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"We've managed to get the bullet out." The doctor nodded, "He's lost quite a lot of blood so we've gave him a few transfusions. He's stable for now but… we won't know anything else until he wakes up." He explained, looking on at two very worried faces, Dean and AJ, who had gotten the horrifying news about what had happened in the past few hours with Punk.
"Can we go in?" AJ asked the doctor desperately.
"Yeah, you can go in." He nodded as AJ walked into the room, pausing for a second as she looked over at Punk in the hospital bed, attached to all kinds of machinery, a drip in his hand and oxygen tubes around his nose. She'd never saw him hurt before. Not physically anyway. And it terrified her to see him like this, especially after everything he had been through.
"Oh my god." She whispered to herself, walking over to his bedside and taking a seat beside the bed, taking his hand immediately and holding it tightly in hers. He was cold and pale, and she wasn't going anywhere. She remembered waking up in hospital after her overdose, and feeling all that much better to see him beside her holding her hand. She was going to be there for him now.
Dean walked in after finishing talking to the doctor, sighing to himself as he walked around the bed and sat down opposite side of AJ.
"Not used to seeing him like that." Dean sighed to himself as AJ nodded, "At least he's stable for now."
"What if they killed him?" AJ asked.
"What's the point in asking that? They didn't. He's gonna be ok. Have a little bit of hope." He nodded as she sighed, running her hand through his hair as Dean watched, "He looks so small." She sighed as Dean nodded.
"No one looks good in a hospital bed." Dean smiled a little as she nodded.
"He's the strongest person I know." She shook her head as he smiled and nodded.
"Yeah, I'm sure he'd say the same to you." Dean smiled to her just as the room door opened, both of them turning around to see it was Michael who had walked in.
"Hey, guys." Michael nodded quietly, "How's he… how's he doing?" He asked.
"He's stable." Dean nodded, "They got the bullet out. Would have been worse if it went right through." He said, "Doc reckons he'll be alright but… we need to wait until he wakes up." He said as Michael nodded, "You gonna tell us what's going on?" He asked as AJ looked at Michael.
"Yeah, well… Dennis is dead. The team had to fire once he pulled the trigger on Phil." Michael nodded, "Maybe he knew he was going to be executed in prison anyway so… why not take someone else with him?" He shrugged, "Bad man."
"Yeah, I'll say." Dean sighed.
"Alberto, he's been arrested. Trying to measure up how much he actually participated in this whole thing."
"He set it all up." Dean screwed his eyes up, "He played just as big a part."
"I know that, but the court can be fucked up sometimes. You know that." He turned to AJ who nodded in agreement, turning back around and keeping her eyes on Punk, only interested in him, "It could mean he avoids the death penalty but gets a life imprisonment." He said, "Or he might get the penalty. I'm not so sure yet." Michael said.
"Should have shot him along with that other monster." Dean hissed.
"Another thing I should bring to your attention." Michael said, "The phone call we got, letting us know where Dennis and Alberto were… it came from your husband." He said as AJ turned around, "He called us, told us to get an attack team in, gave us the address." Michael said, "The first thing that went through my mind, was how the hell does he know?" Michael said, "But about an hour ago, he uh… he just handed himself in for… well for assisting Alberto in all of this. He was the one who made the phone call to arrest Phil, which explains why it came from Chicago."
"He turned himself in?" AJ shook her head as Michael looked across at her.
"You knew?" Michael asked.
"Just recently." AJ said, "I uh…. I went to see him, ask him why he did it but we didn't get anywhere and I came back here to this. I was gonna come straight to you and let you know." She assured him.
"Well, he already beat you to it." Michael said, "Guilt is a powerful thing." He nodded as AJ shook her head. She couldn't believe that Ben had turned himself in, "He might have contributed to… trying to kill Phil, but… he might have just contributed to saving him too." Michael nodded as AJ sighed, looking on at Punk and holding his hand tightly.
"Is he gonna go to prison?" Dean asked.
"Yeah." Michael said, "Not only that, but now the Chicago PD are getting in on this drug business Del Rio had, they're gonna try kill two birds with one stone." He said, "And given Ben's job position, I can't imagine what he's helped them get out of." He said, "And assisting Alberto in Phil's set-up, he'll get time for that too." He nodded.
"Good." Dean spat bluntly, "So you got them all?
"Yeah. Yeah, we got them all." Michael nodded, "Couldn't have done it without either of your help." He said, "Hopefully he can get his life back now." He nodded to Punk, "And you two as well." He nodded.
