Private Universe

The first thing I registered when I came out of the black abyss was the constant beeping. It was one of the more irritating noises and I wanted it to stop. The next was how much pain my middle was in. It was hard to breath and it made me panic a little. After that it was how uncomfortable I was. Not just with the pain but whatever I was lying on. My panicking about my breathing seemed to have caused the beeping to speed up. I tried to breath slowly and find a way to make it less painful.

I forced my eyes open and I immediately wanted to close them again. The room was too bright. Not from the cloudy day outside but from the fluorescent lights and the fact that everything was either white or a very light shade of blue. I assumed it was to making the fact that you were in a hospital less stressful. It didn't help. I could see people outside the room walking around like nothing was wrong. I heard a soft snoring and I looked at the side of my bed.

I smiled at the lump that was half on my bed and half sitting in a chair. Alex looked exhausted and gross. He had my hand in his and I smiled even wider. He was wearing the beanie I loved but it looked like he hadn't showered in a few days. I was going to wake him but the sliding door to my room opened the a man with a long white coat walking in and grinned at me.

"Finally awake." He picked up my chart and looked it over quickly. "He's been a little stressed." He pointed at Alex and I grinned.

"I bet."

"Oh good. You can talk too."

I smiled. "Was it suppose to be difficult?" I winced as I tried to breath deep.

"No. We just weren't sure. I'm Dr. Anderson by the way." He stuck out his hand and I shook it with my free one. "Is that your boyfriend?"

I smiled. "Yes."

"Well, you must have quite the relationship." I gave him a curious look and he laughed a little. "He hasn't left since you arrived. Which we should talk about."

"Okay. Will you call him Alex?"

He smiled. "Sure. Alex brought you in and I could tell he was scared. We took you to a bed and assessed the damages. Two broken ribs while the rest are cracked a little. You have a lot of bruises. You also had a pretty bad concussion. Which you will have to be careful of for a while."

I nodded. "Is that it?"

"For the most part. I think your ribs got most of the damage. And it was lucky none of them broke and punctured anything vital. I have to say, you got really lucky."

I smiled. "Why does it hurt to breath?"

"That would be your ribs. It's going to be painful for a while. It will also take a while for your ribs to heal. You're going to have to be careful for a while."

I nodded again. "Thanks."

He smiled at me. "You're a fighter. I'll see what I can do about getting you discharged. It may be a few more days just so we can be sure everything is okay."

"Okay. Thank you again."

"No problem. It's my job. Can I asked what happened?"

"Umm. I don't exactly remember it. It's a little fuzzy. Is that a bad thing?"

"No. It means your brain was doing something right." I raised my eyebrow at him. "It turns off during traumatic events. It's a good thing." He reassured me.

"Okay."

He left the room and I tried my hardest to remember what happened. My most recent memory was when Alex and I had returned from our adventure in the new town. I couldn't remember anything after that. I sighed. The beeping was more annoying now that I was awake and with no one to talk to. I didn't want to wake Alex, though. He looked too tired. I tried to pull my hand out from under him but it woke him. I stopped moving and waited for him to notice. He rubbed his eyes and when he saw me his face ran through about three different emotions. First he was shocked. Then he was relieved. And before I knew it his face broke into a grin. It made me smile.

"Zooey." He breathed. "Are you really awake?"

I giggled but stopped immediately at the pain. Alex looked scared and tried to help. "Alex, stop. It's my ribs and middle. Lots of bruising and pain. And yes, I'm really awake."

His expressed turned to pain and he looked like he was going to cry. "I'm so sorry, Zooey."

"For what?"

"Leaving you alone. Not being there earlier. Everything." He took my hand and pulled the chair closer.

"Alex, I don't remember what happened."

"What?"

"The doctor said it was normal. But I can't remember anything after the night we came back from our adventure."

"Seriously?"

"Mhmm." He gave me a small smile and I squeezed his hand. "Wanna fill me in?"

