Disclaimer: I don't own Primeval or its characters.
Summary: Jess is sick and needs someone to take care of her. Becker is the only one available.
Genre: Romance/Humor
Rating: T
A/N: This one is quite long, far longer than the last one. It was meant to be a fun thing to keep me busy over the long weekend, but ended up taking me over a week to finish because I just kept adding to it. But anyway, I hope you enjoy it :)
Sick
Jess sat at the ADD, going over reports from the last six months. The team had their bi-annual meeting with Lester that afternoon and she was trying to make sure that all the necessary reports were in order before then. She was so engrossed in her work that she almost didn't notice the sharp pain that shot up her arm.
Confused, Jess tried to find the source of the pain; but as she looked her arm over she was unable to find anything that would have caused the sudden stinging sensation. Deciding not to worry about it, Jess shifted her attention back to the task at hand.
As the day progressed Jess began to feel unwell. She felt tired, her body ached, and her temperature kept going from cold, to hot, and back to cold again.
Assuming this was a result of all the extra hours she had been doing in the lead up to this review, Jess tried to push how she felt aside, promising herself that she would have an early night.
###
Unsurprisingly, Jess was the first one to arrive in Lester's office for the meeting. Reports in hand, she took a seat in one of the empty chairs across the desk from Lester.
"Jess, are you alright?" Lester asked after he saw the state she was in.
Jess flinched. Though he tried to hide it, she could hear the concern in her boss's voice, and she knew she must look worse than she had thought she did to receive that response from the usually composed man.
"I'm fine. Just tired, is all." Jess smiled at him, trying to assure Lester that she was in fact okay.
Lester looked unconvinced, but thankfully he let the subject drop.
The others arrived and the meeting began. Jess tried to focus on what was being discussed and giving her report, but she found it hard to pay attention to one thing for extended amounts of time. She caught Lester looking at her a couple of times during the meeting, worry in his eyes, and was grateful that the looks seemed to go unnoticed by the rest of the team.
Eventually the meeting ended and Jess stood to leave, only for her head to start spinning. Her hand shot out to clutch at the back of the chair she had been sitting on, but it came away empty and she fell.
"Jess!" Becker cried out from behind her. He caught her before she could hit the floor, and lowered them both slowly to the ground.
Jess was briefly aware of the rest of the team crowding around them before her eyes fluttered shut.
"I need a medic to my office. Now." Lester demanded, slamming the intercom button on his desk.
"Jess. Jessica. Tell me what's wrong."
"Mm 'kay. Just…tired."
Jess curled into Becker, seeking out his warmth. He pushed her hair out of her face and flinched at how cold she felt.
"Jess, you need to stay awake."
"Tired." Her voice was weak when she spoke.
"I know, but you gotta try to stay awake. Please. For me."
"'Kay."
But even as she agreed, Becker could tell she was drifting off.
The medics arrived, and the others stepped back to let them do their work. Becker relinquished his hold on Jess so she could be looked over, but made no move to step away.
"She's gone into anaphylactic shock," the medic stated before looking up at the rest of the team. "Does anyone know if she's come into contact with anything she's allergic to."
"She's only allergic to insects."
"If she was bitten, why wouldn't she use her epipen?" Abby wondered.
"It's not like she'd have trouble finding one," Connor muttered, referring to the fact that Becker had stashed epipens everywhere Jess frequented in the ARC after the beetle incident.
"She needs adrenaline," the medic turned to his colleague before continuing. "We need to get her to the med bay."
The two medics carefully moved Jess onto a gurney and wheeled her out of the room; Abby, Connor, Matt, Becker, and Lester were quick to follow.
Becker paced the hallway outside the room Jess had been taken into. He didn't understand how this could have happened. Why hadn't Jess sought medical attention as soon as she was bitten? Why did she let it go as far as it did?
He wanted these questions—along with a million other ones—answered, and he had no intention of going anywhere until they had been.
He couldn't believe she would put herself at risk like this. Didn't she know how much the team cared about her? How much he cared about her?
Of course she doesn't know how much you care about her. You've never told her how you feel, and now you may never get the chance.
He had been tormented by this thought since the medics had wheeled her into the examination room. All he could think about was the fact that he had never told her how he felt about her. Never told her just how much she meant to him. Or how, no matter how bad of a day he was having, all it took was one smile from her and everything was instantly put right again. She was the last person he thought about at night, and the first one to entre his mind in the mornings. She had quickly become the most important person in his life, and he wasn't sure what he would do if she was ever suddenly gone.
