A/N: The image above does not belong to me. It belongs to the person who uploaded it on the internet.

Max's POV

As soon as that flirt of a nurse Vicky left the room, I rushed up to Tul's bedside.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa! Before you throw hands at me let me explain," Tul said, instinctively covering his face to protect himself. "Vicky had started to perform an assessment of my concussion and then commented that my facial skin seemed so well taken care of and was asking what skin products I used for it. She was admiring my facial skin and asked if she could run her fingertips on it. There was nothing more to it, I swear to god."

I calmed down a little bit.

"When are you getting discharged?" I asked.

"Hopefully tomorrow," he replied.

I did notice that his facial skin was so clear and unblemished. But so was mine. We used the same skin products. We always shared stuff. What was mine was his and what was his was mine. 

I just wished that I did not have trust issues with him. I guess it was because he had a romantic history whereas he was the first and last love of my life. I was aware that there was always the possibility of an ex reappearing in one's life and too many couples' lives had been destroyed because of that.

"And then how long do you have to recuperate at home before you can go back to work?" I wanted to know.

"The doctor hasn't told me that yet," he replied. "I'm guessing he will tell me that when he visits me tomorrow morning to give his discharge instructions."

"I would like to stay home and keep you company but my boss is gonna kill me if I don't show up at work," I said with a regretful smile.

"You don't have to," Tul said. "I'll be okay by myself."

"Don't let anyone visit you while I'm at work," I said firmly.

"But mom is coming to see me," Tul said. "She's bringing me loads of groceries and fruit and cooked food."

"Don't let anyone visit you except mom," I corrected myself. "And don't hog all the food to yourself. Save some for me. You know how I so love her cooking. Is she bringing our favorite chicken pineapple curry?"

"She didn't say that but I'm assuming that she will," Tul replied. "That's what she always brings whenever she visits us."

The rest of the day was a pleasant one for both Tul and myself. Soon visiting hours were over and I had to head home.

I gave Tul a passionate kiss for as long as I could until he pushed me away saying, "Don't get me all excited for nothing. I'm in a hospital bed not in our love bed at home."

We both chuckled and I gave him a chaste kiss on his forehead.

"I will call you tomorrow morning before I leave for work," I said. "Let me know what the doctor says about your discharge date."

"I will," he said.

I met Vicky in the hallway. She was carrying an IV bag. I didn't know if she was headed for Tul's room or for some other patient's room.

She glared at me. When she came close enough within earshot, I hissed at her, "Stay away from my husband."

"He won't be by the time you return," she whispered back in a venomous tone.

What the fuck. The thought of reporting her to hospital management entered my mind.

I had a fitful sleep. I kept waking up not just to use the bathroom but because I kept getting nightmares about seeing Tul walking down the aisle of a chapel with Vicky wearing a triumphant smile while clinging to the crook of his arm.

When I woke up I had to rush through my morning routine to avoid being late for work.

"You should not be partying on a Sunday night," Debbie greeted me as I passed by her desk.

That was her way of telling me that I looked haggard. I was going to correct her idea that I had partied all night but that I had spent all of Sunday night in the hospital instead when, crap, I remembered that I had not kept my promise of calling Tul before leaving for work.

I rushed to the men's room and tapped on Tul's number.

Fuck. He wasn't picking up. He had left my call to go to his voicemail. What the hell was going on. If he didn't pick up on my second call I would have to wait till my coffee break before I could call again. I hoped that Vicky was not making good on her threat right now.

I tried my best to focus on my work.

My supervisor approached my desk with a bunch of papers.

"Good morning, Sandra," I greeted her.

"Morning, Max," she said, "we need to revise this. The big boss said this ad needs to address the younger generation. We have to focus on tweens not teenagers. Teenagers consider themselves too old for what we're trying to sell."

"Okay," I said, accepting the papers she was handing me. "When do you need these back?"

"Before the end of the day," she replied.

"I'll try," I said.

"Don't try. Do it," she said before walking away from my desk.

I tried my best to keep from looking at the clock and waiting for coffee break time. As soon as it came I did not bother going to the staff lounge to get some coffee and snacks.

I walked out into the patio and tried calling Tul again. He took my call this time.

"Hello," his voice sounded unsteady.

"Sweets, is everything okay?" I asked.

"Yes," he replied. "I just woke up. The pain medication that the nurse gave me last night through IV must have been really strong. It knocked me out completely."

Vicky's threat came to me immediately. Was that was she meant when she said that by the time she was finished with Tul he wouldn't be my husband any longer, or something to that effect?

I suppressed the urge to leave work and to rush to the hospital.

"Has your doctor been to see you yet?" I asked.

"No, but I'm assuming that he will see me this morning," he replied.

"Update me as soon as you can," I said.

"I will, sweetheart," he said. "I love you."

"I fucking love you so much," I replied. "Don't flirt with anyone there."

"I'm always faithful to you, sweetheart," he said.

"Sure manure," I said before cutting the call.

By lunchtime I got a call from Tul.

"Hey," I said as soon as I swiped my screen.

"Can you come pick me up after work?" he asked. "I'm getting discharged after five today."

"So all your tests came back fine? You did not have any complications from your concussion?" I asked excitedly.

"I'm good to go, baby," he replied.

For some reason, his calling me 'baby' got me all horny. I had to wait a while to calm down inside my pants before I could go back to my workdesk.