Chapter 9

It was after 5pm by the time the ward had been cleared of the RTC backlog, Serena having been in and out of Theatre for most of the afternoon. She had just transferred her final patient to Keller when she saw Michael Spence heading towards her.

"Will you go home, already!" he complained as he slammed a folder down next to her and folded his arms. "We can handle everything here. Besides, our Great Leader is looking for you." She rolled her eyes at him and held her hands up in surrender.

"Okay, okay, I'm going. See you Monday." Popping into AAU's office and grabbing her bag and coat, she made her way to the stairwell, heading to Hanssen's office. Knocking on the door, she awaited his reply and entered when she heard him call out.

"Yes!?" his voice boomed across the room, his body relaxing slightly when he saw her. "Ah Ms. Campbell, how are you feeling?"

"I'm fine thank you, heading home if you don't need me?" she enquired, walking towards his desk and putting down her bag. He smiled at her and closed his laptop lid, putting it into his briefcase.

"No, that's fine. I have a meeting with Mr. Cunningham, shouldn't take more than an hour as it's not important." he clarified as she eyed him warily.

"Are you sure you don't need me to attend?" He stopped what he was doing and came around the desk until he was stood close to her.

"I'd hazard a guess that you're going to break with a fever soon, so no, Ms. Campbell, I don't need you to attend. Go home and rest." he told her sternly as he picked up her bag and handed it to her. She took it from him and smiled weakly.

"Goodnight then." She turned and left the office, heading down to her car. During the drive home she began to feel worse and worse until she eventually arrived. Almost crawling from her car to her front door, she dropped her bag on the floor in the hallway and headed straight through to the living room, throwing herself onto the sofa. She heard footsteps coming down the stairs until her daughter was kneeling beside her.

"Mum, are you ok?" she asked worriedly, brushing Serena's hair away from her face and trying to look in her eyes.

"I'm fine..." she mumbled as she turned herself over onto her back and groaned.

"Wait there." she said, hopping up and leaving the room quickly. Serena could hear her crashing about in the kitchen and then she returned, a packet of flu tablets in one hand, a hot Ribena in the other. "Sit up." her daughter commanded her. She did as she was told and swallowed the pills offered her, taking the mug and holding it tight. Eleanor left the room again and returned with a blanket, throwing it over her limp body. "You'll need to go up to bed soon, but wait for the pills to kick in a bit first." she smiled, sitting down next to her mother and stroking her forehead.

"When did you get so caring?" she asked, sipping her drink.

"After watching you all my life, some of it was bound to rub off on me!" she laughed, reaching for the remote and turning on the TV. Serena allowed her daughter to cuddle up to her, drinking her drink and trying to ignore how badly she was feeling. She must have fallen asleep, because the next sound she heard was the doorbell. She opened her eyes and saw she was lying across the length of the sofa, her shoes had been removed and she had a pillow beneath her head. The TV was on a very low volume and there was an overturned book on the second sofa. She groaned as she tried to sit up and decided it was best to stay where she was. She could hear voices on the doorstep and she strained to hear.

"She's not okay, but she keeps saying she's fine." She heard Eleanor say as the other person sighed.

"Ah yes, that sounds like Ms. Campbell. She needs her fluid levels kept up." The other voice was Hanssen's and Serena chuckled at the absurdity of him making sure she was alright.

"Well do you want to come in? See if you can get her to let you help?" He must have accepted the offer, because the next minute, she saw him kneeling down beside her.

"How are you feeling? And none of this 'I'm fine' rubbish." He smiled caringly at her as she laughed lightly.

"To be completely honest, I feel awful." she admitted, swallowing painfully.

"Right. Eleanor, would you get your mother a glass of water please?" He held his hand against her forehead and his eyes widened slightly. "Do you have any medication here? Ibuprofen, Paracetamol?" he asked Eleanor as she nodded her head and left the room. "Come on." he urged, pulling back the blanket and reaching under her arms, pulling her up.

"What are you doing?" she asked groggily as he pulled her up to standing and wrapped one of her arms over his shoulders so she was supported. Wrapping one arm around her waist and the other holding her hand draped across his shoulder, he began to manoeuvre them towards the hallway, then to the stairs.

"There is no way you are spending another moment on that sofa. I am taking you to bed where you can rest properly." She giggled and allowed her head to rest against his shoulder.

"Well Mr. Hanssen, you're a fast mover." she said jokingly as he gave her a mock-disapproving look.

"I can assure you, my motives are entirely selfish. I need my second-in-command fighting fit." he said lightly as she groaned with the effort of climbing the stairs. Reaching the landing, he looked to her for guidance and she motioned towards the room in front of them. He opened the door gingerly and she noticed the look of embarrassment on his face.

"It's only a bedroom." she said simply as he moved her towards the bed, pulling back the duvet and easing her onto it carefully. He pulled the quilt back up to her chin and noticed the beads of sweat forming on her forehead. Frowning, he reached for her glands and felt they'd swollen to quite a large size. He heard a noise behind him and turned to see Eleanor entering the room, glass of water in one hand, packets of pills in the other.

"I didn't know which ones to get so I brought both."

"Thank you. When did she last receive medication?" he asked, his Clinical persona taking over.

"Umm, just after 5:30." she said and he nodded his head.

"Right, in that case I'll administer some Ibuprofen now." he said, muttering to himself as he took the packet from her hand and removed two pills. "Ms. Campbell, can you sit up for me please?" She grunted in response as she tried to push herself up, Eleanor bending to help her. "There we go, take these please." Handing her the pills, he watched as she tipped her head back and took a sip of water, swallowing them and grimacing. She dropped her head back onto the pillow and closed her eyes. Hanssen didn't like the colouring of her skin, it was worryingly pale. He motioned for Eleanor to join him in the hallway, and closed the door softly after them. "Will you be here with your mother all night?" he asked as a look of guilt washed over her face.

"Well I was going to a friend's house...she's having a party." she said pleadingly and Hanssen sighed, looking at his watch. He knew he had work in the car he could be getting on with and supposed here was as good a place as any.

"It's no matter, I'll stay with her." he decided as she raised an eyebrow, emulating her mother.

"You? Really?" Hanssen nodded and she smiled, hugging him briskly as she headed to the stairs. "Tell her I'll be back tomorrow morning?" With that, she descended the stairs, leaving him stood alone. He turned and went back into Serena's room, pushing the door to gently behind him. He sat on the edge of the bed and picked up the glass of water, leaning close to her.

"Serena, sit up, I need you to drink this." She groaned as she tossed her head to the side, refusing. "Serena, come on." he coaxed as he reached one arm around her shoulders, pulling her up towards him. She frowned at him as he brought the glass to her lips and waited for her to drink. She knew he'd only continue to pester her if she didn't, so she drank until he took the glass away, allowing her to drift backwards. She liked having the feeling of him near her, it made her feel cared-for. As he stood up, she reached out and grabbed his hand, causing him to look down in alarm.

"Please don't leave." she whispered as a startled look crossed his face. She held his gaze and something in her eyes told him she needed him. He nodded and walked around the bed to the other side, taking off his shoes and climbing on top of the covers. He positioned himself in the centre of the bed, allowing her to lean into him. He looked down at her, seeing her vulnerability for the first time and it touched him. He wrapped an arm around her and pulled her close to him, allowing her to position her head on his chest and wrapping an arm around his middle. He stroked her hair until he was sure she was asleep, then he simply held her. He began to think about the paperwork awaiting him in his car, but decided this was of greater importance.