Söbriety • Mötley Crüe •

23. Over-Protective

A/N: Thank y'all so much for reading, voting and commenting. Every morning I wake up and check my phone, and y'all's comments start my day with a smile. 🥰

Warnings: Mentions of Previous Drug Use, Assault & Violence

Nikki's POV

"Hey, baby." I kiss Ryan's fingertips one by one, trying to ease her into waking up. "How are you feeling?"

"Like I got shot in the shoulder with a twenty-two." She reaches for her shoulder and hisses when the IV in her hand pulls a little too hard.

"That you did." Tommy laughs and she gives him the finger.

I reach over and push the button the doctor told me to push so the nurses can come check on her. Sharise rustles in her seat next to Ryan.

"I'm so sorry." Tears fill into Ryan's eyes as she grips Sharise's hand tighter.

"No. There is nothing to be sorry about." She says firmly as she stands up and kisses Ryan's forehead, wiping the tears from under her glasses. "You risked your life to save mine. I could never thank you enough. I love you, Ryan."

"I love you too, Sharise."

"Hey, can you guys give us a minute?" I move my eyes between them and the door when the nurse comes in to check on Ryan.

"I'm glad you're okay." Tommy squeezes her leg before filing out of the room, leaving just us and the nurse.

"Your vitals are good. How's your pain?"

"Hurts like a bitch, but I'm okay." She tries to laugh, but her face distorts into discomfort when her shoulder lifts off the bed.

"I'm gonna go get you some pain medicine, okay?"

Ryan looks at me frantically, shaking her head.

"No. I don't want any pain medicine. I'm an addict."

"Hey, don't be stupid. It's okay. It's not a relapse if you need it, okay? If they say you need it then you need to listen." I kiss her hand and she sighs in defeat.

"We'll monitor your medications very carefully, and only give you what you absolutely need. I have it noted in here that you're an addict. We'll only use the morphine in here, and when we send you home we'll send you with something not as strong, okay?" Ryan slowly nods her head, uncertainty still bestowed on her face. "Is there someone that can keep your prescription and only give it to you as prescribed?"

The nurse looks at me,wondering if I'm an option, and we both let out a laugh.

"I'm an addict, too."

"Anyone else?" I scour the back of my mind trying to find someone that could help her.

"Sharise." I nod my head at Ryan's suggestion. "She's my best friend. She lives with us." A smile finds its way onto her face when she says the words 'best friend.'

"That will work. We'll talk to her before you go and tell her everything she needs to know. You're going to stay here for a couple days, though. We need to monitor you and make sure an infection doesn't start in your shoulder. I'm going to go get the doctor. He wants to talk to you about some stuff." The nurse gives me a nervous glance, and I reciprocate with one back.

"Can you stop staring at me like I'm dying, please? I'm fine." Ryan's finger is in my face the moment the door closes next to us.

"You almost died. Excuse me for being upset."

"Here we go again with the death over exaggerations." She stops laughing when she sees the serious look on my face and I blink back my tears. "Babe, I'm okay. Look at me. I'm breathing, I'm alive. I'm not going anywhere anytime soon." Her fingertips run along my cheek with her nonhurt arm.