Yet here they were. In another situation where he might lose her without having told her that he loved her.
The door to Jess' room opened and the medic that had been treating her came out.
"How is she?" Lester asked the question they all wanted to know the answer to, but were too afraid to ask.
"We've given her some adrenaline and she seems to be responding well, but we can't be certain until we get the test results back. Dr Long should be here with them any moment now."
"Can we see her?" Abby asked, voice filled with concern.
Not waiting for an answer Becker pushed his way past the medic and into Jess' room. He paused when he saw her small frame lying in the bed. Her face was turned towards him, muscles relaxed as she slept peacefully. Her dark hair fell in curls around her face, drawing attention to her pale skin. Though Becker was pleased to see that her colour was slowly returning.
Closing the distance between them in a couple of strides, Becker sat down in the chair beside her bed, taking her hand. She felt warmer, that had to be a good sign.
Sighing, Becker brushed her hair away from her face. "Jess, what did you get yourself into this time?"
As soon as she had asked if they could see Jess, Becker was pushing his way into the room, but to be honest, Abby was surprised he had waited outside as long as he had. The rest of the team were about to follow him in, when Dr Long came around the corner, a folder that no doubt contained Jess' test results in his hand.
"May I presume that you're all waiting for news on Miss Parker?"
"We are." Matt said, his voice impatient. Abby could empathise with him; they were all eager to know if Jess was going to be okay, especially after having previously witnessed what could happen to the field coordinator if her allergies went untreated.
"Frankly, I'm surprised the captain isn't out here with you."
Abby's eyes flickered towards the window of Jess' hospital room. Following her gaze, Dr Long saw Becker sitting beside Jess' bed, one of the young woman's hands clasped between his.
"Ah, well, that explains it."
"As fun as discussing the captain's feelings for Miss Parker is, I'm sure you have more important information you could be sharing with us Doctor." Lester said curtly.
"Of course. After looking over Miss Parker's test results I am certain that she will make a full recovery, though she will most likely continue to feel the symptoms of this episode for the next twelve hours or so."
"Do you know what happened to cause this?" Abby asked, still unable to understand why Jess hadn't gone to see one of the doctors in the med bay sooner.
"It appears she was bitten by an insect of some sort, but no one is able to identify what kind. I know a new creature was brought into the menagerie yesterday, I would suggest making sure nothing else came in with it."
"But she'll be okay?"
"I have no reason to believe she won't be. I'll check in with her again once she's woken up, but I'm confident she'll be well enough to go home. Though she will need someone to stay with her for the night. I'm not sure what the side effects of the bite will be, so it would be best if she had someone with her. Otherwise, she'll have to remain here overnight."
Abby looked back at the couple in the hospital room, a plan beginning to form in her mind.
When Jess woke up, for a moment, she didn't know where she was. But as the white walls, fluorescent lighting, and sterile smell came into focus, she realised she must be in the ARC's medical centre.
She tried to sit up but that caused her head to spin, and she fell back onto the bed.
"Easy now," came a deep voice beside her, and Jess realised she wasn't as alone in the room as she had originally thought she was. Turning her head carefully, Jess saw Becker sitting by her bedside.
"Let me help you." Grabbing the pillow off the other bed in the room, Becker helped Jess sit up, using the second pillow to support her.
"Thanks." Jess smiled at him weakly. "What happened?"
"You went into anaphylactic shock."
"How?"
"What?"
"How did I go into anaphylactic shock? I wasn't bitten by anything. Unless…"
"Unless?"
"I felt this sharp pain shoot up my arm this morning while I was at the ADD, but when I looked I couldn't see anything there, so I ignored it."
"But surly you would have noticed that something wasn't right."
"I thought I was just over tired. I've been working a lot of long hours lately."
"Jessica. You've got to start taking better care of yourself."
Jess rolled her eyes at the statement. Like he could talk; Becker was always refusing medical treatment for his injuries and trying to come into work when he was meant to be on medical leave. She was about to point this out to him, when her stomach churned.
"You haven't seen one of those vomit bags around, have you?" Jess asked, trying to keep down the meagre lunch she'd had earlier.
"Why do you….oh." Becker's question trailed off as he saw how pale Jess had gone.
