Hey, everyone.

Check out the speed of this update. God, I'm AMAZING. Now it'll probably be a month before you hear from me again lol.

This is a super chill and lighthearted chapter, as are most things that begin with the word "blood," so, you know, have fun with that.

Alright, now, huddle up because we need to talk about something, and that "something" is actually a "someone" because women aren't objects, you sexist pig. ANYWAY - let's talk about lynedele77.

People - let me tell you something here, in all seriousness - lynedele77 is THE SHIT. I mean, it's nuts. Have you read Fae to Fae? You should, because OH MY GOD, people, it's amazing. Also, she's just a really awesome person (but for the love of God don't tell her I said that - just keep it between us, alright? Be cool, damn).

Lynedele and I are working on a collaboration - well, I should say, she's working, and I'm trying to annoy her. And it's TOTALLY working. In the last group of reviews, someone asked to see a sort of journal of how we work together. So, just for you, dear reviewer, I'm not going to post an actual transcript of a conversation we had the other day. This is 100% real - we were talking about this story, though, not the collaboration. For some quick background, I've been super interested in the idea of adding random animals, particularly bears and parakeets, into the story just to confuse everyone. I was trying to think of a last name for Nadia, and I asked her for the Latin name for bear (I ended up using Rumel...bonus points for anyone who figures out why I picked that name lol). Anyway, here's the conversation that happened:

rightersblock: that makes me happy lol

Lynedele77: lol, I know. It's not Ursa, or Ursus, we're good.

rb: Ursa though...

L77: No.

rb: Maybe I'll change it.

L77: No.

rb: IMMA CHANGE IT.

L77: No.

rb: DONE.

L77: Fuck. I lost her. The readers...they have no idea...none.

rb: MAYBE NADIA RAISES PARAKEETS

L77: She's a fucking doctor, Kristen, Jesus fucking Christ

Again, that is 100% real. So, that's kind of how we work together lol

Enjoy!

Blood. That was the first thing that registered with Nadia as she ran toward the overturned cab. Blood. Blood on the street. Blood on the broken windows. Blood on the twisted metal of the doors. Blood. Too much blood. Blood everywhere.

The car had come seemingly out of nowhere, ramming into the side of the cab as it was moving through the intersection. The force had sent the cab into a skid, flipping over onto the street, finally coming to a rest upside down near the sidewalk.

Nadia's heart was jackhammering in her chest as she sprinted to the vehicle. She had seen the whole thing – just after Lauren closed the cab door, she had pulled out what she thought was her phone, planning to text Stacey, and realized she had the wrong one. She had looked up, hoping the cab would be close enough for her to flag it down again, when it was hit.

At the sight of the blood, Nadia felt a haze at the corners of her vision. Blood. Lauren's blood. She felt like she was going to be sick. FOCUS her brain shouted. She sucked in a breath of cold air and forced herself to snap into clinical mode, assessing what was happening as a medical professional, disassociating from the emotional element of the situation.

She needed to get to the people inside the car to assess the damage. That was step one. She moved toward the back window, near where Lauren should have been sitting, careful not to touch anything for fear that it would jostle the car. Depending on the injuries inside, movement could prove fatal; she needed to be cautious until she had a better read on the situation.

"Can anyone hear me?" she shouted into the broken glass.

She heard low groaning inside, coming from the front of the vehicle. The driver was alive, she could gather that much. She listened another second and didn't hear anything more. Come on, Lauren, fucking talk to me.

"We're going to get you some help, don't move," she shouted. She heard the driver continue to moan, and felt her adrenaline spike as she continued to note silence from the back seat.

She hit the button to wake Lauren's phone, which was still in her hand, and cursed herself when she realized she didn't know the code. Fuck. She started swiping with her thumb, her hands shaking, as she tried to pull up the emergency call feature. Why wasn't her brain functioning? Why couldn't she do this? Her whole body was practically vibrating now and she struggled with motor function.

"I called an ambulance," a voice beside her said, startling her. She looked up and became aware that a few people had gathered, also trying to help.

She looked back at the car. Blood. Fuck, she had to get her head straight, she couldn't help Lauren like this. But there was so much blood, too much blood…was Lauren losing that much blood? In the distance, she heard the faint wailing of a siren but it wasn't moving fast enough. There were so many people blocking a path to the overturned vehicle. If they paramedics didn't get Lauren out quickly, she could possibly bleed out. Nadia's face turned ghostly at the thought. .

