---

---

The party ended not too long after Nat left but Claire and her brothers hung around for a bit afterwards. They made sure anyone that needed a ride had a cab, they took care of making sure everything was cleaned up and Murphy went ahead and covered the damages the fight had caused, told Claire to tell Nat happy birthday from the clan.

The following days Claire ended up at the gym and all over San Fran with her brothers; they fought, they laughed, they drank. They did all the things they usually did. Claire was so glad to have them around and was sad to see them have to leave when mid week came. She always hated saying goodbye but you wouldn't know it by the look on her face. Claire was tough, she never let the bad show.

---

"Thanks for giving us a lift to the airport," Claire said as she leaned back in the passenger seat as Tas weaved through traffic in the usual madman way Tas always drove. Claire didn't mind, she loved to see Tas cut loose like this and knew the woman knew what she was doing. The boys in the back seat on the other hand were not as confident in Tas's driving skills. Grabbing the oh shit bar and saying several Hail Mary's during the drive. Claire could only laugh as they parked and the boys spilt out of the back seats and kissed the ground.

"Oh thank you Jesus!" Connor said as he stood up and held him stomach.

"Sweet lord woman, you drive like you are trying to outrun death," Murphy chuckled as he grabbed his bag out of the back of Tas's PT Cruiser. "What's with the Can't take the sky from me bumper sticker?"

"Watch Firefly, you'll understand," Tas said as she climbed out and locked up before they headed to check the boys in for their flight back to Boston.

The lines were long but the four stood there and talked, laughing about stories the boys wove. They truly had the gift of gab. Finally they made it up to the security check and it was time to say goodbye. Claire gave both of them a big hug, clinging to them and not wanting to let go. Out of all her family and friends, she was closest to these two. Them leaving was like loosing a part of herself but again, she didn't let it show.

"Ahh, lass, we'll come back soon! Who's birthday is next?" Murphy asked.

"Tas's! Next month!" Claire quickly chimed with a big smile on her face.

"Well then we will see you then. It's a date?" Connor asked as he wrapped his arm around his little sister.

"You bet!" Claire exclaimed, she was already excited about them coming back to visit.

"And don't forget, I'll be back to help out with that one final of yours," Murphy chuckled as he messed with Claire's hair a bit. The reminder made her smile, her brothers had helped her out a lot with her upcoming project finals the last couple of days; it had been hectic but they had gotten a lot done.

Connor moved over and gave Tas a quick hug. "Stay strong girl, you need anything let us know alright?" Connor said as he tapped the bill of her pageboy cap.

"I will, thank you for everything," Tas said returning the hug and batting his hand away from her hat. "Hey, watch the hat, it's a collectors! Wal-mart exclusive!" she hissed but she was more than obviously joking.

Murphy pushed Connor to the side and held his arms out to Tas. "Give me a hug love! I be back to sweep you off your feet soon enough I will!" he said with a cheeky grin. Tas just rolled her eyes.

"Sorry, taken," she said bluntly.

Claire's eyes widened a bit, Tas hadn't said anything about dating anyone but the way she left the party the other night and how happy she had been acting the last few days made it more than obvious that she was now dating Sam. She was just surprised she let it slip in that way; granted she was also confused to why they hadn't said anything. Most of the group had figured they would end up together eventually. Tas was only not a bitch around Sam, he was the only one that calmed that part of her.

"Aww.. lass, you're breaking me heart," Murphy exclaimed as he pretended to drive a dagger through his heart. Tas held out her hand and shook his; which caused Connor to fall out laughing at the burn his brother had just received.

"Have a good flight you two," Tas said with a smile before giving Murphy a quick hug and punching the hell out of him as he tried to plant a playful kiss on her cheek.

"Oh I am in love," Murphy said as he held his jaw. Tas just shook her head and waved as she walked off. Claire grabbed another quick hug and darted off after Tas.

"So... things with you and Sam? Going well?" Claire pipped in as she caught up with Tas.

"Yeah, they are but don't say anything okay?" Tas asked of Claire as they made their way back to the car.

"Um okay, but why?" Claire asked confused.

"We're taking is slow, we haven't decided when we are going to tell everyone you know? I mean if it comes up, I won't lie or play it off like I am single. I'm his. But I am not going to yell it out for the world to hear either right now," she said as she unlocked the car and climbed in.

"You want to," Claire teased as she slipped her seat belt on. Tas gave a shy smile and blushed slightly. "Don't worry, lips are sealed but I am happy for you both. Though I will never get that man, doesn't like beer? Sure he is as perfect as you claim??" Claire asked, poking fun as she always did.

"He is to me," Tas said as she started the car up and pulled out.

"So where to now?" Claire asked, changing the subject before she pushed Tas too far on the topic of Sammy-boy.

"Hospital to check on Eddie," Tas answered, which caused Claire to start shaking her head.

"Drop me off at the apartments first," Claire stated quickly.

"Why? You should check on him," Tas said, looking over at Claire a bit perplexed.

"Why the hell should I? The man came in and I gave him a punch equal the damage he caused. Seriously, I don't care what the guys problem is. To walk into someones birthday like that and do that, no excuse. Sure maybe Dom went a little much but he's Nats boyfriend and hell even Nat knew what would happen. She said herself as she walked off "you're dead" or something like that. I gave him far less than I give me own brothers so as far as I am concerned, it's even on my part," Claire rattled off.

Tas had to admit she had a point but still the man got beat pretty bad but looking back it wasn't all from the mountain and the Irish Rose. Most of the damage was from Jay, which really was still throwing Tas off. Why?

"Well, then at least stop by and say hi. He is your roommate," Tas tried to reason.

"Will deal with it when he gets back to the apartment," Claire stated flatly.

"Please?" Tas asked as she glanced over to Claire.

"Listen, I am already covering for you enough, don't ask for more," Claire snapped and Tas sighed. She was right, she wasn't exactly in a position to ask more of her bestie.

"Okay..." Tas said before turning and letting Claire off in front of her building before driving off.

---

The rest of the week went by quickly; she had spoken with Tas since then but it had been tense. Perhaps she shouldn't have rigged the mousse to blow up in her face but what the hell. Life was too short. She wandered down the street towards the gym, knowing she needed to get something's done there before anything else happened that day.

Echo was unconscious the moment after the truck hit her, tires squealing on the tarmac as the eighteen wheeler slammed into the side of her mustang. The car flew across the intersection and crashed into a traffic light pole, bringing the wreck to a stop. All was silent. The transport truck sat in the middle of the intersection, it’s trailed had jack-knifed and flipped over, ripping itself from the cab and spilling boxes of produce everywhere. The mustang was wrapped around the pole on the passenger side, almost unidentifiable to any onlookers.

Echo slowly came back to reality. All she heard was the ringing in her ears as she slowly looked around and got her bearings. Then, panic set in. What happened? Why was everything blurry? Why were her hands covered in blood?

She looked down, seeing that the drivers side door had been pushed in and had caused some sort of damage to her chest, the lower part had left her leg in an odd position. Real fear started to set in. Echo looked out the now shattered window and began to scream “HELP….H-HEEELLLP!”, her chest responding with a huge jab of pain that shot spots across her vision. Then, sirens filled the air.

Soon, firetrucks were spraying down the mangled engine of her car that had caught fire and threatened to ignite the fuel that soaked the ground. Then, the door was cut away, letting in a gust of fresh air. Her breath caught in her throat as she turned to look. She couldn’t breathe. Her heart pounded in her chest as her body desperately tried to take in air, only getting half of what it needed. A rib had punctured her left lung.

Everything became a blur of emotions, yelling and pain. As the adrenaline began to wear off, Echo started to feel every break, cut and bruise on her body and tears streamed down her face. With all her might, she screamed out louder and louder, her voice breaking under the lack of oxygen. She sat in the seat with a death grip on the steering wheel, her head pressed back against the seat. She didn’t dare look down again for fear she might pass out.

Then, a face. A navy uniform. A stretcher. A gentle voice. Sirens.

She laid in the ambulance, oxygen mask strapped to her face and a c-collar around her neck, preventing any movement at all. Then it all faded away into nothing.

The group had been texting each other all morning trying to set up a time to meet for lunch. Sam would have been there and answered right off the bat, but since he had taken way too long in the morning for his meeting with Ryan he had just kept his phone hidden away at his desk. He had missed messages from everyone, but the only person who really mattered right now was Tas, so when he noticed her text with the word emergency he flipped it open and read it as fast as he could.



