*Trisha*

"Trish... Get Jonah."

I stare at the blood on Nate's hand in shock, then immediately run back into the apartment. Not five minutes later, and we're driven to the emergency room.

"Try not to worry. It could be anything, Nate." Jonah assures Nate while driving at an extremely fast speed. I look over at Paul, who gives me a nod. He's just as nervous as I am right now, but is trying to let me know it'll be ok...in Paul Language.

Nate pulls his hat down and coughs into a tissue.

Definitely blood.

"I'm calling the hospital to let them know you're on the way. For extra security," Paul announces.

I nod and look out my window. This can't be happening. The tour starts in one week. Nate is so excited for his tour. Over two years in the making, and we are ready to go. Now this.

I feel the heat rise to my face and the tears sting my eyes. What if this is the beginning of the end with Nate? I have been reading up on his conditions for days and crying over it for nights.

"Hey." Nate looks back at Paul. "If Casey needs help when Julia wakes up, can you go back home to be with her?" Paul knows what he means and nods. God, that's all we need. Julia is having a nervous fucking breakdown while all this is going on.

We pull up to the back entrance, as advised, and bodyguards are already waiting at the door for me.

This is really happening.

******

*James*

I pray for Nate, but also pray for Julia. She has no idea Nate is on the way to the E.R. I can only imagine how she will be when she wakes up. Bad enough she's on all new medications and not feeling great. We have no idea if they are working. Guess we'll find out soon enough!

"Hey. You good in here?" Casey leans against the door. 

"Yeah. Just a little worried. For BOTH of them." I admit.

"Nate is in good hands. I'm more concerned about how SHE will be when she wakes up."

"Same."

"I worry about her. I just don't think she is ready to go traveling around the world right now. I hate thinking that. Believe me, I want to go. I'm so excited. But right now...."

"Right now, she's not stable enough. I know." I finish Casey's sentence. We all know. But Nate isn't having it. In a way, he is being selfish. But from little things Trisha has told me here and there...time may not be on Nate's side, so he may NEED to be selfish right now. I get that. I hope I'm wrong, but Nate's health doesn't sound ideal. Especially with genetics playing against him.

"All we can do is pray these new prescriptions work for Julia. I think we are ALL grateful you are coming on tour as well. I don't think Julia would do well with her best friend. We could all use a friend like you, James."

"Aww, thanks, 'Mini-Julia'." I laugh and she rolls her eyes, JUST like Julia would do.

"I don't see it."

"REALLY?? Everything about you screams Julia. The sane mentally healthy version of Julia."

Casey shrugs at that. How does she not see it? She looks like she could be Julia's sister. Acts like Julia too. 

"Well I'm gonna take Maggie out one last time before the night is over. I'll be back quick though." She leaves the room and I close my eyes to continue to pray over my best friend.

"James... what's going on?" Julia startles me about five minutes after Casey left to go take the dog for a walk.

"Hey. Li-listen. I don't know much. But Jonah took Nate to the E.R. He was coughing up blood."

"Well, c'mon! We need to go!" Julia jumps out of bed but I grab her arm to sit her back down. 

"He said no. He doesn't want you to go and he doesn't want you to worry."

"Bullshit. I need to be there with him."

"He was adamant. He has Jonah, Trisha and Paul with him. Ok?" I say. She tries to get up again in a panic but I sit her down again.

"Julia..."

"James! I need to be there!"

"There's nothing you can do right now. Lets just wait until we need more." I hold on to her arm but then see it coming. She's about to have a panic attack. Her breathing quickens in pace, she gets clammy and her eyes dart around the room.

"James. Let. Me. Go."  She says  frantically.

I hate when Julia gets like this. I don't know how to help her. I can try and talk her through all I want but it never works and I tense up. These are the times I know Nate is right when he says he can take care of Julia better than I can.  These are the times I wish Nate were here to take over for me.

*Trisha*

"Right this way, sir." A nurse escorts us down the hall. "You have quite a fan club out there!"

"Apparently."

Thank God the nurse noticed the commotion in the waiting room. An entire team of teenage girl volleyball players spotted Nate right away. Their shrieks and shrills were going right through me.

"Ok. Lets get you situated." The RN goes through the routine. 

A tear slips down the corner of Nate's eye and it breaks me to pieces. He shouldn't be going through this. Not Nate. He takes care of himself. Yes, obviously he is a recovering alcoholic but aside from that one major detail, Nate take really good care of his body. He doesn't eat crap like I do. He works out constantly and is aware of his mental health. He takes good care of himself. Why does he have to be the one to suffer like this!?

And on top of it all we find out his sister Cara is here in the E.R. also getting seen. Jeremy is with her. That sonofabitch. I can't even look at him after hearing the things he did to Julia. We may not be the best of friends but I have been raped. Watching Julia recover from it brought up a lot of bad shit in my head.  It is one of the few times I genuinely felt bad for the lady. Because we had something in common. Something terrible. 

And Jeremy Donovan, Julia's Avalon therapist now rapist, is here with Nate's little sister? It makes me sick to my stomach that the kid  got away with what he did and isn't in prison somewhere. He's sick in the head and has everyone wrapped around his fingers, believing him over the victim.  He knows he's in control of Julia's medical files and one bad report would send her locked up in some mental institution for good. Having that kind of power over another human being  like he does over Julia- that's scary.

And knowing Jeremy is pretty much a fucking genius of a doctor and the only one who was ever able to help Julia get through some of her worst Bipolar episodes when no one else could, that's also scary.

