mother_bear (mother_bear) wrote in supernextdoor, @ 2012-07-02 15:38:00 |
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Entry tags: | 10.16.11, gabe, gabe and naya, naya |
I thought I'd lost you
Who: Gabe and Naya
What: The aftermath of the bar fiasco
When: 10.16.11 - Sunday Afternoon
Where: The Hospital
Warnings: None
It took a few hours for the hospital staff to clear Naya. She had a few bumps and bruises and a concussion but nothing serious enough to require a stay in the hospital. She had a friend bring her some clothes from her house and once she'd been discharged and gotten changed into the simple t-shirt and stretch pants, she made a beeline for Gabe's room. She closed the door behind her as she stepped into the room, eyes wandering over her lover from where she stood. Naya thought she might die from the ache inside of her at the sight of him. He was sleeping and she didn't want to wake him up, so she quietly walked across the floor to settle into the chair at his bedside. She felt tremendous guilt for him being hurt at all, but seeing him now only made that guilt more prominent. She bowed her head and reached out to gently brush her fingers over the hand attached to the arm that wasn't broken. Bad things like this weren't supposed to happen to good people like Gabe.
Naya couldn't help but start to cry a little to herself, her heart aching as the guilt seemed to spread throughout her body, latching onto every ounce of her being and tearing at her. If she'd only been paying attention they wouldn't be where they were right now. She could have taken the guy. Right?
Gabe had been swimming in and out of fitful sleep since they’d set his broken bones, loaded him up with morphine. He wasn’t aware of Naya coming in, but by the time she started crying, he was swimming back to consciousness. His hand turned over gently, fingers wrapping around hers as he dragged heavy eyelids open, turning his head to look at her. “Hey, now,” he murmured, voice rusty, ragged-sounding. “Don’t cry, baby girl.”
Yeah, like that would make her stop crying. If anything the ragged sound of his voice made her feel even worse about the whole situation. The only shining light in all of this was that he was still breathing and that Abbie hadn't been there when all of the fighting had gone down. She stood up from the chair and moved closer to him, bending down to gently brush her fingers over his cheek as she kissed his temple. "I'm sorry," she breathed against his skin. "You shouldn't be here," she whispered, blinking back tears in an effort to stop crying like he'd told her to.
Gabe’s eyes closed for a long moment as she brushed her fingers down his cheek, his head tilting towards her, following the movement. “Don’t be sorry,” he scolded gently, his words all soft and rounded, sleepy-sounding. “Wasn’t you flingin’ kegs at me.” And yeah, he really wished he didn’t remember that. Nothing like the sound of your own bones breaking. And seeing Naya all helpless on the floor, the keg hovering over her head...Gabe shuddered, whimpering a moment later. God. He hurt, all over. But he didn’t like morphine, didn’t like the way it made him feel, the way it made his brain all fuzzy.
Naya was glad she'd been helplessly passed out on the floor. It was better than the alternative of hearing and seeing all the things that Gabe had gone through. That Justice and Jason had gone through. Just knowing the result made her stomach churn. Having seen it would have been much more damaging. "I almost lost you," she whimpered against his skin, wanting so badly to hold him but being unable to. "I'd never forgive myself if something happened to you," she breathed.
“Hey, shhhh...” Gabe reached up with his good hand, stroking her cheek, turning his face towards hers for a kiss. “Don’t talk like that, darlin’. Ain’t nothin’ wrong with me some TLC won’t fix.” He tried to smile, the expression more than a little wobbly. “I’m not goin’ anywhere. And neither are you.” He trembled a little, the thought of losing her, of what would have happened if the killer hadn’t stopped the keg, making his throat tight, his eyes smart.
She returned the kiss, gently brushing her fingers through his hair as she looked him over once she'd pulled her mouth back from his. "You better not be," she told him firmly. "I'm not through with you yet. Won't ever be." And she meant that. Completely. "I love you," she told him, knowing he needed to hear that too. Especially when he was trembling the way that he was, worrying over things she likely wasn't even aware of. "Always. Especially now."
“Love you too, baby girl,” he breathed, his chest tight, making it harder to breathe, making him hurt even more. “Did Nadia call Paula?” It killed him to cancel on Abbie, to leave her with her mom any more than necessary, but there was no way he could look after Abbie, the way he was feeling right now. He lifted Naya’s hand to his lips, kissing the back of it gently, closing his eyes for a moment as he breathed her in, reassured himself that she was there, that she was ok.
"That's been taken care of," she assured him, smoothing her hand through his hair and letting out a little breath. "Don't you worry about that, okay?" She didn't want him stressing any more than he already was. She knew how much it hurt him to have to cancel on his daughter, but there wasn't much he could really do about it. She bent to kiss his forehead again, closing her eyes and trying to convince herself that everything was alright and was going to be alright. "I was so scared," she whispered against his skin, aching to crawl into his bed with him and curl against her lover. "I'm so glad you're alright."
“God, me too,” Gabe admitted thickly, reaching up to stroke his hand through her hair, aching to pull her close, feel her in his arms. “Seein’ you lyin’ there all helpless...” he let out a soft, hurt whine, his chest screaming as he tried to breathe deeper, tried to stop the tears welling up in his eyes. He was a man, goddamnit, he shouldn’t be crying. “I thought I lost you, baby girl.” He’d been terrified, even at the idea of losing Naya.