Becker went to search through the supply cupboard, sighing inwardly when he found one of the bags she had asked for. Grabbing it quickly, he returned to Jess' side and handed her the bag. Sitting beside her on the bed, he held her hair back, preventing it from falling into her face as she brought up what little food she had had that day.
Pulling the bag away from her face, Jess smiled gratefully as Becker handed her a tissue before taking the bag and throwing it in the bin on the other side of the room.
"Sorry about that."
"Don't apologise for being sick…"
It looked like Becker was going to say more, but before he could they were joined by Dr Long and the rest of the team.
"Ah Jessica, you're awake. How do you feel?" Dr Long asked as he went to stand beside her bed.
"Weak. Dizzy. Nauseous."
"That's to be expected I'm afraid, and I'm sorry to say there's a good chance your symptoms will get worse before they get better. The venom's been in your system for a while now and, as we're unable to identify what type of insect it was, I'm afraid there's no way of knowing for certain what effect it will have on you. Though I do believe that now that you've received adrenaline, as well as some other medication, you'll make a full recovery. I am curious as to why you didn't come see me when you were first bitten."
"I didn't know I had been. I felt a sting in my arm this morning, but when I looked I couldn't see what had caused it, so I ignored it."
"Yes, well if it ever happens again, please do come see us straight away. We might be able to avoid all of this, as well as whatever other symptoms you're likely experience over the next twelve to eighteen hours."
"Wait. You said you've given her adrenaline and medication," Becker said, frowning. "Why would she continue to experience symptoms if you've treated her?"
"I have reason to believe that whatever bit her wasn't of this time period, and as such there is no way of knowing how it has affected her body. The venom was in her, untreated, for quite a few hours and I suspect, even with the medication now in her system, it'll still take some time for it to be removed."
"Does that mean I have to stay here overnight?" It was clear Jess wasn't happy with the idea.
"Not necessarily. I'd feel comfortable releasing you if I knew you had someone staying with you, to make sure you don't take a turn for the worst."
"I'd say you could come stay with us, but Emily's not the most caring person when she's sick." Matt shuddered at the thought of his usually compassionate girlfriend, having found himself on the wrong side of her temper more times in the past week, than he had in their entire relationship.
"You can stay with us Jess. I'll just have to call up and see if we can change our appointment at the hotel."
"Abby, no. You've been waiting months for an appointment to check that place out for the wedding, I won't let you cancel it on my account."
"I'm not going to cancel it, just change it."
"Abby, they have a waiting list for their waiting list. If you don't go today, you may never get another chance. I'll be fine, I'll just spend the night here."
"Jess, I know you don't want to stay in the med bay all night."
"No, but there's not anything either of us can do about that."
"There is, you can stay the night with us."
"I'll stay with her." Becker said, putting an end to the argument.
"Becker, you don't have to do that."
"Jess, I'm staying the night with you and that's that."
They both blushed when they realised how his words could be taken; neither of them noticed the looks their friends exchanged.
It was just after midnight when Becker pulled his truck into an empty parking sport outside Jess' flat. Dr Long had wanted to ran a few more test, to ensure they hadn't missed anything, before they left; meaning they had to hang around and wait for the results to come back. That hadn't taken long, but Jess had fallen asleep while they waited and Becker hadn't had it in him to wake her. She woke up close to midnight and the two of them left the ARC, only for Jess to fall asleep again on the drive over, and Becker was unsure whether he should wake her. Deciding against it, he got out of the car and went around to the passenger side.
Opening the door, he carefully lifted her out of the car, pushed the door shut with his foot, and headed up the stairs to Jess' flat. It wasn't until he reached the top that he realised he had no way of getting into the apartment.
"I could've walked."
Glancing down, Becker found Jess staring up at him. He lowered her onto her feet, trying to hide the blush working its way up his neck.
Jess fished the keys to her flat out of her bag and unlocked the door. Closing the door behind them, she swayed on her feet.
"I've got you." Becker scooped her up into his arms again. "Um…. which way to…ahem…your…um, bedroom?"
"Up the stairs." Jess yawned, her arms going around his neck, and snuggled into his chest, beginning to fall asleep again. "Second door on the right."
Becker climbed the stairs, careful not to jostle Jess too much. Reaching her room, he sat her down on the bed. He took a moment to look around the room. Jess' bedroom was not what he was expecting it to be; he had been expecting it to be decorated with the bright colours the young woman favoured when it came to her wardrobe. Instead the room was painted a dark grey, with hard wood floors and forest green curtains. Her bed was centred against the right hand wall, small white tables on either side of it, each holding a small green and black lamp. The queen sized bed was covered with a white duvet, and had a knitted pink throw at the foot of it. Grey, black, and white cushions were piled on the bed against the beige head board. A plush silver stool sat at the end of the bed. Hanging above the bed were three prints in white frames. Each print was a landscape painted in varying shades of pink.