His services were needed and whatever it was he was going to do it. Clothes for her and Echo, the request was a bit strange, but since the two were roommates Sam didn't really take any notice of it. He was going to miss the afternoon checkups for work, but again, his girlfriend needed help and she needed it at the hospital, so something was off. He had to figure out a way to get out of the meetings and there was only one person he could really turn to to help him out.

"Soli," Sam said, wandering over to his co-worker's desk.

The girl turned to greet him with a dramatic eye roll and laugh, "Yes?"

"I need a favor..."

---

Rushing out of his car he ran into the hospital with two bags full of clothes. To be honest he didn't know what to pick out so he just grabbed two pairs of everything for both girls, hoping that they would be fine with any combination of clothing. He wandered up to the nurses station and asked them to page Tas that he was there. The voice over the intercom called her name, Dr. Brinne, three times before cutting out. The woman, with a gentle smile, then asked Sam to take a seat to wait for Tas to arrive.

He nodded in approval and took a seat as he watched the busy day of the hospital go by. Sam was hoping that everything was okay, as hospitals always made him a bit antsy. He grabbed his phone and texted his girlfriend hoping that his text would hurry her up to him.

I'm here in the lobby. What's going on?

---

---

Claire couldn't but help and chuckle as she pushed her way into the gym; visions of Tas screaming at her out of the window covered in mousse dancing through her head. Perhaps pranking Tas with things being tense between the two was not the best of ideas but Claire was a live in the moment type of girl.

Dropping her bag in the office, she checked her schedule and the time. She had a new client coming in today but she still had time before he arrived. "Sweet, I can get a few rounds in before I have to worry," she thought to herself as she slipped into the locker room and changed.

A sports bra, oversized tank and some gym shorts would work. After pulling on her soft soled shoes and lacing them up she walked out of the locker room; taping her fists up as she did. Glancing around she took stock of who was there and who wasn't. There were a couple she could spar with but she wanted to warm up first.

Didi went into the front door, a first of the many attempts before backing out at every last minute and she greatly deserves a pat in the back for getting this far. Walking in and scoping the place for any sign of Claire, she was obviously standing out of place in a crowd of well fit people, with her awkward stance and lanky frame. Feeling a little intimidated, and with the irish rose no where to be seen, she turned around, and honestly a bit disappointed.

The warm up would have to wait though as she spotted Didi, a bright smile coming to her lips as she did. Skipping over to Didi she draped an arm over her and gave her a squeeze; That's where Claire casually drops an arm over Didi to her surprise. She should really stop doing that. Didi always made her day more fun and since the party she looked forward to seeing the girl more than before. For her they had shared a moment, why not enjoy it?

"Hey cutie, gonna watch me knock some blokes block off or you want to join me?" she said in her ever hyper way.

"Uh, sure. I was just uhm..." She wouldn't let Claire get a single hint that she'd been spying on her since last week "..dropping by. Just now. Thought I could, you know, get a feel of the gym aura. Or whatever." Yep, she's totally falling for that. It was so silly how her emotions act up this way. Claire is her friend and why would she get all giddy and anxious like some prepubescent schoolgirl when she's around. It was all fine until that night at the party, now she just doesn't know anymore.

"Sweet, glad you dropped by. Gives me someone to show off for," Claire said as she put up her fists and pumped them a few times before glancing over at Didi and giggling; shrugging her shoulders a bit.

To show off for. Why would she and what does she mean by it? Whatever the reason, Didi found herself smiling as she met her glance, abruptly switching her eye contact to a guy doing leg curls at mid struggle. It didn't bother her as much as Claire did with her adorable giggle face.

"Hey, are finals coming up for you? I have like three projects I have to finish," she said with a huff. The last two months she had been working with Tas and her brothers via Skype to try to get everything together. "My computer is acting up, mind coming over one night and helping me get is straightened out? I'm a total dolt when it comes to coding," she admitted. "I can pay with pizza," she said, flashing a smile.

Come over. At night. If Claire had asked her this last week, Didi would totally have a different image in mind. The whole feeling wasn't the same now, and Didi's a bit scared on where this is going. She knew she was just overthinking things, as she always does at every case similar to these and for reasons, it never worked great for her. In her mind, making an excuse not to come might just save her a hurtling trouble,

"Sure. I can help you out." w/c she stubbornly ignores and goes with her heart anyway. It's just helping a friend out fix her computer right?

"Awesome, it's a date," Claire exclaimed happily. She needed help but there were friends at college that could, but hey? Why not ask the cutie to help? Claire figured it was as good excuse as any to get to hang out with Didi. Had she been a bit more like Tas she probably would have tried to be sexy or smooth but Claire was a klutz with things like that and honestly she wasn't sure if Didi swung the same way she did. Was better to feel it out, but they did have a moment, didn't they?

Didi held out her phone when a text arrive from Felix, eyes wide and ears red from what he said. Claire looked at Didi and perked a brow as her eyes went as big as saucers.

"Everything okay?" she asked, a little worried as she leaned over and took a look at Didi's phone. She probably shouldn't have but curiosity and cats you know?



Claire coughed slightly as she read the message. "Okay, maybe she does swing that way," Claire thought to herself. "Play it smooth."

"What the hell Feliks." Didi was about to reply when horror struck her as she noticed Claire perked a bit, eyes directly at her phone. She quickly try to delete the message, her phone slipping out of her jittery hands and quickly grabbing it on the floor. From then on she couldn't make eye contact with her. "Pleas dont tell me she saw that." She was mentally cursing Feliks for how wrong the timing of his message was.

"So, um wanna wrestle?" Claire said and as soon as she did her eyes widened and she went three shades of red as her hand flew up and covered her own mouth. "Did I really just fucking say that?"

Didi was now red faced, trying to look at Claire who was as shocked as she is. "W-What?"

"Um, you know," Claire said stumbling over her words as her hand slowly dropped from her mouth. "Could show you some moves. Can always tap out if it gets to rough," Claire added and then facepalmed herself. "What the hell is wrong with me?!?" Claire thought to herself.

Trying not to add more to the awkwardness Didi tries to compose herself, nervously chuckling, "Psh, please. I'm not Kip-fragile you know, I can handle it. Plus, it's more exciting when you get rough." Didi paused, her face now truly horrified. "Oh God pls make it stop."

"Oh uh, I meant to say exhilarating." No. "The exercise. It's spiritually rejuvenating." You're losing point. "Roughness aside." At least you're trying. Didi just zipped it completely, her face red, eyes wandering anywhere but Claire.

"A little roughness can be fun," Claire said without thinking and then groaned as she looked up at the ceiling. "Really Claire? Why not just tell her you have a nice fuzzy pair of handcuffs she'd look great in," she thought before letting out a slightly frustrated sigh and trying to regain her composure.

"Um, could warm up, hit the bed... I mean bag, hit the bag!" Claire said as she pointed over to the hanging bag. "Claire get it together to woman!"

"R-right." Didi clears her throat, "The bag." guessing that it's a gym slang for that huge bag like thing on the corner. Honestly she havnt a single clue on the basics of working out, plus she hadnt brought any work out clothes with her, like she even has any in the first place. "I dont mind watching you..." Didi catches up on her words "Work out. I mean if you're comfortable with me ogling. Observing, I meant. "

"No, I don't mind you checking me out, I mean checking out my moves, ugh," Claire said as she stood there starting to bounce nervously on the balls of her feet. "This is getting ridiculous!" she thought before looking back over to Didi.

"Fuck, I should just sprint for the door." Didi thought after things were getting a bit ridiculously uncomfortable and getting a bit out of hand. She avoids her eyes but could clearly see in her peripheral that Claire was looking at her.

"Fuck it," Claire said under her breath, more to herself than to the girl in front of her. Swiftly she reached out and cupped Didi's cheek and pulled her in for a quick but rather deep kiss. Pulling back abruptly she looked right into Didi's beautiful eyes.

Didi was caught off guard when her warm hands touched her cheeks, the next thing she knew their lips were together, its as if her body had been jolted by a ray of lightning at the abrupt yet rather deep kiss.