Naya's heart ached when he let out that noise, her whole body feeling the effects of him being in pain, both physically and emotionally. She moved to climb into the bed with him on the side with the arm that wasn't wounded and curled in against Gabe. Her head rested lightly against his shoulder and though she wanted to wrap her arms around him, she was afraid she'd hurt him, so she kept her hand rested lightly against his stomach. "You haven't lost me," she whispered. "I'm fine. I'm not going anywhere." And now it was her turn to cry, damn it.
Gabe wanted to lift his arm, let her cuddle into his side, but his ribs were already screaming at him, even just from breathing too deep. Anything more, and he was gonna pass out. He lifted his arm enough to lay his hand over hers, his fingers sliding between hers, linking them together. “You’re not goin’ back there,” he murmured hoarsely. “We’ll find somewhere else to live. You, me, and Abbie.” He wasn’t going to risk either of them, nor Nadia. He’d barely been able to keep them safe as it was; without Justice and Jason coming in, the psycho would have likely killed at least one of them. He turned his head, kissing her hair, closing his eyes as tears fell. He was terrified, down to his bones, that he was going to lose Naya. That morning in the cellar had been the worst moment of his life.
She was glad he said it because she was thinking the same thing. "You can come stay at my place," she told him automatically. "The plumbings been situated again. We can look for a house later on. After you're healed." They could find something else together that they both picked out later, getting him better was more important right now.
Gabe just nodded, his breath hitching slightly as he breathed in the scent of her, reminded himself that she was alive, that she was safe. He’d been so scared that he’d lost her, that she wasn’t going to wake up. He never wanted to feel like that again. “Love you,” he said again. He’d keep saying it, over and over, given the chance. “Never leavin’ you alone again, darlin’.”
"Love you," Naya replied, looking up at him as she leaned a little to kiss the underside of his jaw, the hair of his beard scratchy against her lips and chin. "Don't you be blaming yourself either," she breathed. "It wasn't your fault. Everyone's alright," she murmured. "We all got lucky. Not that I'm complaining if you want to keep me around a lot," she whispered, smiling a little at him. "Just makes me more sure of how much I love you," she admitted to him. "The thought of losing you is unbearable.
Gabe sniffed softly, blinking away tears. “I should’ve smelt him when I walked in,” he protested. “Should’ve known somethin’ wasn’t right.” But Naya had been on the floor, had smelt hurt, and that was all he’d cared about. All he still cared about, if he was honest. He’d take his lumps, take the weeks of healing broken bones he had ahead of him, just as long as his girls were safe. “It doesn’t matter,” he murmured, kissing her forehead. “We’re safe. Jason’ll get the fucker.” Gabe was just hoping that he could get ten minutes alone with the son of a bitch, once he was healed.
Naya nodded a little at his words. They were safe. All of them. That was the important thing in all the drama that had gone on. The killer had gotten away, yes, but they were safe. And Naya was fairly certain that Gabe would be able to pick the guy out by scent alone if they caught a suspect. Jason would find the bastard and then he could get locked away for the rest of his life for all Naya cared. She honestly hoped the fucker got put to death for the murders he'd already committed, let alone what he'd done to her family. "Shh," she breathed. "It's not your fault. I'd threaten you with bodily harm for saying so, but I don't want to kick a man while he's down," she teased, hoping to lighten his mood.
“Oh, jeez, don’t make me laugh, baby girl,” Gabe groaned softly, leaning his forehead against hers. He squeezed her fingers gently, smiling. He was more relaxed now; he had Naya close, and Nadia and Abbie were safe. “How’s your head, anyhow?” He’d forgotten to ask, too busy holding her, reassuring them both that each other was alive, ok. Not unharmed, but they’d both heal.
That was better. She was glad to see him smiling again. She could pretend that everything was just fine and dandy when he was smiling at her like that. "It's okay," she told him. "I have a bit of a headache, but I think I got off pretty easy. All he did was conk me one good time and I was out. Honestly I think hitting my head on the ground did more damage than he did hitting me," she admitted.
“You need to sleep?” He asked, letting go of her hand long enough to reach up, awkwardly brush the backs of his fingers against her cheek. He was worrying about her, just like he probably always would. Even though he was hurt far worse, even though Naya was already up and walking around, he still worried. It was just who he was. Naya was his girl, his family. Worrying about her was part of the territory.
Naya shook her head and caught his lips in a soft kiss, her eyes closing as she let herself bask in the feel of his mouth against hers. "No," she murmured gently when she reluctantly pulled back to look him over. "I just want to lay here with you," she told him. "That's all I need right now. But if you need sleep, don't mind me. You're going to have me fussing over you whether you like it or not."
God, he’d needed that kiss. He sighed as deeply as his ribs would allow, nodding. His eyes were already drooping, sleep sounding like a fantastic idea right now. He didn’t hurt when he was asleep, as long as he didn’t try to turn over. And with Naya curled around him, he wouldn’t be likely to do that, either. “Stay with me, baby girl,” he murmured sleepily, turning his face towards hers as he closed his eyes.
Like he really needed to ask her to do that. "I'll stay," she whispered, kissing his lips once more, then his cheek before curling in against him and letting herself listen to the sound of his breathing as it steadied out. She'd stay. Always.