"Yeah, we can try." Dean said as AJ didn't say anything. She was trying to wrap her head around Ben actually doing a good thing.
"This is where we go our separate ways now." Michael said, "You should get him home. Avoid flying, though. Train would probably be best." He said as Dean nodded, "Either way, have a safe journey."
"Thanks." Dean nodded to him.
"Thank you." AJ smiled to him as Michael nodded, leaving the room as Dean looked over at AJ.
"Guilt must have been too much for him." Dean said, "Doesn't change what he did in the first place." He said. He wasn't the forgiving type at all.
"I know." AJ nodded, "But… at least he's admitted to what he's done, which is more than I can say for the other two." She said, "Doesn't change much, though." She nodded. Ben was still that man that had lived with her in a lie, that had punched her in the face and that had helped to try and kill an innocent man. None of that had changed. But, she was grateful that he had decided to be the better man, especially when it might have saved Phil's life. She didn't see it as full redemption, but it was a foot in the right direction. She still didn't want to see his face ever again.
"What are you gonna do?" Dean asked, "You gonna go see him?" He asked.
"No." AJ shook her head, "I'm gonna file for a divorce." She said quietly as Dean looked across at her, watching as she kept her eyes on Punk the entire time, "And I'm gonna be here for him." She nodded to Punk.
"I'm sure he'll be delighted." Dean nodded as AJ smiled softly, "We'll get him home in a few days, hopefully, and never enter this awful state ever again." He groaned to himself as AJ nodded in agreement, watching as Punk began to open his eyes.
"Hey." AJ said in a soft and gentle voice, watching as he looked at her, still a little out of it from the anaesthesia, but recognising them of course.
"I'm… I'm getting used to this… almost dying thing." He said in a quiet voice as AJ laughed and smiled.
"You got more lives than a cat, bro." Dean nodded to him, "How are you feeling?" He asked.
"Sore." Punk said simply as AJ frowned, still holding his hand and not letting go, "What happened to your face?" He looked at AJ who he noticed had a scab over her top lip where Ben had punched her, "And your face?" He turned to Dean slowly, noticing his cut eyebrow.
"It doesn't matter." Dean assured him, "I'm gonna go get the doctor." Dean nodded, leaving the room as Punk turned and looked at AJ.
"You have to stop giving me heart attacks like this." She told him as he smiled softly, avoiding laughing because he knew it would be painful. He was glad to see her here, not only that, but holding his hand too. He needed that. He needed her here.
"I'll try." Punk said.
"So… Dennis is dead." AJ nodded, "Alberto has been arrested and so has Ben." She said as Punk nodded.
"How was Ben? Did you get the answers you wanted?" He asked.
"I got a punch in the face." She said, looking on at him almost swearing that she saw him try to sit up, but then stopped his actions when he realised how much pain he was really in.
"I'll kill him." Punk said casually.
"No, you won't." AJ said, "Because we're leaving all of this behind and we're going home once you're able to." She nodded.
"We?" Punk looked across at her as she nodded.
"I've just been living in a lie for the past few years. I feel like I don't even know who I am anymore." She said, "But… with you, I know who I am." She nodded as he smiled, "I'm not saying that we just zoom straight back into each other's lives like that, but I'm not gonna pretend that I don't want you anymore. Because I do." She nodded as he smiled, taking his hand and cupping her cheek as she smiled.
"I could get used to having you back in my life." He nodded as she smiled.
Being with him just felt like everything was right. Although she still felt betrayed and hurt by Ben, someone who she really did love and someone who she thought was a good man… but he turned out to be someone completely different. Someone who lied to her. Someone who hurt her. And she didn't know if that was a sign that her only partner in life was supposed to be Phil, but she was going with it anyway, because those tucked up feelings she had for him, they were fully blossoming out again.
"You were there for me when I got out of hospital." She said, shuffling her chair further up the bed, "I'm gonna be there for you." She promised him.
"So you're gonna be my nurse?" Punk tilted his head, resting it on the pillow as she smiled and laughed.
"Yes, that's the plan." AJ nodded.
"Are you gonna wear the outfit?" He asked her.
"Stop." AJ laughed to herself as he smiled. He missed this. He missed seeing her like this. And having the chance now to make things right again, to fight for their love even more, and to never let it go this time… it was a chance he was going to blow.
"I'm just glad you're not leaving me with Dean." Punk said, "He'd not be ok helping me in and out the shower." He said as AJ laughed.
