"Elle."

"Elle, God damn it, wake up!"

I woke up to bright lights and George's face inches from mine.  I pushed him away from me, only to find that I could barely move with my muscles screaming in protest.  My entire body was shaking, even though I had been lying underneath two thick blankets.  

George threw his arms around me.  "Thank God you're alright.  When you fainted I thought I had lost you for good.  What were you thinking?  Never mind.  You don't have to answer that right now.  Just please...don't leave me like that again."

"What...what time is it?  Ouch, George!  That hurts!"

He let go of me.  "I'm sorry.  It's rather late.  You should get some sleep."  Turning off the lamp light, he said, "Don't worry about me.  I'll sleep on the couch."

"Wait," I said, stopping him.  "Will...will you stay with me?"

"Of course."

George was still in his suit, so he went into the bathroom and took everything off, and managed to put on a pair of sweatpants.  As he laid down next to me, I shivered, which caused my muscles to ache.  "I'm so cold." I whispered.  

He pulled the blankets around me, and attempted to wrap his arms around me, but everytime I whimpered in pain.  I must have hit the concrete quite hard, for I almost had scratches all over my arms and neck.  I also soon found out that the back of my head was bruised too.

"Here," I whispered.  I rolled closer to him, tucking my head in between his shoulder and neck.  Then he was able to find a way to wrap his arms around me.  I still continued to shake though.  

"It's alright, Elle.  Are you comfortable?"

"Yes."

The sensation of him lying next to me was so strange, for it felt like we had been fighting for ages.  That morning he had been furious with me, and now I was in his safe embrace.  Many things could happen in twenty-four hours.  

I was shaking so hard I began to cry.  "George, that was so scary."

"I know, I know.  But you won't feel better if you don't sleep."

"George-"

"Elle, go to sleep."

Eventually I did fall asleep, but it was deep and dark, with dreams I hadn't the slightest clue on how to escape from.  

"What on Earth happened last night!"

These words woke me up from my deep sleep, and I began to tremble again.  I tried to hold still for as long as possible, but it was no use.  George awoke only a few moments after I did, for he could feel me shaking.  

He stretched, and hearing the shouting in the living room, he swore and shot up out of bed.  He ran into the bathroom and quickly put on decent clothes.  In good time, too, because only a few moments later did Brian burst into the room.  

"Elle, please tell me what happened.  I pray you know." Brian asked.  I quickly tried to cover myself up.  Even though I was still in my dress from last night, I felt indecent.  

"Hey!" George said.  "She's barely up.  Let me talk."

"Not now, George.  Elle-"

"Brian, we should go somewhere else-"

"George, please-"

"Listen to me!"

"Stop it!" I shouted.  I felt incredibly dizzy, like I was going to faint again.  "I almost killed myself last night!  Are you happy!" 

Brain stared at me for a long time without saying anything.  George did too.  The three missing Beatles had appeared in the doorway.  Minutes went by in silence.  Paul stepped away from the group and took a step towards me.  "You...what?"

"You...you were there." I broke down again, shaking uncontrollably.  "You were trying to get me to jump off the bridge!"

"What?" George shouted, glaring at Paul.  

"Elle, I was at the hotel.  I didn't even know this was happening!"  He tried to take my hands, but I pushed him away. 

"Please...stay away from me." I begged.  "All of you.  Please."

"We can't leave you alone right now, Elle.  Not when you need company most," Brian wiped his brow.  I couldn't imagine why he was nervous.  He nodded to John, Paul and George.  "We need to discuss...this.  Ringo, stay with Elle."  The four men left, and Ringo sat down next to me.  

A sob had built itself up in my throat, and I felt like I couldn't breathe.  "I'm sorry, and now I've caused even more trouble.  This is why I wanted to..." I cried, holding my head in my hands.  The poor Beatle didn't know what to do.  This was a Paul thing to deal with.  

