Page 23 of Bliss

Callie

They’d only been asleep for about four hours when Daphne leapt onto the bed, meowing and gently pawing at their faces to wake them up. At Alex’s insistence, Callie stayed in bed, while she followed Daphne down stairs to feed her. She returned not too long after, but after an hour of snuggling, they weren’t able to fall back to sleep.

Callie tentatively lifted her head off of Alex’s chest, and Alex sleepily smiled as she brushed her hand over her sleep-mussed hair.

“You’re supposed to be sleeping.”

“I could say the same to you.”

Alex released a small laugh. “Sorry, babe. I should have thought to leave some food out for the princess before we went to sleep. But I’m not sure that would have bought us more Zs.”

“It’s okay.” Callie glanced over at the alarm clock on the nightstand. “It’s after nine. You should check your phone to see if Tina’s friend has tried to call or text you.”

Alex’s eyes closed for a few moments, then she nodded and stretched to the side to grab her phone off of the nightstand. As she rested her head on the pillow, and started typing in her passcode to unlock the phone, Callie gently touched Alex’s hands, encouraging her to lower the phone.

“What’s wrong?”

Alex ran a hand over her face, before answering, “I’m anticipating a fight with Roz. I understand why Tina still had me listed as her emergency contact and medical proxy, but I know Roz is going to take that news pretty hard. And I can understand her perspective as well. Tina and I only dated for about three years and we haven’t spoken in two. Roz has been her best friend longer than I’ve known Joselynn. If I was in Roz’s shoes, this scenario would break my heart, and it would make me question my friendship. I’m worried about how this is going to play out.”

Callie’s jaw clenched as her eyes stung at the thought of Hannah doing the same to her. “It would break my heart too. But maybe their friendship isn’t as strong as what you have with Joselynn and what I have with Hannah.”

“Maybe.” Alex exhaled hard and shook her head. “I just hope she can remain civil.” She lifted her phone and unlocked it. “One voicemail,” she said, before pushing play on the message and putting it on speaker.

“Alex, this is Roz. I’m confused about why and how you’re involved, but thank you for calling me. I’m on my way to the hospital now. I’ll call or text if we need you. Bye.”

Alex’s brow furrowed, but after a few moments of silence, Callie hedged, “I know I’ve never met her, but she didn’t sound upset.”

While exhaling hard, Alex ran a hand over her face, before sitting up, and explaining, “That was her business voice. The message was from over an hour ago. Either Tina hasn’t woken up yet, or they’re still talking, or arguing.”

Callie nodded, then rolled to the side of the bed and stood up. “Okay, let’s go. Let’s get dressed and eat something quick, so we can get to the hospital.”

Looking up at her with her brow still furrowed, Alex asked, “Are you sure?”

“Alex, my heart chose you and that means I’ll stand with you in the sun or in the rain and in good or bad times. Now, get up and get dressed.”

Alex just stared at her with a smirk, and told her, “You’re so bossy sometimes.”

Callie chuckled and shook her head as she walked over to her overnight bag sitting on a bench by the closet. She looked over her shoulder, said, “You like it,” and winked, making Alex dramatically groan.

“You’ve got me wrapped around your pretty little finger, baby,” Alex said, as she stood and walked over to her dresser. After pulling out some undergarments and a pair of shorts and a tee shirt, she met Callie’s gaze, and told her, “Thank you. What would you like to do when we get done at the hospital? Do you still want to take me to your place of escape?”

While Callie buttoned her shorts, she answered, “I’d rather come back here and soak in that giant bathtub you have. We’ll go to my special place another day.”

“Whatever you want.”

After they were dressed, they ate a quick breakfast of scrambled eggs, peanut butter on toast, and sliced apples. They left the dishes in the sink to deal with later, then stood together at the dual basins in Alex’s bathroom to finish getting ready for the day.

Alex finished first, and told Callie, “I’m going to find a better bag to bring Tina’s non-bloody belongings back to the hospital, just in case she wants them.”

“Okay. I’ll be done in a few minutes.”