"Hey, are you alright?" the voice beside her asked. "You look pale."

She glanced back. "Yeah," she answered, her voice shaking. "Yeah…" Fucking hell, Lauren, TALK TO ME. Why aren't you saying anything? A groan, a word, fucking SOMETHING.

"Lauren?" she shouted into the car. "Come on, Lauren, say something to me."

She was met with only silence from within the car as the ambulance pulled up beside them, the blood red lights splashing over them and mingling with the red on the spider webbed windows.

Nadia sat in the hard plastic chair in the E.R. waiting room, feeling her body shaking slightly. She looked at her hands, at the way her veins looked bluish-green under the harsh florescent lights. The air smelled acidic, like antiseptic and carpet, and it seemed like there was always a low hum of noise, even though everything seemed far away.

In her left hand, she still held Lauren's phone in a vice-like grip. She vaguely realized that her phone was probably gone, shattered in the accident, and in the next second she berated herself for thinking about that right now. She felt so…lost. Adrift. Nothing felt real.

Her mind echoed back to seeing Lauren pulled out of the wreckage, to her limp body, stained red, as her back and neck were stabilized and she was pushed into an ambulance. She had looked…vacant. Empty, like a shell that had been discarded in the ocean. Nadia hadn't been able to look at her directly, which was crazy – she was a fucking doctor. But this…it was Lauren. Lauren, unmoving, covered in blood, her clothing torn, her body limp…

Fuck, had she just seen Lauren die?

She needed to do…something. Anything. She needed to be active. But what was there to do? Part of her thought about forcing her way back to see what was happening with Lauren – she was a doctor, after all. But she was also smart enough to know that that would be a mistake. She was clearly in no frame of mind to deal with anything medical, and anyway, dealing with someone who was close to her violated about forty different rules of ethics and professional conduct.

Bo, her mind said. She needed to call Bo. But how to do that? She looked back at the phone sitting useless in her hands. Without the damn passcode, it was worthless.

Alright, that was what she could do. She could figure out the passcode.

She took a shaking sigh and started to think. The first guess was obviously her birthday, even though Nadia assumed that was too obvious. She typed in the numbers and the phone alerted her that she was wrong.

Next she tried the year they graduated from medical school. Wrong.

Alright, maybe the year she graduated from undergrad? Wrong.

High school? Sure, it was ridiculous, but you never knew. Wrong.

Maybe the day she moved to start her new job? Wrong.

The date of their first shift at the hospital after graduation? Wrong.

A message displayed on the screen that the phone was disabled, and she could try again in one minute.

With a deep sigh, Nadia sagged back in the chair. This was hopeless, and she knew it. In reality the code probably had something to do with Bo, and she didn't know enough about Bo to make an educated guess. She didn't know what date they first got together, or when Bo's birthday was, or any other significant details.

She turned her attention to the television that was hanging on the wall, watching CNN announce the news as if nothing was happening, as if the world still made sense.

A few minutes later she felt the phone buzz in her hand. She looked down and saw the name "Bo" on the screen, followed by a text message that said hey, baby, just wanted to see how you were doing. Love you.

Nadia was seized by the desire to cry. Why was she so goddamned helpless? The screen darkened, and she looked around the room. She wanted Stacey to be here, and as soon as she thought it, she was disgusted with herself. She wanted comfort when she should be taking care of Lauren, when she should be getting Bo here. Fuck, she had to figure out this code.

She looked back down at her hands and noticed that her pants had brownish stains on the thighs and knees, saw the shallow cuts on her hands. It was from the broken glass, she realized. She'd kneeled in it, and pressed her hands into the ground when she was trying to see into the car. The blood was hers, and probably Lauren's also.

With shaking fingers she lifted the phone again, preparing to try new passcodes. Her fingers hovered over the numbers. What should she guess? She racked her memory, trying to remember something about Bo, something that would be a clue.

She punched in the date that she and Lauren had broken up. Wrong.

Fuck, this was hopeless. Maybe she should just type every goddamn date she could think of, every fucking number combination. In frustration, she typed the "1029." Wrong.