"I think you adorable," she admitted before she dropped her hand and cracked her knuckles. "Okay, time to work out," she said faster than she intended as she strolled over to the bag and started pummeling it; her arm and back muscles flexing under the extensive tattoo showing over the expanse of her back.

"Smooth Claire, really fucking smooth. You probably just scared her off! God she tastes good," Claire thought to herself as she continued to beat on the bag as hard as she could.

Didi was wide eyed, her face remained flushed more so than before, her eyes following the irish rose as she went towards the bag. She just stood there a good couple of seconds, taking in what just happened. THe whole thing was unexpected, Claire having feelings for her? Or just plain fancy her, at the very least? But the kiss says so much more than that and some tiny part of her was pushing to grab her hand and drag her to the to the lockers, the rest was to reach for the door and forget this whole thing ever happened.

Claire kept pummeling the bag, driving her knee into every so often and cursing under her breath as she saw Didi make a beeline for the door out of the corner of her eye. "Way to jump the gun Claire, girl looked like a deer caught in headlights when you kissed her. Of course she is going to run," she thought as she drove her fist back into the bag and then stepped back frustrated. She wasn't even sure why she had kissed Didi. She was cute, she liked hanging out with her, she was fun. So why not? "Cause the girl is as timid as a church mouse that is why not Claire!"

She paused midway through the door, her hands cold and sweating as she heaved a heavy sigh "Oh well, fucking YOLO." Weak in the knees, Didi grabbed Claire's arm, dragging her to the lockers and pushing her against it, a little bit harder from the anxiety she was feeling, or perhaps the brewing excitement, but either way, her gut was acting all funny when she looked directly at her eyes. Claire's eyes widened as she was grabbed and manhandled, well womanhandled, back into the locker room. "Whoa..." she thought, she had not been expecting that.

"Great now what." She was so not prepared for something like this to happen today. "Okay Dee, get your shit together" She quickly gathered her thoughts, trying to make out the words she intended to say. "Quick, time to pull a Valentino."

"Do you like Krispy Kreme?" She asked, with a rather straight face. "Cuz, I'm craving for a glazed doughnut right about now." Oh, God help this girl.

Yeah, a doughnut, "can I lick the glaze off your fingers?" Claire thought but thankfully actually kept her big trap shut that time. "Okay Claire, keep calm. She's a girl, you're a girl. It's cool. You got this," she thought, giving herself a little pep talk.

"No but I could really go for a taco right now," Claire said with a shrug and then just shook her head.

"YES! Tacos!" Didi said rather excitedly. She clears her throat, trying to collect herself. "I like Tacos. Mexican food, in general."

Her phone going off with a slew of text notifications; picking it up from her bag and reading through them. The main one being from Nat that she was already headed to Ryan's for lunch. Save by the ding!

"Hey, lunch! Wanna walk with me, it's only a block from here?" Claire rambled off as she looked at her messages. "Yeah, good choice Claire, let's make this whole thing a public affair.

"Well, I brought my bike. If you want we can ride together at Ryan's." Didi slightly winced at how wrongly out of context that was, taking a deep breath "Or we could just do that right here, right now. Wait... What the fuck Dee." She tries to shake off her terrifyingly impure thoughts.

Claire looked at her oddly as if she had just lost her ever loving mind and then laughed. "So who rides and who steers?" she giggled.

Claire was about to say something else when through the gyms speakers started blaring Katy Perry's I Kissed a Girl.

"I kissed a girl and I liked it. The taste of her cherry chap stick."

"Seriously?!?!" Claire exclaimed.

She was oddly adorable when she's irritated and raging, and Didi wasn't sure if she should feel delighted, or scared at the thought of it. And this song, why does it feel like karma is trying so hard to humiliate her today, did she ticked off the juju god or something? The song was practically a sign, but as for following it, playing safe would get her nowhere and Didi either wants this, or wants this. "Heads up." She said as she macked her hard, eager and sloppy as if devouring her entire face.

Claire slammed back against the locker, her eyes wide open as Didi kissed her. She had to give the girl props for aggression but she felt like she was getting attached by Saint Bernard puppy; it was wet, it was sloppy and she didn't know if she should push her away, laugh or just go with it. Smiling Claire cupped her cheeks and pulled her back slowly, shaking her head slightly as she placed a soft kiss to the girls lips.

Didi felt a rush of blood to her cheeks, slightly embarrassed as Claire pulled her back, but the softness of her lips made it all feel alright again.

"Jinkies Scooby, been a while since you had a Scooby snack?" she said in a light hearted fashion as she rested her temple against Didi's and giggled.

"Well, I can't say I had my share of Scooby snacks before." She was smiling at her,"Not as good as this one at least."

"Come on, let's go get lunch," she said reaching down and grabbing her gym bag; she wasn't going to bother changing, she had to be back up at the gym later anyways. Reaching down she took Didi's hand and laced her fingers through hers.

Didi was so glad of this whole scuffle, even though she honestly has no idea what the fuck had just happened. And probably if it weren't for that, she'd still be walking blindly and wouldn't able to figure out her feelings for Claire. But she couldn't help but feel guarded, the judgmental looks, the commitment, it is all very new to her. It's not that she's assuming that they're gonna go official or anything, or did that just happened?

"Maybe they'll have Taco's and Doughnuts!" she laughed as she headed for the door, keeping a firm grip on Didi's hand; half not wanting to let go and half afraid the girl would bolt.

"I heard Ryan's have the best tacos in town." she giggled with her, Claire gripping her hand. Nope, she's not going nowhere, not today.

As they passed the DJ Booth, Claire held up a finger for Didi to wait and then burst into the booth and decked the DJ. Grinning from ear to ear she stepped back over to Didi and took her hand once again. Didi peeked through the booth to see the DJ out cold, her eyes didn't leave for awhile as both of them walked to the door.

"Taco's and Doughnuts Ho!" she yelled as she pushed out of the gym. Didi was giggling as a crowd of bystanders watched the woman. Now her hands are shivering, when she saw some people looking at them rather strangely, their laced fingers to be precise, or was it just her. She was sure that that elderly woman just gave her a look when she saw them together, and this made her hand jerk away from Claire, moving hastily towards the rails to unhook her bike. Claire perked a brow and then took note of the old woman and stuck her tongue out at her. The Irish Rose didn't give two shits what anyone thought or the looks they gave.

"Let's? "She said gesturing to Claire, as she sat on her ride.

Claire shrugged and climbed on. "Let's go!" she laughed as tried to keep herself balanced on the bike. This was going to be interesting but hey, it was fun and she was going with the moment. Life was too short in her opinion not to grab the bull by the horns, or the bike by the handles, or hell the girl by the cheeks.

Didi has always been a practical person, and even though it sometimes contradicts her "live for the moment, fuck your opinion" nature, it couldnt be helped that most of the time her head speaks louder than her heart but with this woman soothingly clutching behind her , she'd gladly give the whole world a giant fuck you as they both ride off to the sunset, but she needs time. A lot of it.

Once they go there she hopped off and spun around. "That is a hell of a lot better than having to sit shot gun with Tas behind the wheel. Dear god," she laughed.

"My usual carpooling price is 30 bucks a day, if you're interested. " She jokingly said to her, as she hooked her bike on the rack.

"You took care of the ride, lunch is on me... I mean I'll pay for it, lunch. I'll pay for lunch!" Claire said and groaned. "Mother Mary of God, what the fuck is wrong with me!"

"Ha. I dont mind having you for lunch. " She didnt mean to say that out loud but again, awkwardness ensued. "I mean if we could, I dunno eat lunch together at the apartment, or whatever. I'd like to have over. For lunch"
she clears her throat as she wobbly locks her bike.

Claire waited for Didi before pushing the doors open to Ryan's and looking around, seeing Nat, Dom & Feliks she waved and then stopped in her tracks as she rested her hand on Didi's shoulder and groaning.

Didi had almost forgotten about Edgar, she never knew the man and although he was an asshole with what he did to Nat, there's probably a good explanation why she's is acting all friendly to him right now.

"Well this went to shit fast," she whispered as she motioned over towards Eddy.

"Easy there, girl." Didi pats Claire's shoulder, now is not the time for another royal rumble.

"I never do things nice and easy," Claire said, imitating Tina Turner and then realized just how bad what she said could be taken and smacked herself on the forehead.

