Fate & Fur

@ BearGirl

In the hours Aiden waited for any news from Bailey, he paced around the waiting room while he texted or called members of his pack, making sure that everything was going smoothly with them. By the time the doctor came out to see him, Bailey had officially been moved out of her apartment and into his, and her lease had been terminated, making her a part of his pack.

He nodded as the doctor and nurse explained everything, promising to be quiet and not disturb the other patients before stepping into Bailey's room. He let out a little whine at the sight of her, moving over to take a seat in the chair beside her bed, wanting to reach out and touch her, hold her hand and comfort her somehow, but he worried that doing so would cause her more pain, so he simply sat at her bedside, waiting for her to wake up while he kept watch on the door, in case Sandra or the others were stupid enough to come try to hurt her again.

By the time she had started to wake Aiden had passed out in the chair next to her bed, snoring softly, his hand resting on the bed beside hers, his fingers barely touching hers. When he heard her stir he sat up in an instant, rubbing the sleep from his eyes quickly as he looked at her, offering her a small smile, although it was forced. "It's alright, Bails.. You're safe here, I promise.. You're at the hospital, you got banged up pretty good. I'll have to go get the doctor now that you're awake, but I promise I'll come right back." He said as he stood, pressing the gentlest of kisses to her forehead before heading to the door to flag down a nurse and let them know Bailey was awake.

@ katahdin

Bailey was suddenly in tears by the time that Aiden and the nurse came back into the room. Though with some reassurance from the both of them, she was able to quiet down. The nurse then went to work at doing some checks on Bailey, wanting to make sure she was still stable, and that the anesthesia was doing what it needed to without causing side effects. Once the nurse was satisfied, she wrote down a few items on the whiteboard in her room as she spoke. "Looks like everything is going well for now. In the morning, we'll do some more tests, but for now, I want you to rest, okay?"

The nurse glanced over at Aiden for a moment hesitantly before glancing at the time. She gave Aiden a little nod, deciding that she wouldn't kick him out before turning and heading out of the room. With the nurse out of the room, Bailey was able to turn her attention back to Aiden. Though it was clear from the look in her eyes that she wasn't fully there. It was late, Bailey was exhausted and the medication was only making her more drowsy.

Though Bailey's hand opened up to Aiden again, motioning that she wanted his hand in hers. And she didn't stop until Aiden was lacing his fingers with hers. She then took a few breaths, before she started to whimper out to him again. Though, this time, Bailey's eyes were closing, finding it impossible to stay awake for long at the moment. But, she was able to force out a word through it. "Sa-andra. S-s-an."

@ BearGirl

Aiden waited patiently by the door while the nurse did her checks, watching Bailey the entire time for any sign of discomfort on her part, wincing a little every time she seemed to be in pain. He nodded gratefully when the nurse let him stay, thanking her before shutting the door and moving back to his seat next to Bailey, smiling as he carefully laced his fingers with hers, resting his other hand over their joined ones as he looked at her. "It's alright, Bails.. Don't stress yourself out. You need to recover, my love. I know who did this to you, and I swear I'll make them pay." He murmured, pressing a kiss to the back of his hands.

"But for now, you need to rest. I had the pack move you out of your old apartment, all of your stuff is at the house, and your lease has been paid off, so consider yourself a member of of my pack now." He forced a small smile, leaning forward to press a kiss to her forehead. "Go to sleep, Bails. We'll talk in the morning, alright? I'll be right here." He promised.

@ katahdin

As Aiden was speaking, Bailey's eyes fluttered as she fought to keep them open for a little longer. Despite her efforts, Bailey found that she could not do so. She was too tired, and the medication was too strong. Her body was begging for rest. And as she heard Aiden, Bailey was allowing herself to slip back to sleep, now knowing that Aiden was taking care of what she could not. Gently, she squeezed his hand before drifting off for the rest of the night.

Bailey fell into a deep sleep and did not wake until late in the morning. Though this time, Bailey's mind felt clearer as she opened her eyes. Her body didn't feel as heavy either. Last night she felt as though she could barely move her lips but now she was able to lift her head off the bed. Well, she could move the rest of her body as well but was less inclined to do so as it hurt to do so.

Her eyes glanced around the room and eventually fell to Aiden. "Aiden," Bailey whispered, wanting to grab his attention.

