Mend (Care Duet, #2)

33 | mend avelina

"I am going to be back in the morning to see how things are going. I need you to rest, eat, and drink a lot of water. Adrik it's important you take very good care of her," the doctor stated, giving Adrik a pointed look. Adrik didn't say a word as he turned back to Avelina and continued running his fingers through her hair. What once was so thick and full of so much life had began to thin out. It could've been the stress or because she just delivered a newborn, but she was so different from the girl he met. Her skin was more pale, her lips more dry. It was like she was barely clinging on to hope.

"Thank you!" Avelina called behind him as he walked out the door.

Adrik had boosted security around the home. Only his best and most trustworthy men were allowed in or around the house. They were meant to watch over the house on a 24-hour period every single day. He hired only the best man who once served for the military and was now working for the dictator of Russia to keep an eye on Avelina and his baby. He was supposed to arrive first thing tomorrow morning. Adrik couldn't afford any more fuck-up's.

"I was scared..." Avelina spoke up quietly. Everyone perked up at her confession, eyeing her as the smile on her face slowly fell into a deep frown.

Suddenly, the baby began to wail and with her balled up fists, she began to punch the air. Adrik quickly went to grab her from Vincent. He pulled his baby in closer to his chest and began to coo gently to her.

"She's probably hungry," Avelina muttered. She moved to stand up and the moment she got up on her two feet, she collapsed to the ground. The thud rumbled through the living room and a loud sob climbed out of her throat.

"Avelina!" Natasha exclaimed.

Vincent ran over to her to pick her up, but Avelina pulled away from him.

"Natasha, may you hold the baby?" Adrik asked. Natasha stood up and carefully grabbed ahold of the newborn. Vincent didn't let up on his sister. Again, he tried to reach out to her, but she only balled herself up as tears streamed from her eyes, her crying growing heavier with each passing second.

"Allow me," Adrik said. He scooped her up in his arms and she immediately placed her face in his chest and let her shoulders rock with each sob. Vincent gazed at them, his eyes full of emptiness as he watched them head toward their bedroom. The baby was still crying, but her cries came to an abrupt stop the moment Natasha pressed the bottle up against her lips.

Adrik had yet to be in the bedroom of their new home. He wanted the first time he stepped into the new room to be with Avelina. Out of the hundreds of ways he anticipated it going, he never expected him to be carrying her as she wept into his arms. Adrik didn't bother turning on a light. He just laid her down softly on the bed and held her. She was holding onto him so tightly that she made it impossible for him to let go. And he didn't. He continued to hold on just like she wanted him to.

"I can't do anything!" she cried. Her breathing was becoming labored and her tone was a lot higher than anything he ever heard her like before. "I can't walk! I can't even fucking stand! How can I take care of a baby? How can I do this Adrik? I can't protect her! I can't even protect myself!"

"I failed," Adrik told her. "I failed. You did not fail."

"No, I failed you! I failed us!" Avelina screamed. He could feel her heartbeat escalating and he knew the doctor would not approve of this. She had already been so worked up over the past couple of days, he needed to find a way to calm her down.

Adrik had no idea what to do, but he'd seen it done countless times before... a hug. He didn't understand it, but for some reason science found it reduces stress. Adrik found himself wrapping his arms around her and pulling her into his chest. She responded immediately by wrapping her arms around him in return. He found that it actually felt really nice.

"We are okay. You are okay. Our baby is okay," Adrik said, inspired by words he once heard from a television series Natasha had been watching. It was a couple on the screen and when he woman began to panic, the man wrapped his arms around her and told her that everything will be okay. And just like the woman on the screen, Avelina instantly began to calm down.

"Thank you," she muttered. "I needed that."

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