Chapter 7
Seven
“ A bby?” He yelled out her name as her body swayed when she reached for the handle of her car. Something was wrong. Katy held onto his hand tightly, but he needed to get across the parking lot quickly, so he scooped his daughter up into his arms and took off towards Abby.
They were too far apart, though, and Katy cried as they watched Abby collapse, her head hitting the pavement with a sick thud.
“Abby? Hey, Abby, can you hear me?” He knelt down next to her on the ground. “Abigail, open your eyes for me.”
“Daddy?” Katy’s panicked voice pulled his eyes away from Abby. “Ms. Abby otay?”
“Yeah, sweet pea. She’s going to be okay. Remember how we practiced what to do if there’s ever an emergency?”
His precious daughter, with tears in her eyes, nodded. “You call for help, Dad?”
“Yes, baby. So I need you to sit down and hold Ms. Abby’s hand, okay?”
“Otay.”
John pulled out his phone and called for an ambulance, then sent a message to his mom asking her to pick up Katy. By the time he finished, Abby was coming around. Her eyes fluttered open, and she winced.
“Abby? Hey, take it easy. Just stay still until the ambulance gets here.”
“Oh no,” she groaned. “You saved me again?”
“Not quite.”
“Katy? Is she okay?”
His heart clenched. God, this woman. She’d just passed out and her first concern was his daughter.
“Shh, she’s right here and she’s fine. You scared the hell out of me. What happened?” he asked as he brushed his hand over her hair.
“Migraine,” she groaned.
“Is there anything I can do to help before the paramedics get here?”
“No ambulance.” She looked like she was going to try to sit up, so John placed his hand on her shoulder to keep her in place. “Just need some place dark until it passes.”
“Do you have medicine?” He whispered the question, not wanting to cause her pain. He’d had a few raging headaches over the years, and knew loud noises and motion were a recipe for disaster.
“My car.”
John reached behind him to where her purse lay on the pavement.
“Is it okay for me to look for your keys?”
“Please.”
His hands shook as he opened her bag. It felt too personal, but she needed the medicine. He could do it.
Her wallet took up a majority of the space, but once he removed that, he could see her keys laying at the bottom.
Standing up, John walked to the passenger side and opened the door. The prescription wasn’t out in the open from what he could see, so he first checked her glove compartment, and then the center console. Down in the deep compartment, the bright orange prescription bottle was easy enough to spot.
“Do you need something to drink in order to take the pill?” he asked as he crouched down next to her.
“No. Nauseous,” she groaned and placed her hand over her eyes after taking the pill from him. “Can you call back and tell them I don’t need an ambulance?”
“I don’t think that’s a good idea. You passed out and hit your head.” His fingers made their way around to the back of her head and she winced as he gently pressed along the part that collided with the ground. “Just let them check you out.”
“I ran too long this morning.”
“We’ll see what they say when they get here.”
He waved down the ambulance as they pulled into the parking lot.
“Hey, John. Can you tell us what happened?” Relief flooded him when he remembered that Jackson’s crew was on shift that day, so he already knew the paramedics.
“Hey, Noah. I was late picking up Katy and Abby and I got talking. When we went to our cars, I noticed she was a little off balance. I tried to get back to her in time, but she collapsed and hit her head off the ground.”
“She lose consciousness?”
“Yes.”
“For a few seconds,” Abby said as Erica, the other paramedic, dropped a bag next to her.
“A couple of minutes, Abby. You were out for a couple of minutes.”
“Abby, has this happened before?” Erica asked.
“Yes. Migraines.”
“Okay. Let’s get you looked over.”
She groaned and John wished it was his hand she was holding instead of Katy’s. His insides felt like they were twisting into a knot. Seeing her fall to the ground like that and not knowing how to help her was the worst. It felt like the night she was attacked all over again. Except this time the thing trying to hurt her was her own body. How the hell was he supposed to help keep her safe from that?
A familiar blue car pulled in behind his truck and John stood, taking Katy’s hand.
“My mom’s here to pick up Katy. I’ll be right back, okay Abby?” Her eyes didn’t open, but she mumbled in agreement.
“Hi, ladybug. Are you ready to spend time with Grammy?”
“Grammy! Yes!” Katy ran into his mother’s arms.
“Okay, let’s get you all set in your seat, then we’ll go to my house and make some cupcakes. Do you want chocolate or vanilla?”
“Nilla! With spinkles!”
“Oh, sprinkles are a must.” Nellie clicked in the five point harness and stood, turning to John.
“You give her a once over and a kiss goodbye.”
