab hold of one of Kili's cold hands. He gives me a squeeze a minute later and I stand up, pulling him up after me.

We got home without any more accidents. Kili walked straight to the living room and fell asleep in the recliner immediately. I brought his bucket from his room and laid it beside his sleeping body. I grabbed another quilt and threw it over him. Making sure he was going to stay asleep, I went to the kitchen.

I called Thorin and led him through everything that had happened since he left this morning to now. He couldn't hide the worry in his voice. He ordered me to keep my eyes on Kili and make sure my brother had everything he needed until he got home. I told him I wouldn't leave his side.

I quickly made a sandwich and ran back to the living room. I sat down on the couch and grabbed a book from the coffee table.

And this is where I sit now- sandwich gone, but book still in hand. I jump at the sound of a ringtone. I automatically check my pockets, only to find that the phone being alerted isn't mine, but Kili's. The sound breaks through Kili's semi-conscious state and begins to feel around for his phone. He finds the phone and pulls it from beneath the blankets. At first a look of confusion crosses his face, but is instantly replaced with a happy, but sleepy, grin.

"Hello, beautiful."

My eyes grow even wider, which I honestly hadn't known was possible until this second. Who in the world is he talking to?

"Yeah, had a rough weekend… Sorry… No, no, I'm ok. Feeling much better… Really, I am…"

Kili turns to look at me and starts to laugh at my expression. I stammer at his reaction and close my mouth and squint my eyes, giving a slight glare.

"He's dying right now… Yeah, I'll tell him… Thanks, bye." Kili hangs up his phone, rolls over, and looks like he is going back to sleep.

Not without answers though.

"Who was that?" I ask, a hint of frustration in my voice.

"Just Éowyn. Chill." Kili says with a yawn.

I sigh and relax my tense shoulders. "Yeah, she said she was going to call you soon."

Kili nods his head into the cushiony back of the recliner. "She's nice."

I smile to myself, thinking of her kind voice and warm smile. "Yeah."

"If you don't marry her, I will." Kili says, his voice uncharacteristically serious.

As if the tone of his voice isn't enough, the mention of marriage is too much. I start choking on the water that I have just taken a drink of. I sit here, coughing and desperately trying to catch my breath. Kili looks over his shoulder, slight concern on his face. Then I finally stop and catch my breath.

"Marry her?" It's almost a whisper. My sore throat can barely manage it. "Kili, I just met her."

Kili continues with his seriousness. "I know, Fili. I was there." Kee pauses and rolls over, facing me. "I've seen the way you look at her, the way your eyes light up when you talk about her. I'm no expert, but I'd say you're in love. And, I don't blame you. She's special, Fee. I like her. Ever since that day in the park, it was like it was meant to be. She belongs with you, Fee. If you're too stupid to see that, then I'll take her."

My mouth is hanging open again, I know it. But I can't seem to close it. Kili's words are tumbling through my mind.

Does he even realize what he's saying? Yes, I really like her. Maybe even love her. But we just met. I've seen too many people rush into things like marriage, and it never lasts. Marriage is something I only want to take part in once, and it will be with the one person that I cannot live my life without and that I love more than life itself. I think it might be Éowyn, but I can't just rush into something like this. Éowyn is a very special person. Her kind heart and warmth light up any room. She brings peace and happiness wherever she goes. She's perfect.

But marriage isn't something that I am really thinking about right now. Actually, I've never considered it.

I snap out of my thoughts only to realize that the room is suddenly quiet because I have actually spoken all of these thoughts out loud. Kili realizes what has just happened and a grin starts to grow on his face.

I feel the heat rising in my cheeks. I struggle for words, but it's too late.

"You're in deep, brother. Real deep." Kili laughs. Then his laughing stops and his face turns into a grimace.

I snap out of my stupor and jump to Kili's side. "What's wrong?"

Kili's eyes are squeezed tight. One hand is grabbing at his head, the other is searching for mine. I grab his wandering hand with one of mine and squeeze it. My other hand I move to Kili's head, and gently massage his scalp. Kili takes in a sudden gasp and opens his eyes.

"Fee?" He grits out between his clenched teeth.

"I'm right here, Kee."

"Pill?" Kili closes his eyes again and leans his head into the back of the recliner.

I have forgotten about his medication because he hasn't been needing it lately. Or maybe he has and he's just better at hiding things from me than I ever gave him credit for.

"Are they in your room?"

Kili nods his head.

"I'll be right back." I lay his hand back underneath the quilt and run up the stairs. I dig around in Kili's mess of a room because the pills aren't where I thought they would be on his nightstand. They aren't on his desk either. I reach into the pocket of a jacket that is draped across the back of a chair. Bingo.

I run back down the stairs to the living room. Kili is still grabbing at his head with one hand, but has started to curl into a fetal position. He's really in a lot of pain.

I shake his shoulder to get his attention. "Here."

I open the bottle and give him one of the pills. I hand him a bottle of water and he coughs a little after swallowing. My eyes never leave his face. Kili's puffy face looks flushed. I put a hand to his forehead, but he's cold.

"Want a heating pad? Might help the headache and give you some warmth."

Kili thinks it over and then nods his head.

I walk down the hall to the bathroom and reach into the cabinet beneath the sink. I pull out a heating pad from where it is buried in the back left corner. I grab a thin towel from the shelf and wrap the heating device in it. I turn the light back off and head back to the living room.

I turn the heat on and when it begins to warm, I walk over to Kili.

"Lean forward."

Kili does as I command and lets me place the small furnace behind his neck. Kili snuggles into the heat and relaxes back into the recliner.

"Anything else?"

Kili shakes his head. "Thanks."

"Try to sleep it off. I'll be right over here if you need me." I pat Kili's shoulder once more and resume my earlier position on the couch. But this time, my brain is too preoccupied to read the book.

Kili slept for thirty minutes before waking up and grabbing his trusty bucket. I cringe as I listen to Kili wretch and heave. The noises disgust me, but he's more important than my discomfort. When he finishes, I wordlessly take his bucket and walk to the bathroom.

As I walk down the hall, the front door opens and Thorin walks in. He hangs his keys beside the door and looks up. He notices the bucket in my hand and then catches my eye. I offer him a shrug and walk into the bathroom.

When the bucket is clean, I walk back to the living room. Thorin is kneeling beside Kili and talking to him softly. I can't make out what he is saying, but Kili seems to like it and smiles. Then he laughs a little and says something else. This gets a laugh out of Thorin and he reaches out and ruffles Kili's hair fondly before standing up.

I hand him the bucket which he lays beside Kili.

"Kili tells me you're thinking about getting married. Fili, I know you're a very intelligent man, and I trust your judgment, but don't you think this is a bit soon?"

I look at my uncle's face. A familiar, stony expression covers it and his eyes are dark and questioning. I open my mouth but no sound comes out.

Then Kili snorts and the light comes back into Thorin's eyes. He can't hold back his laughter anymore.

"You're right, Kee." He turns to look at my brother. "His face is priceless."

I roll my eyes, but soon find myself laughing along with them. Sometimes, I am the easiest target. And gullible. Very, very gullible.