“Take your time,” Alex answered, as she leaned over and planted a kiss on her cheek, before walking out of the bathroom and into her bedroom closet.

Callie didn’t wear makeup every day, and when she did, it was very light and natural, usually just some muted taupe or dusty rose eyeshadow and a tinted lip gloss. When she heard Alex leave the bedroom and head down stairs, she considered her reflection, trying to decide if she wanted to put on any makeup today. Her under eyes looked a little dark from lack of sleep, but Alex still made her feel beautiful and loved, and Tina had already seen her without makeup on. Not that she needed to impress Alex’s ex-girlfriend or prove anything to her. With a sigh, she walked out of the bathroom, deciding she didn’t want or need to put on makeup today, especially since they were just going to come home to soak in the bath for a while.

She found Alex standing at the dining room table, packing Tina’s belongings into a black canvas sling bag.

“Need help with anything?”

“Uh…” Alex rifled through the bag, then looked up, and answered, “Yes, please. In the living room, there’s a black and white honeycomb and honeybee paper box on the shelf to the right of the fireplace. Can you grab that for me? I want to see if I have an extra charger that fits Tina’s e-reader. She didn’t have one packed in her purse, but she’ll probably want to at least keep that with her so she has a way to entertain herself.”

Callie easily found the box, and when she returned to Alex’s side, Alex lifted the lid to reveal an organized assortment of chargers, cables, adaptors, as well as several power banks of various sizes. She found the charger and charging cable to fit the device, then fitted the lid back on the box. After slinging the bag over her shoulder, she picked up the box and brought it back to the living room.

“Okay, we can go.”

“I love how organized you are,” Callie commented, as they walked through the door to the garage. “Are you like that because your parents were strict about being clean and organized?”

“I wouldn’t describe them as being strict.” After they got in the Jeep , and Alex opened the garage door and started the vehicle, she explained, “They taught me that things should have a place and be put back in their place when I wasn’t using them. When I didn’t, and I couldn’t find something, they would have me retrace my steps and try to remember where I had it last. They’d accompany me on my search, but they never did it for me and they never yelled at me, just helped me to see the value of my time and how that time spent looking for something could have been spent doing something more enjoyable. I’ve struggled with keeping up with stuff more than a few times when life got super busy, like during college or when I was starting my own business. But my life is so much easier and less stressful when I force myself to take the extra seconds or minutes to put something back where it goes as soon as I’m done with it.” After pulling out onto the main road, Alex glanced over, and asked, “Were your parents strict about that stuff?”

“Yeah, they could be. My grandmother was more like how you described your parents, but my parents weren’t as patient. They yelled and threatened to throw stuff away if we didn’t keep our stuff picked up, but that was rare. We weren’t home enough to make a big mess. We spent most of our time at our grandmother’s house, and weekends were spent mostly outside, running errands with our parents, or hanging out at friends’ houses.”

They spent the twenty-minute drive to the hospital talking about their childhoods and the differing parenting styles they were raised under. And with each story, Callie grew confident that she was going to really like and even love Alex’s parents when they finally met. She loved her own parents, but they weren’t as affectionate and supportive as her grandmother had been. They could be judgmental or cold, often without realizing they were. She was less excited to introduce Alex to them, but Alex had quickly become important to her, and she wanted to bring her into her family. Soon.

The hospital was busy, and it took Alex a few minutes to find a parking space, then it took them a few more minutes to walk from the distant space to the main entrance. Not knowing how to get to Tina’s room from the main lobby, a nice woman at the information desk directed them to, “Take the elevator to the third floor, then follow the blue line on the floor to the left and through a set of doors. She’ll be in Ward A to your left.”

They thanked her, then caught an elevator up with an elderly couple who looked just as tired as Callie felt. When they reached the third floor, the elderly couple went to the right, following a green line, and they went to the left. The nurses’ station at the center of the ward was bustling with nurses typing on computers and unpacking medications from bank-teller-style tubes from the pharmacy onto trays to bring to their patients.

