My boss was merciful enough to give me a week off work - probably unnecessary, but I wasn't going to complain about paid time off. I had, however, made the mistake of mentioning the accident to my parents as a passing comment, and in typical mother fashion, mum had blown it way out of proportion.

There wasn't anything I could say to stop them coming over. I'd made a feeble attempt to clean up the house a little bit, so they didn't think their son was completely disgusting, but I couldn't get much done before my back hurt too much to continue.

From the moment she came in the door, Mum was fussing. She brought the ingredients to make dinner on the way over, and now she was in my kitchen, roasting meat and cutting vegetables and refusing help from anyone who offered it. It was appreciated, of course, but she had gone into overdrive.

"This really isn't a big deal," I grumbled to dad as he sat next to me on the couch. "Both of you are hugely overreacting."

He laughed, rolling his eyes. "I know that, but you try explaining to your mother that her baby having an accident isn't the end of the world."

"It was barely a tap." As much as I loved them, I mostly just wanted the piece and quiet. Carlisle wasn't home yet, and I hadn't been able to get a hold of him to tell him that my parents were here. I was dreading him coming home to them with being warned first. I went to meet him when I heard his key in the lock, wanting to intercept him before he came into contact with anyone else.

"Hey…" He smiled as he saw me, wrapping his arms around me and immediately leaning up to kiss me. "What's for dinner? It smells great?" Another kiss, this one slightly more heated, one hand tangled in my hair and the other against my cheek as he stood on his toes to reach up.

Slightly uncomfortable and knowing my father was standing not far behind me, I squeezed his waist, gently rocking him back onto his heels. "Mum is cooking for us," I told him, trying to be casual about it. "Her and dad came to see us."

Immediately, his cheeks flushed pink and he bit his lip. "...oh…"

I quickly kissed his forehead, rubbing his arm before stepping back so he could come in the door. I wasn't sure what dad's reaction was going to be - I knew he had seen it. This was the first time he had seen this amount of intimacy between us.

My father was blushing a little when I glanced back at him, but he didn't look upset. Just conflicted. He coughed once before managing to speak. "...Hello, Carlisle," he murmured stiffly, forcing an awkward smile.

My boyfriend looked like he wanted the earth to swallow him, still holding my hand and standing slightly behind me. "...Hi, Sir," he mumbled back. They looked at each other for another second before simultaneously diverting their gazes. "Sorry…" he whispered to me over my shoulder.

"We're allowed to kiss in our own house," I whispered back, chuckling to myself.

"Feeling okay?" he asked anxiously - no doubt thinking the worst because of the presence of my parents.

"I'm fine. Mum just didn't believe me," I grumbled, turning to hug him again. It was a little more platonic this time, but I leaned my cheek on the top of his head as he cuddled into me. "Was work alright?"

He just nodded, a little shy now that he knew we had guests. "It was okay."

Not wanting to be completely rude and ignore my parents, I quickly stole another kiss before letting him go, turning away to distract dad. I hated sport, but he loved it, and he wasn't going to pick on Carlisle if he was distracted by the baseball. I sat on the couch next to him, and my boyfriend wandered into the kitchen to help my mother. Apparently, he was going to be the only person she didn't immediately shoo away.

"Garrett," my father started. His voice was tense, and I glanced over at him apprehensively. He was silent for a moment before continuing. "I don't care if you're, uh, affectionate with your partner while I'm around. You don't have to hide your relationship from me."

"I'm not." I wasn't. Mostly.

He frowned. "You really love him, don't you." It wasn't really a question.

"Yes, dad, I really do."

"Alright, then."

.

.

Dinner was actually nice, for once. Mum's cooking was wonderful, and the conversation around the table was warm, despite Carlisle and my father sitting across from each other. I managed to eat without feeling sick, and my boyfriend managed to finish all of what was on his plate for the first time in weeks.

We watched movies together after they'd gone home. I was lying with my head in Carlisle lap, and he was fidgeting with my hair. That, coupled with the pain killers I'd taken, was making me horribly sleepy and the cuddling was definitely welcome.

"Want to go to bed, Gar?" he teased me softly, his hand trailing down to squeeze my shoulder.

I rolled back so that I could look at him, trapping his fingers in mine. "No, because when I wake up again, you'll be running off to work, and I won't get to see you until this time tomorrow." And my phone was still fucked. The email thing was sweet and all, but today had proven how dependant on the contact I'd become. It was driving me nuts; I felt so fucking stupid for being so concerned about a tiny piece of technology. It had never mattered to me until I had someone to worry about.