“Thanks, Mom.”
John ducked his head into the car.
“Ms. Abby be otay?”
“Yeah, pumpkin. I’m going to make sure she’s okay. You be good for Grammy and Grampy.”
“Otay. Bye, Daddy!”
Katy opened her arms and John pressed his body over hers in the best hug he could give in the tight space.
“Bye, Katy.”
He placed a kiss on her cheek, closing the door on his sweet girl, happy as a bumblebee in pollen at the thought of going to her grandparent’s house.
“Thanks again.”
“You don’t have to thank me. Is Abby okay? Did you call Sylvie and Sam?”
“I think she’s going to be okay. A migraine that got away from her.”
“Poor thing. You’ll make sure she gets home safe?”
“That’s the plan.”
“Okay. Well, you just let me know if you need me to keep Katy for the night.” His mother’s eyes were twinkling with emotion.
“Are you okay?”
“Of course. A mother knows, John.” Her hand squeezed his arm. “I just want you to be happy. You take care of her and then make sure she knows how you feel.”
“She’s Katy’s teacher, mom…”
“And you’ve not stopped talking about her since the night she was hurt. I saw how distraught you were that morning when you came to get Katy. I remember how often you were calling Sam to check in on her. And I’ve seen the way she looks when I mention you on days I pick up Katy.” His mom held her hands up innocently. “All I’m saying is it’s clear that the both of you feel something for each other. Give yourself permission to explore it.”
He’d almost kissed her that morning. It seemed like they were walking a path towards what was destined to happen.
“We’ll see. I just want to make sure she’s okay.”
“You’re a good man, Johnathan Boone. I’m proud of you.”
“I’ll call you later, okay.”
“You better. Remember, I can keep Katy for the night if you need me to.”
John waved goodbye as his mother pulled out of the school parking lot. He walked back over to Abby, who was still laying down as she talked to the paramedics.
“I just want to go home.”
“Look, Abby. We can’t make you go to the hospital, but I think it would be a good thing to just go in and get checked out.”
“It wouldn’t help. The smells, the lights, the motion to get there, I can’t right now. I need to get home. I need to be in the dark, and the quiet. I promise, this is normal for me when a migraine hits. I just want to stop talking and go home.”
“You hit your head, Abby. It’s best if you have a scan, especially after you passed out. But, if you are absolutely set on not going, we can’t force you to have treatment. Do you have someone you want to call to help you get home? Someone who can stay with you for the night to make sure your symptoms aren’t getting worse?”
“I can call your mom, or your brother for you,” John offered, only to be met with a groan.
“Please don’t. They already worry too much.”
“Alright. Looks like I’m bringing you home.” John shook Noah and Erica’s hands. “Thanks for making sure she was okay.”
“Just make sure there is someone to watch over her tonight.”
“I’ll be fine,” Abby said as she tried to push up off the ground.
“Whoa. No,” John got his hand under her elbow and steadied her. “I’m going to carry you over to my truck, okay?”
“No,” she sighed. “That’s nice of you, but the motion won’t be good. Can you just walk with me?”
He watched her for a moment, cataloging the waxy look of her pale skin and the way her eyes were still pinched closed. “Of course.”
“My car…”
“I’ll make sure someone comes and brings it to your place.”
The apartment above Emma’s bakery was small, but stepping inside, John could immediately see how Abby had made it her own space. The walls may have been white, but Abby infused color into everything. There was a bright emerald green blanket draped across a cream couch that faced a wall full of vibrant art prints. As he walked towards her kitchen, he smiled at the wild bright blue and pink runner that lay across her small dining table.
“Your home is so…vibrant.”
“Thanks,” she smiled, wincing slightly. “I like colors.”
Speaking of color, her face was still drained of it. Shit. He needed to get her to her bed, but he realized maybe she would be more comfortable doing it on her own.
“Can you make it to your room?”
“Yes. Thank you. I’m so sorry I’ve messed up your afternoon. Please tell Katy I’m fine and I’ll see her at school tomorrow.”
“You didn’t mess up a thing. Go get settled in bed and I’ll bring you a glass of water and more medicine before I go.”
She didn’t argue, and he watched her disappear down the short hallway. Rummaging through her cabinets, John found a glass and filled it with cold water. He grabbed her medicine and started down the hallway to her room when a sound caught his attention. The door to what must be her bathroom was closed, but he could clearly hear her getting sick.
Not wasting a single second, John knocked on the door and turned the handle. It wasn’t locked, and he didn’t wait for her to let him in.