As they approached the open door to Tina’s room, Alex paused, her shoulders and chest rising as she took a deep breath. Callie gave her hand an encouraging squeeze, to which Alex nodded once, then led them into the room, lightly rapping her knuckles on the door as they entered.

“Hey,” Alex said, as Tina and a tall, broad woman with a reddish-brown pixie cut turned to look at them. As they sidled up on Tina’s right side, across from her friend, Alex quickly motioned between Callie and the woman training her securitizing ocean blue eyes on the couple. “Roz, this is Callie, my girlfriend. Callie, this is Roz, Tina’s best friend.”

At hearing Callie was Alex’s girlfriend, Roz’s perfectly groomed and arched eyebrows rose, but she let them fall as a small, polite smile rose. “Hello, Callie.” She turned a less polite and more judgmental glare at Alex, and asked, “Why are you here?”

Ignoring her, Alex looked down at Tina, and asked, “How are you feeling?”

“Itchy, annoyed, drowsy, confused, frustrated, grateful, a little nauseous, bored, gross.” Tina sighed, then smiled, and said, “I’m okay,” and when she and Alex laughed, Callie suspected the exchange held an inside joke between them.

“Sounds about as I expected. Did you let a nurse know you’re itchy and nauseous so they can make sure you’re not having a reaction to any of the antibiotics and pain medications?”

Tina nodded as she used her right hand to reach under her gown and scratch a spot on her chest. “A doctor came in an hour ago. Not Dr. Rockford. They told me she’ll be in soon though. It’s all these cuts I have all over me that itch. They said that’s normal. It means they’re healing.”

“Yeah, it is,” Alex gently grabbed her wrist, pulling her hand out from under her gown, “but they won’t heal if you scratch them open, and you could give yourself an infection by touching them, so knock it off.”

With a pout, Tina pulled her hand away and lightly swatted at Alex’s hand. “I know. I’m being careful.”

“What about the nausea? Have you eaten?”

“Swallowing is still difficult, so I wasn’t able to eat much of my breakfast. They ordered a protein drink for me. It just hasn’t gotten up here yet.”

After glancing at her cellphone, Roz said, “That was over twenty minutes ago. I’ll go ask your nurse how much longer it’s going to be.”

“No, Roz, wait,” Tina said, and Roz turned back with her lips pursed. “Let’s give them another ten minutes before we go hunting people down. I’m going to be here for a while. I don’t want to ruffle any feathers.”

Crossing her arms over her chest, Roz defensively argued, “And why do you think I’m going to ruffle feathers? I know how to be polite, even when I don’t want to be.” She glanced at Alex, and Callie had to clench her jaw to not call Roz out for the unfairness of her attitude.

“I know. It’s not about how you say it. Things take time and we need to be reasonable in our expectations.” Tina lifted her right hand to reach under her gown again, but Alex captured her hand, holding it firmly in hers on the side of the bed, and Tina glared up at her. “You both are really starting to aggravate me.”

Callie had to bite back a laugh when Alex just smirked at her, and she released a huff as she curled her fingers around Alex’s hand.

“Okay, we’ve covered itchy, nauseous, annoyed, and frustrated,” Alex said, still playfully grinning at her. “Why do you feel gross?”

With her head tilted and her eyes slightly wider and her lips puckered in her left cheek, Tina glared at Alex, then deadpanned, “You are not funny, Alex Coleman.”

Alex chuckled and shrugged her right shoulder. “Just trying to distract you.”

Tina rolled her eyes, then looked up at the ceiling, and answered, “The nurses have to wait for Dr. Rockford to come in and check me out, then they can give me a sponge bath.” Her nose crinkled and she rolled her eyes again and tilted her head side to side. “How humiliating.”

Roz sucked her teeth, and reprimanded her friend, saying, “Babe, you’re hot. There’s no reason to feel embarrassed over someone seeing you naked.”

“Someone seeing me naked isn’t the same as having someone wash my body. That’s just… It’s invasive.” She jerked her head towards Alex, and added, “I didn’t even shower with Alex until the fifth month of dating.” Her cheek instantly flared red, and as her eyes momentarily slid to Callie, she slipped her hand free from Alex’s. “I don’t want to talk about that anymore.”

