Loyalty

Chapter 24: Injured.

Brian's POV

I've been in a lot of pain the past couple of days. After all the tests were done, the final results were that I broke two ribs, pulled muscles in my neck, and damaged the nerves on my hip. It's possible that I could have permanent nerve damage. But as long as I had Jess by my side, I knew that I could get through anything.

I was disappointed in not being able to compete in the obstacle course. I wanted to earn that $100,000 for my charity. But I also wanted to make Jess proud. She had done so much for me, especially in the past few weeks. She was there for me after I had to retire, and when I had a little bit of a breakdown after the tarantula punishment. I just wanted to show her that I could still accomplish something, that I could still be a man. But Jess never made me feel like I wasn't a man. It was just my own insecurities that were weighing heavily on me.

When Jess first saw me in the hospital, she as very upset. She may have been a little aggressive, especially calling my mother. But I knew that she wasn't trying to be demanding, or tell me what to do. She was only saying all those things because she loved me, and didn't want to see me get hurt. Around this time, Jess started to become very emotional, which I attributed to her constantly worrying about me.

Jess was an angel during this time. She took days off work, and basically dropped everything to take care of me while I was injured. We joked that she was like my nurse. Even though I was in a lot of pain, I really enjoyed the time that Jess and I were able to spend together. It was the most time we had spent together since we started dating. Jess and I were often forced to be apart due to my hectic touring schedule. But during this time Jess would spend days at my house, only leaving if she needed to get groceries, or pick something up from her place. We would watch movies, play video games, and just hang out together all day. I never wanted her to leave. The thing I loved most about our relationship was that we were still best friends. I never got tired of being around her.

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Since Halloween was only a few days away, I wanted to watch some classic horror movies. It was my favorite movie genre, but I knew Jess despised them. But she agreed to watch them for me, her favorite patient. We were both sitting on the couch, watching the movie, but there was some space in between us. She was clutching tightly to a pillow and burying her face into it during the especially gruesome scenes. I found it adorable that she was scared, but she was way too far away for my liking.

"What are you doing all the way over there? Come here. I'll protect you," I told her. I opened my arms wide, inviting her to cuddle with me.

"Brian, you just broke your ribs..." Jess said. She didn't want to cuddle with me, because she was worried about hurting me.

"It's okay, baby. I'll be fine. I just want to be closer to you," I told her.

I kept my arms wide open for her. She laid right in my arms and rested her head on my chest. Having Jess snuggled in my arms was the best feeling in the world. It could cure any pain I was in. Each time she would get scared, she would bury her head into my chest, shielding her eyes from the terror on the screen. I instinctually wince in pain, since my ribs were still sensitive.

"Brian, I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to hurt you," she said as she got up, looking horrified.

"It's okay, Jess. You're worth the pain," I told her.

"Are you sure?" she asked, hesitantly.

"I probably deserve the pain anyway, right? I was stupid enough to try this obstacle course," I joked, but Jess didn't find it funny. I thought her concern for me was excessive until her fears about Nitro Circus turned into reality. Part of me expected her to say 'I told you so' when I got injured.