I lasted another hour before Carlisle all but dragged me to bed.

.

.

"I have to go, I'll be back tonight," he promised, kissing me as I tried to wake up enough to wish him a good day.

"...love you…" I managed to get out, forcing myself to sit up to hug him goodbye. It was still dark outside, and I wasn't used to being awake this early. I was sure that we'd just lay down, and he was already leaving.

"I love you too." Carefully squeezing me before pulling back, he headed for the hallway. He paused in the doorway, gently tossing a small box onto the bed next to me. "Call me if you need me, okay?" He didn't give me time to comprehend what he meant, disappearing down the hallway.

"I'll be fine, Carlisle," I called out to him as he left, wincing as the motion pulled my back. It was starting to hurt less, though, and the bruising was already starting to fade. I fell back against the mattress, fumbling around in the bed sheets until I found what he'd thrown at me.

'Call me' indeed. After holding the power button down for a few seconds, the phone came to life, already fully charged. Always one step ahead of me. He was so sweet it was going to be the death of me.

.

.

Seeming as my car was fixed, I made the decision to pick him up from work. I sent him a text from the parking lot, grinning to myself as I got an instant response. Another five minutes and he was in the passenger's seat, offering a shy smile as he glanced over at me.

I leaned over to kiss him, squeezing his thigh. "Thank you. Thank you so much. You really didn't need to do that."

He hugged me as much as he could, ignoring how awkward it was across the gearbox. "I don't want you to be anxious...that's not fair, not after all the time you spent home with me when I didn't feel good…I want to be there for you too."

"That was a bit different, Carlisle," I chuckled, trying not to frown. It wasn't something I wanted him to feel guilty about.

He shook his head, knotting his fingers through mine as I started the car. "Thanks for coming to get me."

"You got the car fixed, didn't you?" I didn't let him think too hard about that one, knowing he'd pass the credit onto Rose, but I didn't see it that way. "Let's go get food; I'm starving."

He didn't fight me on that, grumbling something about not being able to stop for lunch. Despite the fact that we had plenty of leftovers from last night's dinner, he practically begged me to stop and get pizza, going as far as ordering it online as soon as I agreed.

"Could you pick a more basic takeaway?" I teased, laughing.

He just rolled his eyes, hiding a smile. "It's good though." Thankfully, he was gradually regaining weight, and wasn't uncomfortably thin anymore. Pizza would definitely help.

It wasn't long before we were back home, sitting at the kitchen table and eating out of boxes. "Your mother keeps asking me to keep an eye on you," he told me between mouthfuls.

I groaned. "Jesus, imagine how bad she would be if I was actually injured. She'd be unbearable." That didn't stop it from being cute that she spoke to Carlisle.

He glanced down, fidgeting a little. "I like it...talking to Sasha...it's nice…" he admitted softly, shy about it.

"Well, she's set on you being her son-in-law, so that's a damn good thing." And so fucking sweet. It made him smile, though he tried to hide it and watched the table. "She likes you a lot. And dad gave me permission to kiss you in his presence." It was like a bloody teenage romance.

"Thank god for that," he laughed. The relief on his face couldn't quite be smothered despite his joking.

I reached across the table, holding my hand against his cheek and tilting his chin up so that he would look at me; he still looked so unsure about it that it killed me. "Hey...I think your problems with him are over. He's accepting you, Carlisle...you're part of this family."

It didn't look like he completely believed me but he smiled all the same.

.

.

My time off extended into Carlisle's weekend, and uncharacteristically he didn't want to move until after 9AM. It was nice, though. My back wasn't so sore, and I curled my body around his, wrapping my arms around his waist and pulling tightly against him. He slipped one of his legs between mine, folding his arms around my own; he was cuddly and I liked it a lot.

We had leftover pizza for breakfast, and somehow Carlisle snuck back in bed while I was sorting out the recycling, curled up with a book by the time I noticed he'd gone. I left him alone for a bit; no doubt personal space was a blessing when you worked in retail.

I thought I could get away with folding and putting away washing, sitting on the end of the bed while I did it, but I didn't get further than a couple of t-shirts before I heard the blankets rustle and arms locked around my chest.

He pressed his lips against the base of my neck, slowly kissing up my jaw as I leaned back against him. He shuffled out from under me until I was flat on my back, leaning down to steal another kiss and running his fingers through my hair.

"So much for the folding," I chuckled, accidently knocking it all onto the floor as I pulled him into me.