Callie couldn’t blame her for feeling self-conscious and uncomfortable with some strangers washing her body for her. She’d feel the same way. But she also understood the nurses were trained to be respectful and knew how to handle her body without causing her pain. Anything could happen to any of them at any time. Nurses were a blessing to society, no matter how awkward it was for people to need and accept their help. But she wasn’t going to be the one to further aggravate Tina by pointing that out.

“All right, next on your list,” Alex started, and Tina tossed her a warning glare, which made Alex chuckle as she pulled the sling bag over her head. “Boredom.” She unzipped the main section and pulled out Tina’s e-reader and the charger and charging cable. “You didn’t have a charger in your purse, but I had an extra. Service in here is pretty much nonexistent, but I can connect it to the hospital’s Wi-Fi so you can download whatever you want. A nurse gave us the login information last night.”

Smiling, Tina took the e-reader from her and flipped the black cover open. After typing in a pin to unlock it, she offered it back to Alex.

“Where is my purse?”

Alex’s face slightly paled and her nose crinkled as she shook her head, and answered, “At my place. It’s … uh … really bloody. So were your shoes. They cut your clothes off and didn’t give them to me. If you want me to, I’ll soak the bag and shoes, see if I can get the blood out, but I don’t know if…”

“No, Alex, that’s okay,” Tina gently cut her off. “Thank you for the offer though. You can throw them out.”

Alex nodded, then handed the e-reader back to her. “Okay.” She patted the sling bag. “The rest of your stuff is in here. I wasn’t sure if you’d want it here with you, or if I should hold on to it until you’re released.”

As Roz opened her mouth, probably to offer to take custody of Tina’s belongings, Tina quickly said, “No, you should hold on to it. I don’t need it here and I don’t want to have to worry about keeping track of it.”

“Sure,” Alex said, as she zipped the bag and slung it back over her head and shoulder.

An awkward silence stretched on for a few minutes, during which time, Tina purposefully avoided meeting Roz’s glare by scrolling through her e-reader.

But the tension was broken when a nurse walked in, smiling and cheerily said, “All right, Tina, let’s try this again.” She said, “Excuse me,” to Alex and Callie, so they backed away from the bed to give her room to pull a rolling overbed tray into position above Tina’s lap. As she set a tall foam cup and straw down on the table, she said, “Sucking on the straw may be difficult, but I brought one in case you want to try.”

“No, I’ll just drink it normally.”

Nodding, the nurse removed the plastic lid, then helped Tina take the cup in her hand. They all watched as Tina took a tentative sip of the chocolate protein drink. Her throat visibly worked a few times, as Tina’s face sort of pinched, then she nodded, and said, “It’s not the best tasting thing in the world, but at least I’m not choking on it.”

The nurse smiled sympathetically, and assured her, “It will get easier every day. Okay, I have some rounds to make. Just use the call button if you need anything.”

“Thank you.”

After the nurse left the room, Roz said, “If you’re not able to eat whatever they try to give you for dinner, I can bring you some soup from Murphy’s Deli.”

Tina hummed, “Mmm,” around a sip of protein drink and nodded. After swallowing, she said, “They have the best soup. Thanks, Roz. You’re the best.”

The impact of the appreciation and praise was immediately evident. Roz’s face softened and her pursed lips lifted with a smile. Her attitude towards Alex even improved, and the next thirty minutes were less awkward and more polite.

“Okay, honey, I need to go pick up Olivia from my mom’s and take her to dance class,” Roz said, as she bent to give Tina a hug. “We’ll come back around five with dinner. Do you have a soup preference?”

“Potato or clam chowder. Thanks, Roz.”

“Of course. Have the hospital or Alex call me if you need me to bring anything else.”

Roz surprised all of them when she walked around Tina’s bed and gave Alex a brief hug. When she pulled away, she gave Alex a smile that felt more genuine than the others she’d bestowed upon her and Callie.

“You’re an exceptional human, Alex. Thank you for being here for Tina. I’ll see you around.”