Though it wasn't what he imagined Jess' bedroom would look like—not that he'd imagined what her room looked like, at least not often—he found it fitting. It showed her mature side, a side that—thanks to her love of bright colours and her bubbly personality—many people didn't think existed.
Returning his attention to Jess, Becker found her slumped back against the cushions. Her dress had been hiked up, exposing more of her leg to him than her short skirts ever had. Sitting down beside her, he shook her shoulder gently, trying to wake her up.
"Jess, why don't you get changed while I get you something to drink." Becker said as her eyes fluttered open.
"Mm 'kay. Will you get them for me?"
"Get what?"
"Pyjamas."
"Um…okay. Where?"
"Dresser. Top draw." She rolled over, causing her dress to be pulled up further and making Becker advert his gaze.
Crossing to the dresser, he opened the draw Jess had indicated, only to find himself blushing again. Turned out Jess' mind wasn't as clear as they had thought. The draw she had sent him to wasn't her pyjama draw, but rather her underwear draw. He stood frozen, staring at the lacy garments, his mind conjuring up images of Jess wearing them. He shook himself and slammed the draw shut, before trying the one underneath it, pleased to find it was filled with her pyjamas. Pulling out a pair of pants and what appeared to be their matching singlet, he handed them to Jess, and then left to let her change.
Downstairs, Becker splashed cold water on his face. Why had he volunteered to do this? How could he have though he'd be able to get through a night alone with Jess. Clearly he hadn't been thinking. If he had been he would have realised that taking care of her was a bad idea. He could barely keep up appearances on a regular day. But with her like this, he didn't stand a chance. They'd been in her apartment for less than an hour and he'd already seen more of her than he'd ever intended to. There was no way he would make it through without letting his true feelings slip out.
He groaned as he ran a hand through his hair. Why did this have to be so complicated?
He opened cupboard after cupboard, trying to find where Jess kept her glasses. He probably should have just asked her where they were, but he was scared she would lead him to another compartment housing items that allowed him to get to know her in far too intimate a manner. Finding glasses in the cupboard above the stove, he took two down and filled them with water, downing the contents of one, before looking for the tablets Dr Long had given them for Jess. He had checked each of his pockets and was about to go out to check his truck when he remembered seeing Jess put the tablets in her bag.
Sighing he pulled the bag across the counter to him. This was just great. First he'd been carrying her around everywhere, holding her far closer than he should have been. Then she'd unintentionally flashed him. Then he'd gone through her underwear draw—again unintentionally—conjuring vastly inappropriate images of his colleague and friend. Now he had to go through her handbag, something his mother and sisters had always told him never to do. A woman's handbag was sacred, at least according to them.
Well, we're just crossing all sorts of boundaries tonight, aren't we?
He searched her bag quickly, trying not to pay attention to anything that wasn't the pills she needed to take. Though when he found the small cylinders wrapped in plastic with the word Tampax written across them in small print, he was ready to shoot himself with an EMD. He was getting far too familiar with Jess tonight.
It doesn't necessarily mean she's… maybe she just likes to be prepared.
Finding the packet of tablets, he returned everything else to the bag, before grabbing the glass of water and heading back upstairs.
He found Jess sitting up in bed, now in her pyjamas, much to his relief.
At least now I don't have to worry about seeing more than I should.
"Here. You need to take the tablets Dr Long gave you." He gave her two of the pills and the glass of water.
She took them with no complaint, giving the half empty glass back to him before climbing under the covers. He put the glass on the dresser and went to leave the room.
"Becker?" Her voice was quiet and heavy with sleep. "Will you stay?"
He paused in the doorway. "I'm not going anywhere. I'll just be in the next room if you need me."
"No. I mean; will you stay with me? In here?"
He looked at her, expecting her face to be red at her request, but the only thing he saw on her face was fear.
"Sometimes, after a bad reaction, I have nightmares. I don't want to be alone."
He knew he shouldn't, it would be crossing a line, but what lines hadn't he crossed tonight? Besides, he couldn't refuse her, not when she looked so vulnerable. Though if he was being honest with himself, he had never been very good at saying no to anything she asked of him.
