*Trisha*

"Ok, ok. I'm done." I put the handheld weights down when I notice Paul look up at the clock in the gym for the third time. 

"I don't know why you bother coming down here with me, Paul.  Dave can't get into this building and doesn't even know it exists. You could have stayed upstairs." I grab my water and towel so we can head back upstairs.

"No. That's not how it works." Paul shoves his phone in his back pocket and leads the way.

"Then tell me, how does it work? Will I still need a bodyguard after I get a restraining order?" I hit the elevator button so we can head back up to Nate's flat.

"Probably. A restraining order doesn't prevent someone from going near you. It just puts them in jail when they do.  Sorry, Banks. I think you're stuck with for a while."

I don't mind. At all. But I also feel bad for Paul. I tend to keep busy, and I know my schedule is tiring for the guy. Once up at Nate's I take over his shower. I've pretty much taken over the entire master bedroom while he's in the hospital.

Once done using all Nate's hot water, I swing the bathroom door open, completely naked, without a care in the world and jump a mile and a half to see Nate lying on his bed.

"Shit!"  I scramble to grab the towel behind me on the counter while Nate laughs. It doesn't even phase him one bit. I wrap the towel around me as he smirks 

"Oh, please. I've seen you naked a million times." He reminds me.

"Yeah, yeah, ok, Playboy. But you're home. This is a good thing, right??"  I sit next to him on the bed, and he pretends to grab the top of my towel to peek down. He's such a flirt sometimes. "Knock it off. You're with Julia." I swat him away.

"I'm not staying. She's in PT and then has to go get bloodwork done, so I instead of sitting there staring at James, Jonah took me home for a bit. And I have no fucking clue what's going on with Julia. You know that.  She's with nobody and everybody at the same time"

He props himself more with the pillows and scoots up to lean against the headboard. I can tell his ribs are still causing him pain. He'll never admit it but he's having a tough recovery. "Looks like you took over my room, yeah?" 

"What are ya gonna do about it? Kick me to the curb??" I lean back onto the headboard with him 

"Never. The room is all yours."

"That's what I thought. But seriously, Nate. How ya holding up. This whole thing has been a shitshow, hasn't it?" I use Nate's shoulder as my pillow and snuggle up against him while we talk, making sure to hold on to the towel.

"I should be asking you the same thing. How are YOU holding up here?"

"You know..."I try to blow him off and not answer. I don't really want to get into what I'm dealing with. Nate has enough on his plate. I'm not gonna have him start worrying about me too.

"No. I don't Trish." He looks down at me with those blue eyes and I melt. I let out a sigh and sugarcoat it while looking away.

"I'm fine. You know that. I'm always fine."

He pulls my chin up, so I'm forced to look at him.

"You're an awful liar, dollface." He holds me tighter. "Talk."

"I'm just worried.  About James. About you. About .... Dave..."

"There's nothing more we can do for James but wait. I'm fine, and why the hell are you worrying about Dave??" Nate arches an eyebrow at me.

"Not worried about him. I mean, I am. He's still Dave. He's going through a hard time with his alcoholism, just like you did."

"I NEVER gave you black and blue marks. Don't you dare put me in that same category as that asshole." 

"Obviously.... But that's not it. I'm never gonna go back to my apartment, am I? I'm always gonna be watching over my shoulder, waiting for 'Drunk Dave' to show up. You know 'Sober Dave is a completely different person." I explain. "And I can't get either of them out of my head. I just want to forget everything."

"I can help you forget him." He says jokingly. "You just need to get laid." Ugh he drives me crazy sometimes.

"One, you're with Julia...kinda... Two.... I don't know what two is, but there's a two somewhere." I sigh.

"Yeah." It's his only responses he inhales sharply. I study his face when he closes his eyes and when he opens them, he cocks his eyebrow and looks down at me. "May I help you?"

I look away and sit up.

"You're off limits. I should get dressed."

And just like that, the moment is gone. I grab my clothes out of the suitcase. I drop my towel and start getting dressed. Nate groans when he sees me naked. Like he hasn't seen this a trillion times before.

"You're killing me."  Nate puts a pillow over his face to not look at me.

"Hey. Not my fault you're with someone. Kinda..."

"Stop with your 'kinda'.... you're not helping." He muffles against the pillow.

"Oh, please." I rip the pillow away now that I'm in my bra and underwear. "You said yourself you don't know what's gonna happen when James wakes up."

"What I know is right now, I'm with her. That's all I need to know. And I won't cheat on her. But you need to get dressed before I change my mind and rip into you, Trisha."

"Then you may wanna keep an eye on that hot doctor of hers. Because the way he looks at her..."

"Everyone looks at her that way. Now get dressed and get outta my room so I can take care of what you've done to me." Nate raises an eyebrow, and I look down at his arousal shaking my head.

"Well, you need to have a conversation and see what's going on between the two of you before I do ANYTHING for you." I wave my finger at Nate and finish getting dressed.

Once dressed I grab my laptop and sit on the couch next to Nate. I can tell he is enjoying being back in his own home. I don't blame him.

"So you think you're ready to start getting back into the schedule?" I open up the calendar and Nate glances at it.

"I just worry about how Julia's gonna take it." He looks down at me nervously.

"How she's gonna take you going back to work? I mean, Nate. C'mon now.  Things need to get done. Promos. Interviews. Talk shows. All the stuff you used to get excited for before Julia came to town. Don't you miss that life?"

"I do. But it's not really what's important right now."

"Well, it should be.  Don't you forget who you are. You are one of the most sought out singer songwriters in the universe. You're side by side with your friends Swift and Styles. Don't let your moment pass you by, Nate. You'll regret it." I tuck a lock of his hair up away from his forehead while I talk.

"Look. We have your Annual Heart Association fundraiser coming up. You always get excited for this event. This is your event. Your night. You dedicated this foundation to your dad and raise a ton of money through the fundraiser. Aren't you the least bit excited for it?"

 I can tell he is. He's been so caught up with shit here that he forgot of all the things he's a part of. All the things that make Nate Nate. This fundraiser is a huge deal, and I know is father would be proud of him. I can see it in Nate's eyes when I mention this upcoming night. They brighten right up.

"Do you want to come with me? Be my plus one? Julia sure as hell can't right now." He looks down at me and smiles. He KNOWS I love this stuff.

"Me? Are you asking me to the prom?" I tease.

"I am. Use my card. Buy yourself a new dress.  Be my plus one and make us look like the hottest fucking couple that walks through those doors." His loud laugh echoes through the huge apartment. 

There's the Nate I'm used to.

 He's back.