@ BearGirl

When she woke the next morning, Aiden was once again asleep in his chair, arms crossed over his chest as he snored softly. Someone, likely one of the nurses, had come in and draped a blanket over him to keep him warm in the cold room, and when he heard her voice he sat up at attention, looking at her as he blinked the sleep from her eyes, giving her hand a gentle squeeze as he scooted his chair closer to her bed.

",Good morning.. At least I think it's morning." He chuckled to himself, running a hand over his face. "How did you sleep? Are you feeling better?"

@ katahdin

A deep frown was stuck to Bailey's face as she looked up at Aiden, fury beginning to swell up in her. Her hand clutched tightly onto his. She scowled slightly at his words before shaking her head. She knew Aiden was trying to be upbeat and figure out how she was feeling. But of course she wasn't feeling better. She was furious about what happened, especially now that it was all rushing back to her now she was properly awake. "No, I feel like I just got ripped apart by six people to the point where I had to go to the hospital."

Though the moment those words left her lips, Bailey's eyes started to swell up with tears. And in an instant, the woman was sobbing. "I-I-I-I'm sor-ry." Bailey cried out before her sobbing just grew harder.

@ BearGirl

Aiden frowned as she snapped at him, shoulders tensing. He knew she was upset, and she had every right to be, but being upset right now wouldn't do her any good, especially when she needed to rest to recover from the terrible things those asshole had done to her. His eyes softened as she began to sob, shaking his head as he moved to sit on the bed next to her, pressing gentle kisses to the back of her hand as he tried to calm her down. All he wanted was to wrap her in his arms and hold her to keep her safe, but he didn't dare do that in case he only hurt her more.

"It's alright, Bailey. It's alright, you don't ever have to apologize for what they did. I'll rip every one of them apart for hurting you, I swear." He murmured softly, gently brushing her hair away from her face. "Please don't cry, my love.."

@ katahdin

Once Aiden was up on the bed, Bailey tried to turn onto her side to press herself into him. Though the moment she started to turn her torso, Bailey let out a yelp of pain and immediately turned back. Instead, she slid closer to Aiden and laid her head against his shoulder before reaching up her hands to wipe her tears away. A few minutes passed before Bailey was able to calm down enough to stop crying uncontrollably.

"I-I don't understand why they did this. They were already there when I walked into the apartment like they were waiting for me or something. All o-of them just jumped on me and just started... when they ran away, I tried to get out, to get to a phone. I-I thought I was going to die." Bailey told him, looking up at Aiden with large puffy eyes. "They'll just keep coming for me, won't they? No matter where I am, it doesn't matter to them. I thought I was safe outside of their territory..."

@ BearGirl

Aiden frowned as she attempted to move closer, carefully moving an arm around her shoulders, although he made sure not to jostle her too much, his fingers brushing soothingly against her arm. He used his other hand to wipe away her tears, pressing tender kisses to her forehead. "You should have been safe outside of their territory, you're right. They trespassed on my territory to get to you, which breaks about a thousand rules, even before they broke into my apartment and tried to beat you to death." He frowned, jaw clenching as he tried to remain calm for her sake. If he wasn't so worried about her, he would have been out hunting down every single person who had hurt her to rip them to shreds.

"But you're not a member of their pack anymore. None of them can claim you as theirs." He murmured softly, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. "James and some of his friends moved all of your stuff out of your old apartment, and into the pack house. I've also paid off your lease, and found an apartment in the same building as mine and paid for a couple months rent under your name, so you're welcome to stay there for as long as you want once you're out of here." He knew she might not want to ever go back into his apartment after what happened there, and even he wasn't sure he could go back there knowing what happened to her, but he didn't think mentioning that to her would be helpful. "You never have to go back there, Bails. You never have to see any of them ever again."

@ katahdin

Reaching up, Bailey took his free hand into hers and laced their fingers together, holding onto his hand tightly. She was done crying - for now. It was that she just did not have it in her to keep going at the moment and she already had a headache from it. "Thank you so so so so much, Aiden," Bailey whispered, truly grateful that she was not technically a member of their pack anymore. "But I am afraid that they aren't going to care that I am not a member of theirs anymore. They clearly don't care about the rules. If they did, this would have never happened." Bailey said as she gripped onto his hand tighter.

