Calleigh gently rubbed at the stitches on the side of her head that was covered by her hair. It didn't make sense. This was not what she signed up for. Or was it? She leaned her head against the back wall of the hospital room. They took Eric back to clean his wound and decide how they wanted to close it up, leaving Calleigh sitting in his room at the hospital. Her side only took a few stitches. They had offered her some pain medication which she gladly accepted. She had been sitting there for almost an hour now. She look down at her hands and saw that some of Eric's blood was still stained under her nails. It made her stomach turn. She got up and walked into the bathroom to scrub it out in the sink. She turned the water off and looked up for a moment, a moment long enough to catch her reflection. She hadn't really looked at herself in days unless it was a quick check of her appearance. She wore a scrub t-shirt since her other shirt had been coated in both she and Eric's blood. The bruise on her face was more prominent than she had thought. She stared for a moment until she heard the door to the room open. She walked out of the room to see a woman in pink scrubs wheeling Eric in in a wheelchair. He looked proud of himself as he looked at Calleigh with a smile plastered on his face. She smiled back at him, his pain medication clearly stronger than hers. He was okay. Seeing him felt like relief had been washed over her entire body like a wave. She watched from a corner as the nurse helped him into the bed and adjusted his IV tube so that he could be comfortable. Finally the nurse left the room with a sweet smile.
Eric looked at Calleigh and smiled at her as he turned his head to the side. He patted the bed next to time and scooted himself over so that there was space for her. She watched as he winced a little as he moved. "Eric, you need to just sit still!" Calleigh lectured as she walked towards him.
"And you need to come here" He said as he patted the open space again. Calleigh lowered the arm bar on the bed and sat next to him. Eric reached up a hand and lifted her chin with his thumb. "I'm sorry that this all happened" he said quietly. Calleigh nodded. Everyone was sorry, SHE was sorry. Nobody deserved to live through the nonsense, but she couldn't help but feel responsible.
"If I wasn't the target-" Calleigh started before Eric cut her off quickly, knowing exactly where she was going with the conversation. He gently took hold of her wrist and pulled her down to him. She laid her head on his chest and listened to his heartbeat. Eric placed his hand on top of her head, gently enough to not hurt her.
"You hear that? That means I'm okay. It means I'm more than okay Cal, I'm alive" He said quietly. Calleigh draped her free arm over his chest, placing a hand over his heart. He took his other hand and covered hers with it. "We are okay querida. Everyone is okay" He said in a hushed whisper as he placed a kiss on her forehead, begging her to calm down. He hated to see her like this. She was the strongest women he knew, and likely that he would ever know, other than his mother. But she always had trouble accepting that things weren't always on her.
"I just don't want to see anyone else get hurt" Calleigh said quietly. She felt her eyes growing heavy. Eric sighed. Anyone that worked in this line of work felt the same way. You never know what each shift was going to hand you. But that's the reason that they took this job, to prevent other people from getting hurt, And sometimes that meant themselves getting hurt in the process.
"Nobody ever does, but the important thing now, is that everyone is okay" Eric said reassuringly as he picked up her hand and placed a kiss on it before returning it to his chest.
"I don't want to do this anymore, Eric" Calleigh said so quietly that Eric almost didn't hear it. But he did, and he knew what she meant. Not her job, the worrying and pain that came with her job. That was what she didn't want. He understood perfectly, she didn't need to elaborate. He listened quietly for a little while. The quiet of the room was almost intoxicating. Everything had settled. He was okay, she was okay, and they were together. It was everything that he had been waiting on.
"I'll keep you safe, so long as I can" He whispered into her hair. He felt her nuzzle her head into his chest as her breathing steadied. He felt a small smile spread across his face as he let go of her hand to pull the blanket up over the two of them as he closed his eyes as well. He figured he would revel in the moment as long as it lasted. He knew just as well as anyone, that these moments never lasted long.
Another short one I know. I noticed there wasn't a lot of feedback on the last chapter so I figured I would add in a little EC that everyone has been craving as a little calm before the storm again. We still have to deal with Bryan! And the shooter? Let me know what you guys are thinking! R&R