Author's Note:

I'm ba-ack! Yes, I know what you're all thinking...hooray! No? Huh. Anyways, I would like to inform you all that I had an absoutely amazing time in Washington D.C. and the Fourth of July fireworks were epic, certainly a highlight of my life! I got to see all the monuments, memorials, Mount Vernon, Gettysburg, the Holoucaust Museum, National Archives, and the Museum of Natural History. Oh, and the White House...although I didn't get to meet Obama. Bummer. Well, here's the latest update, and hopefully I get tons of reviews from you guys so that I force myself to update very soon. ;)

Happy Reading!

Considering this website is titled Fanfiction, I would assume it kind of goes unsaid that I am not Stephanie Meyer and do not own Twilight. But...just thought I'd clarify in case.

We will recover,

The worst is behind,

And it hurts, but in time, I know that we will recover.

Everybody's gotta a reason to cry,

And everybody fights but not everyone survives

And everybody's searching, not everybody finds

And I'm still in recovery, and I'll make it alive

-Recover, Natasha Bedingfield

Ch. 19 I Missed You

"He's waking up dear", Sue Clearwater whispered, eliciting an excited yelp from me. I bounded over to Quil's bedside from my designated spot in the corner of the room. I had been sitting in that same spot for the last three days, waiting specifically for this moment, when Quil would wake up.

Sue had been Quil's makeshift 'nurse' for the last few days, since he couldn't go to a real hospital due to his werewolf traits, like his abnormal temperature and slightly faster heartrate. I never left the room, except to use the bathroom and shower. Emily brought meals to me. I didn't want to spend any more time away from Quil than I had to.

Sue quietly began packing her medical utensils away in a large, leather bag, before she exited the room to give us some privacy. Quil's eyes weren't quite open yet, but one of his large hands moved to rub his forehead. My heart was pounding so fast it felt like my chest was going to explode.

His eyelids finally opened, revealing those same chocolate eyes that I had missed seeing so much. A small smile graced his face, sending my heart into random spasms, a grin overtaking my own face in response.

"Hi", he mumbled simply, his voice croaky from not using it at all in the last few days. My smile widened.

"Hi", I greeted back, as his eyes scanned over my body slowly. It was as if he was checking me over for injuries. Suddenly, he winced, and I reflexively flinched. He was hurting. And it was my fault.

I was the reason he was sitting in this bed, his body tattered, his skull cracked. I was at fault for this, and I was so worried that he would hate me once he knew. I did this to him. And the guilt of this had been eating away at me for the last couple days. Emily had tried numerous times to tell me that I wasn't at fault here, that no one was at fault, but she had been comforting me, she wasn't honestly serious. It may not have been my fault directly, but somehow, I just knew in the depths of my being that I was at fault. I knew I hadn't been the one to break the bones per se, but somewhere in my heart I felt like I had.

"What happened?" He asked quietly, letting his head fall back on the pillow underneath it. This was the question I had spent the last three days preparing to answer, going over the words I would say over and over again in my mind, and now that the time was here, I couldn't open my mouth. "Claire?"

I lifted my head to meet his softened gaze, the rehearsed words finding me. "Your arm was broken in two different places, you had broke every single rib, your knee was twisted up, and the back of your skull was completely severe. The bone's still not completely healed, Sue said", I informed him, my voice very low and quiet.

He didn't look mad, or sad, or scared. His handsome face was blank, all sign of emotion wiped clear off it. And that frightened me even more than any of those emotions. I would rather him be angry or upset than totally swiped of emotion.

"Quil? I'm so sorry. I - ", I began to recite a long list of apologies, none were exactly for any particular reason, just because I felt like they were due. But Quil's hard voice stopped me.

"Why are you apologizing?" He questioned, almost harshly, his eyebrows furrowing together. At least he was giving me some type of emotion now.

"I don't really know", I admitted quietly, running a shaky hand through my messy, short bob. "I guess, for the reason you're hurt. It was my fault, you were protecting me. This all wouldn't have happened if it weren't for me", I sighed solemnly, gesturing towards his bandaged injuries.

They were all healed, thanks to Quil's wolfy powers, but the gash in the back of his head was still there. Sue said that it was a deep open wound, and it would probably take close to a week to completely heal. She said he might even have some memory loss issues because of it, nothing to serious, but little memories here and there might be gone.

