The alert in the medical centre went off and startled me awake, but after looking around at everything around me, I was confident it wasn’t related to me. Hopefully Kylian had got Dion fed and in bed again. He really needed sleep. The sound of feet and Alessio arguing with someone had me damn curious about what was going on.

He opened my curtain and had crutches in his hand. “Time to go. I don’t have fucking space for you any longer and you’ll be fine. You’ll have to Kylian’s most likely and have the other doctor look after you.”

“What happened?” I asked, moving in the bed.

“I have an entire strike team on the way here in bits and pieces, and it’s going to be all hands-on deck. As it is, Zev will help and Marco is bringing Ambrose, if its worse than we can handle, I’ll be taking ownership of your little friend too.” Alessio said, as he gave me the crutches and made sure I could walk with them.

“His name is Dion.”

“Yeah, yeah. I’ll take the chance to learn it when I’m not busy.” He muttered, grabbing my blanket and tossing it into his office on the couch in there. “Go right here for now. I’ll have someone come get you.”

“Do you want me the drag all this with me, or?” I said, gesturing to the machines, and he groaned before disconnecting the IV, but leaving it in my hand. While I used the crutches to get to his office, he deep cleaned the room quickly. Getting it prepared for whatever came through the door.

Alessio came to make sure I got on the couch alright, and he tossed me the pillows he came with. “Take a nap or something.”

“Got it.” I said, and he grabbed scrubs out of the closet, and I closed my eyes propped up on the couch, now wrapped in my blanket. This couch was oversized and comfortable. It served as a place where Alessio could nap between patients on a busy day. He pulled the side table closer and set his laptop on it. “Some TV for you, to drown out all the noises that are going to be out here.”

He closed the door after making sure he had everything he needed, and I tossed some wildlife show on the laptop for background noise. The medication helped me fall back to sleep in the middle of all the people running in and out of the centre. At some point, I was faintly aware of someone who was taking my hand and messing around with it, but not enough to completely wake me up.

I woke up to the sound of yelling, but didn’t open my eyes. It was Alessio. “Start CPR. If you can’t get anything in five, don’t waste the time. We don’t have it.”

Opening my eyes finally, I came face to face with a woman in scrubs and realized she must be one of the family members that Alessio and Maddox paid to train for this. She was holding my hand and administering more medication.

“Bad out there?” I muttered, and she nodded. “Yeah, it’s bad. Three have already died, and we have a lot more to do than we first thought.”

“Did Alessio bring Dion?”

“The new Doctor, yes. He’s been a significant change. He’s good at this.”

“Mm, said he was a trauma surgeon.” I muttered, as a warmth flooded over me, and I realized it must be more pain medication. Closing my eyes again, I barely heard the lady leave.

The next time I opened my eyes; I was in Kylian’s arms. “Ew. It’s you.” I muttered and dropped my head on his shoulder.

“I’ll get the door.” I heard Dion say, and I opened an eye again. He was in ill-fitting scrubs, covered in blood, and if I didn’t know any better, I would have been concerned.

“How many?” I asked, and Kylian huffed. “Worry about that later. I’m supposed to feed you and get you relaxed on the couch.”

The couch was cold on my back as Kylian laid me there, and Dion moved pillows and my blanket around me, making sure I couldn’t move. He checked me over, vitals and all, before he let his shoulders drop.

“Watch him. I’m borrowing your shower.” Dion said before he trudged to the bathroom. He looked so exhausted.

“Let me get you something to eat, and then you can go through the medications that Ilya brought me off your countertop and take the ones you need, too.” Kylian said, and I remembered about the medication I asked for from Alessio.

“Is there a green bottle with a fancy long name over there?” I asked.

“I’ll have a look after I finish making you something to eat, and your brother is coming here tomorrow with Meadow. She wants to see you, and she won’t take no for an answer,” he said.

He brought me food around the same time Dion came out of the shower, changed back into loose clothing and that was clearly Kylian’s.

Kylian brought me all the bottles of medications, and the new one from Alessio was missing. Dion huffed, “You will not find that medication you’re looking for. I disposed of it. On top of killing your sex drive, it kills just about every other feeling of joy.”

“But that wasn’t your choice. Alessio gave me that----”

Dion cut me off. “He also asked me to get rid of it. He wanted me to take you off the medication. He claimed to have a better idea and medication in mind.”

“Why wouldn’t he discuss this with me? Why did he bring it up with you?” I said, before shoving more food into my mouth.

“Simple. I asked why the hell you were taking such a high dosage of such a potent medication. He said it wasn’t something you needed to take. So, as your current doctor, I made the choice to take you off a medication you don’t need.”

