I was standing in the door frame of my hospital room. I was finally able to go home and Ace was going to take me. We didn't talk about him staying with me, but we both knew it would come up eventually.
These last three days have been bliss even in a hospital bed. I tried to get up and walk around with my crutches a little bit, but I am so unstable that I had to quit. Going to the bathroom was quite the scene.
Ace came rolling around the corner of the hallway with my wheelchair. Right beside him was my nurse who was obsessed with him. I rolled my eyes.
"Ready?" Ace smiled.
"I've been ready for three days," I sighed. I used most of my arm strength to gently lower myself into the chair.
"I'll wheel you out of here as fast as I can," Ace laughed.
It took about another hour to check out. I needed to get my hospital bills and get a wheel chair that I could take home. Then the secretary needed to figure out what pills I needed to take. The only thing that kept me from blowing my lid was Ace running his fingers through my hair.
Once all of the paper work was done, Ace literally ran me out of the hospital. He ran me through the parking lot all the way back to his car.
"Do you know where they took my car?" I asked Ace once I was situated in the front seat.
"Yeah, downtown to Cleen's," Ace replied.
"Do you know how long until it's fixed?" I continued.
"Sometime next week they said," Ace replied.
"And how much is it going to cost?" I sighed.
"About 5 grand," Ace said.
"Fuck. Add that to my 11 grand hospital bill," I chuckled, humorlessly.
"We'll figure it out," Ace promised.
*******
Pulling into my gravel driveway was refreshing. I missed the comforts of my own home so much. I unbuckled and waited for Ace to come to my side with the wheel chair.
He had a hard time getting me up the five steps before the front door, he was being too gentle.
"Ace, man up," I laughed.
He muttered something under his breath and pulled me up the last stair. He flung open the door and pushed me inside. He was obviously angry.
"Ace, slow down. What's wrong?" I asked, using the wheels to face Ace.
"I don't want to hurt you," he replied. He ran his hands through his hair, something he did when he angry.
"It's gonna be pretty hard to hurt me. I'm on some pretty heavy medications," I said, trying to lighten the mood.
Ace smirked against his own will.
"You're funny," he said sarcastically.
"But seriously, the only way you can hurt me is if you leave me," I replied.
"I don't plan on leaving you," he whispered. He handed me my crutches and helped me out of the wheel chair. I hobbled my way into the kitchen and sat down at the table.
"Well good, because I'm going to need somebody to help me figure out the bills," I smiled.
He handed me the envelope from the hospital filled with my bills. I owe 11 grand for my three days in the hospital and the ambulance ride, and then 5 grand for the damage done to my car.
"Do you think it'll be cheaper to just buy a new car?" I asked Ace.
"Probably, but you can just have one of mine," Ace shrugged.
"You sound like you have cars to hand out," I replied.
"Well I do. My dad owned a car company and then it got passed down to me and I can't run a business, not old enough. So the cars stay at the shop until I'm 18, so you can just have one," Ace explained.
"So I should call Cleen's and tell them to just keep the car?"
"Yeah, they close at 9," Ace replied.
I grabbed my phone and made the call.
*****
I was laying on the couch with Ace sitting on the floor. My leg was elevated and I had just taken my medication. We were watching American Sniper when a violent rhythm of knocking pounded on the door.
Ace stood up to get the door.
"On your way back will you grab me a water bottle?" I asked sweetly.
"Anything for you," he smiled.
The pounding continued on the door. Ace rolled his eyes and continued his walk.
The pounding stopped when Ace opened the door. It was quiet for a very short second.
"Phoenix Black, why the hell haven't you called me?" Jade demanded, running through my house.
"Oh my god, Jade it completely slipped my mind. I am so sorry," I said quickly, trying to get myself into a sitting position.
She sat down beside my head, glaring me down. I knew she was faking it the instant we made eye contact. She saw the cut on my head and her eyes instantly softened.
"Who did this to you?" She whispered.
I shrugged. "I have my ideas but nobody has been caught yet."
"And what about Mr. Bad Boy standing behind us?" She whispered, her eyes smiling.
"He saved me," I whispered back.
"No freaking way," she murmured.
Ace spoke up. "Probably saved her life."
"You did save my life," I corrected.
"Can you give us two minutes?" Jade asked politely.
Ace nodded and headed back to the kitchen. He had forgotten my water bottle anyways.
"Does he know how socially awkward you are?" Jade demanded.
"Way to boost my confidence, Jade. He knows that I haven't been on a date before in my life or that I haven't been kissed and he handled it extremely well," I explained.
"Did he really save your life?" She asked.
"He showed up to the accident and called 911. Without him, I probably wouldn't owe 11 grand in hospital bills, it'd be more like 20," I replied.
"How are you going to pay for that?" She demanded.
"I'm thinking my college fund," I replied, sadness seeping through.
"You know taking 11 grand out of your college fund is going to break you," Jade sighed.
"I don't have any other way to pay for it," I argued.
"I know, I know. I just wish there was a way I could help you. I've never seen you needing anybodys help and suddenly you have the notorious bad boy wrapped around your finger," she laughed.
"Jade, I'm falling fast," I sighed, closing my eyes.
She was quiet for a while. I was waiting fir Ace to come back but he must have realized we needed more than 2 minutes.
"I remember a couple weeks ago, when he up and left you. You were so hard to even look at, no offense. But you just leaked sadness and forfeit. When you are with Ace, you are somebody I have never seen before. You have a skip to your step, not right now, obviously, but you're just approachable. I think giving Ace a chance is a really good idea on your behalf," she said encouragingly.
"It hurt so much that day when he left me. I felt like there was nothing left for me to live for. But for me, there was always this glimmer of hope that if Ace saw he could have me back, he would take me in a heartbreak. I fought for him and I'm just hoping he fights for me," I said, listening for Ace to come back.
"If he doesn't fight for you, I will," Jade declared.
"Fight for me anyways?" I begged.
"Of course, just not today. Lucas has this thing planned for us, but he refuses to tell me. I can't even get a hint out of him. I think it has to do with the random dance in the middle of March that the seniors are putting on. Speaking of which, will you be attending?" She asked, standing up.
"Let's see, it's a month away and the doctor said about 6 weeks. I'm not sure, we'll find out," I replied.
"Alright, feel better sweetcheeks," she said, blowing me a kiss.
"I will. Thanks for stopping by," I called.
I heard Ace and Jade conversing, but I couldn't make out the words. It lasted for a few minutes before I heard the door shut. I waited patiently for Ace to make his way back into the living room.
I could feel my medication kicking in. The fire that covered half of my face was finally going numb. My leg usually only hurt to put pressure on it but the meds made it feel even better.
Ace walked back in, startling me a little bit and went back to his original position. I subconsciously ran my fingers through his hair. He tilted his head back and looked at me.
"Let me pay for your medical bills," he begged.
Woot woot! I got another chapter in! I've been working on it all day, hope it doesn't suck. I'm thinking we will all learn about Ace's past in the next chapter? If you have have a different idea let me know, I'm open to suggestions! But I will most likely not get another chapter in until Saturday