Chapter 13 - Confessions

Two hours later, Jayne arrived at the hospital and was directed to Connor's room. She quietly stepped into the room to find Abby sitting on the edge of the bed holding Connor's limp hand. She stared at Abby's pale face. Jayne had never seen anyone look so lost and scared. Trying not to startle Abby, she cleared her throat and asked, "How is he?"

Abby jumped in surprise at the sound of Jayne's voice. She gently placed Connor's hand back onto the blanket and moved away from his side. "He's still unconscious. The doctor says he's got a broken arm and a broken leg, but no internal damage. He was incredibly lucky."

"So, he'll be fine in a few weeks," Jayne said with a relieved smile.

Abby didn't smile back. She seemed barely aware of Jayne as she said, "I thought I'd lost him."

Abby remembered feeling numb when the Doctor finally said Connor would be all right. It was as if the sudden happiness she felt couldn't cancel out the pain of the last several hours. In that strange state of limbo, Abby faced her emotions. Suddenly her feelings for Connor were crystal clear and it gave her the strength to do the right thing.

She looked directly into Jayne's eyes. "Connor kissed me last night, but it was just out of relief that I was O.K. By the way, you're right, he is an amazing kisser," Abby said with a tiny smile. When Jayne just stared at her, she hurried on, "Don't worry. I fixed everything. I told him the biggest lie. I said kissing him was like kissing my brother… so you and he will be just fine," she promised. "I don't want to get between you two. You see I finally understand what you tried to tell me about friendship and love." Abby gave a sharp laugh at her own bad luck. "Unfortunately, I learned my lesson a bit too late."

Jayne continued to watch Abby, unsure of what to say.

"Will you stay with him now?" Abby asked.

When Jayne nodded yes, Abby turned to leave. When she reached the door of the room, she paused. "I love him," she said simply. Abby's eyes were vulnerable and easy to read as she gave Jayne a hesitant smile, "I understand now that loving him means wanting him to be happy even if he's with someone else."

Jayne watched Abby walk away. With a bittersweet smile, she glanced at Connor's sleeping form and replied to the empty room, "Exactly."

Jayne sat beside Connor's bed for another hour before he finally woke up. She had rehearsed everything she wanted to say when she felt the bed shift.

Connor groaned in discomfort and then mumbled, "Abby?" He turned his head and opened his eyes.

Jayne took his hand and calmed him, "Everything is O.K."

He relaxed and asked, "What happened?"

"Gorgonopsid, remember?"

"Unfortunately, yes. Is Abby O.K.?

Jayne smiled, "Yes she's fine. You can rest easy." She patted his hand and sat back in her chair. She knew exactly what she had to do. "Connor, we need to have a long talk. I need to tell you some things about Abby."

Connor's mouth dropped open in disbelief as Jayne began to relay all of Abby's words and reactions to him.