"Sure."
Smiling gratefully, Jess made room in the bed and Becker took a moment to consider whether this was the right thing to do.
Stop being such a child. We're both adults. We're perfectly capable of sharing a bed without it meaning anything.
He took his shoes and tack vest off before getting in bed beside her. Becker wasn't sure what to do next. Should he put his arm around her? Or should he keep some distance between them? In the end, Jess made the decision for him. She curled up against his side, her head resting on his chest. Taking his lead from her, Becker wrapped his arm around her, pulling her closer to him.
Jess was asleep in minutes. Giving in to his impulses, Becker pressed a kiss to her forehead before following her into sleep.
###
It couldn't have more than two hours later when Becker woke up. Realising that it was still dark outside Becker wondered what could've woken him, he was normally one to sleep through the night. Wanting to know if it was worth trying to go back to sleep, he looked to his alarm clock, or rather he looked to wear his alarm clock should be, only to find it missing. It was then that he remembered where he was and the events of the previous day. Since he was awake, he decided to check on Jess, to make sure her condition hadn't worsened in the time he had been asleep.
Jess had moved away from him at some point, and as he sat up to check on her he realised she was what had woken him up. She was sleeping restlessly, constantly tossing and turning, her expression pained. Thinking she was having one of the nightmares she had mentioned, Becker decided to wake her up. But the second he touched her he began to worry in earnest. She was burning up.
"Becker?"
"Yeah Jess, it's me."
"I don't feel so good."
"I know. I think you've got a fever, Dr Long said this might happen. I'm going to get you some more water."
He quickly refilled her glass in the bathroom, not wanting to go too far from her. Returning, Becker found Jess sitting up in bed. He got back into the bed, giving Jess the glass of water. She took a small sip before putting it on the table beside her side of the bed.
She kept her face turned away from him and it took Becker a second to realise why; she was crying.
"Jess, what's wrong?"
She shook her head in response.
"Did you have a nightmare?"
Again she shook her head.
"Then what's wrong?" He kept his voice gentle, not wanting to make her feel worse.
"It's nothing," her voice was thick as she spoke. "I'm just being silly."
"That's not possible," he pulled her trembling frame against him, ignoring the fact that she felt like a furnace. "Talking about it might help you feel better."
She was silent for a moment before answering him. "It's nothing. Really. I get weepy sometimes after a bad reaction. You should've seen me after the beetle incident, I couldn't be left alone. Connor and Abby had to make sure one of them was always with me. I know it's stupid considering the things you face on a daily basis, but having your body fail you like mine does when I'm bitten by an insect, it's terrifying. Having people around helps reassure me that I'm okay."
"It's not stupid." Becker rubbed her back soothingly and she shifted against him, stifling a yawn. "Why don't you try to go back to sleep? I'm not going anywhere."
Becker was determined to stay awake this time. He wanted to monitor Jess' fever, and even though she said she hadn't been having a nightmare, he wasn't convinced. He had failed her today when he hadn't realised something wasn't right with her and he wasn't about to do it again. He'd stay up all night if he had too. Anything to make sure she didn't have to face her fears alone.
When she spoke it startled him. They had been sitting in silence for so long, Becker had thought she had fallen asleep.
"Becker? Why are you here?"
Her question confused him and he wondered if her fever was getting worse. "You needed someone to take care of you."
"I could've stayed in the med bay."
"I could tell you didn't want too."
They fell silent and Becker thought that this time she really had fallen asleep.
"Why are you so nice to me?" Jess asked finally.
"You'd rather I wasn't nice to you?"
Jess swatted him gently. "You know what I mean. You don't treat me the way you treat everyone else."
Becker tensed, he had a feeling he knew where this conversation was going.
"You bring me chocolates for no reason. Every afternoon at three you turn up at the ADD with a cup of tea, or coffee if I'm dealing with something particularly problematic. You make sure I take a lunch break, or bring me lunch if I can't leave my station. Then there's the insane number of epipens you've hidden around the ARC. I know you were raised to be a gentleman, and that your mother drilled it into you to be polite and considerate to women, but it's not like you do any of that for Abby or Emily."
He considered playing it off as just looking out for a friend, but she was right, he didn't do any of that for Abby, or Emily, or any of the other women at the ARC.
Just tell her! Do you really want to run the risk of something happening to one of you before you've told her how you feel? Besides, there's a good chance she won't remember any of this in the morning.
