Chapter 10: All Better
Unhappily, Shelby listened to Rachel's request. Deciding that, after the nurse told her he was with a patient and it would be a while, the doctor could wait until morning, Shelby made her way to the waiting room. She found Noah holding Beth tightly against his chest as they both slept. Gently, Shelby took the little girl from his arms and tapped his shoulder. His response was an interesting grunting noise followed by an incoherent mumble. But he was awake, sleepy, but awake.
"Noah, she asked to see you." That woke him up a little more. His eyes were starting to stay open.
"Rachel… Is she ok?" Shelby nodded.
"She's going to be good as new. She wanted to talk to you."
"Is that allowed?" He didn't really care about the rules. He'd see her whether it was forbidden or not. It was just better if he asked.
"Probably not, but I don't think anyone will stop you. She was admitted so they gave her a room. It's 309."
"Ok." He stood up from his chair. "I'll go see her."
"Great Noah… And thank you. For helping her."
"Yeah…" With that, they both parted ways. Shelby took her sleeping baby home and out her to bed while Puck headed up two floors and to the last door on the left of the east hallway. He didn't bother to knock. The door was open and he assumed she'd be decent. Otherwise, why would the door be open? "Hello?" He called out before fully entering the room.
"Hey Noah, come in."
"So Berry, how are you feeling?"
"I'm feeling fine Noah. Thank you for asking." Puck didn't exactly accept that answer. But before pressing, he took the seat by the bed previously occupied by his friend's mother.
"Do you want to tell me why you were in the park?"
"Do you want to tell me how you knew I was there?"
"You once told me that going to the park made you feel like a kid again. You said that it made you feel safe and it helped you forget about whatever was going on in your life. And I know you love the view from on top of the rocks."
"You remembered that?" She was both curious and in need of a topic change. That question seemed to work for both.
"Of course I did." She gave a sheepish smile. It was nice to know somebody listened for a change. And it definitely felt like a change.
"Well, that's very good to know. Thanks for coming in here to see me Noah."
"Yeah your mom said you wanted to talk to me."
"Shelby." She clarified. "Shelby told you." Her voice was snappy. He knew he hit a nerve, but he wasn't sure why.
He gave her a look of sympathy and confusion. He didn't say anything wrong. Did he? She is her mother right? "Shelby told me. What did you want to talk about?"
"Can you not tell anyone what happened?" That just confused him more. Why was there a need for such secrecy? Was he missing something?
"Why? What's going on?" Before responding, Rachel scooted herself back up in the bed. This time she did a better job of hiding the pain. On the outside it looked like she was in perfect health. And if she was asked, she would say she was.
"It's not like this incident is a secret. It's just that I'm going to be in trouble and Shelby's never going to let me out of the house. She'll probably hover and I don't need that from people at school too. I don't want to be watched or worried about." Sure, that was part of the reason, but there was more. She was embarrassed; ashamed. No one was every supposed to see her like that. It was part of her secret, part of her own obsession. Allowing anyone to see it went against everything. It exposed her and left her vulnerable. That was just not allowed. She couldn't let that happened. If that meant lying, so be it. The less people who knew, the less questions, and things would be all the better for it.
"I guess I get it." He pulled out his phone. "So what should I tell Kurt?" Rachel immediately went for the phone. Playfully, he pulled it back away from her. Just out of her reach.
"Noah…"
"Here." He said before passing her the phone. "Where's your phone anyway?"
"When I left the house I left my phone." Puck went on to say something. Rachel was sure it was nothing important, but she attempted to listen while she began texting. It wasn't her greatest multitasking moment, but she got the job done. She managed to hear Noah tell her that he had trouble finding her at first. Mostly because it was dark, but the rain didn't help either. On top of that, she sent Kurt the message.
Sorry I scared you. I'm fine. Promise. Tell who ever you told that I'm good. Probably in trouble. See you Monday. It didn't take long for a response.
Glad you're ok. Never do that again. You nearly gave me a heart attack. Call me later if you can.
"I was worried about you." She looked at him with big doughy eyes as she passed him his phone back. Didn't she just tell him she didn't want people to worry?
"That's completely unnecessary. I was fine and I am fine. There's no need for any worry."
"Well, there obviously was. What would've happened if I didn't find you when I did?"
"That's not something worth discussing because you did find me and everything is just fine."
"You could've died Rachel." She let out a small laugh. The harmless noise angered Puck. She wasn't taking it all seriously when she obviously should. So that made him angry. "Why aren't you taking this seriously?"
"Because Noah, it's not." He was about to say something to try and get her to understand, but she quickly silenced him by putting up her hand. "I fainted yes. And while that appears to be frightening to a witness, I would have woken up shortly had I not hit my head. And I only hit my head because I was following you. That's not to say it was your fault, because it wasn't. You did everything right, but I would've been fine either way. I would have woken up ten minutes later good as new. It would've been like nothing ever happened. Trust me." Puck waited to make sure her rant was over before speaking.