Nodding, Alex said, “Safe travels.”

“You too.” She waved her fingers at Callie, saying, “It was nice meeting you, Callie,” then turned on her heels to leave.

After Roz left the room, Tina said, “Thank you for being patient with her, Alex. She was really upset when I explained why you are my emergency contact.”

“I figured she would be. Ready to write that email for your employer?”

“Yeah,” she tapped the overbed tray still hovering above her lap, “you can use this.”

Alex unpacked the small laptop from the bag, and as she set it on the table and lifted the lid, she said, “The battery is really low,” and dug the charger out of the bag.

“Here, give me the plug,” Callie said, as she moved around her. “There’s an outlet over here above the side table.” After plugging in the laptop’s charger, she also plugged in the charger for Tina’s e-reader.

“Thanks, babe,” Alex distractedly said, as she inserted the other end of the charging cable into the laptop, then typed in the security pin. “Okay, I’m in.” Alex turned the laptop so Tina could also see the screen. While opening the internet, Alex asked, “Which email provider do you use?”

“It’s the same as before.”

Alex nodded and opened Google , then brought the computer closer to Tina so she could type in her password. It was awkward for her with just one hand, but she was able to manage without asking for help. After she clicked on the Compose button, and the blank email screen appeared, she motioned for Alex to take the computer back.

Callie didn’t want to make Tina feel awkward by hovering, so while she iterated the email and Alex typed, Callie sat in a nearby chair and waited.

Twenty minutes later, and while Alex was reading the email back to Tina, Hannah and her parents walked into the room.

“Good morning, Ms. Schafer,” Isadora greeted, as she and her husband walked around to stand on her other side, while Hannah came over and nudged Callie’s hip. Callie scooted over as far as she could, and Hannah squeezed in on the chair next to her.

“Good morning,” Tina responded.

“How are you feeling?”

Tina glanced at Alex with a glare, and Alex snickered, as she answered for her, “Itchy, annoyed, drowsy, confused, frustrated, grateful, a little nauseous, bored, and gross, but generally okay.”

“You’re pushing it, Alex.”

When Callie covered her mouth to muffle a quiet laugh, Hannah elbowed her in the ribs, and mouthed, “What did we miss?”

Callie shook her head and leaned in, whispering against her ear, “Tell you later.”

After releasing an audible breath, Tina confirmed, “Alex summed it up. Is there something I can do about these cuts and scratches that itch so much? Alex is being a pain in the ass and won’t let me touch them.”

Isadora smiled approvingly at Alex, before answering, “I’ll have the nurse give you some cotton swabs. You can gently rub around the cuts and stitches, but please do not rub over the wounds and definitely do not use your fingernails. Any other questions for me before we do some sensory tests and I inspect your arm and leg?”

“Alex is writing an email to my employer for me. They won’t respond until Monday, but when they do, I know they’ll need some paperwork filled out to approve my medical leave and get my short-term disability pay lined up. Do I need to have you fill that out, or one of the other doctors here at the hospital?”

“I can do it. Your arm and leg will heal at different times, so when you receive the forms, we’ll discuss your job responsibilities and accessibility in greater detail to determine your return-to-work date. Also, make sure they give you a fax number to send the forms back to them because we can’t email those kinds of documents.”

As soon as she’d finished the statement, Alex began typing again, which earned her another smile from Isadora.

Hannah leaned over, and whispered against Callie’s ear, “We love Alex,” making Callie smile and lightly blush. She bumped shoulders with Hannah in response, but she decided to wait until they left the hospital to verbalize her happiness. She didn’t want Tina to feel any more self-conscious than she already was by thinking they were sitting there gossiping about her.

“Any other questions?”

As Tina diverted her gaze from Isadora, and looked at her own lap, she asked, “Is there any way I can bathe myself?” She slowly looked up at Isadora, and explained, “While I appreciate their willingness, I’m not comfortable with the nurses doing that for me. I don’t like people touching me. It causes me a lot of anxiety.”

