Mess With Them, You Mess With Us (Chenford, Wopez ,Marper)

Part 9 - Aftermath

Angela and Wesley lay entangled in their king size bed, Wesley fast asleep, snoring softly into her shoulder. Angela tossed and turned, but couldn't shake the feeling of fear and worry that swirled throughout her mind. The last time he endured a traumatic event, his coping mechanisms were so horrific, it almost landed him in the morgue. That time was so perilous for both of them; Angela knew she couldn't go through that again. She wasn't prepared for the anticipation of not knowing what she would come home from work to, whether it would be her smiley, loving husband, or him sprawled unconscious on the couch, overdosing on anxiety meds and alcohol like last time. Her fidgeting woke Wesley up, who turned his head and mumbled "babe, what's up?"

"I'm okay, just worried about how you're gonna cope with all this - I can't deal with a repeat of last time." Her voice quivered at the end of her sentence. Wesley propped himself up on his elbows, and pulled himself backwards to sit up straight in the bed.

"Honey, I promise you I learned my lesson from last time, that was the first time I had gone through something like that, so I didn't know how it would make me feel, I know what to expect this time. I will call my therapist first thing in the morning and schedule appointments for the rest of the week, and I'll call out of work for the next few days, too. I know what I'm up against this time, and I'm not scared to ask for help anymore, okay? I promise you, I'll be fine." Wesley responded, brow furrowed, and a serious expression on his face.

"Tonight was so scary, I thought I was gonna lose you and have to raise our kids alone, you're so important to me and I don't know what I would've done if..." Angela sobbed.

"But you didn't, I'm okay, we're okay and our kids are okay. We're gonna get through this together, I love you so much, we can handle anything," Wesley responded, reassuringly, as he pulled her in for a tight embrace, wiping away her tears and planting a gentle kiss on her swollen lips. The pair soon fell asleep in each other's arms, safe and peaceful.

~

Nyla was not as outspoken regarding her emotions as Angela, she lay awake ordering hundreds of security cameras to put up in and around the community centre, around their house and also a tracker for his car. She would never encroach on his privacy, but figured it might be useful if this type of situation ever happened again. She avoided the topic of conversation with James altogether as soon as they got home, efficiently got her and Leah ready for bed and pretended as if the whole ordeal hadn't happened. This had upset James slightly, but he knew her well enough to know she did care, she just had trouble processing her emotions, and switching them off was the easiest way for her to protect herself. She had experienced absolutely horrific things undercover; it was no wonder she turned out the way she did. James didn't want to pressure her into talking about it, as backing Nyla into a corner was a sure fire way to end up no longer living. Instead, he pretended to be asleep and hoped she might open up about it more tomorrow. She didn't need to be his emotional crutch either; he knew he could talk to Wesley, his best friend, about this, as they had experienced it together. After about an hour of Nyla impulsively ordering security equipment, she switched her phone off and cuddled into him, tighter than usual. This was all the confirmation James needed that she cared; he reciprocated her embrace and they fell asleep holding each other.

~

The next morning, Angela and Wesley got up, made breakfast and decided to go to the hospital to see how Lucy was doing. She had a spare key for Tim's house and decided to swing by there first to get him some clothes and supplies to last him a few days; she knew her best friend inside and out, and knew he wouldn't be leaving that hospital for even a second as long as Lucy was still there. She packed him four sets of clothes, including some jeans, sweatpants, four regular t-shirts, a couple of sweaters, some underwear and socks, a belt to go with his jeans, deodorant and cologne, a facial razor, a toothbrush and toothpaste, dental floss and some protein bars he had in his cupboards. This may have been excessive, but Angela knew Tim was a stickler for personal hygiene and that he also wouldn't leave that hospital if his life depended on it. Wesley looked at her, wide-eyed at the size of the huge duffle bag she had packed full to the brim when she emerged from Tim's house, and she shrugged her shoulders in response. They drove straight to the hospital, anxious to see how Lucy was doing.