BRAX'S POV:
Thanking Heath and Bianca once again for having Aaron in with them for the night, I made my way into mine and Ricky's room, finding her turned on her side asleep, facing away from me. Watching her as I undressed myself, I climbed into bed and stared at the ceiling, swallowing a lump in my throat as I felt her move, her body snuggling into mine…
"I love you" she murmured against my chest
Exhaling a breath I didn't know I'd been holding, I let my arm drape around her… "I love you too"
RICKY'S POV:
As promised, when I woke up the next morning, Brax was there, awake, having watched me sleep… "How long had you been watching me for?"
"An hour, maybe a bit more" he replied "how're you feeling?"
"I don't know" I admitted, swallowing a lump in my throat "I'm sorry"
"You don't have to apologise" he informed me, leaning forwards to kiss me softly "and I don't want you to get angry but I've been thinking…"
"Go on…" I stated, biting my bottom lip nervously
He smiled at me and pulled my lip from between my teeth, cupping my cheek in his hand… "I think we need to take you to see the doctor"
"I thought you said we could deal with this together, as a family?" I inquired
"We can" he replied "but I'm not a medical professional. I believe there's something more to this, Ricky, and if there is, we need to know what so we can get you better"
"Can I think about it?" I questioned
Brax sighed and nodded his head, signalling yes… "I'm gonna go for a shower"
"Brax…" I spoke as he climbed out of bed and made his way to the en-suite bathroom
"Hmm?" he inquired
"You're my rock, you know that, right?" I asked
He nodded his head, signalling yes… "And you're mine too"
I smiled at him weakly and watched as he made his way into the en-suite bathroom, shutting the door behind him. Climbing out of bed a couple of minutes later, I made my way into the kitchen, finding Bianca sat at the kitchen table with Aaron and Casey…
"Morning" I greeted them
"Morning" she mirrored, placing Aaron back into his Moses basket "how are you?"
"I'm not too sure" I admitted, sighing heavily as I switched the kettle on "Brax wants me to go and see the doctor"
"I think it's a good idea" she informed me
"You do?" I questioned
She nodded her head, signalling yes… "You're struggling, Ricky, and I should've said something to Brax sooner because I saw it the day Aaron was born. Maybe if I had, what happened last night wouldn't have happened"
"I need to go for a walk" I admitted
"What?" she inquired
"I need to go for a walk" I spoke again. Before she could say anything else, I hurried into the bedroom and threw on the clothes I'd had on last night and left the house hurriedly…
BRAX'S POV:
"Where's Ricky?" I questioned as I walked into the kitchen a little while later
"She said she needed to go for a walk" Bianca informed me
"And you let her go? On her own?" I inquired, raising an eyebrow at her
"She'll be okay, Brax" she replied
"How do you know that?" I asked
"Brax, calm down" Heath stated, motioning to Casey who was sat at the kitchen table "B's right, she'll be okay"
"I hope so" I admitted
RICKY'S POV:
I stood outside the locked up diner waiting for Irene to arrive, her wide smile at me as she saw me waiting for her making me dissolve into tears once more…
"Ricky, love, what's wrong?" she questioned worriedly, hurrying over to me
"I'm a terrible Mum" I sobbed
"I'm sure that's not true" she replied, pulling me into her
"It is" I whimpered "I left Aaron with Heath last night when he wouldn't stop crying. I'm not coping, Irene"
"Let's get you inside" she sighed, wrapping her arm around my shoulder before unlocking the door
Setting me down at a table, Irene locked the door behind her once again and made her way into the kitchen to make me a drink, making her way to the table a few minutes later…
"Here we go" she proclaimed, setting a cup of tea and a slice of cake down in front of me
"Thanks" I replied, smiling at her weakly as she sat down next to me
"Now tell me everything, from the beginning" she stated
A long while later, Irene covered her hands with mine… "Why didn't you say anything to me sooner?"
"I thought the fear would go when he arrived, but it hasn't. It's worse" I admitted
"Brax is right, love" she informed me "I think you need to go to the doctor"
"Why do I feel this way, Irene?" I questioned
"I can't answer that, love, but maybe the doctor can" she replied
I swallowed a lump in my throat and nodded my head in agreement, pulling my phone from my pocket…
"What're you doing?" she asked
"Letting Brax know I'm okay, and then making a doctors appointment" I informed her
Smiling at me warmly, she squeezed my hand and began to clear my now empty plate…
BRAX'S POV:
I continued to stare out of the living room window, waiting to see any sign of Ricky returning when my phone beeped, signalling I had a message. Pulling it from my pocket, I saw it was Ricky…
"I'm okay; I'm with Irene at the diner. Sorry for running out again. Love you x"
Sighing with relief, I messaged her back…
"Glad you're okay. See you soon. Love you too x"
"Was that Ricky?" Heath asked as he walked back into the living room
"Yeah, she's at the diner with Irene" I informed him
"And?" he questioned
"And what?" I asked
"Are you not going to go and get her?" he inquired
"No, I need to give her space and time to get her head around things" I replied "when she's ready to come home, she will"
He placed his hand on my shoulder and smiled at me reassuringly… "You okay?"
"As good as can be, yeah" I admitted
RICKY'S POV:
I made my way back to the house after helping Irene open up. Walking inside, I shut the door behind me and leant against it, shutting my eyes, opening them as I heard footsteps…
"Hey" Brax's voice greeted me
"Hi" I mirrored, opening my eyes
"You okay?" he questioned
"I think so" I replied "can we sit down and talk please? Is there anyone home?"
"Heath and Bianca have taken Aaron out and Casey to school" he informed me as we made our way to the sofa "what's up?"
"Whilst I was with Irene, I made a doctors appointment" I admitted "it's tomorrow at 10am"
"Are you sure you want to do this?" he questioned
"Like you said, if there's something wrong with me, we need to know what it is so we can make things better" I replied "so yeah, I'm sure. Brax, you're my rock, and I want to be yours again, so I'm going to do whatever it takes to get myself better"
He smiled at me warmly and cupped my cheek in his hand, pressing his lips against mine… "Thank you"
"I'm just doing what it takes to get our family back on track" I informed him
"I love you" he replied
"I love you too" I mirrored, pressing my lips against his once more
So Ricky's acknowledged the fact that she needs help. What will the doctor have to say?