Alright, tomorrow's date – 1030. Wrong.

Saturday – 1031. The phone unlocked.

Nadia froze. Wait – what? It had worked. She had the code.

Frantically, she pulled up Bo's number and told the phone to call.

"Hey, baby," a warm voice answered.

"Um, hey…" she said uncertainly.

She heard the hesitation on the line. "Hello? Who is this?" Bo's voice sounded confused.

"This is Nadia Rumel."

"Oh…hi?" Bo responded, uncertainly.

"I was just…um…Lauren is…there was an accident…"

"...what?"

Nadia took a breath, trying to steady herself. "Lauren and I went out for a drink, to catch up, and she got in a cab to go back to the hotel, and…there was an accident. She was in an accident."

"What do you mean…is she okay? What's going on?" Bo's voice was quick and alarmed.

"I, uh…I don't know…"

"What do you mean you don't know?"

"She just…I don't know. I think…maybe you should come."

Nadia could hear Bo's rapid breathing through the phone, and the sound of her moving around quickly. "Okay, what…where are you? Where is she?"

Nadia looked around the room until her eyes landed on the name of the hospital. She communicated it to Bo. "I can text it to you, if you want."

"Yeah, that would be good. Have you seen her? Can you tell her I'm coming?" Bo's tone was desperate, and Nadia felt her entire body tense. She didn't want to lie, but she didn't want to tell Bo the reality of Lauren's possible condition either – especially being Nadia didn't know the reality of Lauren's injuries.

"I'll, um…when I see her, I'll let her know."

There was a half second's pause. "You haven't seen her?"

"Not since they…no, no I haven't. Not yet."

"But she's…she's going to be okay, right? I mean, she's fine. She has to be fine."

Nadia looked back down at Lauren's blood on her clothes. "Yeah, yeah, I'm sure she'll be fine."

Bo was frantic. Fuck, she needed to…what did she need to do? She needed to get out of here. She needed a flight. She needed to get to New Orleans fucking yesterday. She sprinted into the bedroom and nearly tripped over Zeus. Fuck, Zeus, someone needed to take care of Zeus…

She quickly dialed Kenzi while she ripped a duffle bag out of the bag of the closet and started throwing things into it.

"What up, BoBo," Kenzi's voice answered brightly.

"Kenz, I need you to take care of Zeus. I'm leaving the key under the mat."

At the sound of her voice, Kenzi calmed considerably. "What's wrong?"

"I don't…fuck, where are my shoes? I don't know, Lauren was in an accident, I have to go."

"Shit, is she okay?"

"I don't know, I don't…I have to get out of here, I have to go."

"Yeah, okay, I'll take care of Zeus, don't worry about him. What else do you need? What can we do?"

Bo drew a shaking breath, her adrenaline pumping. "I don't…I don't know yet. I just…God, I have to go, I have to think…"

"Bo, BO! Breathe, okay? Just breathe. It's going to be fine. You have to calm down."

Bo's heart was beating out of control. "What if it isn't though? What if she isn't okay?"

Kenzi hesitated before answering. "She is. Just breathe."

"I have to…I don't know what I need to pack…shit, I have to go, I have to find a flight…"

"I'm calling you a cab to the airport."

"What? No, I can drive there myself faster."

"You can't drive like this. I'm calling you a cab. I'll call the airport and find you a flight, okay? Just…pack. The cab will be there soon, I swear."

Bo paused for a moment, her blood thrumming through her, her eyes darting around the room as her brain struggled to keep up with her movements. "Kenzi, what if…what if she –"

"She's fine," Kenzi cut her off. "I'm calling you a cab. Breathe. Pack. Call me when you get to the airport. She's going to be fine."

"I can't lose her."

"You won't."

Tears were streaming down Bo's face as she nodded, trying to force herself to trust Kenzi, to believe what she was saying. Lauren was going to be fine. She was going to be fine. In a few days, this would just be a bad memory.

She said goodbye to Kenzi and resumed throwing things in her bag, trying to block out the sound of Nadia's frightened and hesitating voice in her head, trying to keep the urge to vomit at bay.

Bo's plane touched down in New Orleans hours later. As soon as the wheels made contact with the tarmac, Bo powered on her phone and texted Nadia, using Lauren's number.