Once he was sure she was done, he said, "You're talking like this happens all the time Rachel." She was suddenly worried. Did she give herself away? Did she say too much? Her secret was still safe. It had to be. "It's not normal to pass out like that whether you hit your head or not." He wasn't oblivious to her facial contortions. There was something passing through that brain of hers, and if he had to guess, he'd say it wasn't good.
"We don't have to worry about that now do we?"
"Because you're ok now or because you're going to take this seriously?"
"I am taking this seriously. You're just taking it too seriously. And people say that I'm the overdramatic one. Look at you. You're blowing this way out of proportion."
"Berry, you can't do that to me again. I thought you were dead. I had to check for a pulse. You're ruining my badassness."
"Well I apologize for that." She jokingly responded. Only Puck would think a thing like that. "But in all seriousness Noah, thank you."
"For what?"
"For helping me I guess. I don't know. Just thank you." Puck wasn't into the mushy conversations or exchanging of feelings. He was Puck after all, but he did just think she was going to die and she did just thank him, so he assumed he should at least acknowledge that.
"Let's just say you owe me one."
"Ok, collect when you're ready." He wanted to change the subject. No more emotional gunk.
"So you never told me why you left?"
"I explained to you that I needed to get out of the house. What else is there to tell?" She snapped. Her voice was a little angered. She didn't want to have that conversation either.
"Ok, no need to get all Berry on me. How'd you get to the park anyway?"
"I walked Noah. That's what the motor function is for."
"Isn't that like seven miles from Shelby's house?"
"I don't know… could be." There was absolutely no reason for it, but she felt like she was a suspect in the process of being interrogated. It wasn't fun and she started feeling a little defensive. "It's late. Maybe you should go."
"My mom knows where I am. I can stay if you want. You shouldn't be alone."
"While I appreciate the gesture, I believe the solitude is exactly what I need. I haven't had a moment all to myself since I moved in with Shelby." He stood from his chair and looked at her.
"If you're sure…"
"I am sure." Puck headed to the door just stopping short.
Turning to face Rachel he said, "I'm glad you're not dead."
"Me too. Thanks again."
"Get some rest and call me when you bust out of here." After receiving a small nod from Rachel, Puck was out. Rachel then attempted to sleep, but like so many nights before, it just wasn't happening. Not being able to follow her nightly routine wasn't helping matters either. Needless to say, it was a rough night. Between the tossing and turning and the constant interruptions from the nurses coming in and out to check on her, she barely slept.
By ten in the morning she managed a whole two hours of accumulated shuteye. It wasn't much, but it was enough to get her up and out of bed. She obviously couldn't run or head off to the physical training gym to get in a nice workout, so she had to do something. She notices that the nurses came in every hour on the hour. That gave her forty five minutes to do whatever she could. She was still hooked up to an IV, so her range was limited, but she managed a good cardio routine right there in the hospital room. And once she was done, she cleaned herself up and was back in bed before the nurse came to check on her. Nurse Gail took her for a few tests so the doctor could make sure she was still in good condition. She hoped it meant she could leave.
When she returned nearly an hour later, Shelby was in her room waiting. A part of Rachel still, even after a month's time, hoped she'd return and her fathers would be there eagerly awaiting her new prognosis. Obviously all sunshine and roses was turned to gloom when she saw her mother there. At least she left Beth at home. That was an upside for Rachel.
"Can we go now?"
"Not until the doctor says." She stood up from the chair in the corner and moved closer to Rachel as the nurse exited. "I brought you a change of clothes."
"Thank you." Rachel took the bag and immediately went into the bathroom to change. When she returned, she was still wearing the hospital gown over her jeans due to the needle stuck in her arm. "When can we leave?"
"Rachel, we just had this conversation. We'll leave when the doctor gives the all clear and you're no longer attached to a pole." Rachel could fix one of the two problems. Before Shelby could even comprehend what Rachel was doing, the younger girl moved her hand to her forearm and ripped out the IV. Shelby was stunned as she saw the blood drip from the area. "What did you do that for?"
"Now all we need is for you to go get the doctor so we can leave. Besides, I couldn't put on my shirt with that in. It had to come out." Shelby didn't even know what to say. So she didn't say anything. She left and sent a nurse in to tend to Rachel's arm while she tried to find the doctor. It took a few minutes, but she found him and returned to the room.
He explained that all the tests came back negative, so her concussion didn't cause any permanent or detrimental damage. She was still a little dehydrated and he wanted to keep her longer, but Rachel pleaded with him. He said that as long as she relaxed for the rest of the day and promised to stay hydrated, he'd discharge her. She was eager to comply, even though she really wouldn't. Then he turned to Shelby and asked her to step out into the hallway. While Rachel couldn't hear everything they said, she did hear him say that Shelby needed to monitor her eating habits.
