Revenge

Chapter 17

Connie and Grace had both spent the rest of the night in hospital. Grace had been checked over but physically, she was fine and was soon discharged. Connie had been made a priority and the staff had been able to pull some strings to have all the scans and x-rays done almost as soon as she had arrived. The perks of being the boss, you could say.

Her CT scan had revealed she was suffering from mild concussion but that seemed to be the worst of her injuries which she was glad to hear. Her other injuries were only minor, such as bruising around her wrists and back.

After her scans had come back and she knew there was nothing seriously wrong with her, she had tried to discharge herself but the staff had advised against it. They originally wanted her to stay another night so that they could keep an eye on her in case they had missed anything and to monitor her concussion but she was having none of it.

She had made it more than clear that she was fine and that all she wanted to do was to take Grace home, have a shower and get back to her normal routine. She had argued with the staff, especially with Charlie who had pleaded with her to stay and eventually she agreed to stay for the rest of the day which Charlie was happy about.

There was no point in trying to convince Connie to do something she didn't want if she had made her mind up. Jacob was surprised she hadn't already hopped out of bed and snook out of one of the doors so the fact that she had agreed to stay for the rest of the day came as a relief.

He thought back to the last time she had been in a hospital bed and remembered how she had been less than cooperative. This time was different though. Knowing Grace was safe seemed to keep her calm. She hadn't been as agitated as last time and she had let the doctors get on with their jobs.

The department had been quiet and knowing that Grace wouldn't want to leave her mum, Charlie had arranged for her to spend the night in a bed next to Connie's. He wouldn't normally keep a patient in that had been discharged but this wasn't anyone, it was Grace and he couldn't see a problem, given the fact they had plenty of beds to spare.

Jacob had spent the night on a chair between the two beds. Charlie had suggested he use the on call room and get his head down for a few hours but he had kindly declined the offer. He wasn't going to leave them. Not again.

To Jacob's surprise, Connie had slept through most of the night. The stress of the day finally having gotten the better of her. But Grace on the other hand had woken up several times in the night with sweat covering her forehead. Everything had clearly taken a toll on her as well as Connie.

Every time she woke, Jacob made sure he was by her side to reassure her that everything was alright, that he was there and that he wasn't leaving her. Slowly, she had gone back to sleep feeling safe in Jacob's presence.

The light had started to shine through the blinds although it was still only early. Grace wasn't a heavy sleeper and she woke up as soon as she felt the sun on her face. She felt a hand around hers as she started to come around. She looked down at her hand and saw that Jacob was still asleep in the chair beside her bed with his hand covering hers.

She turned her head a little more to get a better look at him. He looked to be in the most awkward position. She felt bad for having kept him there all night but she was grateful to him for not having left her. She had missed having him around.

She looked past Jacob to her mum who still seemed to be asleep. She looked much better than she had the night before. The blood had been cleaned off her face and she she seemed much more relaxed.

Grace's movements caused Jacob to stir. "Hey firecracker," he whispered, not wanting to wake Connie. Grace smiled at him as he ran a hand over his face and stretched. His hand went to his neck as he winced slightly at the aching pain there. He looked around, still not fully awake, realizing that he must have been in that position all night.

He rubbed his neck again before turning his attention back to Grace. "How you feeling?" Grace yawned and replied. "Tired." They both giggled a little, but were careful not to wake Connie.

After spending a few more minutes in silence, Grace turned to Jacob again. "Are you coming back to live with us now?" She hoped he'd say he was. She had missed having him around. He still came by from time to time but it wasn't the same. She knew he wanted to come back, she had overheard him and her mum on the phone and she knew for a fact her mum missed him too.

He so desperately wanted to say yes, to tell her that he'd move back in and that everything would be alright but he couldn't. At the end of the day the decision was Connie's to make and she seemed to have made it quite clear on the phone that she didn't want things to go back to the way they were.

Jacob sighed and shook his head. "I'm sorry." Seeing the disappointment in her eyes was killing him. He had tried hard to win her over when they had first met and once she had accepted that he was going to be part of her life, he had promised to never let her down. That is exactly what he had just done and it broke his heart.

Connie had been woken by the sound of laughter a few moments ago but she had decided to keep her eyes closed and listen to the conversation between Grace and Jacob. She was layed on her side, facing the opposite wall so the pair didn't know she was awake.

"But we need you," Grace whispered. "Mum needs you." Connie could hear the desperation in her daughter's voice. She knew how much she missed Jacob and she was suddenly overcome with guilt. She sighed silently as she continued to listen in.

Feeling the need to comfort her somehow, Jacob placed his hand on her head and stroked her hair. "Your mum can take care of herself." Although it pained him to admit it, it was true. Connie was strong and independant, she had never needed anyone in her entire life. She was perfectly capable of coping on her own and it seemed that was what she intended to do.

It was only as she heard Jacob saying these things that Connie realized how much she didn't want to have to cope on her own anymore and how much she actually did want Jacob in her life. The fact that he understood her and that he knew she didn't need him was the exact reason she wanted him back.

The pain she felt was indescribable, even she didn't know how she felt exactly. It was relief and yet it was pain. It was happiness and yet it was sorrow. It was hope and yet it was despair.

He was the one person that really understood her and everything that she stood for. He knew how important her independance was to her. He knew her ability to do things by herself, her determination, her strength. The one thing he obviously didn't know was her weakness: him.

She felt the need to turn around and tell him that she wanted the same thing he did, the love, the family, the happy ending. But if there was one thing she didn't believe in, it was that. Happy endings. She wasn't a princess in a fairytale and she didn't pretend to be. She didn't need saving, or rescuing, she didn't need a knight in shining armor. All she needed was to know that she was loved. And she did. And maybe that had to be enough.

IT'S CASUALTY DAY!

I hope you all have a great weekend! Thank you again for reading!