"Elle...I...don't think that way, alright?  It's not good for you.  You've got so many things ahead of you, and things to look forward to.  We all want you here.  Our lives would be dreadfully boring without you."  Ringo took my hands in his own.  They were so warm compared to mine.  "You mustn't think any different.  Now that you've met us, you're stuck with us.  There's no going back now."  He smiled.  I couldn't help but laugh.  

"Thanks, Ritchie."  I kissed his nose.  

There was a knock on the door, and John poked his head in.  In a high-pitched woman's voice he said, "Is Ms. Sullivan here?"

"Yes?"

"Brian wishes to speak to you."  He shut the door, but then added, "But get dressed first."

About fifteen minutes later, Brian beckoned me into the hallway.  Before I could say anything, he began to speak.  

"Now, I know I should not be too firm with you because of last night's...incident, but I must get my point across in a way I know will be effective.  Elle, you are distracting the lads.  I am quite sorry to put it that way, but I don't like sugar-coating tough subjects.  You should know earlier today Paul called for a doctor to see you, and that he will be talking to you throughout today and tomorrow.  He's already arranged for everything, so there's no point in arguing against him.  He obviously cares a great deal about you."  Brian's gaze was like a laser burning into my skin.  I suppose that he remembered the day he walked in on me kissing George.  

He probably thought I was cheating on Paul.

Oh, no...

Brian cleared his throat.  "Because the doctor will be visiting, I have decided you will need some quiet time without the boys in order to make progress with him.  After your treatment, and a few days of rest, I was thinking you could help me with a few more difficult tasks.

"These tasks would most likely take up a few hours of your time each day, but I will increase your pay for it."

"Oh, Sir, there is no need-"

One look from him silenced me.  

He cleared his throat again.  "As I was saying, though these task will be a bit time-consuming, they are important.  I would like you to document the lads' progress each day.  Some of this information will be kept in confidence, others of it will be given to the presses.  And so," he reached into his coat pocket and produced a room key, "because of your new job and your recovery, I believe the room down the hall will suffice."  The manager pressed the key in my hand.  

"Th-Thank you," I stumbled.  He nodded, and turned back to walk into the lads' room.  

"I'll send one of the boys down with your things."  

It was then my turn to nod.  

Walking down the hallway seemed to take ages.  It was like the corridor kept extending, teasing me whenever I got close.  When I finally reached my room and opened the door, I was shocked by how cold it felt.  It was so lonely.  

I sat on the bed, running my hands over the plush blankets.  I turned on the television quietly so there would be some noise in the room.  

A knock on my door reminded me that I wasn't completely isolated.  "Come in."

It was Paul.  Without warning, I immediately stood up and backed away from him, falling into the other bed in the process.  "Wh-What are you doing here?"

He held up my bag.  "I brought you this.  Elle, are you alright?"

I wanted to shout no.  I was most certainly not alright, but I said, "I'm just a bit cold."

"What were you saying earlier?  When I came into the room, you started shaking and said that I was the one who was trying to get you to jump off the bridge." Paul looked like he was about to start crying.  Actually, his eyes were red already.  He had been crying.  

"You..you were there.  Well, it wasn't you.  It was a hallucination.  But you looked so real..." I wondered out loud.  

Paul's voice was softer than a whisper.  "What did I say to you?"

I felt a cry build up in my throat.  "You said that nobody cared about me, and that you all were wishing I had jumped.  So I would be out of your lives forever." 

"Elle..." In Paul's eyes was the sadness of the world.  I wanted to reach out and touch him, but I hadn't the courage.  I was too scared.  Too afraid that what he had said on the bridge the night before might possibly be true.  He never cared.  He never loved me.  "I...I wished I was there.  I could have helped.  You wouldn't have been alone.  I should have known something was wrong.  You didn't say anything the entire day yesterday.  Why...why didn't you tell me about this?  D-Does anyone else know?"

My silence was an indefinite yes.  

"Who knew?"

