"Lydia!" An unknown male voice called out.

I pulled away from Lydia and felt her body tense up. She turned to look behind her and I heard her sharp gasp.

"Michael?"

The unknown man, Michael, stormed in our direction with a not-so-friendly expression on his face. As he got closer, I stepped in front of Lydia, trying to shield her since he seemed like a threat.

"Lydia, who is that?" Dread filled me as I waited for her answer.

"He's-he's my-"

She was so shocked she couldn't even answer my question. As the man finally got closer, I raised my hands in warning.

"Hey, that's close enough." This guy seemed pissed. I didn't care who he was - I wasn't going to let him make her more uncomfortable than she already was.

"This is none of your business," the stranger hissed at me before he looked at Lydia. "What are you doing here?"

I felt her hand grip the back of my shirt. This is not good, I thought. She remained silent, paralyzed by fear.

"Well?" The stranger pressed.

"Why don't you tell me who you are and what you're doing here." I said with an edge in my voice. This guy was asking for it, and with my current legal situation, I really didn't want to punch anyone tonight.

"I'm her fucking brother and I live here." Her brother looked back at her. "It's been almost twenty years, Lydia."

That seemed to bring her out of her trance. "Yeah, it has, Michael. It's been almost twenty years since you, Alex, and mom left me. I was twelve-years-old!"

I reached behind me and took her hand, trying to comfort her while I kept my eyes on her...brother? Holy shit, this night was not going like I planned.

"What choice did we have, Lydia? We weren't much older than you. We were kids! You made it worse for mom with what you did."

"She did it to herself!" Lydia yelled back.

I could feel Lydia starting to shake behind me. This guy was really asking for it.

"I think it's time for you to leave," I said in warning.

The guy didn't seem to hear me. "She was so out of it when she left, me and Alex were thrown into foster care."

"Sean, I can't...I" I turned to look at her and her eyes were wide. She seemed like she couldn't concentrate.

"God, Lydia. Always the victim. Look at your clothes? Is this guy paying you or something?"

I turned to her brother, and my expression must have been what I was hoping for, because he took a step back. "Listen to me, you piece of shit. I don't give a fuck who you are. You don't talk to her that way. Ever."

"Sean, I...can't breathe."

By the time I turned around, Lydia's eyes had rolled to the back of her head. Everything seemed to happen in slow motion. She had a panic attack and passed out. I tried to catch her, but it was too late. She fell to the ground and I heard the gut-wrenching sound of her head connecting with the pavement.

My heart was slamming against my chest as I dropped to my knees and ran my hands over her. "Lydia? Lydia!" She didn't open her eyes and my panic went through the roof. "FUCK!" I pulled my cellphone out of my pocket and dialed 9-1-1.

They answered immediately and I was surprised I could form complete sentences. "Yes, I need an ambulance at 2 Marina Boulevard, Off The Grid, Fort Mason Center. My girlfriend fell and hit her head. Yes, please hurry."

I dropped the phone and turned to look behind me. Her so-called brother was gone. Fucking asshole. I looked back to Lydia and saw some blood on the pavement.

"Fuck, Lydia. I'm so sorry. You're going to be fine."

I held her hand in mine as I waited the five minutes for the ambulance. It really felt like five hours.

They finally arrived and loaded her into the ambulance.

"Who are you, sir?"

"I'm her boyfriend," I answered immediately. So, move the fuck over, I wanted to say.

They made space for me and I sat next to her. I wanted to touch her, to hold her hand. But they were still working on her. They bandaged her head and started calling out vitals, running what tests they could in the ambulance.

What If she doesn't make it? She had to make it.

4:23am Sunday July, 18th
Saint Francis Memorial Hospital

I rubbed my eyes after I finished my fifth, no sixth cup of coffee.

"Mr. Williams, you should try to get some sleep."

I looked at Lydia's nurse and shook my head. "I can't. Not until she wakes up."

When we first got here, I was wacked out of my mind. I was trying to figure out what the hell was going on with Lydia. They took her for a CT and a MRI when we first arrived. Everything came back okay. She had to get six staples in her head. They wanted to keep her here for a few days for observation.