Didi giggled, This dork she thought. "Well if shit starts brewing, I'll be handing you a towel by the corner."

Taking a deep breath she smiled at Didi before hoping over to the group. Giving Feliks a bit of a smirk before bouncing over to Dom and hugging the stuffing out of her bear of a brother. Didi gave Feliks an unamused glare, as if to say I really want to rip your throat but thank you.

"Hey bro, you catch the game last night? Can you believe that call the ref made? I mean seriously, me blind grandma could have done a better job," she said, totally ignoring Eddie but shooting Nat a look of "Seriously?"

As the waitress came over, she asked if anyone wanted anything to drink or an appetizer as they waited for the rest. Claire was all to quick to pipe up.

"Tacos, I need tacos... Shrimp, no. Fish! I want fish tacos! And she wants doughnuts!" Claire rambled off, pointing to Didi about the doughnuts before her face went three shades of red and she dropped her head onto the table and put her hands over herself. "Just shoot me now," she meant to think but she said it out loud.

Didi was face palming the whole time, trying to conceal her scarlet face to everyone. "Oh God why." she muttered. "I have no idea who this woman is." as she scoots away from Claire.

---

---

Tas looked up with a weary expression on her features as she heard the door open and let out a bit of a sigh as she saw Jeje rush in. She pulled her hand away from Echo's as he came over and straightened herself in the chair in which she had been curled up in.

She let him say his piece, letting him get it out even though she knew Echo was sleeping. Which was probably a good thing at this point since with the way he was acting she was afraid that he would get her crying again and hyperventilating.

Standing up she walked around to him and rested her hand on his shoulder, giving him a bit of a squeeze there as Echo's dad walked in. She nodded towards the man, who thanked her for looking after Echo through everything; shaking his hand slightly.

"Okay, both of you listen. She is going to be fine but she does have a long recovery ahead of her. The most important thing right now is that she gets plenty of rest and remains calm. She will be here a few days so I can make sure there are no complications," she explained to both of the men.

The intercom went off paging her downstairs and she perked a brow. Why was she getting paged? She had the test results, Echo was taken care of for now and she was OFF SHIFT. Grumbling she stepped over to the room phone and was about to pick it up when her phone went off.

Pulling it out of her back pocket she went to check the message; she was still in her street clothes and even with the gown she wore earlier she had spots of Echo's blood soaked into her t-shirt, jeans and splattered all over her shoes. She had managed to clean up any from her skin but she was just hoping Sam had gotten her message so she could change.

From: My Man
I'm here in the lobby. What's going on?

"Oh, thank god," Tas thought to herself.

Instead of answering the text she let Jeje and Mr. Young know she would return shortly and to behave otherwise they would have to deal with her. Quickly making her way down into the lobby her eyes scanned about until they fell on Sam.

For the first time in as long as she could remember she didn't smile when she saw him. She just walked slowly over to him, nearly trudging at this point as her eyes started to well up. Dr. Brinnes cool facade was gone now that she was out of sight of Echo and Tas's full emotions of the entire situation came crashing down on her as she buried her head against Sam's chest as she slipped her arms around him.

"There was a car wreck... Echo's messed up pretty bad," she said quietly against his chest.

She tried to keep from sobbing like a little child; she held most of it back but the tears still spilt out and trickled down her cheeks. Tas was shaking slightly as she let out a trembling breath, trying to compose herself. Slowly she looked up at him, her shirt showing some of the blood that had dried on it.

"I'm sorry I called you out of work, I just really needed you here," she admitted before she buried her face back against his chest and clung to him meekly.

She hated feeling weak and vulnerable like she did right then. The staff at the hospital called her Doc Glacier; she was cool as ice, nothing ever bothered her no matter how bad things got. Even when her emotions did get the better of her Tas always responded with anger, never tears. In fact only one person had ever seen her break down into tears since her mothers death all those years ago and that person was not Sam. She just hoped Sam wouldn't think less of her because she standing there crying like a baby.

---

---

It was eerily quiet after Tas left. Echo's rhythmic breathing and the equally steady beep of the heart rate monitor filled the room but silence dominated otherwise. She was covered in a blanket that hid her chest wounds, but a portion was tucked aside to allow the chest tube out. Her face was bruised around her cheekbones and the bridge of her nose, a large cut extended across her forehead and an oxygen mask covered her nose and mouth, keeping her from hyperventilating.

Echo's father stood near the door, watching Jay's breakdown with a judging and overprotective look. He was an older man, however he did not look weak at all, quite the opposite. He let the young man finish his little apology and shook hands with Tas before stepping forward.
“Who the hell are you, laying on my daughter like an emotional wreck? I should have you escorted out.”.

Jay held back the tears, taking in a deep breath of air. He softly let go of Echo’s hand and laid it on her stomach before standing up. His fists were clenched, his breathing heavy and as he turned, Echo’s father would see his wet, tearful eyes. Now, he wasn't trying to look aggressive but he was having a mental breakdown. A week of silence and then the sudden hospitalisation of his girlfriend made him an absolute wreck. Normally, he would try to win over the father with politeness and a gentlemanly, classy attitude. But today was a special case. He turned slowly, facing the taller man with a look of defiance. “I’m sorry, sir” he spat the word out like venom, eyes still narrowing “for crying next to my girlfriend’s hospital bed.” He was so pent up, too many emotions at once, that he didn't even think of the words that came out of his mouth.

“Girlfriend….my daughter and….you're dating my daughter?” The man was fuming, a look of both anger and sadness on his face. “Did you do this?! Did you do this to my precious little girl?!” He stepped forward, a cane in his hand, steadying himself. It was evident that the man had no idea that this had been from a car accident, or he was too overcome by emotions to care. He looked at Jay with rage in his eyes before moving to the opposite side of Echo, who had been stirring in her sleep. He looked at her frail figure, tears staining the blanket “I knew this would happen if I let her go…”

Jejomar narrowed his eyes further, glaring at the accusatory looks Echo’s father was giving him. He pointed a finger at him, a small flow of tears escaping from his eyes. “I would never do this to her! I would never hurt her, you accusing bastard! This was an accident and this has nothing to do with her going away from home! It was freakish, it was fast and I couldn't have done anything about it.” His eyes drooped down to her face. The extent of her injuries were unknown to him but it was apparent she got hurt. Badly.

The beeping from the heart rate monitor began to increase as the argument got increasingly heated, almost as if warning them that nothing good would come from this. Nurses began to look over to see what was going on but not one of them came over. Echo's father shot a wicked glare towards him, but instead of sending something back at Jay, he just sighed and sat down in another chair. He looked to Jay, anger still evident in his eyes “Don't you dare call me a bastard. She's my daughter, my family. I don't want you dating her…she's just so fragile….you have no idea.”
Echo stirred more in her sleep, her heart rate slowly creeping over 120 beats per minute. Her breathing was evidently increasing in speed as well, quite painful had she been awake.

Jay heaved heavily, his vision covered in red. He stared menacingly at Echo’s father and stood, nostrils flaring in anger. “And why not?!” He stared the man down, all of his emotions running through his head. How the hell was he supposed to just leave Echo? “Why not? I love her and I will protect her, is that not enough? She's not fragile, she's a woman now, an independent and strong woman.” His breathing was deep and he was struggling but he hid his rage, calming himself.

“I don't want to fight you about it. We both love her.” He whispered quietly, moving back to the opposite side of Echo's bed. “Just, just, back off, alright?” He stepped away, glancing between Echo and the man leaning on the wall.

Echo coughed lightly, her eyes now open looking absolutely appalled at what just happened. She looked to Jay, then to her father before pressing the button to call a nurse. She gently removed the oxygen mask and, with a weak voice, addressed the two “You two….are unbelievable…” she paused, coughing a bit again, wincing in pain “Jay, I don't even know what to say….dad...get out. Now. You're both acting….like children, and Tas will kick your *cough* b-butts…when she finds out..”

