Back to Where We Started From (Miracle)

Chapter 101

Julia groaned in annoyance when the alarm clock on the bedside table beeped obnoxiously. She had no clue what time it was, but she knew she hadn't been asleep for more than a couple of hours.

"Morning, baby," Jack muttered in a sleepy voice, wrapping his arms around her waist from behind. 

"It's too early to expect me to be nice," she whined, squeezing her eyes shut as she smacked at the alarm that continued to pester her. Jack laughed, reaching over her and turning off the source of the beeping.

"How could I forget you're a monster before 9 o'clock?" He chuckled, nuzzling his face into her neck.

"10, to be safe," she warned him. She let out a huge yawn and rolled over to face him, although her eyes remained closed. "How are you feeling?"

"I feel fine," he said dismissively. She opened one eye, looking up at him warily.

"Are you being honest?"

"Yes," he insisted. "You taking care of me last night really did the trick. I could get on the ice right now. I don't even need those crutches."

"You're not funny," she huffed, picking up on his sarcasm despite her sleepy brain.

"Yes, I am. You're just grouchy," he smirked. "But I haven't even gotten out of bed so I'm not sure how it feels."

"We gotta get you back to your room before someone notices you're gone," she sighed, but made no move to get up. They laid in comfortable silence as Jack ran his fingers through her straightened hair. She desperately wanted to ignore their responsibilities and go back to sleep.

"Do you like my hair straight?" Julia wondered in a groggy voice after a few minutes.

"Yeah," he told her and hesitated before he continued. "But I think I like it curly better."

"I think I look like Cher with my hair straight."

"Are you ever gonna tell me the Cher story?" Jack asked with raised eyebrows. Magic was still the only one of the hockey players that knew the full story, and he reminded them of it as often as possible.

"Maybe later. But now we've gotta get you up and dressed," she decided, finally sitting up in bed.

"Oh, now you decide to get up," Jack grumbled.

It took both of them to get Jack dressed back into his clothes from the night before, but they managed with minimal frustration. Julia crept into the hallway first, happy to see it was empty in the early morning hours. Together they snuck down the hall to Jack and Rizzo's room.

"I'll see you when I decide to get up in a few hours," she giggled, giving him a kiss outside the door.

"Thanks again for taking care of me," he smiled as Julia took his key and unlocked the door.

"Can you get back into bed by yourself? Do you want help?" Julia questioned, worrying over him again.

"I'm sure I'll manage. Get back to bed, grumpy."

A few hours later, Julia was dressed in jeans and a sweater, sitting on her bed talking to Jim on the phone. Tommy had kept good on his word to explain the situation to everyone, and Julia was glad to hear that no one was upset with her.

"So, is he gonna be okay?" Jim inquired.

"I don't know," she sighed. "He stretched a ligament. I don't know much about sports injuries, but it sounds like it could have been worse. Just really bad timing, because he could be out for like two weeks."

"Will he be able to play?"

"No decisions have been made. Uncle Herb has to turn in his final roster tomorrow I think. I'm sure he doesn't want to cut Jack, but being down a man is...not ideal. Jack's pretty down about it."