God, this is a mess. Her fucking brother made her have a panic attack. On top of that, I was footing her hospital bill. I didn't mind at all, but I knew she would. I didn't think she had insurance and I wanted to make sure she got all the care she needed.

I watched as the nurse checked her vitals again.

"Everything looks stable right now, Mr. Williams. She's doing well."

"Thank God for that," I said after the nurse left.

I leaned forward and clasped her hand with mine. She had gauze wrapped around her head and oxygen hooked up to her.

"I wish I could take this back, Lydia."

I kissed her hand before laying my head down next to her...

Light stroking of my hair woke me. I opened my eyes and it took me a minute to realize where I was. I shot up instantly and saw Lydia looking at me with a soft smile.

"Lydia?" I asked like an idiot. Obviously, she was awake.

"Hey, you," she said in a quiet voice. "Where-where are we? What happened?"

"You don't remember?"

"It's a little fuzzy. We went on our date. I was having a good time and then-" She frowned and closed her eyes, clearly trying to concentrate. Her eyes opened wide a moment later and she looked around the hospital room. "Michael? Is he here? Where-"

"Hey, it's okay," I reached out and stroked her arm. The fear in her voice was enough to make me want to punch her fucking brother. "He's not here. He took off last night."

"Why am I in the hospital? Did something happen?"

Clearly, she didn't remember that part. "You had a panic attack you passed out. You hit your head."

Her hand shot to the bandage and I grabbed it gently. "Don't touch it. They had to put some staples there."

She leaned back into the pillows before I saw the blood drain from her face. "Oh my, God. Sean, how am I going to pay for this? I don't have insurance, I don't have-"

She stopped her panicked rant and I remained silent when she looked at me. "You paid for this, didn't you? All of this?" I met her stare and when I didn't answer her, she let out a long breath. "Sean, you know I don't like it when you spend money like this on me."

I leaned forward and rested my elbows on my knees. "What was I going to do, Lydia? Let you die here? I think you know me better than that."

"And you know me, Sean. You know I don't like things like this. You knew it would upset me. God, this has to be thousands of dollars."

I rose from my chair and stood at the foot of her hospital bed. "Yeah, I did know it would upset you, and I would do it again. I care about you, Lydia. You, mean something to me. So be mad at me. Hate me. Pay me back the money or don't. I don't give a shit." I inhaled a long breath before I felt my expression soften. "I care about you, Lydia. So, if you don't want to ever see me again, fine. I get it. I pissed you off. But I would pay every cent I had to make sure that you're okay."

I left her hospital room and started walking. I had no idea where I was going, I just needed to get some space. I saw the tears in her eyes when she got upset with me. I knew I crossed a line paying for her hospital bills. But I couldn't do nothing.

I also knew she was probably uncomfortable with all the stuff I said in there. I couldn't help it. All of it was true. I cared about her. More than I would admit to myself.

I found myself outside in the courtyard of the hospital. I let out a tired breath as I sat on one of the benches. I was so exhausted...mentally and physically.

The ringing of my cellphone had me groaning as I pulled it out of my pocket. I didn't even look at the caller ID as I flipped it open.

"Hey, Anne." I said into the receiver.

"How is she, Mr. Williams?" I had filled her in with the highlights of what happened.

"She's better, thank you. Any news?"

"I'm sorry, sir. Your lawyers are still doing everything they can to keep him from pressing charges. It's not looking good right now, but I'll keep you updated."

"Thank you, Anne." I ended the call and glanced at the front of my phone. 2:30pm. Fuck, it's been a long day. I didn't know why, but something was telling me it was going to get worse.

I wanted to talk to Lydia to try to smooth things over. I made my way back to her room and paused in the doorway. Her bed was empty. The bathroom door was open and the light was off. My gut told me she ran off. I walked to the nursing station where Lydia's nurse was typing something up.

"Excuse me, do you know where Lydia went?"

The nurse looked at me with a frown. "She left A.M.A. I thought you knew."

"God dammit, Lydia." I ran a hand through my hair. Where the hell did she go? But then I knew. I pulled my cell phone out of my pocket and dialed Anne's number.

"Anne, I need you to get me an address. The name is Michael Preston."