Bailey's frowned deeper as she dropped her head a bit. "Though I feel a little bad that they had to move all of my stuff out. And that you paid for everything..." Her nose wrinkled a bit. Bailey knew that apartments weren't cheap. And while she didn't have a lot of months left on her old lease, she did still have a few. "I promise that I'll pay you back." She said softly as her eyes lifted back up and Bailey looked to him. "But I am really grateful that I don't have that apartment anymore, and that they don't have a claim on me. Because I really didn't want to go back there." Bailey whimpered out the last sentence as she pressed a hand onto her face. "I-I don't think I could have stepped onto their territory again after this... I don't even want to walk into your apartment after this."

@ BearGirl

Aiden frowned as she spoke, his heart breaking for her. She didn't deserve any of this, but for some reason, Sandra and her pack decided that they were going to terrorize this poor girl to the ends of the earth for choosing him instead. If only he'd never walked into that diner...

With a sigh he pressed another kiss to her forehead, giving her hand a gentle squeeze. "You don't owe me anything, Bailey. We've got more money than we know what to do with, and I'd much rather spend it trying to right this wrong than buying all of the high schoolers video games like they've been asking me to for years." He forced a small smile, giving her hand another squeeze. "You never have to go back to my apartment again. And your new apartment will always be guarded, whether by me or someone else from my pack. And I can have someone go out with you whenever you need to get groceries, or things like that, so you never have to be alone." He explained, pressing a kiss to the back of her hand.

"I... I failed you, Bailey.. And I know I'll never be able to make up for not being there, but I'll do everything I can to make it right, for the rest of my life, even if... if you don't want to be with me anymore." He glanced away from her for a moment, trying to collect himself before continuing. "Being with me made you a target.. If it means keeping you safe, I'll give up the claim, and you'll never have to see me again."

@ katahdin

Bailey lightly hit Aiden's chest. "Don't say that." She told him. "This is not your fault. You didn't do anything wrong. We both thought I was safe here. They are the ones who should feel guilty, not you." She pressed her head against his chest, closing her eyes slightly as she did so. "I don't believe that they would have stopped even if I wasn't with you. I think they are mad because I rejected them and I wouldn't do what they wanted in the first place. I mean this could have been so much worse if I had told them no and I didn't have you."

She let out a small sigh before lifting her eyes up and looking into Aiden's softly. "I do not think that breaking up would change anything," Bailey said softly. "They can't turn back now and I am not going to change my mind after what has happened. So, when you kind of think about it, my safety doesn't change if I am with you or not at this point. I do still want to be with you, Aiden." Bailey whispered softly. "But we might need to change some things, for both of us. So I am safe and so you don't have to worry about me when you're not with me."

As a knock came from the door, Bailey glanced to the side as a nurse headed into the room. "Ah, good you are awake." The woman said, a soft smile on her face. She glanced at Aiden for a moment before speaking. "Now, off the bed, she needs some bandages changed and I need to check on her injuries." The nurse glanced at Bailey. "If you want, he can wait outside of the room." Though Bailey shook her head. "It's okay." She glanced at Aiden. "You can stay here if you want."

@ BearGirl

Aiden smiled a little as she hit his chest, pretending to wince and rub at where she'd hit. "Ow.. You're right though, they're the ones who took it too far, that couldn't handle the rejection.. I'll still always be sorry that I wasn't there to at least give them someone else to hit, if it meant they wouldn't have hurt you as badly." He murmured, pressing a kiss to her forehead. He played with her hair quietly while she talked about changing things to make sure she was safe, nodding in agreement, but before he could say anything the nurse had returned and was shooing him off the bed. He moved as quickly as he could without hurting Bailey, obediently standing off to the side by the door while the nurse checked her over.

He nodded a little when Bailey said he could stay, his attention not leaving her as the nurse went about checking on her. He didn't want to admit it, but the thought of Bailey being out of his sight at the moment made him sick, and he was much more comfortable staying by her side, where he could keep her safe.

@ katahdin

The nurse glanced over at Bailey's vitals before moving onto the bandages. Her leg was left along as it was in a cast. Though she first worked on the bandage on Bailey's forearm. Taking it off to reveal the word that one of the members of the other pack had tried to spell, whore. Though the e was only halfway done. Once the nurse applied ointment to it and rebandaged it, she moved onto Bailey's torso, folding the patient gown down to do so. Though her upper body was almost completely wrapped up, trying to keep her torso as still as possible.