"Well I am more than ok helping you with that." She smirked as he nodded, watching her as she leaned down, pushing his oxygen tubes to the side as she pressed her lips against his softly, cupping his face and enjoying the gentle and sweet kiss just as much as he did. She just wanted to be in his arms again, to feel safe, to feel love. And this wasn't as easy for her to forget about the husband she'd had for a year, and the relationship she had been in with Ben for the past few years. She knew it was going to be different. But Phil felt like home to her.
A week after Punk spent in the hospital, they took a few trains, having to stop off every now and then due to the length of the journey, but eventually they ended up back in Chicago. Punk was feeling better of course, but he was told to take it easy, to stay resting and to keep an eye on his wound. It was still painful but the fact he could go home to his own bed was a luxury he hadn't had in months.
"How is your wound looking?" AJ asked, looking over at Punk sitting on the edge of the bed in his room. A bed she was particularly fond of. A bed she slept in peacefully and protected every night.
"I changed the bandages just there." Punk told her as she nodded.
"Have you been taking the pain killers?" She asked him as he didn't respond, "Phil?" She looked at him.
"Uh… yeah. Mhm." Punk nodded as AJ rolled her eyes.
"I know when you're lying." She scoffed, "They're there to help the pain." She reminded him, walking over to him and sitting down on the bed beside him, "It'll help you get a good sleep." She told him.
"Are you gonna stay? Are you gonna come back?" He asked her, turning and looking into her eyes. He wanted her back in the apartment with them. He wanted her sleeping beside him again. It just felt right. Nothing else made sense it seemed. And he thought it was stupid to make the excuse of saying it was too fast. It wasn't like they had just met each other last week.
"Right now, you need to sleep. We've been travelling for a few days." She said, diverting the question as he smiled.
"When I wake up, will you answer my question?" He asked her smugly as she smiled.
"I'm here just now. And I'm not leaving." She assured him, standing up and helping him lie down in bed, "Just get some rest." She said as he nodded, watching her leave the room and close the door behind her.
"You finished?" AJ asked later that night, sitting on the couch in front of the TV with Dean, collecting the Chinese food boxes they had on the coffee table.
"Yeah, I'm finished." Dean nodded as AJ stacked the boxes up and took them over to the kitchen. She felt right back at home again. She knew that everything that had happened over the past few months were still obviously playing on their minds. It would have been abnormal for them to come home and forget about all of it, but they had each other to help one another through it.
"If Phil wakes there is plenty of leftovers." She said, walking back into the living room and sitting back down on the couch as Dean smiled over to her, "What?" She shook her head.
"I missed this." Dean nodded to her as she smiled, "Are you gonna… move back in?" He asked her.
"It seems likely." AJ smiled, "I just… I wanna get my divorce sorted and… figure out how the hell I even move on from all of this." She said, "It's not like me and Phil broke up last week. It's been a long time and… in that time, I was married." She nodded, "Despite what he did, I still lived with him and had a life with him. There's no way I can so easily just forget he existed and jump back into a life with Phil." She said.
"Yeah, I know that." Dean nodded, "No one is expecting you just to forget about him, but… you know in your heart this is where you belong, and I know how much it means to Phil… you being back here." He said, "I don't think there's ever gonna be anyone else than each other for the both of you." He said as AJ nodded.
"Yeah." AJ nodded, "I still love him. I guess I just… I was able to forget about it because I didn't see him anymore and I was so focused on moving on and doing well with my career and my relationship with Ben." She said, "Being back with him brings back all the good times we had… brings back all those feelings." She nodded.
"Well no one is putting a time frame on things." Dean said, "You guys work it out, what works best… I'm just trying to wrap my head around the fact this is all over… and that I didn't have to lose my brother." He said as AJ nodded.
"Yeah, I'm pretty thankful for that too." She nodded, "I'm gonna go check on him." She told him as Dean nodded, watching her walk off and smiling to himself. It felt good to have her back in the apartment again. Like old times.
AJ walked into Punk's bedroom, opening the door slowly as she smiled at him laying fast asleep on top of the covers. He looked comfy and that made her happy.
She grabbed a blanket from where she remembered them being, and gently shook it out over him to make sure he didn't get cold. She missed taking care of him, and being at home with him. And without a doubt, she knew that she wanted to be with him again, the way they used to, they just had a lot to work on and get over.
She leaned forward and pressed a kiss on his forehead, brushing his hair out of his face and smiling, "I love you." She whispered.
She didn't know what she would have done if she lost him, and that told her everything. She didn't want to live life without him anymore.
A/N: Let me know what you think!