Isadora’s beautiful face softened with understanding and compassion, as she slowly nodded, and answered, “You have one working hand, so you can be in charge of the washcloth. However, you’ll need help to lift and manipulate your body so you’re not putting pressure on your injured arm and leg. And if you’re all comfortable with it, Alex could…”

“No, sorry,” Alex quickly answered, and shook her head. “Tina, maybe if this had happened before I met Callie, but I can’t…”

Callie quickly stood and grabbed Alex’s hand, tugging her towards the doorway. “Give us a minute.”

Alex followed her out of the hospital room, and when Callie thought they’d gone far enough that no one inside Tina’s room could hear them, she turned to face her girlfriend.

Keeping her voice low, Callie asked, “If Tina would feel more comfortable with your help, are you comfortable doing that for her?”

“Callie, I don’t want you to…”

Shaking her head, Callie placed a kiss on her lips, cutting her off. “Alex, I’m not worried about your fidelity and the strength of our relationship. Just tell me honestly. Would you be comfortable helping Tina in that capacity?”

Alex ran a hand over her face and through her hair as she looked up at the ceiling, before meeting Callie’s gaze again, answering, “I feel like it should feel wrong, but earlier when she was talking about how uncomfortable she felt about the nurses helping her, I almost offered to help her.” Alex blushed and looked down at the floor as she rested her shoulder against the wall. When she met Callie’s gaze, she explained, “It wasn’t because I wanted to see or touch her like that again. I just remember how difficult it was for Tina to feel comfortable with accepting touch from me when we were dating. Even just holding hands or kissing. We didn’t have our first kiss until after our tenth date. I don’t know why, but she has a strong aversion to touch until she’s developed a positive emotional connection to someone. I’ve seen her have a full-blown panic attack because an acquaintance hugged her for too long and wouldn’t let go, even after all of the normal, polite cues to release her. If some random nurse has to wash her, while she’s so vulnerable and defenseless…” Alex shook her head and exhaled hard. “I wouldn’t wish that kind of feeling on anyone.”

Callie caressed Alex’s cheek, and answered, “Me either. Just imagining the terror that she’d feel is making me feel unsafe and scared. Alex, I trust you. If Tina would be more comfortable with your assistance with areas she can’t reach, or to just be by her side while she and the nurses handle her bathing, I won’t be upset or feel insecure or any of that.”

Alex sighed as she pulled Callie into herself, wrapping her arms around her waist and resting their foreheads together. She gently kissed the tip of her nose, making Callie smile, and she quietly asked, “You promise this won’t make things weird between us?”

“I promise. But you have to promise me something as well.”

“Anything.”

Callie pulled away a few inches to be able to look into Alex’s whiskey pools. “If you detect Tina’s feelings for you shifting back to something romantic, will you please talk to me about it so we can try to figure out how to continue to help her or transition her needs to someone else?”

Smiling, Alex nodded, and told her, “I’d never keep something like that from you, Callie.”

“Thank you.” Callie wrapped her arms around her own back to clasp Alex’s wrists and pull her hands forward. “Come on, let’s go talk to Tina about this.”

As she took a step towards Tina’s room, Alex pulled her back, and Callie smiled as she looked up into her eyes expectantly. With slightly blushing cheeks, Alex asked, “This won’t change our plans for today, right?”

With a brief laugh and her own cheeks reddening, Callie shook her head, and answered, “No, I still want to take a bath with you.” Alex’s smile spread ear to ear, making Callie laugh again. She lightly slapped her right pectoral muscle, then gripped her hand and yanked her off of the wall. “Come on, baby.”

Alex allowed her body to bump into Callie’s, getting her off balance and making her laugh. As their eyes locked, Callie felt a wonderful flutter in her chest. If they weren’t in the hospital, she’d push Alex up against the wall and make love to her right then and there.

With a snicker, Alex leaned in, and whispered in her ear, “If Joselynn was here, she’d threaten to hose you down right now.”

Callie scoffed and slapped her shoulder, making Alex’s head fall back with a hard laugh. Callie giggled as she shushed her and slapped her arm a few more times. “Alex, you’re being too loud. And for your information, your eyes are practically scorching my clothes off of me right now.”