To my surprise, Quil's confused face turned into a wide smile, and he chuckled lightly. My heart fluttered.

"Claire, I would protect you, to the ends of the earth, but I would have gotten injured whether you existed or...not." He paused to cringe. "I have a responsibility as a member of the pack to protect the reservation, and my pack member's imprints. Even if I didn't need to protect you, I would have still been in that clearing, and I still would have gotten hurt. None of this, none of it could ever be your fault."

His words brought an internal rush of relief over my insides, loosening all of the anxiousness that had accumulated over the last few days. This really wasn't my fault. Quil would have been injured even if I wasn't existent. It wasn't my fault.

Entirely.

"So, how long have I been out?" Quil casually wondered, stretching out his arms and wincing when he felt some minor pain. The joints finally cracked, and he looked like he felt slightly better.

"Three days or so." It had been some of the loneliest days of my life.

"Holy shit! That's a new record. Did I miss anything interesting?" He inquired, his brown eyes looking into mine with curiosity.

"Nothing much. Everyone's stopped in to visit you. Jared and Kim brought you a balloon." I pointed to the balloon who's paperclip weight rested on top of the nightstand, and read, 'Get Well Soon' in cursive lettering. "Sue Clearwater's been taking care of you."

He smiled at the balloon briefly before resting his intent gaze on my face once again. He lifted out a hand towards me, and I took it, relishing in the comforting feeling of his warmth incasing it. I probably let out a pathetic sigh at the relaxing feeling.

"Did you miss me?" He wondered softly, his fingers rubbing light circles onto the back of my hand as his dark eyes peered into mine with intensity.

What kind of question was that?

"More than you could ever imagine." I smiled widely down at him. I leaned down to kiss his cheek, mostly because I couldn't resist any longer, but Quil tilted his head so that our lips touched instead. The kiss was soft, warm, slow, a feeling of 'coming home' spreading through it. He was the first to pull away, and I stood back up.

I had waited three aggravating days for that one kiss, and it was worth it. So worth it...

A large grin of pride ran across his lips, but quickly dissipated. He lifted his other hand to the back of his head, and let out a small groan as he touched the gauze-covered wound. I felt my stomach shift, nasuea coming forth. It made me sick to see Quil in this much pain.

"Tell the truth, how much does it hurt?"

Quil seemed to contemplate his answer, which hinted me that whatever response that I would get from him would be a condensed, simplified version of what he was actually feeling.

"S'not so bad." Yeah, right.

"Don't lie to me." He sighed. "On a scale of one to ten?"

"Claire..."

I decided it was better not to pursue it further, just drop the subject. Quil was a guy that didn't believe in showing weakness, so I would never be able to get an honest answer about his level of pain anyways.

"So, you feel up for any food?" I questioned, pointing to the array of food on the bedside table.

"Is that even a question?" Quil countered, a playful smirk replacing the pained demeanor. I laughed.

"Thought so." I reluctantly let go of Quil's warm hand to grab the platter of food Emily had arranged earlier today for my own lunch. I hadn't been very hungry, so Quil could have it. I of course knew Quil wouldn't let me give him food that was intended for me, so I didn't mention anything.

I set it on his stomach carefully, making sure not to brush any ribs in case they were still bothering him, and giggled when I noticed the unmistakable hungry glint lingering in his eyes, as the food was displayed in front of him. If there was one thing that never failed to cheer Quil up, it was food.

"Thank you", he said, taking a huge bite out of the deli sandwich and munching loudly. Emily had also put a portion of potato chips, a square frosted brownie, and a tall glass of milk on the tray, which Quil wasted no time in devouring.

I simply watched, joy overtaking my being. Quil wasn't totally healed, everything wasn't entirely back to normal, and we had a long road to recovery in front of us, but at this moment in time, I couldn't ask for any more. As long as I had Quil, I could smile.

Aww... :) Don't you just love the sweetness? I do. Review please, and let me know your thoughts. Believe it or not, they help me become a better writer. Plus, I'd like to know if any of you have song lyric suggestions that you think might apply to future chapters, or just some lyrics from some of your own favorite songs. Thanks a bunch!