[Now what the hell is going on? It's all over the news. ]

Shit.

I look down at my messaged. Elliott is letting me know Nate being in the ER has gone public. With a waiting room full of teenage girls noticing "America's Heartthrob" Nate Hollan, I'm not surprised. But I really don't feel like dealing with Elliott or Richard right now. We are so fucking close to Tour...Nate is not only gonna give himself a heart attack but his managers too.

Once a few guards are able to contain Cara and get her out of this room and into her own, Nate goes down for x-rays. Jonah follows, leaving  me and Paul in the triage room to wait.

I bite the inside of my cheek nervously and look around the room. Paul pulls a chair over to sit next to me and takes my hand. Paul isn't the most cuddly of people but when we are alone together he is a completely different person. No longer a Bodyguard but a real living, breathing human with emotions. Not many people get to witness this side of Paul and I'm glad he lets me in.

"You good, Banks?" He squeezes my hand a little and I drop the side of my head to lean on his shoulder.

" It's one thing after another with his health lately. Scares the fuck outta me." I admit and feel Paul inhale sharply and then kiss the top of my head. It's sweet. It's Paul. The real Paul. But it almost makes me wonder if he still has feelings for me when he acts like this. We agreed compatibility just wasn't there. We are great in bed but boring as hell outside those walls. But moments like these, when Paul takes care of me, are moments when I wonder what's going through his head.

And while Paul is comforting me my mind is on James, wondering what's going on back at the apartment. If Julia is freaking out. If James is ok. 

I find myself thinking about James way more than I should be.

********

*James*

"What the hell is happening tonight!" Casey's eyes widen when she reads a text that comes in.

For once I was the one who was able to calm Julia down. I never want to have to be in this situation again. I realize if I ever want to be with Julia and take care of her I need to grow a backbone. Watching her freak out like that made me freeze up. I wanted to run out of the room and close the door behind me. I hate seeing Julia struggle like this.

Now all eyes are on Casey as we sit in the living room and watch her read incoming text messages from Jonah.

"That was a bad one, sweetie. I've never seen it that bad." I push Julia's hair away from her face.

"I've never felt it like that before." Julia admits aking me think this new medicine may not be the right choice.

"Nate seems stable. His blood pressure is high but that's to be expected. Apparently his sister is also in the ER." Casey explains, trying to downplay it. "I guess Jeremy is with her. She had an episode and was out of control." She pauses and looks down at the new text that just popped up. "Oh good. Nate's EKG is normal."

Both me and Julia let out a sigh of relief.

"Cara.." Casey goes on. "Apparently she hit her head on the corner of her nightstand fighting with a doctor. They think she needs stitches."

"Fight- fighting with a doctor?" I stutter and glance over to Julia.

"What if...." Julia begins to spiral out again. "What if she was fighting OFF a doctor!?"

"Hey, we don't know details yet ok? Don't jump to conclusions." I remind Julia we can't jump to worst case scenarios here. I know what she is thinking. Jeremy.

Casey continues her pacing.

"Nate's going in for a chest X-ray now. They are doing all the right things, Julia."

That's all we can count on. Nate is in good hands. I have to believe that

******

*Trisha*

These are the moments I wish James could use a phone. His hands have trouble coordinating so it's nearly impossible right now. But I could really use him as a friend.

 After Nate's x-ray the nurse gave him something for his nerves and he is now sleeping. Paul is outside the door trying to get more information on Cara and I'm sitting here with a racing mind.

What if they find something more wrong with Nate's heart? I cant stand to think of losing him. He just turned 31. He's too young. I need him. I love him. Jesus Christ I was about to have his baby!

 I can feel myself getting emotional so I rummage through my purse for my bottle of anxiety meds. I take one Ativan out and dissolve it under my tongue. I don't take them often at all but when I do it's because I really need it. Usually it's work related stress but not tonight. 

Tonight is life or death related stress.

"You good in here?" Paul comes back in and closes the door behind him. He can tell I'm about to lose it so sits right next to me again and wraps his big bodyguard arms around me. Paul never says much. He doesn't have to. His actions speak louder than his words.

I bury my face in his chest and cry and Paul holds me. He lets me cry and says nothing just like I need him too. I don't cry often but when I do it's warranted. Not like Julia who cries at the drop of a dime. And when I cry it is for a short amount of time. I can pull myself together fairly quickly and do so tonight.

"What did they say regarding Cara?" I ask, lifting my head off Paul's chest.

"Not much. She was in the middle of one of her Bipolar episodes over something stupid. Smacked her head on the corner of a dresser and needed two stitches. She's already waiting on paperwork to be discharged. Donovan is with her."

"Think he had anything to do with it?" Paul knows exactly what I mean. Did Jeremy do something to provoke Cara into her episode. But she's not quite like Julia. Sometimes Cara doesn't need anything provoking her. It just happens. Julia needs something to happen. She doesn't just spiral out of control for no reason. She has an episode because of something that has happened to her. A trigger.

"I'm not sure. I don't think so but I'm sure Nate will get it out of her next time he sees her."

"Did they say anything about Nate while you were out there??"

Paul shakes his head. It's the waiting game now. Waiting for a doctor to read the X-rays. Waiting for someone to come in and explain everything to us. I'm glad they gave Nate something and he is able to sleep. Also glad he isn't coughing in his sleep. All I can do is hope it was something minor. A little bump in the road. That's it.

It's all any of us can hope for.