When the nurse came in, she asked if getting a glass of water was out of the question. She promptly put her oxygen mask back on and let out a weak sigh. Her lungs burned like someone was pressing a hot iron to them and her chest felt like she was being stabbed. “You really did it this time Ecks…”

Jay was shocked at Echo before a feeling of concern came over him, a sense of normality returning to him. He became… well, Jay. He nodded slowly at the girl before flopping down next to her, sighing with his head down. “W-Well, let her kick my butt seven ways to Sunday and stick my head on a pike but I'm not leaving you. I promised, didn't I?” His words had a sense of finality to it although he didn't raise his voice nor did he say it very loud. He gulped loudly, hands shaking. He turned his head towards her before quickly going back. His heart thumped loudly, cheeks flaring red once more. He heard laughter but chalked it up to the “Other Guy”. Damn

“Done so much already, least I can do is stay.” He muttered quietly, taking a look at the past week. He wanted to say so much more but nothing came out. Just another heartfelt sigh was heard and his hand running through his hair. Then an annoyingly familiar voice came along. ‘This is great. You screwed it up with your girl and pissed off her father. This is like a bloody movie! Sooo, when you guys break up, can you go for that Eva chick?’

For neither the first nor last time in his life, he got annoyed at himself. Jay gritted his teeth silently and rolled his eyes. He couldn't understand a damn thing the other guy was saying.



Echo looked over to Jay as her father left, looking weak and exhausted “He gets protective when I'm hurt….should've mentioned that..” she sighed closing her eyes. Everything ached in her body, her chest felt like it was on fire every time she took a breath and her face throbbed with her heart beat.

“...Jay..I'm sorry…..f-for what I said before…” she wheezed, whimpering under the pain it caused her chest and gut. Tears rolled down her face as she squeezed her eyes shut trying to get past the pain. Why hadn't the nurses brought her more pain meds? “No Echo, you deserve this. You wrecked the car, you acted stupid. Suck it up. You are a devil.” She brushed a lock of blood-matted hair from her face and turned away from Jay. She never wanted him to see the weak and fragile side of her, especially not in this state.
She reached over to her phone, it's screen now cracked in multiple places and scrolled down to the group chat, staring at the blank cursor that waited for input. No…she couldn't ruin everyone's day. She wouldn't. She gritted her teeth, whipping her phone at the opposite wall and breaking down into tears. “What have I done…” she said as she cried into her hands.

Jay’s eyes softened, his demeanour turning calmer and gentler. He sat up and put a hand on her frail arm, giving a soft, reassuring rub. “Hey, you did nothing. Nothing at all. The group would understand, Ecks." When she continued crying, he sighed before gently turning her around to face him. He stared her in the eye. There was no barrage of heartbeats, no flaring of cheeks but the temperature of the room did feel higher than before. There was just a connection, the syncing of the heart, a rhythm of beats. Only the harsh, loud, beeping noise interrupted the silence. "And I should say sorry. I was the one who injured Eddy. I was the one to answer back at you when you brought it up. It was not you, Ecks. It was I." He pointed at himself, finishing his whisper of an assurance. Sighing for at least the tenth time this session, he scratched his head and gave an awkward smile.

Echo looked at him with a weak smile, wiping the tears from her eyes “I love you Jay..”

---

"WHAT THE FUCK!!!!" a familiar voice broke out from the bustling noise. Kip munched on his sub.

"CLAIRE!!!" Tas roared from her apartment.

"You're dead meat you Irish bitch!" she exclaimed, a few seconds after Kip received a photo of the Lady with her face splattered with Chocolate mousse. "Still gorgeous though." he swooned, tapping twice on his phone.

He noticed a text message he missed, sent from earlier.



The memories from the party flooded back in. He missed them, all of them collectively... He never would have thought he'd have such a sorta-close-knit circle of friends like this after all that happened in the past. And so of course, he can't pass this lunch on.



He devoured the remnants of the sub and then ran towards the shower to get ready for morning class.

---

"Hey, Kippie-doodly~" hummed the tall, slim and bright-eyed figure that sat beside the tiny asian man, a smile formed on both their faces.
Kip turned his head in the young man's direction, he noticed the pretty flurry of colors playing around his bronze complexion.
"I got me some of Miike dvd's, I need some of your Tim Burton's. You up for a little trade?"
'EXCUSE ME? DID YOU MEAN TASTY PSYCHO-THRILLER GORE MASTERPIECES??!!' Kip, someone who's deathly afraid of the physical presence of knives thought, screaming from delight inside... It started as a coping mechanism, this affinity for horror; but through the years, it has become a demented little part of him.
"Yes." he replied, puppy-eyes wide open.
"Alright, will stop by your place next week with the goods then. I'll text you when I'll be coming." he said, ruffling Kip's hair.
'What is with people's obsession with rubbing their palms on my head?' he wondered.
Dylan got on his laptop as a text rang up Kip's phone.



He and Didi have been working on the graffiti project for 4 days, today is the last day, just a few more finishing details. Even though Didi thinks so little of her own artistic aptitude, Kip actually really appreciates her flow and considers her help really essential to this piece. His style wasn't exactly "street-artsy" but with the addition of Didi's doodles, the entire thing just comes together.



One of the perks of having your bestfriend (who has pretty much the same body frame as you) as a roommate was the shared wardrobe, and Didi's shirts were always just so much more comfortable.

"Dylan!" Somebody called out.
"Waddup?!" The living bronze statue exclaimed, as his towering figure leaped up from the seat.
"Catch you later, Kippie~" he hummed away, as Kip waved his goodbye.



Another text buzzed his phone.



And then another, this time he got a little bit of a jump as the contact name popped up the screen.



His stomach turned a tad bit, like the tiny dragons inside wagged their tail in mooning.
........ his mind went blank. H-howtodealwiththissomeonehelpmeplease but you know it's not like I was the one who made it awkward to begin with so it's totally fine to just say yes and besides I think he atleasttrustsmyagencymaybe that he actually told me that. it's totally fine he's my friend now and friends help each other out or something just say



With the rushed logic, his thumb froze in what felt like forever before he finally calmed himself down to hit send.
welptheregoesitstotallyfine he let out a little sigh.

Cinema Paradiso just ran by as he kept sketching.
He scurried his way out of the campus and into a cab.

---

The look on her face said it all. Tas appeared with concern and sadness in her eyes and fell straight into Sam's arms. She curled up beside him as he tightened his arms around her body. She was panicked and he wanted to know why. Tas let the news of Echo's accident out and Sam squeezed her tighter, panicking himself that one of their own was in the hospital hurt. "You don't need to be sorry," he said, "I should be here anyways, she's part of our family."

His worry for the girl rose drastically as Tas buried herself deeper into his chest. This was the Tas that he had never seen before and that caused his worry to skyrocket. "Everything will be okay," Sam said soothingly, trying to calm down his girlfriend. "Everything. Will. Be... Okay?" He honestly wasn't a doctor and knew full well that Tas had a better understanding of the situation that was at hand, but he felt the need to tell her that everything was going to be fine and okay as she wasn't okay herself.

"I'm here and I got you now," Sam said, "We can stick through this out together."

---

---

Tas stood there for a moment, just keeping her face buried against Sam's chest. Was everything going to be alright? As a doctor, Tas could weigh out the injuries, she knew the damage, the percentages of patients that recovered from injuries like this.

Looking at everything it seemed that Echo had cheated death. A wreck at that speed could have been instantaneous death, it could have been internal bleeding, a lacerated liver, a ruptured spleen and so much more. She had made it out with a small puncture in her lung, some broken bones and a concussion. It was one of those times when even a doctor had to admit that more could be at work.

Though even knowing all of that, the fact that it was Echo and Tas wasn't just a doctor but her friend made all of that knowledge not matter. She still felt as helpless and worried as when she was younger and watched her mother get sick. This always happened when someone Tas knew showed up in her ER. Echo hadn't been the first.

The first had turned things upside down for her, she had spent an hour getting sick in the bathroom after the patient was wheeled up to a private room and was stable before she could compose herself enough to go sit with them and monitor them personally with the cool facade of Dr. Brinne threatening to crack.

Though she hated this feeling, having Sam there helped. There were few she turned to for comfort in times like this; she wouldn't even turn to Nat or Claire when she was like this. Through everything she found comfort in just having Sam there and she breathed a slight breath of relief that he wasn't standing there telling her to suck it up. She told herself that enough.

Nodding slowly as she clung to him, she gradually pushed back the waterworks to look up at him; her cheeks stained with tears. "Yeah..." she choked out as she tried to clear the lump in her throat. "It'll be touchy the next couple of days and she has a long recovery ahead of her but she should make a full recovery," she finally was able to get out, though it was clear she was still worried.

