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He stepped closer to her bed, hands clenched and telepathic powers gathered in readiness for a battle on both fronts. Anger stained her cheeks brilliant scarlet, and the sheet fell forgotten around her waist.
"Why, you— " She raised her arm, her hand open to slap him. She surged forward, then fell back with a cry, her eyes screwed tight against the pain.
"Rebecca!" His anger disappeared, drowned in a sea of cold fear. If she'd injured herself because of him....
"I'm fine," she whispered through clenched teeth.
"I'm sorry. Whatever you want is acceptable to me."
"About time."
"Just promise me you won't do anything rash."
"Oh, you mean like agreeing to marry someone I barely know? Okay. I won't."
"No. I meant things that would hurt you." He meant physical pain. But where did one kind of pain leave off and another begin? He didn't want to hurt her in any way. After what they'd just experienced, he knew separation would hurt her. But he couldn't make that decision for her. He couldn't play it safe and back away from the point, either, or she'd never trust him again. He had to go for it, and believe in the strength of their connection.
He took a deep breath. "If that's what you decide you want, I'll accept your wishes."
"You will?" She opened her eyes and looked at him. Pain and confusion clouded her eyes, and he longed to take her in his arms and console her. But he couldn't.
"I will. If what you really, truly want is to be left alone here, I'll tell the doctor that when he comes in. And then I'll go away and leave you alone."
She frowned. "I don't want to be alone. It's just...Everything's moving so fast."
"I don't want you to be alone, either." He took a chance and sat down on the side of her bed. She didn't tell him to get off. "Why don't we get to know each other, more slowly this time?"
"Yes." She nodded, a faint smile breaking through her restraint. "I'd like that. You can come here— "
"Here?" He may have promised to honor her decision, but he'd do his best to maneuver her into his way of thinking while she was still making up her mind. "I thought you'd want to get above ground as soon as you could."
"We're underground?" Her frightened gaze darted from side to side, as if she expected the earth to knock through the walls at any moment. He nodded. He hated himself for raising the specter of her fear to torment her, but he refused to be separated from her simply because she wanted to assert her independence. His need for her overcame such trivial concerns.
She picked up her shirt, and he helped her struggle into it. When she'd fastened it, she lay down and stared at the ceiling.
"In that case, I'd like to leave as soon as the doctor says I may," she said.
"If that's what you want, that's what we'll do."
The silence between them hadn't quite reached the point of being painful, when Doctor Laurence knocked and entered the room. He hesitated when he spotted Desmond's protective position by Rebecca's side. When Desmond did not comment on Rebecca's long sleep, or accuse him of any medical mistakes, the doctor advanced and picked up Rebecca's hand to take her pulse.
"How are you feeling?"
"Fine. When I don't move too quickly."
"Any throbbing, pulsing or burning sensations?"
Rebecca flushed, and shook her head, "No. Just a sharp twinge if I sit up or turn to the si
de."
Doctor Laurence nodded, and turned to include Desmond in his answer. "That's normal. Move slowly, and try to avoid bending too far. Especially, avoid any twisting motion. You need to immobilize those muscles over your hip as much as possible."
"For how long?" Desmond asked.
"You can add movement gradually, a little more each day. If it hurts, stop. Within a week or so, you should be able to resume your regular routine."
"So there's no reason I can't leave the hospital?"