She ended up only unwrapping the bottom potion to get to the chest tube that was at her side, and in her body. The nurse was careful to remove it before bandaging Bailey up there as well to allow the opening in her side to heal over before rewrapping her torso. Afterwards, the nurse took a moment to glance at the stitches on her cheek and jaw before moving onto a memory test. Just asking Bailey her birthday, the date and other items like that before seeming pleased and heading out.

@ BearGirl

Aiden watched the nurse work, as if trying to memorize what she was doing in case he had to help Bailey with the bandages herself. He flinched however when he saw the word written on her arm, looking away to hide his scowl, clenching his fists at his side. He'd make Sandra and her pack pay for this. Every last one of them, whether they were there for the beating or not. Once the nurse had left Aiden moved back over toward her bed, adjusting the blankets around her as he helped her to settle back against the pillows, pressing loving but gentle kiss to her lips.

"Do you want something to eat..? I meant to ask the nurse about getting you some sort of breakfast or lunch, but I forgot.." he admitted soflty, resting his forehead against hers for a moment or two, closing his eyes as he squeezed her hand. "No one will ever touch you again, Bailey, I swear." He murmured softly, struggling to hide how upset he was.

@ katahdin

Bailey lightly kissed Aiden back as he pressed his lips to hers. Though once he pulled away, she laid her head back against the pillows to try and rest her body. "I do not think I could even stomach eating anything right now." She told him softly, squeezing his hand back. "But I'll try to eat something later."

It was clear to Bailey that Aiden was having a hard time. He was struggling with what had occurred, and that he hadn't been able to prevent it. She reached out and pressed her hand against his cheek, hoping that he would calm down a little. It wasn't fair that Aiden was blaming any of this on himself. She leaned forward and pressed a gentle kiss to his cheek. "Come back onto the bed. I feel so tired but I want to lay with you."

@ BearGirl

Aiden nodded a little, glad that she was willing to try something later on, but he understood that she wasn't ready for that yet. He leaned his head into her hand when he felt if against his cheek, and even though his eyes were still closed, he looked absolutely defeated, despite her reassurances. When she asked him to come back to bed with her he nodded, carefully settling himself down on the mattress beside her, making sure that he didn't hurt her any as he wrapped an arm around her gently, resting his head against hers.

He was exhausted too, and after sitting there for a few moments with her let out a tired sigh. "Maybe sleeping is a good idea.." he suggested soflty, turning his head to press a gentle kiss to her temple.

@ katahdin

Bailey gave Aiden a small nod before she laid her head back against his chest. Reaching down, she grabbed the blanket and pulled it up, wrapping both of them in it. Once Bailey felt like she was comfortable enough, she closed her eyes. It took a little longer than usual for Bailey to completely settle down, finding it difficult to sleep perfectly still on her back. But her body was tired and the pain medication made Bailey sleepy. The moment Bailey was asleep, she slept hard.

Hours had gone by before Bailey started to open up her eyes again, gasping for air slightly as she did so. The young woman started to look around the hospital room before letting out a small whimper. Waking up in the hospital room wasn't a pleasant feeling, even when she knew she was already there.

@ BearGirl

Aiden did his best to help her get to sleep, although he was sound asleep and snoring softly long before she has fully settled down. When she woke hours later he was still asleep, although he'd somehow managed to roll into his stomach without waking her, one of his arms draped over her protectively with his face buried in the pillow to muffle his snoring.

When he heard her whimper he began to stir though, although it took him a bit longer than before to wake up. The man rolled back onto his side with a groan, rubbing at his eyes before he finally blinked awake, looking at her sleepily. "Did I oversleep?"

@ katahdin

Bailey shifted only slightly, pressing her face into his shoulder as she shook her head. "No, you didn't oversleep." She assured him, her voice barely above a whisper. Reaching out, Bailey gently ran her fingers through his hair, looking up at Aiden with large eyes. "I am sorry if I woke you up. I just don't like it here very much..."

The nurse came in, seeming pleased that Bailey was now awake. "Very good, I have spoken to the doctor and she said that you should be able to go home tomorrow. She'll come in tomorrow morning to make sure everything is still okay but, afterward, you're free to leave. Though, before you go, one of the nurses will give you instructions on how to care for your injuries. Now, lets talk about ordering you something to eat. I know you haven't eaten yet."

Bailey wrinkled her nose a bit in response. "I just don't feel very hungry."