Tas sighed slightly at how ridiculous she must have looked and was acting. She was about to say something else when her pager went off. Perking a brow she looked down at the code and grumbled under her breath. Tas went from worried, something she never showed, to ticked, something she showed often, in 1.5 seconds flat.

"The hell.." she muttered before looking back over to Sam. "I need to go handle a situation, let's get back up to Echo," she said, trying not to snap just yet. Waiting for Sam to grab the bags before they took the elevator upstairs.

While they took the elevator up to the third floor, Tas pulled out her phone and shot Nat a text.



As the doors opened, the ICU lead shift nurse rushed over and quickly explained that the two men visiting Echo had been arguing and Echo's stats were spiking cause of it. Tas took a breath, going back into Dr. Brinne mode as if a light switch had been flipped. Pointing down the hall, Tas looked over to Sam.

"Echo is in 3D, can you take the bags in there and sit with her for a minute please?" she asked softly of Sam before she rolled her shoulders back and made a beeline for Mr. Young. He would get what she had to say first, then it would be Jeje's turn.

"Mr. Young, we need to talk. Now," Tas said. Her voice was calm, her face nearly expressionless but it was obvious she wasn't pleased.

---

Jejomar's stuttering on the phone worried Eva. She crossed her arms against her chest, curiosity bubbling in her but she remained silent as Jay finished the phone call. The wave of emotions that Eva saw on his face hurt her, she felt her heart seize and skin crawl.

It seemed like her brother had just been through war. The haunted look on his face was burned into her mind, as the room was filled with a tense silence. "Jay, what happ- oof!" Her question was immediately cut off as Jay's giant frame collided into hers in a hug. Her arms moved to Jay's back instinctively, trying to comfort him with gentle pats to his back.

"No. No. Not like that. Is like sister to me. Quiet. Quiet. Quiet." Eva's eyes widened, confused as she tried decoding what the fuck was going on with Jay. Before she could even attempt to question him again, Jejomar pulled back from the hug, still looking as distraught as ever.

Her mind raced with ways she could try and help, but her mouth refused to open. Eva wasn't sure how she could try and help him, since she didn't even know what was going on. She stepped forward, towards Jay as he clutched his head in what looked like pain. "Jay, you're worrying me- what's going on!?"

Instead of responding to her question, Jay begged for her to not tell anyone about his breakdown. "O-okay, but I need yo-you to tell me what the hell is going on later." Her voice died down by the end of her statement as Jay brushed past her, out of his room and out of the apartment without another word. It took her a while, Eva still staring at the wall where Jay was standing by in horror and confusion, but Eva left Jay's room to find Connor up and running in the kitchen.

Eva let herself get dragged to Connor's car quietly, Jay's condition still fresh on her mind as she tried to guess what was going on. The girl followed behind her boyfriend as they entered Ryan's, taking a seat on the other side of Didi. Giving her friends a small smile, Eva greeted them, "morning everybody."

---

Echo's father was certainly in shape for his age. He was lean and looked to be decently muscled judging by his toned forearms, however he didn't look to be aggressive or frightening in any way, more welcoming and gentle. He did look scared however, his skin pale and his complexion flustered. Of course, it was natural. One can only be scared and worried when their daughter turns up in the E.R. after being in such a car accident.

Dr. Brinne held in her sigh as she stepped to the side and placed her hands in her jean pockets; she would have rather been in her scrubs and lab coat right then. It was far easier to be in Dr. Brinne mode when one dressed the part; granted it was also easier when the patient wasn't a friend. Either way Tas held in the emotional side, she had dealt with worried families before and knew what it was like to be on the other side.

"Micheal White actually....I adopted Echo when she was five." he looked to have calmed down a bit in the time between arguing and being told off by Echo. He turned to look her in the eyes, evidently not in the greatest mood "I trust this is about our little...dispute in Echo's room, am I right? The kind nurse didn't look so kind when I walked out....more like irritated, perhaps worried. I do apologize for the disturbance."

"Yes it is Mr. White," Tas began; making sure to keep her voice even because she knew it if cracked she'd tell him what Tas wanted to say, not what Dr. Brinne needed to say.

"I know you are worried and it is difficult to think straight when one you love is in a situation like this. I have been there personally. But in a time like this it is most important to keep your cool," she said in a compassionate voice.

"Not for you but for her and for her I am about to lay down exactly what I will and will not tolerate within that room. She is my friend, but she is my patient first," Dr. Brinne stressed and it was true. For Tas, her being a patient was far more important than Echo being a friend. Echo's life was in her hands and she wasn't about to let some father-boyfriend spat put her patient in jeopardy. She'd rather have Echo alive and hating her for having them both tossed out on their asses than dead because they stressed her out.

He nodded at her words and looked down, letting out a sad sigh "I know...I shouldn't have done it....b-but she's....she's my little girl.. It's hard to see her like this and when some stranger is bawling his eyes out all over her....I guess....it's been a stressful day..." A few tears had made it down the man's face, but nothing significant was shown otherwise. He looked up at Tas once again "...I doubt you'd really understand...when your child is hurt, you'd do anything to keep them safe...to help them..."

"Not with a child, but as a child I know the pain of sitting there, watching one you love more than anything on this world slip away and there was nothing you could do to stop it," Tas admitted as she looked towards Michael. "My mother, cancer. It was a year of hospitals, treatments and pain. It is why I am a doctor, why I am here today to be able to help Echo."

He rubbed his eyes and looked up to Tas once again "...Just...p-please help my little girl.."

"I am, why I am standing here in street clothes, she had me listed as her emergency contact. I came in so I could but there is only so much I can do. Much will depend on her remaining calm," Tas began to explain as she pulled some tissues out of the box on the table next to them and handed them over to Echo's father.

"I am sure you noticed the chest tube, it is one of the more obvious tubes right now. She has a tear in her lung. If she hyperventilates it can cause it to tear more. This is why it is so critical for her to remain calm. If it does, then it means I have to go in and then we have problems," the doctor stated rather bluntly. She wasn't cold about it but simply factual. Sugar coating such details never construed the severity of a situation and right then she needed to male things perfectly clear.

He looked more stressed out now than ever, having heard that the argument he had had with Jay may have harmed Echo. He went to speak but no words came out. Hospitals had always scared him, his wife had died on the operating table from a very similar accident to Echo's, the only difference was that his wife had the green light and wasn't at fault. He looked over to the room and saw Echo's smile, tears running down his face once again "I'm....I'm sorry I caused you any trouble."

"That man in there I know personally, he is a friend of mine and he does love your daughter. Would you berate me if you saw me crying because my friend is hurt?" Tas asked out of redundancy to make a point.

And then he did something completely unexpected. He pulled Tas in and hugged her, inhaling sharply as he tried to stop crying "...T-thank you so much....I don't know what I'd do if I lost her..." He let go of her, taking the kleenex he was offered and wiping his eyes. He looked at her once before turning to sit down in the waiting room "...And p-please tell that young gentleman that I am sorry.."

"I will do everything in my power to make sure she makes a full recovery, and I think it would be best if you two spoke privately about that. For now, why don't you go sit with Echo for a bit. I need to speak with Jeje now," Tas said calmly as she took his hand and motioned for him to go back into the room.

Tas took a deep breath, now it was Jeje's turn and she wasn't going to be as calm about it with him for various reasons. First though she wanted to talk with Echo now that she was awake. Stepping over to the bed she smiled and brushed some of her friends hair out of her face.

"Hey Yin, how's your pain level? Scale of 1 to 10?" she asked softly.

"..Hey Tas..." she took a shaky breath as she looked up to Tas. It was extremely evident she was in pain. "...Prob-bably a seven...maybe an eight." she reached over and took Tas' hand, Tas squeezed her hand gently and nodded; she had been expecting her to be in pain since the pain meds were at a minimal right now due to the head injury. Echo looked scared, but also more calm than before. Her heart rate hovered around 90 and while that was still a bit high, it was better than it skyrocketing to 120 or 130.

"That Bailey's would've tasted amazing right about n-now actually.." she said, a weak smile spreading across before coughed a few times. Pain flared up in her chest again and she squeezed her eyes shut, trying to ignore as best she could.

