Justin walked through the ER to the elevators. He stopped to tell his friends Haley would be ok and sent them home. Trace offered to stay but he sent him home too. Justin wouldn't be leaving until he could take Haley too.
Once inside the elevator, it took him to the Observation unit. They had admitted her for 48 hour watch just to be sure her strength would return. On the right floor, he was led to room 208 and Dr Morales spoke up. “She’s hooked to an IV to rehydrate and on low-flow oxygen to make sure she rests comfortably. She’s asleep right now but you can stay as long as you like.”
Taking a deep breath and going in, Justin removed his coat and beanie. Setting them on a table by the door. He sat next to her bed with his hand in hers. Every so often, the pad of his thumb would rub the top of her hand affectionately. He sighed heavily leaning against the bed so he could put his head on his arm. Closing his eyes, he thought back to the last week and mentally kicked himself in the butt. He should have known something was going on; he could tell she wasn’t taking care of herself like she should. If he would of just taken one single minute out of his day and made sure she at least ate something or just took a nap, maybe they wouldn’t be where they were at this exact moment in time. He tried to spend his free time with her but sometimes his schedule just didn’t allow much.
He moved onto the edge of the bed to lay down. Carefully avoiding tubes and such, he laid on his side. His left arm came up and gently smoothed her hair back which had been taken out of the ponytail. Her skin was a bit pale, her features relaxed from sheer exhaustion. He kissed her temple and kept running his hand over her hair. He kept going over the “what if’s” in his mind as the minutes ticked by. This caused even more frustration within himself because she still hadn’t woke up.
“God, Hales, if you’ll just wake up I’ll do anything in the world for you. We’ll go on a vacation to anywhere you want; just the two of us for as long as you want. Just please wake up.” He watched her for nearly an hour before his eyes drooped because it was almost 3am.
IN THE MORNING, Justin stirred as there was a slight rustle around him. His eyes shot open thinking Haley was waking and was sort of correct. Dr Morales was just doing her last rounds before her shift ended. The young man shifted off the bed and back into the chair; realizing he wanted to be home because of how his muscles were protesting. He looked hopefully at the doctor.
“She should be awake soon. Her vitals are good, just talk out whatever the problem is and then make sure she takes a few days off.” She then left them alone.
Justin continued stroking Haley’s hand and saw her stir a bit. He immediately stood in her line of sight so she wouldn't wake up and panic. As her eyes slowly fluttered open, he felt her hand involuntarily squeeze his. Haley groaned as her wrists bent and her toes curled from her muscles being so tight and weak. “Shh...relax. You're in the hospital but you'll be ok,” he soothed.
For a few moments she didn’t speak. He carefully rubbed her cheek, helping her focus. When she was more awake she looked into his eyes. “W-what happened?...” her tone groggy.
“You passed out at work.”
The girl looked alarmed. “From what?”
Worry etched itself across his features. “The doctors say exhaustion, slight malnutrition, and stress...now, answer my question. Will you finally tell me why you've been so distant? Why have you gotten so stressed you're not taking care of yourself?”
Haley avoided his eyes and pulled away from his touch; both feeling cold at the loss of contact. “Justin, I...I really don’t know. It all happened so fast.”
“Start from the beginning,” he coaxed calmly, though inside it tore him apart.
“Well, I got a promotion. Link told me to cover fashion week and the promotion was me having to work the whole thing myself. It pays better and has more benefits but the hours are insane.”
“So, you just got tired?”
“Yeah, I guess. But right after I started on it, I felt like I was drowning. There were so many people to interview and Link kept drilling me to get it done. He didn’t give me much time either.”
“Why didn’t you tell him you needed more time?”
“I just couldn’t. He can be a little lenient with the others but he doesn’t like me for some reason. And you know me. Ever since high school I’ve never been able to keep up with anyone, no matter what the task is,” she answered. By this point, tears were gathering down her cheeks. “I didn’t want to look like a failure in my first real job. I’m finally treated like everyone, I didn’t want them to know I couldn’t cut it...”
“Why didn’t you come to me, Baby Girl?” Justin asked softly. “I could’ve helped you organize your time or something.”
“It all piled up too fast. There was so much work I barely had time to eat, much less sleep. I don't know how you do your schedule if mine feels this bad. And then...” She let her voice trail off; biting back a sob and sinking into the hospital bed.
“What, Hales? What is it? You're doing so good, come on. You can tell me,” he urged her on.
