A/N: Thanks to everyone reading and especially those reviewing, we really do like to hear what you think.

Chapter Nineteen – Day Ten Early Morning, Continued

My head is throbbing when I wake. I look at the clock, it is still early. Wheeler is wrapped comfortably around me and for a few minutes I try to go back to sleep, not wanting to leave the safe confines of his arms. It is no good though, I cannot relax with my head hurting so badly.

I know Wheeler wanted me to wake him if I needed anything, but as I turn to face him, shifting around as gently as I can in his embrace, I see how peaceful he looks. He is smiling. I reach up to gently brush some hair from his eyes. I cannot wake him, how many disturbed nights has he had because of me already?

All I need is a painkiller for my headache, then I can snuggle back in his arms and go back to the pleasant dream I was having. I feel my cheeks redden at the thought, but it was pleasant.

Getting out of bed is easier said than done. Wheeler does not want to let go and if my brain was not trying to get through my skull I would not have minded.

I head straight to the bathroom, but there is nothing in the medicine cabinet. Oh right, they need to protect the druggie! Now where would he have hidden them? Nowhere so obvious as the bathroom.

I go back into the bedroom and very quietly open his bedside cabinet… nothing. On to the desk and clothes drawers. I am trying to be tidy but my need is urgent, my head is splitting in two. I will tidy it later, when the pain subsides.

Okay so maybe he would be obvious, this is Wheeler after all and I am not in the habit of going in his room so he probably did not think to empty his bathroom cabinets. There are bottles in here but they are shaving gel and deodorant and hair gel… He never pays that much attention to his appearance! Oh well, there are some more bottles that look like they might contain pills, but I cannot read the labels so I start turning them around.

"They're empty," Wheelers voice startles me and I jump, turning around quickly.

That did not help my head at all, in fact it made my brain bang inside my skull. "Bozhe moy Wheeler! Do you not know how to knock?" I ask irritably.

"Didn't think I had to knock in my own room." What is he sounding so sullen for, it is the bathroom!

There are some things I am just not willing to share! "I could have been using the toilet!"

"Yeah, I thought that's what you were doing in here when I first woke up and heard you in here…but then I waited and you never came out. Then I noticed that all my drawers have been gone through. You're not gonna find what you're looking for." His voice has a strange tone, one I am not used to hearing and I do not know what to make of it. Somewhere in the back of my mind though, alarm bells are ringing.

Of course I am not thinking completely clearly. "How do you know what I am looking for?"

"Damn it Linka! Don't treat me like I'm an idiot! I come in here and find you scopin' out the pill bottles…what the hell else am I supposed to assume you're looking for? Is that why you wanted to sleep here?" He is snapping at me, and it is going right through my head.

"Nyet, I needed…" I begin but he is not listening.

"You needed a fix. You came in here pretending to need me, but all you were doing was waiting for me to fall asleep so that you could look for drugs."

Oh Yankee nyet, you cannot think that of me… "Nyet, I have a headache…all I needed was an aspirin. That is all! I am not looking for anything stronger. Just something to ease this headache."

"I told you before…if you ever got a bad headache, I'd give you another massage." He glares.

"You were sleeping…I did not want to wake you…" Oh my head! If I could just think clearer…

"I don't care! You should've woken me up! I told you I'd be here for you no matter what. Even if I was sleeping! So you can't use that as an excuse. You used me!"

I what? All I did was sleep in here, it is not like we… I did not offer to… "Nyet Wheeler! Please! I would never…!"

"You know what? Whatever. And for future reference, if you try to pull this with any of the others, you won't find anything in their rooms either. We got rid of ALL the medicine on the island."

I feel sick and his yelling is making me feel dizzy too. I do not know if it is because of the noise or because it is him shouting at me. "Please Wheeler, do not do this! I am sorry you think I used you, but it is not like that at all! I just…it hurts so much…I did not think that a massage would make it go away."

"It worked before didn't it?" He is not giving an inch.

"Da…but it came back." I wish my head would stop pounding, I need him to stop. I am sure if he would just give me time to think I could explain…

"They're gonna keep coming back Linka! It's the withdrawal!" He yells then sighs and, thankfully, lowers his voice. "Come back to bed. I'll do what I can to get rid of that headache."

I want to. Oh, how I want to, but it is not just my head that is hurting now and I do not think any amount of massage will help… not anymore. He thinks the same as the others now, I can see it in his eyes, hear it in his voice.

I push past him to the door of his cabin. "Where are you going?" he asks.

"Back to my room. I do not want you to think that you have to stay up the rest of the night and guard me from going through your things. I will sleep there, if I can get over the pain that I am feeling right now." I am not talking about my headache, which does not seem so bad by comparison.

I can feel the darkness closing in but I will not allow myself to give in to it. I will not let him see any weakness.

To Be Continued…

And don't forget, to get the full affect of the story, you HAVE TO read Wheeler's side of the story in Chapter 19 of Becks7's Co-Dependents