Alex licked her grinning lips and shrugged a shoulder. “Sorry but not sorry, babe. You’re beautiful, sexy, and I’m crazy in love with you.”

Callie’s chest rose with a deep breath as she deliberately looked away from Alex to try to cool the heat growing in her core. “I can’t look at you anymore.”

She squealed as Alex gripped her hip and spun her, pinning her against a wall. With their noses touching, they stared into each other’s eyes, seeing deep into each other’s hearts and souls, feeling what the other was feeling. As Alex gently brushed the back of two fingers over her cheek, Callie whimpered and bit her bottom lip.

She breathed, “Alex,” and glanced side to side, worried someone was going to find them in this position and kick them out of the hospital.

“I don’t ever want to hear you say you can’t look at me.”

Callie smiled as she relaxed and lifted her arms to wrap around the back of Alex’s neck. “Baby, I didn’t mean it in a bad way. I just…” She lifted her brows as she briefly pressed her hips into Alex’s. “Please don’t make me say it.”

After holding her gaze with an intensity that made Callie’s center puddle in her underwear and her knees practically melted, Alex leaned in, and breathily whispered against her ear, “After we’ve taken a nice, hot bath, I’m going to ravage your body so thoroughly you pass out in my arms.”

Callie released a quiet, burring moan, and her body temperature increased exponentially. She knew from experience that was a promise Alex could keep, and she was desperate to get back to Alex’s house to experience it. Alex’s tongue tracing the rim of her ear and lightly biting her earlobe did nothing but make her want to find an empty room and have wild sex with Alex. Digging deep, she found the resolve to grip Alex’s shoulder and push her back a few inches.

“Alex, if you continue to tease me when we can’t be together right now, it’s just cruel. Please don’t be cruel.”

Alex pouted as she hung her head, and Callie couldn’t help but giggle as she grabbed the sides of her face and lifted her head. As their eyes met, Alex dramatically fluttered her naturally long eyelashes, and Callie giggled and leaned in to playfully bite the tip of her nose.

“I’m going to be so outmatched when we have a real fight. You’re too fucking adorable.”

“Hey, I could say the same thing,” Alex defended, as she flipped her bottom lip out and narrowed her eyes in a mock scowl.

“Case in point,” Callie said, and giggled as Alex’s frown flipped into a huge smile. She pressed into her abs, and Alex took a few steps back, allowing Callie to step away from the wall. After clasping Alex’s hand, Callie said, “I love you, Alex,” and Alex’s already huge smile grew even more.

“I love you too.”

When they walked back into Tina’s hospital room, their smiles dropped and their eyes widened as they froze to take in the argument happening between Tina and Hannah.

“Just wait for Alex to…”

“No! It’s my stuff. Just put it in the wardrobe so Alex doesn’t have to feel obligated to…” Tina’s response trailed off as she spotted Alex and Callie. She released a loud huff and looked away, staring into a corner in the room.

Callie quickly yanked Alex forward, and Hannah stepped out of the way for them to sidle up next to Tina’s side.

“Uh, Tina, I’m sorry I pulled Alex out like that. I just…”

“No, it’s fine. I understand.” Tina continued to stare into the corner, not looking at anyone. “It’s a weird situation. You’ve been really sweet and understanding. But that was asking too much. I don’t want to…”

“Tina,” Alex gently interrupted, and after a few moments of silence, Tina exhaled hard and slowly turned to look between Alex and Callie. “I’m the only person in your life who really understands your aversion to touch from people you haven’t connected with emotionally and the anxiety it causes. And even I don’t completely understand it.”

Tina’s lips quivered as she nodded and looked down at her lap. “No, but you were always kind and patient and you always stepped up when I needed you in awkward situations.”

“And I know how much distress it caused you when I was too slow to recognize what was happening.” Alex’s jaw clenched for a moment. “Do you think you could accept the help from the nurses if I’m in the room with you?”