"Paul-"

"Tell me!"

"John knew!" I cried.  "When we went out on our date we went to the bridge and I was in some sort of trance by the water.  I asked him if he thought it would hurt if I..."  My voice trailed off.  No one could make me finish that sentence.  

Paul sighed, running a hand through his already tousled hair.  Before I could say anything else, he began to shout.  "We could have talked about this, Elle!  I could have helped you!  I would have stayed up with you until dawn if I knew that's what you were going to do.  I would have held you..." He sounded more miserable than I was.  "I thought you trusted me.  I guess I was wrong."

"No, Paul!" I grabbed his arm, an action that surprised the both of us.  "I do trust you.  You don't always have to worry about me."

"If I don't watch over you, you go and do stuff like this!  Can't you see how sick you are?  You isolate yourself from those who care.  From everyone who loves you.  Like..." His voice grew softer as he spoke.  "Like me.  I-I love you, Elle.  If I had said that before, maybe you wouldn't have..."

He looked up at me hopefully, as he was expecting me to love him back.  "Paul, I...I'm sorry.  I'm so, so sorry."  I turned away from him so he wouldn't see the tears in my eyes, but he took my arm and pulled me back around.  Bringing my body to his, his lips met mine.  It was a passionate kiss, one that left me breathless, even though I couldn't bring myself to kiss him back.  He pulled away abruptly, knowing that I wasn't feeling anything he was trying to express to me.  

"Goodbye, Elle." He said, before leaving and shutting the door.  

I fell onto the  bed.  I recalled Paul right when I met him, and how happy and carefree he was.  A playful little boy with a cutsie exterior.  Now, he was a hardened man who couldn't bear to see me anymore.  

And it was all my fault.  

I'm so sorry.

Paul's POV

None of the lads said much that night, which I was almost thankful for.  I hadn't the heart to practice or go out.  I was too busy thinking about what had almost happened the night before.  

Elle would have died if George hadn't been there to stop her.  

I wasn't the most emotional person, but I certainly was not stoic.  I cried like a baby that night, though.  The only word that kept running through my head was why.  Why did she think those thoughts?  Why was I the one tempting her to jump?  Why would she even think about climbing up on the railing?

Why wasn't I there to stop her, to help her when she needed me most?

That night, when I kissed her, I didn't know what I was thinking.  Did I just think I could snog her, and make everything better?  That she would fall asleep in my arms, and wake up happy and sound-of-mind?  I was too naive for my own good.

But as I laid in bed that night, I couldn't stop thinking about her.  She was lying in her room, all alone.  The distance between us felt like miles instead of a few meters.  

Why would she want to be alone?

And why were we isolating her after she tried to commit suicide?

As the night grew darker, I began to fear the worst, so I hurried to get some decent clothes on and ran down the hall.  Maybe she didn't want me there, and maybe she never cared, but I loved her more than anything.  The thought of her being alone when she needed someone was unbearable.  

Luckily, her door was unlocked, which wasn't necessarily safe, but in this situation I was thankful for it.  

"Who's there?" She sat up in the darkness.  

"It's me." I said.  "I didn't want you to be alone."

"Paul, I can't-"

"I know you don't want me here, but I just...I want to be here with you.  You shouldn't be alone."  I didn't wait for her to reply before laying down next to her.  It was a bold move, and one that I was prepared to be punished for, but she didn't say a word in protest.  But for the first hour or so she kept her distance, and didn't face me.  

After awhile, she must have gotten cold, because she scooted closer to me, shivering.  Soon she was so close she was resting her head on my shoulder.  Though, I knew she had fallen asleep.  

Kissing her forehead, I whispered before my voice broke, "I love you so much."

I'm so sorry.

 Hello, loves!

I'm sorry I didn't reply to anyone's comments on the last chapter.  I didn't know what to say and I planned to update sooner.  

Those reactions, though...Wow.

Peace, 

Luna <3