"I think you and I could use a drink soon as you are out of here. Which if you stay calm and get some rest we can probably get you home within the week. I'll put in for sometime off, how about that? I'll be your personal at home nurse until you get through this?" Tas said gently. She really didn't want to take time off work right then but she hadn't taken any days off for herself since she started there years ago. They owed her at this time and what better way to use the time off, Tas figured, than making sure Echo was taken care of.

"...Oh...did they find m-my laptop anywhere....after the crash? It....it kinda has all my schoolwork on it.."

"I have no idea, but I hope it had some major shock protection and was in a black box after the way you came in here," Tas joked slightly but then pointed over to the bag Sam had brought over from their apartment. "But Sam grabbed us some clothes. Figured you would rather have some of your own stuff than these hospital gowns once the tube comes out. For now though, I will share my fuzzy socks with you, you know, cause I'm just that awesome," she laughed softly. Tas never shared her fuzzy socks, they were one of her little indulgences; for some odd reason she was very possessive of them and had a large collection she would slide across the apartment floors in.

"...Oh...alright. I hope my prof understands...I have a 90 in the course and I worked hard for it." she suddenly wished she'd backed up the projects to her desktop at home like any smart person would do. She sighed. It had taken many hours of working graveyard shifts with little pay to earn her laptop and now it was gone in the blink of an eye.

"I wouldn't worry, I will write you one hell of a doctors note and if he doesn't listen, he'll answer to me," Tas joked as she walked over to the bag and fished out a pair of socks for Echo. Flipping up the bed sheets to her ankles she gently put them on for her friend. They were black with little yin and yang symbols, fitting.

"What I would do without you Tas, I will never know." she smiled weakly at the potential of fuzzy socks and actual clothes. Echo hated hospitals. She hated the smell, the stagnant air and the constant coughing of seemingly everyone that threatened to get her sick. She looked over to Sam with a super appreciative look and gave him a gentle smile in thanks before turning back to Tas.

"Probably having to deal with Nurse Grace and Doctor Mitchell, neither I would wish on my worst enemy, not even Dom," she said lightheartedly as she stuck her tongue out at Echo.

"How long till the tube comes out?" she said, looking down at the object sticking out of her rib cage. It felt so unnatural, and yet, she was thankful it was there. Y'know, breathing and all helps to keep you alive.

"Hopefully just a couple of days. With the tear in your lung I want to keep it in case the lung tries to collapse again. We'll run some tests in two days to see how the puncture is healing. Long as it looks good you should have it out in two to three days," she said before sitting down on the edge of the bed and taking a deep breath.

"Now, you need to listen. No matter what happens, I need you to keep calm regulated breaths. The deeper the breaths the more the lung expands the bigger chance of it ripping further," she explained in a calm voice. She doubted she had anything else to worry about from Echo's father. Jeje on the other hand, she wasn't so sure about and there were several things she needed to speak to him about out of ear shot of Echo.

"I know you're in pain, I can up the meds if you would like or would you rather just deal with it until tonight and I can up them then to help you sleep?" Tas asked, wanting to make sure that Echo had the choice in the matter.

"I think the night time option would probably be best, as much as I want them now. Sleep is more important" she coughs. Where the hell was that nurse with her water? Every cough felt like someone was stabbing her in the chest and she suddenly wished she'd never gone to the party at all, never watched Jay beat the life out of Eddy, never said he disgusted her. None of this would've happened if she'd stayed home. None of it.

"Alright, if you change your mind, let me know," Tas said as the nurse came in with a cup of ice chips and a small spoon. "Little bit at a time to start, need to see if you can keep it down before we let you have more," the doctor explained.

But then what about Jay? Would she still be with him, or would missing the party have destroyed his heart and made him despise her soul?

She shook her head. None of it mattered now, she was alive and that's all that mattered. Everything that came after would be a direct consequence of screaming at Jay and she had to live with it whether she liked it or not.

"Okay, visiting hours are until 8, but visits need to be short. No long term visits until the tube is out. No overnight, period. Jeje, we need to talk, now," Tas explained as she stepped over to Mr. Dual Personality and quickly escorted him out of the room. Shutting the door behind them and crossing her arms over her chest. She had just went from Dr. Brinne to Ticked Tas in 1.5 seconds flat.

---

Jay listened carefully to their conversation, although he never interrupted it with his own comment. When they were talking, he kept a hand on Echo throughout it all. It wasn't a protective gesture, he knew what she meant to Tas, but it was more of comfort. He kept to himself, looking over at the events of the past week over and over again. It didn't go... how he thought it would go. From the party to the crash, he was sure that the way their relationship started was abnormal. And it was all his fault. He knew what he had done to Ed, he knew what kind of man he was. When Doctor Brinne called him up to talk, he was all kinds of worried. He knew her temper and even though they didn't really talk much, he knew that she was going to be... upset.

He rubbed Echo's arm affectionately before following Tas out of the door He stood in front of her outside the room, gently closing the door behind him. He gulped audibly before holding up a hand, gesturing that he wanted to go first. "B-Before you speak, I-I need to s-say thank y-you. F-For doing this for E-Echo." He tried, and failed, to hide the nervousness in his voice. This wasn't the Jay that had almost had a shouting match with another man, the one that had a go at Ed. No. This man was very different.

He eventually fought down his nervousness and levelled his voice a little. "She means a lot to me and I know that she means a-a lot to you. You may not have done this for me but I just needed to say th-thanks. I-I'm not really... good enough for her. I'm an emotional wreck a-and" he glanced towards the door, imagining the sleeping form of Echo in his mind before looking down at his fists, clenching them tightly "I m-might hurt her one day. Y-You saw how I was with E-Ed. I-I want to stay with her. C-Can you help T-Tas?" He asked hopefully, looking up to her.

---

Feliks nodded distractedly as the guy told him his name and the others started to arrive at the restaurant. His attention was specifically focused on Claire and Didi who were acting, if he did say so himself, rather strange. First the smirk from Claire, then the glare Didi gave him was one part happy another part genuinely angry. What the heck was going on? Feliks narrowed his eyes at the two, watching their interactions closely as they sat down. Suddenly it him, and his eyes widened, he knew what had happened!

Didi had seen his text, taken his advice, had passionate intercourse with Claire in the gym locker room, and smoked pot along the way. Hence why they were so blushy, and craving such weird things.

Okay, that probably wasn’t what happened. But something had happened, they were definitely more intimate. Feliks scrunched his nose, and shot Didi a questioning look, he wanted details stat. But, before he could ask any particularly intrusive questions he was distracted by the arrival of another friend.

Ahhhhh Kip. Feliks turned scarlet and tried really hard not to look the other guy in the eye. Which, okay, kind of a wuss move, but in his defence it was hella awkard. He had texted Kip to ask if they could talk and he didn’t even know if the guy was going to say yes, or no, or… Okay, he should probably just check his phone.

As Connor and Eva arrived, and Nat got up to make some sappy speech about accepting Eddy into their family or some such thing, Feliks glanced down to check his texts.

There was one from peeps saying they wouldn’t make it and such, but Feliks scrolled past them to get to Kips’. It was a one-word reply, which wasn’t so good. But, hey at least it was yes. That was a good sign, right?

Sinking down a little in his chair and yawning, because he hadn’t been up for very long, Feliks looked blearily around the group. Man, for a group that was supposed to be like family they sure were being awkward around each other.

“Happy to have ya Ed, “ Feliks proclaimed, shooting a goofy grin at Nat and her new bud, then at the group and the group at large, ”But as interesting as it is that this guy is chill with moving on after our fam put him in a hospital , I would much rather know what Didi and Claire did today. You two are both so happy, I’d love to know what’s happened to cause such joyous emotions?”

---

---

Claire sat there, she had been so thrown off by what had happened between her and Didi she really didn’t take notice at first to what Nat said. Then it slowly started to set in as Dom and Feliks spoke and then Dom excused himself. Claire looked over to Feliks for a moment, with this half wouldn’t you like to know and half I am about to go Mount St. Helens on someone’s ass look on her features. Was Nat serious in inviting this dipshit into the group as if nothing had happened? Okay, well that really wasn’t bothering Claire so much. As far as Claire was concerned it was over and done with; she could care less but the way Nat was going about this was just wrong.

