Five Foot Six Inches of Trouble

Chapter 11

I felt a warm tear leak from my eye. I turned to Patrick but I couldn't speak.

"He uh... Got into a fight with a pretty big dude. He fractured part of his wrist and has a pretty bad concussion... He has a pretty deep gash on his forehead to... He got uh...hit by a bottle."

I was still too lost for words. I walked over to Pete and put my hand on his hand that wasn't hooked to the IV drip. Another tear streaked down my face. A doctor walked in.

"Oh. Hello there. You must be Pete's..."

"Girlfriend." Tonia answered for me.

"Yes. It looks like he'll be fine. It'll be a while before he wakes up though. I nodded and sniffled.

"Can I stay?" I asked.

"Yes of course but only one visitor is allowed at a time."

Tonia and Patrick nodded and left. I curled up in the chair next to his hospital bed. I still had my iPod in my pocket. I put my headphones on and put on What A Catch, Donnie. I put my hand back on Pete's, to get the assurance that he was still there. I felt his fingers clench. A sense of relief washed over me. I smiled. I closed my eyes, and with my hand still on his, I fell asleep. This time with no interuptions or nightmares to disrupt me.

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When I woke up Pete was holding my hand. He was still asleep. I closed my eyes for a few more minutes. When I opened them, Pete had his eyes open.

"Heeeeyyy." Pete said with a rough voice. I exhaled hard.

"Hi." I gently removed my hand from under his and stood over him crying into his shoulder.

"You're getting me all wet." He said. I sniffed and stood back. I took his face in my hands.

"You said you wouldn't worry me like this again."

He shrugged. "My toes were crossed."

I smiled and he closed his eyes again. I quietly moved out of the room and went to the lobby. Tonia was fast asleep on Patrick's lap. Jillian had her head resting on Joe, who was snoring like crazy. I wondered how she could sleep. Patrick looked up at me.

"You ok?" He mouthed. I nodded.

"He's back to sleep." I mouthed back.

He looked down at Tonia and moved a piece of hair away from her face. He was the cutest person ever. I made my way to the cafeteria where I bought a stale muffin and a watery orange juice. Breakfast of champions. When I got back to the room, Pete was awake again. He groaned.

"When can we bust out of this place." He said. "It's cold."

I took off my hoodie and draped it over him. As if on que, the doctor walked in.

"You should be out of here by tonight but you are going to have to be under special care. I've given your manager all the medicine and pain killers needed for your healthy recover."

"Kk. Any chance I can get a latte in this place?"

"Um no... We have orange juice."

He groaned again. Good ol' Pete was back.

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Pete was taken by both arms by some security guards to support him as we walked out to the cars. He had a beanie over his bandage so it was less noticeable. He was given a short, stiff cast for his wrist so he could still play at the concerts. All he needed was to take all his medications and rest his head and the tour was on schedule. It was a huge relief to have him holding me in his arms again. Once we got in the car, I rested my head on his shoulder and fell asleep. I was surprised to wake up in Tennessee already.

"Hello sleepy head." Pete said. I groaned.

"How long to Memphis?"

"Maybe like an hour."

I groaned again. "Nooooooo."

Pete just laughed and wrapped his arms around me. "You cray cray gurrlll."

I laughed and hugged him back. "Is this the new normal for me?" I asked. "Touring all around the world with my crazy rock star boyfriend?"

"I guess so. This is still pretty weird for me and it's been almost 10 years now."

I don't know if I would ever get used to this, or if I even should. Celebrity relationships never last long. The thought made me shiver.

"You ok?" Pete asked.

"Yeah." I lied. "Just a scary thought popped into my head."

"And what was that thought?" He asked.

"It's silly..."

"Tell me or I shall eat you." He made his growl face.

I laughed and said, "Well it's just that celebrity relationships don't last that long..."

His eyebrows furrowed. He took my hands in his and looked me in the eyes. "This is different. I do not want to lose you. I will try my very hardest to make it last no matter what happens. You are mine and I never want that to change, ok?" I nodded as a tear slid down my cheek. He wiped it off and kissed me. He really was mine.