In Omnia Paratus (AU) - Book 2

Say Goodnight, Gracie

"Mummy it hurts." Violet complained about the tube she had sticking out the side of her chest, which was understandable as it hurt me but I learnt to deal with the pain.

"Oh I know, but it's making you better." Rachel comforted her as I stood in Richards arms watching them together. Dad too also just chatting away to Violet to keep her mind off the pain.

"We're just going to pop outside." I whispered to dad as we left the room. "Look." I said straightly. "It's getting fairly late, you should probably go home." I told Richard as I folded my arms.

"I want to stay here." Richard demanded.

"Why?" I frowned.

"Because I want to make sure you're okay." He patted my arm slowly.

"But Molly--" I started.

"But Molly.. Nothing. She knows why I'm here, she knows what I'm doing. I'm staying, plus I have your stuff in the back of my car and I'm your lift back to Ashford." He raised his eyebrows at me knowing he'd won this conversation.

"Okay but have it said that I told you to leave." I grumbled unfairly.

"I will write it down, carve into stone whatever you like." He joked sarcastically following me off down the corridor as I went in search for some decent coffee.

- - - - -

"Jenna." Rachel said coming out of violets room as I sat on the chairs chatting to Richard and clutching my coffee tightly. I looked over at her smiling slightly. "You've had your chest drained before, I just wondered if you could talk to Violet. She's really uncomfortable."

"Oh uh yeah sure." I smiled quickly standing up and passing my coffee to Richard, which he probably put down on the table after I left.

I was unfairly left alone with Violet. "How you doing V?" I asked sitting down beside her bed and quickly squeezing her hand gently.

"Jen-- it hurts. I want it out." She cried which was fair enough, she was 4 and having to go through extraordinary pain which I could only just cope with.

"Hey you know before when you found it really hard to breathe?" I asked her. "That hurt didn't it?" I smiled leaning down close to her. She nodded gently toward me. "Well this tube is to stop that from happening again!" I exclaimed.

"Oh." She huffed.

"You see when the car crashed you hit here." I pointed carefully. "And then suddenly the thing that helps you breathe started to fill up with nasty water and we can't have that can we?" I smiled at her as she shook her head agreeing with me.

"Jenna is that what happened to Maisie?" Violet looked sadly at me.

"No v, that was a lot different." I looked down at my hands trying not to think about Maisie but instead about something else just for a few minutes until I could change the subject. "That doesn't matter, what matters is that you don't play with this..." I pointed at the tube. "And you make sure it's doing its job, if you can't breathe very well you tell someone, mummy, daddy, me or a Doctor."

"Okay Jenna." She smiled squeezing my hand gently.

"Good girl." I whispered.

- - - - -

"I said we'd sleep at the house tonight and then bring dad and Rachel some stuff in the morning for them if that's alright?" I asked Richard as I stepped out of violets room after she'd fallen asleep.

"That's absolutely fine." Richard smiled gently.

"I said goodnight to Violet I think we can go, I told dad we were leaving." I smiled as we walked out of the hospital and Richard quickly paid for the parking ticket which he insisted on paying and then we drove home.

"Uh you can sleep in the spare room, or my current room." I nodded as we got in the front door at gone 1am. "There's spare toothbrushes and stuff upstairs if Molly didn't pack yours." I said tiredly.

"Where will you sleep?" He asked.

"Well not dad and Rachel's bed... Ew and I'm not sure about sleeping in violets bed so probably on the sofa bed in the study." I explained.

"I'll take the sofa bed you have your bed." He smiled.

"No, I'm fine with it. Honest." I laughed, too tired to argue at this time of night.

"Don't be silly, come on." He grabbed me by my shoulders and led me to the spare room/my room and sat me down on my bed. Then he went to the door and started to leave.

"Wait." I called. "Would you mind...I don't know? Staying?" I mumbled.

"I was going to offer that myself but I didn't think you'd want me." Richard chuckled.

"Well..I don't want to be alone and it's not like we haven't slept with each other before. I just wonder about Molly..." I hummed tiredly.

"Don't worry about Molly." He laughed again coming and sitting next to me and taking my hand. "You're still my best friend." He smiled at me slowly. I knew then how much I was in love with him. To call someone your best friend. That was it for me.

- - - - -

Richard settled on his side of the bed as I got ready and then slipped in next to him. "I don't know if you feel weird about this but it's just for tonight. I-I don't do well with being on my own."

"You seem to be doing a pretty good job at pushing everyone away." Richard laughed as I laid next to him. Of course the bed was big enough so we weren't ever touching really.

"I don't mean to." I mumbled.

"Well good. I wanted to be there for you the minute Maisie died but you didn't let me, so how's my chance and don't worry about Molly. She understands the situation and beside you have that George guy.

"Yeah..." I hummed as he turned over to go to sleep.

"Well goodnight." He kissed the side of my head and then pulled the covers up on his side.

"Goodnight." I took a deep breath and just stared at the ceiling. I spent basically all night doing that exact thing.

Except it felt like all night but I must have fallen asleep because I remember waking up and waking up was not a fun experience.