Between Enemy Lines

Between Enemy Lines (Chapter 10)

Between Enemy Lines

Chapter Ten

Bray and Dean would look back and forth between Eliza and Noah, but would mainly glare at each other to see who moved first. Eliza couldn't stay awake and fell asleep right between them. She felt awkward being between them, and she couldn't look at Noah without crying so at some point, she closed her eyes and fell asleep. Dean and Bray didn't say anything all night, they only watched over Noah and Eliza, and watched each other hoping that the other would leave. Noah actually woke up at some point. He wasn't happy about being hooked up to machines, and he was scared. Sleeping through the night seemed to have helped him a little, but he was still sick. He didn't see his mother beside him and started crying. Both Dean and Bray looked over at Noah, then at Eliza. She jumped awake when she heard Noah calling for her.

"Momma! Momma!"

Eliza got up from her spot and ran over to Noah, almost forgetting that Dean and Bray were in the room.

"Momma is here baby."

Noah stopped crying when she came over and took his hand.

"Momma!... Wanna go home."

"I know baby... we can't go home yet. You have to get better."

Noah started picking at the oxygen tube he was hooked up to. Eliza grabbed his hand to stop him.

"No Noah... you can't do that. You have to leave that in... its to help you breathe and feel better."

"Scared Momma..."

"I know baby... Momma is scared too. You need to get better."

Eliza kissed Noah's head. She saw the toy dinosaur under the covers, Noah must not have seen it yet. She smiled slightly trying to change the mood.

"Hey Noah... Bray got you a toy dinosaur. It's under the cover."

Noah looked under the cover and smiled when he saw the dinosaur and hugged it.

Even though he was sick, just seeing the smile on Noah's face was enough to light up her world.

"What do you say to Bray Noah?"

Noah hugged the dinosaur and smiled.

"Thank you."

Bray looked over at Noah and smile.

"You're very welcome."

Dean sat on the other side of the room feeling completely jealous and was thinking about leaving. Eliza then turned her attention to Dean. He might not have got Noah anything, but it was still there.

"Noah... Dean is here too... Bray and Dean both came here when they heard you were sick. They wanted to see if you were ok. They both came here to see you... what do you say to them?"

"Thank you."

Eliza knew they both had to get going to the next town. She wanted to make sure that when they left, they wouldn't fight. Noah seemed busy playing with his dinosaur.

"Thank you both for coming. I really didn't know either of you were coming. Thank you both for being here... not just for me, but for Noah too... I know the two of you can't stand each other, but you both mean something to me and I don't want to lose either of you. I'm up to the idea of a relationship one day. Right now, I'm just really confused about how I feel, and I need to focus on being a mother first. You both care for me... and Noah, otherwise you guys wouldn't be here. I didn't ask for you guys to come into mine and Noah's lives, I didn't ask for these feelings... it's just something that happened. One thing I'm worried about is, at some point... I know I'm going to have to choose between the two of you... I just don't know if I can do that without hurting one of you, myself, or Noah in the process... I'm afraid Noah is going to get too attached... just like I am. I never thought I would trust a man... not after what happened, but I feel safe around both of you. Both of you stayed overnight... it seems like you're trying to see who will stay the longest... I promise, I'll be ok here on my own, both of you need to get going to the next town. I can already tell Noah is getting better, but the doctor may still keep him here for a few days. I will need to talk to both of you whenever I get back on the road again.