I had a lot in that moment I wanted to say to him, but if Alessio told him I didn’t need it, who was I to argue that? I didn’t have an education in medicine. Shoving another bite of food into my mouth, I chewed it and swallowed before I sighed.

“I felt like I needed the medication.”

“Your sex drive can’t be that bad that you should need to have such strong medication. Hell, a normal dosage of different antidepressants will do the same thing without taking away all the joys of life.” Dion said, going to sit on the other couch.

“You don’t know me. You do not know how bad my sex drive is. I’ve left my daughter with my brother more times than I can count so that I can get fucked or do the fucking. It sounds so fucking scummy when I say it out loud, but God, it’s the truth.” I said, setting the rest of the food on the coffee table. I wasn’t hungry anymore. I lost my urge to eat.

“It still just doesn’t seem right, Nikki. I slept with you that night, and I wouldn’t say you have a sex drive that bad. If you did, you wouldn’t have been tired out as soon as you were. You would have wanted more,” he said, and I could tell this was a conversation he would not let me win by any chance.

Frustrated with him, I pulled my hand through my hair. “You don’t know me, Doctor. All we did was fuck for one night.”

“You clearly much have trusted me then. Why would someone who only fucked me for one night come to me while they were bleeding out?” he said, clearly upset with me now. He muttered something to Kylian before he walked to Kylian’s bedroom and closed the door a little heavy-handed.

“If you’re done eating, I’ll take this away, then.”

“Yeah, sorry. I’ve lost my appetite.” I muttered and laid back, looking up at the ceiling. “Just let me rest here for the night, and I’ll go home in the morning.”

Kylian didn’t respond, but I heard him walk by to his bedroom, and the sound of him shutting the door confirmed that. The worst idea was leaving the crutches where they were against the back of the couch. Sitting up, I pulled them over the back of the couch. Using my good leg to stand up, I tucked the crutches under my arms and tested to make sure I could get around.

Two excellent steps gave me far more confidence than I really needed.

Making it to the door, I flipped the lock and opened the door, just. Kylian’s coworker Fox saw me struggling and held the door open for me.

“Hey, good to see you up and moving already, but are you sure you should be? Shouldn’t Kylian be with you?”

“Eh, I’m good.” I muttered, and took off down the hall before he could stop me, or before he ratted me out to Kylian. Getting around the corner, I came face to face with Vito and his other half, Ilya.

“I’m pretty sure this isn’t where you’re supposed to be, right Nikki?” Ilya said.

“Just out for a walk.” I said and looked at Vito, using my eyes to beg him to take Ilya away. But no, he wouldn’t do that.

“Right, so I’m going to call Kylian because he’s the one Alessio asked to help you and the new doctor out. I don’t see him, so like the rest of you fucking Mihail’s you’re escaping.” Ilya huffed and fished his phone out of his pocket.

Vito surely noticed I was debating on running. He grabbed my shoulder and held me in the spot. I could hear Kylian cursing on the other of the phone as soon as Ilya got a hold of him, and I knew he was going to whoop my ass. I waited for a moment, and once I was sure Vito had relaxed his grip on my shoulder, I yanked myself away.

“Heh, you little fucker.” Kylian hissed when he came around the corner. Dion was right behind him, a frustrated look on his face.

“Eh, I’m not interested in this party.” I said, using the crutches to get away, further down the hall, having slipped past Ilya and Vito. My choices here were limited. Matteo and Caio’s, Alessio and Lev’s, or take my chances with Dion and Kylian.

Stopping at the end of the hall, I waited for Kylian and Dion to catch up.

“Are you done?” Kylian said, and I could tell he was pissed now.

“For the moment, yes. I’m tired now.” I said, and Dion was the one who grabbed me first. His hands were rough as he grabbed the shirt on my body and wrapped his fist in it. “You are so fucking lucky. Do you have any idea what it took to keep you alive? I should punch you!” he said.

“Later.” I said and tried to untangle his fist from my shirt. His other hand grabbed my jaw tightly, his fingers applying enough pressure to bruise me. “You’re not going to do this again. I promise.”

Looking at Kylian to save me, he didn’t seem at all interested in that. Instead, he snatched the crutches from me, handing them to Dion as he threw me over his shoulder, not at all avoiding the spots where I had stitches. He bumped one of my wounds against his chest and I swore in that moment I could puke from the pain.

He carried me back to his place, and as he set me down on the couch again, his thumb pressed onto a wound and I dry heaved before throwing up from the pain.