Bo: What's happening? Have you seen her yet?

Nadia: Not yet.

Bo: I just landed. I'll be there as soon as I find a cab.

Bo practically ran from the plane, racing out to find a cab on the curb outside. She hadn't checked a bag, so at least she didn't have to wait for that – desperately, she bounced on her feet until she found a car. There was a trashcan near the exit with a painting of a monkey on green bicycle, a large grin on his face. Bo looked at, feeling unexplainable notes of anger and resentment. How could anything be normal at a time like this? How could people be happy right now? She knew she was being irrational, but she didn't care. Nothing mattered. She just needed to get to Lauren. That was all. A cab became available for her and she practically barked the name of the hospital at the driver.

"Every light you run is an extra $20," she told the driver. "I need to be there now."

The driver raised an eyebrow at her, but said nothing, gunning the engine to carry her to the hospital.

A short time later he pulled up in front of the large building. Bo grabbed a wad of cash and practically threw it at him as she bolted from the car, bursting in to the E.R.

She scanned the room until her eyes landed on a dark haired woman who looked exhausted sagging in a plastic chair. She approached her.

"Nadia?" she asked, uncertainly.

The woman looked up. "You must be Bo," she said, her tone oddly stilted and formal, extending a hand.

Bo shook it limply. "I…yeah. What's going on?" Bo dropped into the seat beside the woman.

"Sorry, I just…" she waved a hand around, "long night."

"Have they said anything?"

Nadia shook her head no. "No one has told me anything. I keep asking, but…nothing yet."

"So…what does that mean?" Bo asked.

Nadia looked at her and sighed. "Honestly? I don't know."

"Would they tell us if she had…if she was…" Bo couldn't bring herself to say the word.

Nadia looked down at her hands, her voice low. "They might not. They would tell her next of kin first. They wouldn't…no, they probably wouldn't."

"She's alive," Bo said, her voice barely above a whisper, and cracking. "She…she is. She has to be."

Nadia nodded. "Yeah. I know."

Bo sat straight, her legs bouncing rapidly as her eyes darted around. She couldn't be still. She needed to do something. She had never been good at waiting, and right now…there had to be something to do, something she could work on. She pushed herself up from the chair and walked over to the desk at the front of E.R.

"Hi, my name is Bo Dennis, I'm here to check the condition of Lauren Lewis?"

The receptionist looked up at her. "Are you family?"

"I…yes, yeah, I'm…yeah."

The receptionist gave her a sideways look. "And you are?"

"I'm her…um…"

The receptionist gave her small, weak smile. "I'm sorry, I can't release any information to anyone who isn't family."

"She's my girlfriend," Bo answered. "She would let you release information to me. You can ask her…please, just…is she okay? You don't have to tell me anything specific, just…please." Bo felt the tears gathering in her eyes, and she angry tried to force them back.

The receptionist looked truly saddened for her. "I'm sorry, ma'am. Honestly, I am. But I can't release any information to you."

Bo stood, trying to think of something she could say, something that would persuade this woman to tell her something. She talked and argued for a living, she should be able to do this. Words failed her, however, and a moment later the phone at the desk rang and the woman's attention was gone.

Bo walked back over to Nadia, resting her elbows on her knees and dropping her head into her hands. She felt a hand tentatively touch her back and she jumped involuntarily. Nadia jumped her at her alarmed reaction, her hand still hovering near Bo.

"Sorry," she said. "I just…"

Bo sighed. "Yeah. I know."

Nadia dropped her hands back to her lap. "I've never felt this goddamned helpless in a hospital before," she sighed.

Bo nodded. "Do you know what happened to anyone else? To the person who hit her?"

Nadia shook her head no. "Honestly, I was so focused on Lauren…I have no idea."

"I'm going to kill him, whoever he was. Whoever it was that hit her…I'm going to make sure he goes to prison if he survives this."

Nadia nodded, the deep circles under her eyes showing her exhaustion. "She's lucky to have you, you know," she commented.

Bo turned to her, taken off-guard by the comment.

Nadia glanced at her and waved her hand. "Sorry, I just…I don't know where that came from. It's been a…well, you know. Sorry."