"Isn't it obvious?" His voice was quiet when he spoke. "I do all that because I care about you. A lot. More than I've ever cared about anyone. I bring you chocolates because I like seeing how happy they make you. I bring you cups of tea so I have an excuse to come see you. I make sure you take a lunch break because I know how caught up you can get in your work and I don't want you missing a meal. As for the epipens, I got them because I don't want to lose you. I don't know what I'd do if I did."
Becker took a deep breath and tried to collect his thoughts.
"I like you Jess, though that's probably not a strong enough word to describe how I feel about you. I just never knew how to tell you."
When Jess didn't say anything Becker started to panic.
Oh crap. Abby and Emily were wrong; she doesn't feel the same way. Why did I tell her all that? She must think I'm pathetic, pining after her like a lovesick teenager. I'm never going to be able to be in the same room as her again. I've just ruined the most important relationship I have.
He had to get out of there, he couldn't be in the same bed as her any longer. He would tell Jess he was going to the bathroom and then spend what was left of the night in her spare room. But the words died on his lips the moment he looked at her.
Jess had fallen asleep against him. She had a peaceful smile on her face and was breathing steadily, so this time he was sure she was asleep.
Sighing in relief, Becker realised there was a good chance she hadn't heard his confession. Which meant he hadn't just ruined the most important thing in his life. Happy with the knowledge that he wouldn't have to start avoiding Jess, Becker settled in for the rest of the night. He tried to move Jess to the other side of the bed, wanting to give her the room to sleep comfortably, but when he went to move away from her she tighten her hold on him. Fully aware that he was grinning like an idiot, he moved closer to her. Moments later they were both sleeping peacefully.
When Jess woke up, light was streaming through the thin curtains in her bedroom. Her fever had broken while she slept, and she was feeling a lot better than she had been over night. Her body still ached, but the more unpleasant symptoms she had been experiencing seemed to be gone.
Her stomach growled and Jess decided breakfast was probably a good idea.
Pulling herself out of bed, she grabbed the robe hanging from the handle on her wardrobe and shrugged it on.
As she turned around Jess tripped, only just managing to catch herself before she hit the ground. Wondering what could have caused the stumble—every room in her flat was always in immaculate condition—she glanced over her shoulder. On the floor were a pair of black boots far too large to be hers.
Memories from last night, that her fever ridden mind had repressed, begun to arise. She couldn't believe that she had asked him to go to bed with her. What had she been thinking? But that was just it, she hadn't been thinking clearly. She was tired, and by that point the fever would have been starting to set in. All she had been thinking about was not being left to face her nightmares alone, and having Becker by her side proved to be an effective cure for them. She had only had one nightmare last night and he had woken her moments after it started. Surly he knew she had just needed the reassurance having another person around provided her with.
But then there was the fact that the moment he had laid down beside her, she had curled up into him, using his chest as a pillow.
Though, it's not like he had pushed her away. Maybe he'd been okay with it? Or, maybe he was just being polite? Whatever the reason, he hadn't pushed her way, that had to be a good thing.
And she was really glad that he had woken her when he did. She had just been falling into the nightmare where she was buried alive with bugs—a common nightmare after being bitten—when she had felt his hand on her shoulder. His name had escaped her lips at the touch, but it hadn't been because she had remembered he was there with her. Asking for him after waking up from a particularly bad dream had become something of a habit, and Jess was thankful that it was one that developed after Abby and Connor had moved out. She could only imagine the endless teasing they would put her through if they had caught her calling out for Becker in her sleep. It was only when he had responded to her that she remembered she wasn't alone.
Then she had started crying and he'd been so sweet to her. Holding her against him tightly, assuring her that her tears weren't ridiculous and that he wasn't going to leave her alone. She had found it hard to believe that he could care enough about her to look after her the way he had been, or that he would be so nice to her. But as she had the thought, she realised that the way he was treating her was nothing new. So she'd asked him why he treated her the way he did. She hadn't been expecting him to confess he had feelings for her. She had wanted to tell him that she felt the same way, but her tiredness had overcome her once again, and the best she had been able to do was hold on tight as he tried to pull away from her.
Well, it's not like I can't tell him now. There's no time like the present after all.
Jess went downstairs, determined to tell Becker she felt the same way. But the sight of him in her kitchen caused her to pause. He was standing in front of the stove with his back to her. He must have had a change of clothes in his truck, as he was wearing a pair of dark grey jeans that hung loosely from his hips. His torso was bare, his black tee-shirt hanging from one of his belt loops. She could see the muscles in his back move as he stirred whatever was on the stove.