Callie wasn’t sure what it was Alex had seen, but she quickly flew forward, cooing, “It’s okay, Tina,” and wrapped one arm around her shoulders, while pressing her other thumb against the space between her eyebrows. “Breathe in deeply,” she quietly instructed, while looking into Tina’s eyes, and allowing her own chest to expand with a deep breath. “Release,” she soothed, after a few moments, then repeated, “In deeply,” then repeated, “Release.”

They continued the breathing exercise for about a minute, then Alex pulled her right hand away from her face, and asked, “Solid?”

Tina bashfully smiled and nodded. “I guess it’s true what they say. You never forget how to ride a bike.” Alex chuckled as she hung her head and shook it side to side. Tina blushed beet red and shoved Alex’s shoulder, making her stumble backwards. “You know that’s not what I meant. God, you’re so aggravating sometimes. I was trying to thank you for recognizing the onset of my anxiety attack and you had to make it weird.”

Alex waved a flippant hand with a smile, and told her, “I think an accidental double entendre is funny. You don’t. No need to argue about it.” Tina just continued to glare at her, so Alex dropped her smile and scowled back at her. With a less friendly voice, she asked, “Do you want to bathe?”

“Yes. I feel gross. My hair is…” She made a disgusted face as she lifted her hand to gently touch the left side of her head, where the hair was matted with dried blood. “What is this in my hair?”

“What … do you mean?” Alex stepped in closer to her. “Have you not looked in a mirror? Tina, it’s blood. You’re fucking covered in blood. You were in a horrific accident. I mean, my God, I nearly fainted when I saw you in Triage. If they hadn’t told me that you were still alive, I would have thought you were dead for all the blood, and that was after they’d tried to clean you up.”

“I…” Tina lowered her hand from her head. “I thought that was it, but I didn’t know. I asked Roz if she had a mirror in her purse, but she claimed she didn’t. And she wouldn’t let me use her phone to look at myself either. Alex, how bad is it? How is…?” She started patting her face, as if inspecting herself for injuries, but Alex quickly grabbed her wrist and pulled her hand away.

“Stop,” Alex firmly said, and gently touched her swollen cheek. “Aside from what happened to your arm and leg, the rest of your injuries are superficial and will heal within days or a couple of weeks. You’ll look just as you did before the accident in no time.”

“I’m not … deformed or…?”

“No,” Alex cut through her, and exhaled hard. “Tina, I don’t know who in your past made you feel so damn self-conscious, but you’re beautiful. Okay? Even if you end up with some lasting scars after this accident, you’ll still be beautiful. If you really did find a therapist to deal with the loss of your family, will you please talk to her about this too? I don’t want to see you suffer anymore because of the lies or actions of some random jackass. Don’t give them that power over you.”

Tina was quiet for a minute, before she yanked her hand back from Alex. “You’re so annoying, thinking you know something that you know nothing about.”

Alex patiently answered, “You’re right. I don’t know anything about it because you’d never open up to me about it. I’m sorry for crossing a line you didn’t invite me across. Maybe we should just get back to the matter at hand and discuss your bathing needs with your doctors?”

Taking that as an invitation, Isadora stepped in closer on the other side of the bed, and cautiously asked, “Would you feel comfortable with two nurses helping Alex and me to support and maneuver your body so you can wash yourself? With both your arm and leg injured and not casted yet, I’m very concerned about causing unnecessary pain or reinjuring your limbs with less of us present. Alex can help with areas you’re unable to reach or wash as thoroughly as you’d like, particularly your hair.”

“Alex is strong enough to pick me up if you tell her how to do it.”

Willing to compromise, Isadora asked, “So, you’ll agree to me being here to guide Alex, but no nurses?”

It was obvious by Tina’s scowl that she didn’t even want Isadora in the room, but after a few moments, she relented, and said, “Okay.”

“Okay,” Isadora repeated, then nodded towards her laptop on the overbed tray. “Go ahead and finish what you were working on there, then we’ll prep the room for you to be able to bathe. I’ll be back in about twenty minutes.”

When Tina failed to, Alex quickly said, “Thank you, Dr. Rockford,” just before Isadora walked out of the room behind her husband.