Chapter nine!

Despite Brooke's resentment and resistance, Ridge decided to stay with Taylor and the kids and continue to sleep in the guest room. Thomas and Steffy were very happy about his decision. Taylor was also grateful he was with them and they were dealing with this crisis together.

Steffy had to spend the night in the hospital due to the tests. In the morning, right after breakfast, she sneaked to the recovery ward to check on Phoebe. Bridget spotted her there.

"Steffy?! What are you doing here and so early? Aren't you supposed to stay in bed?!"

"But Phoebe needs me now!"

"What Phoebe needs most of all right now is her rest! Just like you! You have some examinations coming up today. You should take it easy!" Bridget pulled Steffy away from the window. "Come on, I'll take you back to your room!" Steffy reluctantly freed herself.

"No, thank you! I can go by myself!"

"But promise me, you go straight to your room, I'll be right back and then I don't want to see you here in front of the window!"

"Yeah, all right!"

Steffy conceded defeat and left the recovery ward. In the hallway, she ran into Rick. He had also intended to visit Phoebe, but a nurse had stopped him and told him he wasn't allowed to see her. Rick was furious that Ridge had actually managed to deny him access to Phoebe. He stormed towards Steffy.

"Hey, good, I see you here! How is Phoebe?"

"Still no change!" said Steffy dejectedly. "Our only hope is the transplant and that she'll get better after the surgery!"

"You really actually want to donate a kidney to Phoebe?"

"Of course, she's my sister, my twin sister, so it goes without saying that I'll do everything I can to help her! I just pray everything goes well!"

"Oh, it will!" Rick tried to build her up. "You probably don't know, but several years ago, Amber donated a kidney to me and everything turned out fine then. I'm sure it will be the same for you guys!"

"I hope so! I couldn't bear to lose Phoebe and it would be the end of the world for Mom and Dad." Rick's face screwed up when Steffy mentioned her parents. Suddenly, something occurred to Steffy.

"Why did that stupid accident happen? Rick, you were there.. you were driving..what happened that night?" Steffy bombarded him with questions, Rick hesitantly dodging at first.

"Didn't Taylor tell you?" he finally asked.

"Mom? What does she have to do with this?"

"I went to see her and talked to her about the accident!"

"You did?" Steffy responded in surprise. "She didn't mention anything!" Steffy was so confused she didn't notice Rick grinning with unobtrusive satisfaction. He took her by the arm.

"Come on, let's go for a walk and if you want, I'll tell you everything about the accident!"

"Okay!" replied Steffy gratefully.

Taylor sat in the living room talking on the phone with her secretary. She was going over her schedule and asked her to cancel all the appointments for the next few days. Thomas joined her.

"Where's Dad?" he asked her after she hung up.

"He went to Brooke's house to check on RJ. Your little brother is very distraught by everything that's happened."

"Oh, I see!" muttered Thomas. "By the way, I think it's good that Dad is with us right now. In this situation, our family has to be together!"

"Yes, sure!" replied Taylor casually.

"Besides..maybe.. I mean, in times of crisis, people often realize where they really belong to...and especially with him and Brooke fighting all the time. She doesn't seem to have any compassion for him at all!" Taylor glared skeptically at her son.

"Thomas, what are you trying to tell me?!"

"Nothing! I'm just saying, you still love Dad and who knows, maybe there's a chance for you two after all!"

"Thomas, please listen to me! I also think it's great that your dad is with us right now and I agree with you. We should support each other right now. But you shouldn't overestimate the situation and get your hopes up! Just because your father lives here temporarily doesn't mean we'll get back together! Even though Brooke and he seem to have some issues!"

"But it could be...I mean, what does he want from Brooke if she won't even stand by him in a situation like this!"

"We don't need to discuss Brooke's behavior, no matter how she treats him, your father loves her and once this whole situation with Rick and Phoebe is resolved, I'm sure they'll reconcile and he will go back to her. Besides, your father and I really have other things to worry about right now!"

"Yeah, I know! I'm just saying... everything would be so much better if you and Dad were back together. Isn't that what you want too, Mom?"

"Of course I wish we were a family again, but you don't always get everything you want in life! And whether your dad and I are together or not, we are still a family and we always will be!"

"Yes, of course!" Thomas pressed a kiss to his mother's cheek and was about to leave when Taylor held him back.

"And Thomas, I'm warning you! No 'Parent Trap' activities or anything else, got me?!"

"Mom, what do you think of me?" said Thomas with an innocent air.

"Only the worst!" she replied with a grin. Thomas blushed slightly.

"I have to go now!"

"Wait a minute, can you stop by the hospital and give Steffy this stuff?" She handed him a small bag.

"Aren't you going to the hospital yourself today?" asked Thomas in surprise.

"Yes, I am. But still, I have so many things to do. I probably won't make it until this afternoon and I'm sure Steffy wants her things as soon as possible."

"All right, I will!"

"Thank you!"

Rick had driven back home after the hospital. He was just entering the front door when his mother approached him impatiently.

"There you are at last! Where have you been? Lt. Baker just called. He'll be here any minute to take your statement for the record!"

"Today, now?" Rick asked with slight discomfort.

"Yes, of course!" Brooke noticed Rick's tense face. "I know this isn't easy for you, but then you'll have it done!" Brooke gave her son an encouraging hug. "It won't be that bad. You just tell the truth!"

