Stand By Me

Seventeen

Taylor woke up the next morning and groaned as she sat up, her entire body protesting against the movement. The door opening quickly drew her attention and she watched as yet another nurse entered, greeting Taylor with a smile.

"Good Morning," the nurse said as she opened the blinds to let some light into the dimly lit room, causing Taylor to flinch and cover her eyes at the sudden intrusion of sunlight that burst through the window, "How are you feeling?"

"Everything hurts, but the doc warned me that I'd be sore," Taylor replied, glancing over at the chair beside her bed and spotting the sleeping form of Kelly, "How long has he been here?"

"A few hours," the nurse told her, finishing up what she was doing and leaving to get Taylor some breakfast.

"Hey," Taylor called, wrapping her fingers around the hand that Kelly had resting on the bed and squeezing it, "Kel..."

"Hmm," Kelly mumbled groggily, smiling when he realized that it was Taylor talking to him, "Hey, are you okay?"

"A lot better than your neck I imagine."

"I'll survive," Kelly stated, standing up and stretching before approaching the bed.

Shifting over slightly so that he could sit comfortably next to her, Taylor cuddled into his side as he wrapped his arm around her and offered the nurse a mumbled thank you when she returned with a tray of breakfast for them both. She only managed to take a couple of bites of the partially burnt toast in front of her, before pushing the plate away with a grimace and glancing over at Kelly who dropped the piece he'd been holding.

"I need to get out of here."

"I'll take you for some proper food at the diner once the doc releases you," Kelly promised, pulling her close and dropping a kiss to the top of her head.

It was nearly an hour, before the doctor showed up and informed Taylor that she was free to go. With her discharge papers signed, she followed Kelly outside and felt herself relax as she stepped out into the fresh air. The drive over to the diner was slower with the snow on the road, but they finally arrived and sat down at their usual booth.

"Is it okay if we check on Mrs. Caswell on the way home?" Taylor asked, sending out a group text to reassure everyone that she was fine and smiling up at the waitress as they placed their orders.

 

"Of course," Kelly agreed with the smile.

The pain medication that Taylor had been given that morning had already begun to wear off by the time they'd finished eating, but she still wanted to check in on Mrs. Caswell and make sure the elderly lady had everything she needed. It was a little after noon when they arrived home and Taylor took some more painkillers, before heading to her room to sleep.

Unsure of how long she'd been sleeping when she woke up, she padded barefoot into the living room and joined Shay on the sofa.

"Kel's gone to meet the guys at Molly's," Shay informed her, earning a nod in response and watching her closely for a few seconds in silence, "How're you feeling?"

"Sore, but glad to be out of the hospital..." Taylor replied, "How come you didn't go to Molly's?"

"I wanted to make sure that you were okay," Shay admitted with a shrug.

"I'm fine," Taylor reassured her as she made her way over to the kitchen, switching on the kettle and leaning against the counter, "I don't need you to babysit me."

"That's not why I stayed home, now, you make us both some of your amazing hot chocolate and I'll set up something for us to watch."

With a roll of her eyes, Taylor made two cups of steaming hot chocolate and returned to the sofa. The truth was that she knew the reason why Shay had stayed home, which was exactly why Taylor got comfortable beside her best friend and couldn't help smiling as the Doctor Who theme tune began to play.