Back To Seattle

Chapter 13

"I think I need to go and lay down," she murmured, setting her fork down on the plate of half-eaten food, feeling the nausea start to settle in again.

"Do you want me to save the rest of your pasta for later?" he offered, moving to stand and take her plate.

"Oh," she exhaled slightly, "Yeah, okay."

"I'll sort it. Go and lay down," he smiled softly at her, but she didn't miss the concern in his eyes as he studied her.

"Okay, thank you," she whispered, pulling her cardigan closer around herself as she went into the bedroom.

Her new bed was basically her dream bed. King size, perfect mattress, and she sank into it as she lay down, pulling the blankets over herself as she curled up in a foetal position on her side. Her fingers danced lightly over her abdomen, under her shirt as she shut her eyes, trying to block out all the voices of worry and panic, and fear. They weren't helping. They were just making her feel more nauseous. She needed to slow down her mind.

She wasn't sure how long she lay like that for, but after some time she heard a gentle knock on the door as Derek stepped in slightly. She turned to look at him, her eyes rimmed with tears that she hadn't noticed and couldn't even explain beyond hormones.

"Hey, are you okay? Do you need anything? I brought you some water," he spoke in a soft voice, holding up the bottle of water he'd brought with him.

"Water sounds good," she tried to whisper, but it came out a little more broken than she'd expected.

"Here," he moved further into the room, sitting on the edge of the bed.

"Thanks," she murmured, not trusting her voice anymore as she sat up and he passed her the bottle he'd already opened for her.

"Do you need anything else?" he asked, a slight crease between his eyebrows.

"I don't..." she shrugged slightly, taking small sips of water.

"Okay, do you want me to stay a bit longer or leave you to sleep?" he asked, his hand moving to touch her leg slightly, and where she'd normally recoil from the touch, she found herself calming slightly when he rubbed her thigh gently over the blanket.

"Can you stay?" she found herself saying, setting the water bottle on the bedside table.

"I can," he smiled at her, "In here, or just around the apartment? I can busy myself."

"In here," she breathed, biting her lip slightly as she moved to lay down again.

He nodded and took his jumper off, moving to lay beside her on the bed, on top of the blankets, and they faced each other, a small amount of space between them. She watched him, the way he watched her, the obvious concern and worry in his eyes accentuated by the slight frown line on his forehead, even though he had a small smile for her.

"Do you want a hug?" he murmured, his hand laying between them on the bed.

"I... yeah," she nodded, swallowing slightly as he moved closer to her.

"Come here, then," he spoke quietly still.

She moved herself closer to him, staying beneath the blankets as he lay on top of them, and she moved to lay her head on his chest, his arm moving around her middle and securing her close against him. A soft sigh of relief escaped her lips as she snuggled closer against his side, that feeling of warmth and safety taking over that she thought she'd lost when he'd walked out of the hotel room a few weeks prior.

"Better?"

"Hmm, my head is spinning less," she mumbled, her hand resting beside her head on his chest.