Bo slumped back against the back of the chair, bringing her more even with Nadia. "I should have been here, I should have protected her," she mumbled.

"If I had just asked her to have one more drink, or if I had just told her to leave a drink sooner…"

"This isn't your fault," Bo noted.

"It isn't yours, either."

Bo sighed deeply, the exhaustion of the last hour seeping into her bones. "I just…God, I love her so much. I need her to be…I just…" she dropped her face into her hands, leaning forward again as the tears leaked through her fingers.

Nadia's hand returned to Bo's back. "I know. She loves you, too. It's going to be okay."

Hours passed. To Bo and Nadia, it felt like days. As they sat in the waiting room they took turns talking, crying, and comforting one another. Bo got up and got them coffee, then Nadia took a turn, then Bo took another. They talked about Lauren, about Stacey, about medical school, about law school, about everything they could think of. They made jokes that fell flat, and laughed at things that weren't actually funny. They commented on the news, still playing on the TV in the corner, making fun of the acting on the commercials.

"Can't you force them to show you a chart or something? You're a doctor," Bo commented.

"You're a lawyer, can't you force them to turn over records?"

"Not without a subpoena."

"Can you get one?"

"No."

Nadia sighed, rubbing her hands down her face.

Bo thought for a moment. "You know, whatever's going on, there's a chance she isn't in the E.R. anymore…"

Nadia glanced at her. "What are you thinking?"

Bo was quiet for another moment, and then stood up, walking out toward the main part of the hospital. Nadia trailed after her.

Bo walked to front desk at the main entrance and smiled at the young man working at the desk. "Hi," she said, sweetly.

"Hi, can I help you?" he asked.

"Yes, I'm here to see a friend of mine, but I forgot to write down her room number. Can you tell me what room Lauren Lewis is in?"

The young man nodded, typing into the computer that was in front of him. "It looks like Ms. Lewis is in…she's currently in the ICU."

Bo's heart clenched, but she forced her face to remain neutral. "Oh, I had been told she had been moved to a regular room already. Do you know what time that's supposed to happen so I can come back to visit her?"

The young man looked at Bo uncertainly, but at the smoothness of Bo's delivery, turned back to the screen. "It looks like she's slated to be moved in a few hours. They're waiting for a bed to be available."

Bo nearly sobbed with relief, but still fought to keep her emotions from her face. "Great. So, I'll just come back then," she replied, and with that she turned and walked back toward Nadia.

When they were out of earshot of the desk, having turned a corner, Bo sagged against the wall, tears pouring down her face. "She's alive…she's alive…she's alive…" she repeated, over and over again.

Nadia thumped against the wall beside her. "Thank God," she whispered, tears falling from her eyes as well.

A while later, Bo and Nadia returned to the main reception desk and obtained a room number for Lauren. They then proceeded to make their way to her room, both falling silent as they approached.

Bo wasn't sure what she was expecting see; she knew Lauren had been in a car accident, of course, and since finding out Lauren had survived, Nadia had told her more about how horrific it had been. When they walked in the room, Lauren was asleep, an IV in her arm, machines beeping behind her.

Only her face and arms were visible due to the hospital gown and blankets, but the skin that could be seen was marred by scratches and deep bruises. Lauren's face was drained of all color, an unnatural pale even in the dim light of the hospital room. Seeing her lying there, injured, silent, Bo was seized again by the desire to vomit. Instead, she walked to the bed quietly, entirely forgetting Nadia, and touched Lauren's arm.

It was a gentle touch, not meant to wake her, not meant to do anything more than reassure Bo that Lauren was, in fact, there, that she was solid and not a hallucination. At feeling Lauren's cool skin under her hand, Bo drew a shaking breath.

She heard the sound of something scraping on the floor behind her and turned to see that Nadia had pulled a chair up beside the bed. She left it for Bo and moved to other chair, stationed at the foot of the bed, and sat down.

Bo smiled at her, gratefully, and sat beside Lauren, never removing her hand from her arm. Lauren sighed slightly in her sleep, her face contorting to a slight grimace even as she rested, and Bo wanted to cry, to take the pain from her, to do something – but there was nothing to do. For now, Lauren was alive, and that was enough.

Thoughts are always appreciated. Also, give Lynedele77 some love, she has a lot to put up with lol