"I'll redo it later," he promised, nibbling his lip as I slid my hands down his thighs.

"Deal." Shifting him so that he was on top of me, straddling my hips, I pulled his t-shirt over his head. I could barely smother a groan as he started unbuttoning mine, purposefully letting his fingertips brush lightly over my chest as he did so.

"How's your back?" The marks from the seatbelt were still visible, and it had made him hesitate; what a way to ruin the mood.

"Just fine, come here." Locking my arms around him, I let his lips move against mine, running my fingernails up his back and smiling as he shuddered. God, he was beautiful.

.

.

Carlisle had brushed his teeth four times already this morning. His hands shook so badly that he couldn't even tie his tie, and I replaced his fingers with mine, gently smoothing the collar of his shirt before kissing him softly.

"It'll be fine," I soothed, wanting to run my fingers through his hair but not daring to in case it sent him into some OCD panic. "Calm down, Carlisle."

Groaning, he leaned his head against my shoulder, tightly holding onto my shirt as he hugged me. "I know...I just...I really want this fucking job…"

"Get your ass to that interview then, yeah?" I teased softly.

He nodded but couldn't smile. "I've never had to go to up to head office before...I'm pretty sure they're a bunch of suit-wearing, briefcase-carrying, business people, and I feel like I'm five years old…"

"In that case, you'd better get yourself a suit when they hire you." I captured his lips in mine, rubbing his shoulder to reassure him. "It'll be okay; if it goes badly, we can go to bed and pretend it never happened."

Sighing through his teeth, he nodded. "...I'm never wearing a suit, though."

He'd look damn cute in a suit, but I held my tongue.

.

.

I almost didn't dare to ask because of the look on his face. I wasn't sure whether he was going to cry or vomit, but all that came out in the end was a quiet sigh as he sat down. "How'd it go?" I asked after a few seconds of silence, needing to acknowledge the elephant in the room.

"...They'll be burning my resume right now…" he mumbled, folding his arms on the table top and resting his head on them. "I fucked it all up."

I really couldn't imagine Carlisle fucking anything up that badly, but I didn't bother telling him that. "I'm sure it wasn't that bad."

He glanced up at me, defeated. "All I did was stutter, and I couldn't answer their questions...fuck, Sue is going to be so disappointed in me…"

"Sue isn't your mother," I chuckled, rubbing his shoulder as I sat next to him. "It's not the end of the world."

"I know, but…" He had a lot pinned on it. He wanted to get out of that shop. Out from under the blame for things he didn't do. "God, they'll probably demote me at the rate I'm going."

"Don't be dramatic," I laughed, giving up and pulling him into my lap. "They can't punish you for getting a little flustered."

"I couldn't even say my name, Gar...and the thing with the shipment is still screwed up, a-and…" The pink flush in his cheeks suggested that he was still a little embarrassed about it, and I did feel bad for him. He sort of looked like he wanted to cry, but was just resisting the pull of it.

I squeezed him tightly; he was genuinely upset about it, and I shouldn't be teasing him. "It'll be alright. Staying in the bookshop isn't the worst thing in the world, is it?"

He shook his head, but bit his lip. "No...but they all know about...they treat me like I'm fragile or as though I'm a little kid, and I love them but I want to get out…" Unbeknown to him, apparently, he did look particularly vulnerable right now, fighting tears and all.

"If it doesn't work out...why don't you apply somewhere else? I mean away from the company?" It would be a giant financial pain in the ass, but it would be worth it if it meant he could settle. My fingertips teased the small of his back, wanting to calm him down before he worked himself up.

"I'm an immigrant, though…"

I frowned, easily forgetting that. I realised he never mentioned citizenship to me, and I'd always assumed that it didn't cause him any problems. Obviously not. "You've been here almost two years though, haven't you?"

"...yeah...but I'm not a US citizen; I can't just get another job...and if this company drops me, I don't want to be sent back to the UK…" He was getting really agitated, forcing himself to take deep breaths to avoid losing his shit.

"That won't happen, Carlisle," I soothed, hugging him against me. "You'll get citizenship if we get married, won't you?" For once, the topic wasn't really a joke.

He laughed anyway, as much as he was able to. "I guess so...that's not very romantic though, is it? Forcing you to marry me so I don't get deported?"

That made me chuckle, and I rubbed his side. "Worth it though, if it would mean I got to keep you."

"I wouldn't do that to you, Gar, don't worry." Kissing me gently, he didn't seem to realise that I didn't see that as a problem at all.