Abby had her eyes closed, a pained expression on her face as she sat back against her bathtub. His eyes landed on a washcloth and he grabbed it, running the cloth under some water in the sink before approaching her.
“I thought you said you were feeling better?” He laid the cold washcloth on the back of her neck. “Maybe we should get you to the hospital.”
“No,” she gasped, before another bout of retching had her flying towards the toilet.
“Abby, I’m worried.” He placed his hand on her back and traced slow circles, waiting for her vomiting to pass.
“I just need to rest,” she said, grabbing some toilet paper to wipe her mouth. “You can go. I’m really fine.”
“Is your stomach feeling better? Do you think you can make it to bed?”
“Yes, um, you can go. I’ll get into bed in a minute.” She still had her eyes shut, her head falling into her hands, and a pained moan escaping her lips.
“Abby. How are you going to get into bed if you can’t even open your eyes?”
“I… I normally crawl.”
His fists clenched.
“No. I’m not leaving you to crawl back to your bed. I’ll carry you.”
“You don’t need to.” She didn’t move an inch, but the minute he had her scooped into his arms, she settled against him. “Thank you,” she whispered as he placed her on her bed.
His throat was tight. John hadn’t had a woman in his arms in a very long time, and yet, as he held Abby close to his heart, it felt right. Not that she was sick, no, but the way she’d just fit. It felt like he was always meant to have her in his arms.
“I’m okay, John. You can let go now,” she said, her eyes opening a little in the darkened room. He felt her hands squeeze reassuringly against his arms.
“Sorry,” he mumbled as he stepped away from the bed.
That’s when he realized she’d changed out of her shirt from school. Instead of one that covered her neck, she was wearing a t-shirt that scooped below her scar.
It was intrusive, he knew, but he couldn’t stop looking at it. The spot where all her life bled out into his hands. What if he hadn’t been there? What if the knife had gone a little deeper? Or the ambulance had been a few minutes later?
His skin pebbled at the chilling thought that instead of getting to look into the most beautiful pair of blue eyes, he’d almost had to attend her funeral.
Was she hiding the scar behind her shirts because she was embarrassed of how red and raised it was? He’d had more scars covering his body than he could count, a lot thanks to his ruthless brothers and their shenanigans growing up. But none looked quite like hers did.
Maybe she was afraid to see the reminder of what had happened to her. Or maybe she was afraid of what other people would say if they saw it. No matter what the reason was, he needed to make sure she knew just how powerful the mark made her. She was a survivor. The slash across her neck changed things, but it certainly didn’t change how fierce, courageous, or beautiful she was.
John turned and walked out of Abby’s room, closing the door gently behind him. How was he supposed to leave? What if she got sick again and couldn’t move? What if she didn’t wake up because they missed something with her head?
Jesus. How did people fucking deal with this? Abby dealt with migraines for years and the first time he’s around someone with one, he falls apart with worry.
The couch seemed like as good of a place as any to sit and try to figure out what he should be doing to help her. He pulled his phone out, finally taking a full breath for what felt like the first time since he’d seen her collapse.
“Hi, John.”
“Hey, Mom.”
“How is Abby doing? Did she have to go to the hospital? Does she need anything?”
“She’s okay. Or at least, she keeps telling me she is.”
“Did you call Sam or Sylvie?”
“She asked me not to. Refused to go to the hospital, too. I drove her to her apartment, but she shouldn’t be alone tonight. I guess that’s kind of why I’m calling.”
“You need us to keep Katy tonight?”
“Would you mind? Abby got sick as soon as we got back to her apartment, and all I keep thinking about is what happens if I leave and she gets sick again.”
“Honey, it’s no problem for Katy to stay here. You know we love having her. You stay with Abby as long as you need to.”
“What if she’s not comfortable with me being here? We didn’t really talk about it before she fell asleep.”
“John, she obviously felt comfortable enough around you for you to take her home. Why don’t you just play it by ear and see. You could maybe check and see if she had some food that’s easy on the stomach and if she wakes up, see if she wants to eat something with you.”
“Yeah, I can do that.”
“I’m sure there’s a list online for foods that are good for migraine relief. If she’s been sick, she’ll need to re-hydrate too, or that could make her feel worse.”
“Yeah, okay. I’ll see what I can come up with. Thanks, Mom.”
“Anytime, sweetheart. You let me know how she’s doing a little later on, okay?”
“Will do.” John said his goodbyes and pulled up the search engine on his phone. He could figure out what foods were okay for someone to have when they were suffering from a migraine. And once he had a list, John would make sure she had what she needed, whether he stayed or not.