In Claire’s mind you didn’t spring something like this on your friends. This was just passive aggressive bullshit putting everyone on the spot like this for some little jerk like Eddie. So what if he had a bad childhood. A lot of the group had. Claire sat back in her chair thinking for a moment, trying not to pull a typical Claire but the Irish Rose wasn’t exactly known for tact and when the thought that Tas had told Claire that Eddie had not once thanked her for saving his ass that is when the shit hit the fan.

“You all can welcome this dipfuck with open arms all you want but I can’t. Sorry, trust and respect have to be earned and he has done anything but that. All he has shown is that one, he has issues beyond the rest of us and that is saying something with this group. Two, as far as I am concerned he doesn’t owe anyone an apology but Nat, so it is all good there but seriously, speak for yourself. Don’t have Momma Nat do it for you. That is just cowardly. Three, like hell I will welcome this dork if he can’t even tell Tas thank you,” Claire spat as she looked over towards Eddie.

“I know you haven’t thanked her and I know she has been by every night to see you since this all went down. So you have a long way to go before you will have a place in this group. Sure the other might say it’s all fine and dandy but they ain’t doing it for you, they are doing it for Nat. Cause you know, you do shit like that for friends. You stand up for them. You don’t pour beer on them and then go oh poor me and get a soft heart like Nat to be all momma bear for you,” Claire said as she stood up as Dom came back in and the waitress brought the fish tacos over.

“And Nat, seriously? Springing him on everyone like this. It is a good thing surprises don’t send anyone into shock, you could have killed someone. Next time you want to have everyone sit down and talk shit out, let us know upfront. Let everyone have the choice of if they are ready or not,” Claire said as she narrowed her eyes, tossing a twenty on the table to pay for the food she wasn’t going to eat before turning on her heels and storming off. She wasn’t about to give any of them a chance to say anything. She had said her piece and the group knew her well enough to know if anyone did she would end up putting them on their rearends. Claire had a temper that was for sure but sad fact of the matter was, she had a point; several of them. Granted her delivery could have been a little bit better, more thought out but Claire wasn’t a thinker she acted on her emotions. If she lost a friend for speaking the truth so be it. She would rather be hated for saying it like it was than loved for sugarcoating it.

---

---

Tas stood there with her arms crossed over her chest, what Jeje said got through to her but it didn’t tame her anger with him right then. She was livid. It was only a week ago that she had kept the cops from arresting her friends because of the brawl and had to save that POS Eddie. Now Echo was hurt and she had just told both Mr. White and Jeje to make sure she stayed calm only for them to start a verbal bashing of each other right in front of her. She wasn’t Dr. Brinne right then, she was Tas and she was ticked.

“Yeah, that is what I do. I keep people alive, no matter how I feel. I have to shove it down and lock it away to do what is best for Echo. Don’t you think when I saw her I wanted to cry? To freeze? To scream? Damn right I did but I couldn’t. If Echo saw me worried, saw me as anything but cool as ice Dr. Brinne it would have made things worse for her,” Tas started as her hands went this way and that; adding to the point she was trying to make.

“I told you both to keep her calm, I was gone all of ten minutes if that and this happens? It is one thing for a father to lose it but you Jeje? You don’t get that luxury. You are supposed to be her strength when she is hurt and damn it, if you can’t do that then you need to stay the hell away until she is stronger. You two could have killed her with her arguing! She has a tear in her lungs, deep breaths, hyperventilating like that could make it to where I have to crack her chest open and operate and then there are still no guarantees. I swear to everything that is holy and unholy, if that happens because of you two what happened to Eddie will look like a dream compared to what I do to the both of you,” Tas spat. She was livid and it showed but even with as angry as she was, she kept her voice quiet so that Echo could not hear her through the closed door. Granted that may have just made Tas seem that much more scary than if she had been screaming at the top of her lungs.

“You need help and yes I will help you. I was going to say either I help you or someone else does or I was going to just have you tossed into the psych ward until you got help. Now, you plaster on a happy face, you go in there, you tell Echo goodbye for now and that you will see her tomorrow. You are to go home, calm down and get me everything about your medical history ever. If you don’t have a psych file I want you to write down every last little thing that is wrong with you. You hear me? Cause I swear, you do anything to hurt that woman in there you’ll see a side of me that will give you nightmares,” Tas said; her last few words were a little too calm. Taking a deep breath she motioned for the door to Echos room. She had meant what she said and honestly she had had it with everything right then. Then her phone went off. It was from Claire.



Tas nearly chucked her phone across the hallway as she read the message. What was Nat thinking? Tas only hoped she hadn’t surprised Dom with Eddie and had at least given him ample warning, something like that could send him into a panic attack or right into cardiac arrest. The last thing any of them needed was another friend in the hospital and Tas wasn’t sure how many more episodes Dom could take.

Leaning back against the wall Tas shook her head and sent a text instead of calling Nat to explain what was up. She was not talking to anyone else right then.



Hitting send Tas slipped her phone back into her pocket and rubbed her temples. Maybe she should take the job in Chicago… This was all too much and with everything else she had going on, could she really keep this pace up and not crack? Then again, could she really turn tail and leave Dom with his condition and Sam with their budding relationship?

“I can’t keep this shit up….” Tas muttered under her breath. Shaking off the anger and the worry she plastered the Dr. Brinne facade back into place and took a deep breath before she pushed the door to Echo's room open and went over to Sam, hugging him tight. At that point she really didn't care of Echo or Jeje figured out they were dating. She needed his strength and was just grateful he was there to be the shoulder she needed right then.

"Thank you for everything," she said softly as she looked up at him.

---

Now, if Jay wasn't so busy agreeing with Tas and scolding himself because of his actions, he might've trembled. The wrath of the concerned friend was terrifying, like an aura of anger was radiating off of her. Instead, he clenched his fists and forced himself to cool it. He had someone to take care of now. Tas was right. He had to be strong, for Echo. He had to clear his mind, keep away from being a coward. But he also had to balance between the two extremes of his personality. He was always a little too hard and a little too soft. It infuriated him. For him, there was no middle ground, there was no neutral state. He had taken therapy a long time ago, when he begun showing signs of depression.

He absolutely hated therapy. It made him feel like... like a freak of some kind. The questions, the bland, minimalist rooms. Therapists who thought they knew what he was feeling. But he would get those papers from whatever damnable hell they were stored. He turned on the doctor, softly pushing the door open. He smiled at Echo's still form and sat down next to her. He forced himself to neutrality, shoving down everything from the voices to the emotional roller coaster in his head. He would deal with it later. Not now.

He placed a hand on her shoulder, gently rubbing the soft skin in small circles, making sure not to wake her. He pushed a lock of hair from her face and began to speak in a low, soft voice. "Hey Ecks. I need to go, visiting time is over. I'll visit you tomorrow, hopefully when you feel better. See you later, yeah?" He let the rhetorical question hang in the air before getting up, parting from her. He looked over his shoulder from the doorway before stepping out to let Tas through. He walked out of the hospital, mind blank.

When he arrived to the pristine, modern apartment that is 3C, he slowly walked past his room where he left Eva in the dust. He stood in his destination, unmoving. Still. He closed the bathroom door and sat down on the tiles. It came. 'You think you can push me down for your girl, boya?! You are my bitch and I rule this kingdom! I don't care what that Doctor bitch says, okay?! You listen to me, ya piece of chicken shit!" He felt himself convulse, eyes widening in pain. A sharp pain exploded in his mind, almost sending him to unconsciousness. He coughed and coughed, puking blood and bile all over the floor. His heart was beating so fast, it sounded like one, continuous beat.

'You know, I like you. You're a nice guy. But sometimes, you need to know your fucking place!' He felt himself choking, hands clutching his neck hard. He felt himself go dizzy from the lack of air, back arching in pain, hands tensing in pain. And then it stopped. 'If you try to screw with me again, I will do more than hurt you.' Images of Echo sprouted in his head. And then it faded away, the only presence that it was there was the numb, throbbing pain in the back of his mind.

He stood slowly, face red but expression blank. He cleaned the mess on the tiles and stripped down to place his clothes in the laundry. Stepping into a new set of clothes, he reached for the telephone and typed in a familiar number. Tears started welling in his eyes but he forced them down. For another day. He would also talk to Eva. She needed to know. As the phone was picked up, a familiar voice resonated in his ears, he let himself smile through the pain.

"Hey sis. We need to talk."