Jess' determination faltered. Maybe she shouldn't say anything? What if she had misinterpreted the meaning behind his words? What if when he said he liked her, he just meant that he didn't dislike her? But he had said that 'like' wasn't a strong enough word. Surly that meant that he more than liked her. What if he had only said anything because he had assumed she was asleep and wouldn't hear him?
Ugh, I'm going to drive myself insane going around like this. I need to find out what he meant last night, then go from there.
As she continued to look at him, she realised that his hair was wet, suggesting that he had showered recently. The thought of Becker in her shower brought completely inappropriate images into her mind, and she gasped involuntarily.
Hearing the noise, Becker looked over his shoulder, smiling at her.
"You're awake. How do you feel?"
"Yeah, um, better I guess. What are you doing?"
"I figured you'd be up soon and thought you could use a proper breakfast."
"It smells good. What are you making?"
"Scrambled eggs, toast, sausage, there's also a few pastries."
"Did you go shopping? Because I know for a fact I had none of that in the flat."
"I woke up a few hours ago and it didn't look like you'd be up for a while. Plus, your fever had broken, so I figured I had the time to make a quick run to the grocery store."
"Becker, you didn't need to do that. You've already done enough for me."
"You didn't eat anything last night. I wanted to make sure you had a proper meal."
"Well, thank you."
The conversation lagged and Jess moved to sit at the kitchen bench. It was sweet of him to go to all this trouble just to ensure she got a proper breakfast. Then again, he must have needed some way to occupy the time.
"Wait, did you say you woke up a few hours ago?"
"Yeah."
"What time is it?"
"A little after ten."
"After ten!? We are so late for work."
"Actually, Lester's given both of us the day off. Well, his exact words were; 'I better not see either of you until Monday.' I took it to mean we had the day off." Becker shrugged as he began plating up their breakfast.
"He gave both of us the day off?"
"He thought it best if there was someone here to make sure you didn't try to go into work."
Jess rolled her eyes. Like she would go into work after the reaction she had last night. Who did Lester think she was? Becker?
Becker turned around and Jess lost the ability to think clearly. If she had thought the view from behind was good, the view of the front was stunning. Every muscle was defined, as if carved from stone, and Jess couldn't help but wonder what it would feel like to run her hands over them. She was pleased when she saw that the hair covering his torso was sparse—she had always found really hairy men off putting—he had a fine covering over his chest that trailed down and disappeared beneath the top of his pants.
Becker placed one of the plates in front of her and blushing, Jess quickly looked away. Smirking at her reaction, he pulled his shirt on and sat down across from her.
They ate in silence. Jess was impressed with how well Becker could cook. This tasted far better than anything she had ever made herself in the mornings. A lot of the time she couldn't even be bothered cooking. Usually she would just get coffee and a muffin from the bakery around the corner on her way to work.
"This is really good. I don't remember the last time I had a homemade breakfast."
"Let me guess, you normally get something on your way to work."
Jess nodded as she scooped another forkful of eggs into her mouth.
Becker shook his head. "Jess, you really need to do something about your eating habits. I don't want to find you at the ADD one day, passed out because you've gone days without a proper meal."
Jess would've found the comment condescending from anyone else, but she could hear genuine worry in Becker's voice. He really was afraid something would happen to her because she wasn't eating well. Jess didn't know what to say, she was touched that he cared so much about her. Which brought back the thoughts she was having earlier, and she decided to just ask him about what had happened last night.
"Did you mean what you said last night?" Her voice came out quiet.
Becker stiffened. "You were awake?"
"Barely."
He was silent and Jess could tell he was debating what to say.
"Yes. Every word." He refused to meet her eyes, afraid of what he'd find there.
"Well, that's good, because I feel the same way."
His head shot up to look at her. "You do?"
"I do."
He smirked. "So, you wouldn't be opposed to me asking you to dinner?"
"Not at all."
"Would you like to go to dinner with me Jessica? Tonight? Provided you feel up to it."
A smile lit up her face. "I'd love to."
He gave her a genuine smile and her breath caught. Jess wouldn't have thought it possible, but he was even more handsome when he smiled, and she wished she got to see it more often.
Maybe now I will.
They finished their food in silence, and for the first time, Jess didn't hate the fact that she was sick.