He laughed bitterly. "Not really but I will if you want to know."

I thought for a minute. Did I want to know? "Please?"

He sighed. "Well, I don't know everything. I just remember coming home to you lying on the floor and bleeding. And Christopher Reynolds kicking you." He said the last words with anger. "I was in shock but all I could think about was you. You didn't respond to anything I said and I thought you were gone." The tears he had been holding back broke free and ran down his cheek. "Rian attacked that asshole and I called nine-one-one. I held your head in my lap until they arrived. I could still feel you breathing and I knew that was at least something."

He wiped the tears away with his free hand and looked at me. "Rian told me to go with you to the hospital so I did. He later came and told me that the lawyer was in jail. They've all been by to see you. Tay drove down from New York and she's staying with Jack. Everyone's worried."

I smiled. "I love you."

He looked up at me and started laughing. I tried not to because I had a feeling it would hurt. He finally calmed down and leaned in the kiss me lightly. There was nothing like kissing him. "I love you too."

"The doctor says I can probably go home in a few days."

He grinned. "Good."

"He also said you haven't left since I got here."

He cheeks got a little Rosy and I grinned. "I couldn't leave you. Everyone was telling me to go home and get sleep. But I couldn't leave. I needed to be here when you woke."

"Thanks." I said. "But you should go home. I can see the dark circles and no offense, but your hair is grossing my out."

He laughed. "They don't exactly have showers in your room."

"That is not an excuse. You hair is gross. And I don't think I can wear that beanie again because of how gross it is." I grinned at him and he smiled. "Why are you wearing it, anyway?"

"For luck. I made Rian get it for me. It also hides my hair well."

I rolled my eyes. "Will you go home and shower knowing I'm awake?"

"Eventually. I'd prefer someone to be here with you."

"Me too."

He laughed. "Why?"

"Because I cannot stand that damn beeping sound."

"That is the sound that has kept me going. Always telling me your still alive." He leaned in and kissed me again.

"You also need to shave." I grinned at him and he rolled his eyes.

"I thought you liked my stubble."

"Alex, that is not stubble. That is like full blown facial hair. You look European. It's weird."

He laughed again. "Fine. I'm not leaving until everyone gets here."

"They're coming today?"

"They come everyday. They have other things to do than live here but they do visit. Taylor is freaking out. Jack won't let her live here though. He thinks that two people living here would be odd."

"You living here is odd." I grinned.

"Hey, I love you. And I am not going to leave your side for anything. I also didn't pee until someone got here to make sure you didn't wake while I was peeing."

I laughed but stopped and sucked in my breath. I closed my eyes and told myself to breath. "That's ridiculous. Don't guys pee fast?"

I knew I hadn't fooled him. The look of pain on his face was confirmation of that. "Not when they don't pee all day. Are you okay?"

I nodded. "Ribs and stomach."

"Oh. Can I look?"

"Sure. I haven't seen and I doubt it's really very pretty."

He pulled back the sheet and pulled up the hospital gown I had on. I gasped at the color. I heard him suck in his breath and I didn't blame him. My entire middle was purple. There were a few lighter spots but barely. It probably looked worse than it felt. But I still hadn't tried moving very much. But if the laughing and breathing were any indication I was in for one hell of a ride. I looked at Alex and I could tell he was getting ready to cry again.

"Alex, don't cry."

"But you're purple."

"I know. But it's a good thing. Bruising it better than internal bleeding. Or any number of things that could have happened."

I pushed down the gown and pinched my eyes shut. It was far too much pain. I felt my eyes fill with tears and I did my best to push them away. I could not show Alex how painful it was. At least not right now. He pulled the sheet back up over me and sat down. He bit his lip to try from crying but it wasn't working. I sighed. He looked defeated and powerless. I slid myself to one side of my bed without causing myself too much pain. He crawled in on the other side and wrapped his arms around me protectively. I could tell he was crying and I couldn't do anything.