Shortly after, Lt. Baker arrived and sat down with Rick in the living room. He let him describe the exact circumstances of the accident. Rick told him how everything had happened. He told him about the fight and that Phoebe had been outranged and had suddenly grabbed his steering wheel and had her foot on the pedals.

"I couldn't react at all. It happened so fast!" explained Rick, Lt. Baker was busy taking notes.

"So the accident sequence is clear as far as it goes and it's also consistent with our investigations. However, I would like to ask you what happened between you and Phoebe Forrester before the accident? You say Phoebe was very upset and argued violently with you. Why did you get in the car and drive away with her in the first place? It's very unreasonable to drive in the middle of an argument?!" He glared at Rick urgently. The latter became very agitated and then finally answered.

"The argument didn't start until we were in the car. Phoebe behaved calmly and normally before. All of a sudden, while we were already on the ride, she went off on me!"

"So that means before you got in the car together, you weren't arguing?" echoed Lt. Baker.

"No, she came to me to say hello. She's been out of town for a while and we haven't seen each other for a long time and first she pretended she was glad to see me and we had a normal conversation."

"Mhm, I see and why did you go to the party together? Phoebe came to your office with her own car. Why didn't she drive her to the party by herself?"

"She was telling me a story about one of her gigs and I spontaneously offered to drive to the party together."

"Okay and then during the drive, she suddenly started ambushing you?"

"Exactly, we were talking normally and then from one moment to the next, she got all upset and started calling me names and before I could even react, she attacked me."

Lt. Baker had no further questions. He just said goodbye to Rick when Brooke joined them.

"Where does it go from here?" she wanted to know. "I mean, now that Rick has described the details of the accident and it's been determined that he's not responsible, surely the case will be closed, right?"

"Well, it won't be that easy! The investigation is not yet complete and we still need the testimony of Phoebe Forrester. How is she doing in the meantime?"

"She's still unconscious and won't be able to give a statement anytime soon." Brooke replied.

"Then you and we will have to be patient. We can't finally close the case until we have her statement as well!" Rick suddenly got very nervous.

"Is that really necessary? I've told you everything!"

"Nevertheless, we are required to take the statements of everyone involved. That's the law!"

"Of course, we understand that!" explained Brooke. She noticed very well that Rick suddenly seemed very anxious and tense. She said goodbye to Lt. Baker escorted him to the door. Without another word, Rick disappeared into his room. Brooke wondered about his behavior.

Thomas, meanwhile, arrived at the hospital and stepped into Steffy's hospital room.

"Hey, here's your delivery! Mom sent me with your stuff!" He placed the bag on her bed.

"Thanks!" mumbled Steffy softly, not really looking at him.

"Hey, are you okay? Is our princess displeased with the service here? Is the bed not comfortable enough, or was your breakfast not to your liking?" Steffy just shrugged her shoulders. Thomas was very surprised that she didn't respond to his teasing. He sat down with her.

"What's the matter with you?"

"Nothing!" she replied brusquely. "Just leave me alone!"

"No, I'm not! I'm your big brother and I'm obligated to get on your nerves! So tell me, what's wrong?"

Steffy stared at him silently then tears came to her eyes. Crying, she fell into his arms. He was a little taken off guard at first. He wasn't used to such an emotional outburst from her. Soothing, he spoke to her.

"Hey, everything's gonna be okay! Now tell me, what happened? Is something wrong with Phoebe? Is she doing worse?" Steffy shook her head and told Thomas what was bothering her.

"Rick was just here at the hospital. Actually, he wanted to see Phoebe, but they wouldn't let him. Then we talked and he told me some details about the accident!" Once again, Steffy was overcome by her tears. Sobbing, it burst out of her.

"It's all my fault! It's because of me that this stupid accident happened!"

"What are you talking about?! That's nonsense! You're not responsible. You weren't even there."

"No, but Rick told me Phoebe was very angry and upset and got violent with him and only because I told her about the kiss."

Thomas looked at her uncomprehendingly.

"You know Rick tried to make a pass on me and kissed me. I turned him down back then. That afternoon before the accident, I told Phoebe about it. I wish I'd kept my mouth shut!"

"Now, slow down!" Thomas tried to follow Steffy's narrative. "So you told Phoebe about the kiss and then Phoebe confronted Rick?"

"That's right, she went to his office before the party and was beside herself. She called him names and according to Rick, it was mostly about the story that he was making a pass at me. She was so mad at him because of this kiss, they had a terrible fight and then she lost her temper while he was driving and that's what caused the accident!"

"But that doesn't mean it was your fault!" Thomas reassured her. "If Phoebe was upset, it was because of Rick and his behavior! You are not to blame for the kiss and you turned him down."

"Yes, but if I hadn't told her about it, then maybe she wouldn't have gone to see and confronted him and none of this would have ever happened!"

"Still, you can't blame yourself for everything. After all, Rick was driving and he should have reacted differently. He shouldn't have gotten with her on that ride if Phoebe and he were fighting. It's logical that you can't concentrate on the traffic in a heated situation. Rick probably just tries to shift the guilt so he doesn't have to feel so bad about himself. Don't let him talk you into anything!"

But no matter what Thomas said, Steffy felt responsible for all the misfortune. Still, she was very glad that Thomas was there to comfort her. Seriously, she looked at him.

"Please do me a favor and don't talk to anyone about this, not even Mom or Dad! I don't want to put any more stress on them."

Thomas was a little uncomfortable about it, but he finally promised to keep their conversation to himself.