"It's important that she eat regularly and healthy. Three meals a day. Let her snack if she wants too."
"Of course. I'll keep a closer eye on her."
"I'd recommend a visit with her regular physician if things don't change. Just make sure she takes it easy and I'll write up a prescription for her."
"Thank you." Hearing her heels approaching, Rachel quickly ran back to the bed and sat, pretending like she wasn't just eavesdropping.
"So, we can go?"
"We can go." Together, they made their way to the car and headed home. The ride was silent at first. Rachel knew she was going to get in trouble. Her best bet was to be as nice as possible and lessen the punishment's severity as much as possible. Show face and acting; that's how she'd do it.
"I'm sorry."
"For what?" She was angry. "For running out of the house or for almost getting yourself killed and scaring me to death?"
"For both; I'm sorry for both. I just needed some air and I forgot my phone and I was too tired to walk back. But I am sorry. Really I am."
"I'm sure you are Rachel." She could still hear the anger in her mother's voice.
"So how much trouble am I in?"
"You're definitely grounded, but I'm going to be lenient this time. And this time only. For two weeks, you're not allowed to leave the house for any reason other than with me or with my permission. You can keep your phone, but you can only use it for emergencies. No computer unless you need it for school work and since I'm sure you'll need it you only use it while I'm around so that I can monitor what you're doing."
"Ok." She conceded. I could have been a lot worse.
"Ok?"
"Yeah, ok. What did you expect me to say?"
"I expected you to put up a fight."
"My head hurts too much for a fight."
"Good."
"I'm glad my pain makes you so happy." Rachel just tuned out the rest of Shelby's words. After they arrived, she just went straight to her room. Although Shelby put her on bed rest and if she wanted to go to school in the morning she had to comply, there was no way she was going to let that happen. The hospital tried to force feed her and since she wasn't left alone log enough to do her thing, she had to just eat as little as possible. Even so, she needed to burn it off. So just like she did in the hospital, she pushed through the pain and worked out right in her room trying to make as little noise as possible. Getting caught would've been detrimental to her health in other ways. It wasn't long, however, before Shelby came knocking on the door.
"Rachel, I brought you some food." Quickly, Rachel grabbed a towel to wipe off the sweat and lay down on her bed to make it look like she was working on homework.
"Come in."
"I cooked some of that vegan pasta you like."
"I'm not really that hungry."
"The doctor said you have to eat, and even before that we had this conversation. So here." She placed the tray on the desk. "Eat up and take your medicine. I'll be back to check on you in an hour."
Rachel did as she was told. Partially, at least. There was no way she was going to eat the entire bowl. And the thought of stuffing her face with all the bread made her want to vomit. But she had to eat some of it. She did. She took a few bites before bringing everything into the bathroom with her. Shelby wouldn't believe it if she ate the entire bowl, so she emptied some of the contents into the toilet and flushed. The bread found a new home in the trash buried under a bunch of tissues. And the food in her stomach found the same fate as the food in the bowl. Down the drain it went.
Shelby was impressed when she came to check on Rachel. She actually thought she got through to her and that she ate a good amount. Unfortunately, that wasn't the case. As soon as she was done telling Rachel to drink the entire bottle of water she brought and made her way out of the room, Rachel was back to exercise. It was another few hours before Shelby came out and by that time, she was more than exhausted. She was instructed to shower and get ready for bed and assuming all was well in the morning, she'd be allowed to go to school. She even listened… for the most part. She showered and relaxed in bed after doing her nightly ritual. But before she could sleep she had to go back to her journal. She had to make up for the missed day.
The rest of the week went on like nothing happened. She didn't embarrass herself and end up in the hospital. She didn't scare her mother. She didn't give Kurt the beginnings of an aneurism. Puck didn't act any different either. Although he did make a point of staying closer to her, including her more, just talking to her more, nothing changed. Rachel was just living life the way she chose. And that included her dirty little secret.
Sorry for any mistakes of the Grammatical and spelling kind that I may have made and probably did make.
Hope you enjoy the chapter. It's more of a transition chapter, but on the upside Sectionals should be coming up soon. For New Directions that usually means trouble…There were a few Puckleberry moments; nothing big. What do you all think of that? I'm not going to make them boyfriend and girlfriend but what do you think about them being more than friends? Opinions welcomed.
And if you had to pick one person to learn about Rachel's issues, who would it be? Quinn? Kurt? Puck? Who?
I really appreciate all the positive feedback this story has garnered, please keep it coming. Thanks everyone who reviewed, favorited and/or added this story to their alerts. It's much appreciated. And remember suggestions and input are always welcome.