“When I went out to that bar...I just wanted to let go a little. I didn’t mean to go that far but it happened. And then you looked so mad at me, like you were disgusted...” Haley buried her face in the flimsy hospital pillow.
His heart broke even more, if possible, as he watched his girlfriend fall apart. He pulled her into his arms, trying to comfort her and make her realize she was wrong. “No, no, no. I wasn’t disgusted by you. I was mad your friends let you drink that much. I was worried because I saw that creep hitting on you and I was scared you’d be hurt. I could never be mad at you.”
---
TWO DAYS LATER, Haley was finally singed out of the hospital. She had been in and out of them all her life but now she hated them. She was tired of being prodded. Justin was more than happy and insisted she stay at his house so he could keep an eye on her. She was starting to be annoyed because she worked hard for her independence, but she kind of enjoyed his hovering.
He’d gotten a week off after much begging to Johnny. Yes, Justin Timberlake resorted to almost begging. But after a scare like this, it was understandable. Haley liked him making her feel safe and taking care of her. He had quite the protective side and it was kind of cute.
On the third night of staying at Justin’s huge LA house, she woke up to find his side of the bed empty. The clock read 2:00am. She pulled back the light brown sheets of the mahogany canopy bed. As she picked up her crutches, she noticed the balcony doors were closed but you could see the night sky. A few street lights illuminating the backyard. The wood floor was cold and she shivered; wondering where her socks were.
She made her way to the living room; dim flickers of light shining on the light silver wall from white candles around the room. Justin loved having candles around and she smiled as the walls shone like tiny shimmering stars. She found him on the L-shaped red couch, laying down. The dim lighting played across his features and she could tell he wasn’t relaxed like he usually was while sleeping.
Puzzlement and worry set itself on his face. His mouth was in a frown, his big blue eyes closed but moving under the lids. His chest rose and fell as tiny gasps escaped him. Sitting on the white carpeting, Haley touched Justin’s forehead, smoothing through his short curls. She tried to comfort him from whatever bad dream he was having when all of a sudden, his breath hitched.
His eyes shot open and darted around. He sat up quickly, rubbing his temples, and tried to rid of himself of the nightmare. But it wasn’t a dream; it almost came true. He almost lost the girl he loved. It was then that he saw her sitting on the floor in front of him. A shocked expression on her face. He grabbed her wrist, pulling her up and wrapping his arms around her. She could feel him tremble as he buried his face in her neck. “Shh...you’re ok. It was just a bad dream.”
“No, it wasn’t!” he rasped harshly. Silence engulfed them, the only sounds being his heavy breathing and her shushing him.
“What's wrong, what was it about?” she asked.
This time it was his turn to pull away. He kind of curled into himself, still shaking. “W-when I saw you in that hospital – even before that, when they called me – I didn’t know what had happened. They said you collapsed and I thought I lost you. I couldn’t breathe, couldn’t move, it felt like my heart stopped.”
“I’m fine now.”
“Then when I saw you hooked to those tubes and monitors, my world crashed around me. I had to hold you, to know you're really ok.” Justin’s voice cracked and he sniffled. “When I laid on the bed, you felt so small and fragile. I didn’t want to break you. I just wanted you awake so we could go home and make things better.”
Haley scooted closer, wrapping her small frame around him. “I’m sorry that happened. I’m sorry I got so overwhelmed and I’m sorry I scared you. I promise to slow down when we figure out how to tell Link I need to do less.”
“You don’t have to be sorry, Baby Girl. I love you, never be sorry. Just tell me the next time you feel overwhelmed or scared or anything.” As he said this, his grip tightened.
She nodded getting sleepy again. “Are you ok now?”
“As long as you are, I will be. I’m just scared of losing you.”
She reached her hand to the back of his neck and gently played with the curls there. “You won’t. Can we go back to bed now?”
He kissed her forehead, helped her stand, and led her back to his room. With his head on her shoulder and his hand on her abdomen to feel her breathe, he fell into a peaceful slumber. “I love you, Haley Jordan,” he whispered. He knew she wouldn't go anywhere now.
“I love you, too.” Haley felt safe in his embrace. She was still stressed but now she knew she wasn't alone. She just had to look deeper to find the answer to her problems. And that answer was being with Justin.
Author's Chapter Notes:
AN: well my co-writer still isnt home. hes traveling for work & will be gone at least another few weeks. hes not even reachable right now. but i decided to post the end of this story anyway and if anything needs changing when he looks at it, i'll fix it then. we hope you all enjoyed this.
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MrsTimberlake18 is the author of 41 other stories.
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