I Give You My All {n.h.}

Chapter Fifty Two

Brooke Spencer//

Time just doesn't slow down. For weeks now, Niall and I have been remodeling and setting up the bakery for the re-opening. We've managed to get someone to repair the foundation issues and supply us with a new multi-task oven, and some other necessities. It's been a lot of cleaning and organization, which takes a lot of effort and strength--strength that I seem to be running out of.

There are days that we will be moving heavy things or rushing to fix a problem and suddenly my heart will take the downfall. At first, it happened once or twice every few days or so, but for the past week, it's been more like every single day. Niall has tried to encourage me to take a few days off, but there's no time for that.

My decision to stay has caused Niall's concern to spike. He's constantly checking over his shoulder and jumps to conclusions the second that I suggest a break. And when there really is an unusual pattern of my heart or I have troubles breathing, he ends up begging me to go home. I always shoot him down though. Yesterday however, it caused an argument to spark between the two of us. An argument that resulted in us sleeping apart last night. I went to my place and he went to his. I was pissed when I went to bed which resulted in some straining on the muscle in my chest, causing me to wake up with a serious scare. Luckily, Arralyne was home or else I am unsure what would have happened.

A string of profanities pushes past my lips as a sharp knife falls out of the box I'm carrying, slicing my forearm in the process. I quickly set the box down and locate a rag to clean up the wound. I'm here by myself this morning, not having heard from Niall since we left here last night.

As I am tending to the cut, I hear the side door open and moments later Niall comes walking in. His hair is a mess and when I see his face, he looks exhausted--the dark rings beneath his eyes giving it away. When he looks up, he's at my side in an instant.

"Oh my God, are you-what happened?" His eyes are wide as he searches my arm, trying to detect what could have caused this kind of wound. When he removes the blood stained rag, his eyes widen even more. "Brooke-"

"It's not as bad as it looks." I try to defend, but he takes my arm in his hands in attempts of further inspection. "I was carrying that box and a knife fell out. It's all good though, see? The bleeding has stopped." Finally his eyes meet my own and I nod, kind of reassuring him.

"Well, we should probably get you bandaged up then." I'm about to protest but he has my hand in his before I can even open my mouth. I sigh and allow him to lead me into the small employee bathroom. Niall guides me onto the counter while he digs around under the sink, looking for some kind of medical kit. Once he finds what he needs, he sets it onto the counter and pulls out a small bottle of hydrogen peroxide, gauze, and a roll of bandage material. I'm quiet as I watch him pour some peroxide onto a strip of gauze before carefully grabbing my arm.

"I'm just going to clean the cut first, okay?" I nod, holding eye contact for a moment before his eyes drop down to the open wound and he presses the strip to it. His hands are very careful, very steady, as he tends to the cut and I can't help but release the anger that was pent up from the night before.

"So Liam told me about last night." His voice is soft as he concentrates on his task. I hum, not really giving away too much. "He said that Arralyne thought it was a straining on your heart due to stress." I purse my lips and drop my eyes down to the floor. Niall continues with cleaning the cut in silence until he finishes with that only to grab another strip and the roll of bandage.

"I can't help but feel guilty about that. Your body is under enough stress as it is right now, without the help of my absence. I'm sorry." I purse my lips again and remain quiet. I know I should apologize for not listening to him when he tells me I should take it easy and go home, but I don't. Instead, I watch as he continues wrapping my arm and once he finishes, my eyes move to his face. An unreadable expression holds his features and I feel myself frown at his demeanor. Niall looks up and our eyes meet once more making me feel even more guilty for yesterday. The eye contact remains steady unlike the beats of my heart. Quickly, they begin to thump irregularly and I feel myself swallow harshly.