I woke up tangled under blankets with Cam.

His arm was draped protectively around me, his light wheezing blowing loose strands of my hair against my cheek.

I shifted slightly, careful not to wake him as I traced the bruises on his face, the black and blue marks forming beneath each eye.

"I love you touching me and all," His quiet voice broke through my thoughts, "but I'm trying to sleep, Blake." I laid my head back against his chest, shutting my eyes as the thoughts of what happened last night began to circle back around me.

The second that Cam had gotten that Jacob had been the one who did it, or attempted to do it, he had hunted him down and they had fought in the middle of the party. Cam hadn't gotten hurt too bad considering a few of Jake's friends had jumped in during the fight.

Jacob was the one that ended up being taken to the hospital for a concussion after Cam pushed him back and he had stumbled back drunkenly and tripped.

"How do you feel?" I slid my hands under the loose white shirt he was wearing and pushed it up his waist until I could see his bandaged chest.

Mom had agreed to help him without taking him back to the hospital, bandaging him up where he needed it and filling a prescription for him I'd probably have to pick up.

"Like shit?" It came out as a question, "How about you, beautiful?" He brushed his thumb along my jaw.

"I'm fine, Cam." I touched the bandage on his left side gently, my eyes stinging when I felt him wince in pain.

"No, you're not." he shifted, cursing and hissing under his breath. He waited until he was looking over at me to stop moving, his cheeks bright red with exertion.

"Cam-"

"Blake." He said, just as quietly.

"I'm scared." I confessed, feeling as if a weight had been lifted off of my shoulders a fraction.

"Of what? Us? Our relationship? Blake, we're going to be fine. Even if this romantic relationship thing doesn't work, I'll always love you." I smiled, slipping my hand beneath his.

"I. . . I know, Cam. It's not just that." I kissed his bruised knuckles, "I'm scared of what's going to happen with James, what else Mom is lying to me about, meeting Brianna. And. . . and I'm scared we didn't use protection." He shut his eyes, his eyelashes fanning his cheeks similar to the way Wes' had, leaving me to admire them for a moment as he started to respond.

"Have you checked your wastebasket?" He questioned, clenching my hand in his, "Because if you haven't, I'm going to have to tickle you to death." I gasped, slapping the air instead of his shoulder, playfully.

"You're in no condition to tickle me, Cam." He chuckled, then winced in pain once more, nodding.

"You're right. I'll just get Raymond to do it. He seems to like you enough." I laughed.

"Likes? He loves me, Cam. Way more than you." He smiled, but it didn't go any further than that. I felt anger and my own pain creep up on me as I stared at him.

"As for James, all I can say is do what your heart tells you to do. Usually, it knows best, especially if it isn't clouded by the thoughts in your head." I snuggled back against his chest again, feeling him rest his head against me.

"Your mother, I'd just give her a chance to explain everything and her reasoning behind it before you turn your back on her or force yourself to never forgive her. You love her and you know how much she loves you, Blake. She'd do anything in the world to protect you." I nodded, rubbing his arm.

"I'm here for everything, handicap or not. If you need me there for your meeting with Brianna, I'm here. If you need me to sit with you at school, I'm there. If you need someone to kick Wes' ass, you better bet I'm going to be at the front of the line." I sighed at his last comment, shaking my head against his chest.

"Just leave it alone, Cam."

"He fucking kissed you, Blake. Without your consent." He snapped.

"He's hurt. Broken. How would you feel if I chose him and not you, Cameron? Would you just walk away without knowing what it's like to kiss me, to hold me in your arms?" He rolled back over, groaning loudly.

"That's not the same thing, Blake. You don't need him in your life, you have Ra-"

"He's my friend." I started to sit up, my hand clenching into a fist at my side, "Sorry to inform you, babe, but you can't pick my friends."

"You don't understand, Blake!" Cam's voice rose, "You don't understand how much you're going to hurt him continuing to be his friend right now. It'll feel like you're pushing him deeper and deeper into the ground any time he sees you, especially with me. It'll feel like a knife to the gut when he hears your voice, talking about me. If you truly care, if you really love him, you'll let him go until he finds it in himself to move on."

I fell back on to the bed, my hand resting on his heaving chest.

"I'm sorry." I said. He looked confused.

"Why are you apologizing to me?"

"Because I was an oblivious idiot that didn't want to accept the fact that my best friend might actually want more than just a kiss on the cheek from me. I should have seen in, the signs, the-"

"Blake, it's okay. I could have made a move at any time, too. Don't blame yourself." I sat up and laid my hand against his warm cheek, kissing him softly.

"Who would have thought I would enjoyed kissing my best friend?" His eyebrows touched his hairline within seconds.

"You enjoy kissing me, huh?" I moved closer to him so he didn't have to struggle to pull me closer.

"Of course. Why else would I allow you to do it all the time if I didn't?"

*

Getting Cam downstairs was terrifying. Every step we took seemed to send more pain shooting through his hunched body, which would make me cringe or wince just as he had, feeling the pain myself.

Mom checked his bandages and forehead once we were at the kitchen table, frowning.

"You're running a fever, honey." She sighed, then reached over and touched my forehead.

"You're okay." She headed back into the kitchen, shaking her head and muttering as she brought some medicine back out.

"This is going to make you a little drowsy and delirious, but it should help with the pain and break the fever. Until then, why don't you go watch something in the living room?" Cam took the pill given to him, then allowed me to help him to the couch.

"I bet you got me sick." I grumbled, kissing his cheek, "Considering you kissed me and we, you know, the other night." He only smiled, squeezing my hand.

"Then I'll take care of you when you get sick. Now go make me some nachos." I snorted, turning my back to him and heading back for the kitchen.

"Like you're getting any of my nachos."

*

When Mom and I finished up in the kitchen, I found Cam watching Power Rangers with a lopsided smile on his face, his good arm draped over his chest.

"Aww, Cammy. You're watching this without me!" I gasped, throwing myself on to the couch beside him, tossing a chip into my mouth. He tried to move his feet from under me, but stopped after a second and reached out for my plate.

"No." I snapped, "My nachos."

"You love them more than me." He sighed dramatically, "I should have known. You've always had a thing for cheese." A giggle escaped my mouth before I could stop it.

I set the nachos on Cam's chest with a smile, my eyes searching his half open ones.

"You should feel honored. I never share my food with anybody." He winked instead of responding. When I looked back up, my smile faltered. Mom was crying in the recliner, her arms wrapped around herself.

"Mom, what's wrong?" She shook her head, trying to wipe the tears from her face before I could see them.

"Nothing, Blake."

"Is it James?" She shook her head.

"Then what is it?" She looked toward the door, her lips trembling.

"Your sister will be coming over tomorrow for dinner with her husband and kids. I. . . I'm not ready, Blake. I-" I slid off Cam's legs and took the empty plate from his chest on my way, setting it on the table with a long look at his peaceful face.

I perched myself on the arm of the recliner, giving my mom a tight side hug, my eyes on Cam.

He almost didn't look like he'd gotten jumped, that there wasn't bandages under his clothes and bruises around his eyes and mouth. He looked peaceful, and I wished I could take everything away so it would all be gone when he woke up.

"No one is ever ready for big changes in their life," I said to her, "but it doesn't stop life from throwing things at us. We've just got to learn to deal with them." 

***AN***

Hope you guys enjoyed! 

Let me know what you guys thought! 

~ChasingMadness24