The Tree Remembers

Brain Damage

"How many times do I have to apologize? I got sick too!" Nick whined into the phone.

I glared up at my ceiling, resting the back of my head on Eddie's chest. We were still in bed after a terrible night, and Eddie had stayed up with me the entire time to make sure I was okay. He was sleepy and snuggly, leaving soft kisses all over.

"You ruined our night," I hissed, closing my eyes as Eddie kissed the top of my head and stroked my hair. "Why did you insist on cooking for us?"

"I thought we would like that recipe! Sue me, I was trying to get us to try something new!" Nick retorted. I rolled my eyes, smiling when Eddie took one of my hands and kissed it. He laced his fingers with mine and hummed into the crown of my head.

"You know you can't cook," I replied.

"I wanted to learn for Alan," Nick admitted. I felt my heart soften and sighed.

"You owe me. And Eddie," I insisted. Eddie twirled my hair around his finger and squeezed my hand.

"Blah, blah, blah," Nick said. I could picture him rolling his eyes at me.

I rolled in Eddie's arms, smiling up at him when he grinned at me. His eyes were soft and full of sleep. He moved his hands from my hair to the sides of my face, tracing my cheeks softly with his thumbs. He kissed my forehead sweetly – I think this was the longest he had gone without speaking in my presence, outside of sleeping.

"Don't be an asshole," I sniped. Eddie's smile grew and he pressed his forehead to mine.

"Just be grateful you aren't pregnant," Nick hissed. My jaw dropped and Eddie's eyes widened. I felt my face bloom with color at the realization that he heard Nick.

"You're a prick," I snapped as I slammed the phone down into the receiver. I buried my face into Eddie's neck as he chuckled lowly and wrapped his arms around me tightly.

"I think Nick is the only person who gets under your skin like that," Eddie teased. I pulled back and looked up at him, mortified at what Nick said. I smiled awkwardly.

"You're a close second," I quipped. He laughed and kissed me softly.

"No, that was only when you were pretending to not like me," he replied. I smiled.

Eddie had, surprisingly, been wonderful since last night. I spent the first half puking and apologizing to him, sobbing over the toilet. He sat next to me and smiled, pulling me into his lap with my back against his chest. He held my hair while I was sick, wiping my forehead when I leaned back on him. He held me as I apologized over and over again, insisting that there was nowhere else he would rather be.

The latter half of the night, we crawled into bed together, and Eddie held me close, getting me fresh, cool rags whenever I needed them. He would stroke my hair, drifting off with me for a bit and then waking when I felt a bout of nausea. He would kiss my clammy, sweaty face over and over again, insisting that he was happy – no, thrilled – that he could be here for me.

He kissed my nose sweetly and smiled at me. I took his face in my hands and pressed our foreheads together.

"I'm so sorry, Eddie," I said quietly. He groaned and shook his head.

"Stop apologizing. There is nowhere else I would rather be," he insisted. I raised an eyebrow.

"There's nowhere you'd rather be than with a puking girl?"

---

Elle looked up me with her bright eyes, and I felt my heart pick up. I didn't know how to tell her that spending the night taking care of her was one of my favorite nights I had with her. Sure, we didn't get to finish our fancy date. And yeah, the only reason we were half-dressed in bed was because she puked on herself on accident, and it was easier to just peel the clothes off.

But she had let me take care of her. She trusted me. She let me hold her and brush her hair and press cool rags to her face between kisses. I felt valuable to her, like she needed me. And it was an honor that the most fiercely independent girl I knew picked me to help her.

I cradled her in my arms and pulled her closer to me, kissing her softly.

"Unless it's with you, there's nowhere better, sweet pea," I replied quietly. She smiled – her sweet one, the one that could make me move mountains – and nuzzled into me again. She wrapped her arms around me and scratched my back.

"You...sometimes, you catch me off guard," she said.

I grinned and hunkered down in the bed, pulling the covers over us. I sighed happily when she leaned into me, closing my eyes. While I had loved taking care of her, I was exhausted. And I could only imagine how tired she was.

"How do you know how to take such good care of me?" she asked quietly. I opened my eyes and looked up at the glow in the dark stars on her ceiling. I started stroking her hair again.

"Honestly?" I asked, glancing down. She nodded and I kissed her forehead. "After Wayne's first couple of treatments, he felt pretty bad. I had to learn how to take care of him."

I looked down and smiled when she watched me kindly. I pressed my forehead to hers.

"Didn't kiss him nearly as much as I kissed you, though – maybe that's the secret," I teased.

She let out a laugh and I pulled her tight again. I rubbed her back until her breathing slowed and she fell asleep on my chest.

We spent most of the day in bed, going between napping and lying in bed together and talking quietly about anything and everything. Late in the afternoon, I shifted her off me and gingerly got out of bed while she continued to nap. I padded to her kitchen and opened the fridge, trying to figure out what to make for dinner without upsetting her stomach.

I settled on breakfast for dinner – it would be easy to keep light, and I already knew she liked it. I started to gather things, careful to make as little sound as possible. I beat the eggs together and dropped the mixture into the hot pan. I winced when it made a sizzling noise. I felt a set of arms wrap around me from behind, and smiled when Elle hugged me tight, pressing her face to my back.

"Look who's vertical," I teased, smiling when she came around me and kissed me. She had pulled on the Metallica t-shirt I always left here, but only that. I felt my ears heat at the sight of her – even if she was sick, she was still able to make my heart race.

"It smells good," she said, smiling weakly. I wrapped an arm around her waist and watched her for a beat. Her color was much better, even though she still looked tired. I was never going to let Nick cook for her again.

"I bet you're hungry after tossing everything up," I joked. She blushed and I laughed, squeezing her side.

"Sorry, again—"

"Stop it," I ordered before stirring the eggs. She leaned her head onto my shoulder, and I kissed the top of it.

"Do you need help?" she asked. I shook my head.

"Just get some water and sit down – it will be ready soon."

She dropped me and got herself a glass of water before sitting down at her table. She watched me, smiling as I talked her through what I was doing. I finished our food and brought the plates over, kissing her quickly as I set her plate down.

"For you, sweet pea," I announced, gesturing to the food. She nodded gratefully and started eating – nervously at first, concerned she would get sick – and she let out a sigh of relief when she realized that it was agreeing with her stomach.

She looked up and took my hand, smiling gratefully.

"Thank you. For everything," she said. I started on my normal insistence to stop, but she held a hand up. "Thank you. The date was wonderful until it wasn't, but you...you have been wonderful. Thank you."

I felt my heart catch and my mouth twisted into a proud smile. I nodded and she grinned at me before digging back into her food. I lifted our hands to my mouth and kissed her knuckles.

"Hard to say?" I teased. She smiled and had another bite of eggs.

"Being sick has done damage to my brain," she joked back.