DEAN'S POV

The shrill ringing of a phone cut through the beautiful dream I was having chasing River through a field of sunflowers. Her smile rivaled the brightness of the sun and her skin was as smooth as the flower petals all around us. The annoying ringtone cut off and I sighed ready to go back to sleep only for it to start all over again. Whose phone was that because it sure as hell wasn't mine?

"D that's your phone."A sleepy feminine voice mumbled next to me.

I blinked my eyes open to be met with the naked body of Effie lying next to me. The phone kept ringing and now that I was half awake I was able to recognize the ringtone of my new iPhone. I still needed to get used to owning such an expensive device.

I got out of bed to find my pants using the light from the bulb in the corridor. I found them by the door where I'd discarded them in the throes of list earlier that evening. I retrieved the annoying device ready to tear whoever was calling me a new one.

"Dishan it's three am in the fucking morning. You had better not be calling me to come pick you up."I demanded.

Dishan had called me a couple of times in the past to pick him up from the club when he was too drunk to drive. I always did out of respect for our friendship but after hiking all day with River followed by a couple of hours of vigorous sex with Effie, all I wanted to do was sleep.

"River was attacked."He replied those three words freezing the blood in my veins.

"What did you just say?"I gritted out.

"She's at Aga Khan hospital. I think you'd better come."Dishan replied and hang up without giving me any more details.

River had been attacked? How? When? Where?

"Fuck."I cussed in anger.

"D, what's wrong?"Effie asked me getting up from the bed, her nipples perking up with the cold.

"I need to go."I replied frantically pulling on my boxers and pants.

I slid on my shoes, grabbed my shirt and car keys unlocking the door quickly. The woman had too many licks on her door. Normally I would have approved of that but they were delaying me. For all I knew River could be dying.

"It's three in the morning, come back to bed."Eddie requested.

Go back to bed when River was hurt? Hell no!

"Thanks for tonight, I'll see you around."I rushed out.

With that I ran out the door foregoing closing it. I put on my shirt as I flew down the stairs jumping into the car as soon as I got to the parking lot. It took forever for the guard to open the gate but my timing was distorted from fear so it probably only took him a couple of minutes. I peeled out of the compound driving out of there like a mad man. There were no cars on the road seeing as it was three am in the morning so I drove at the maximum speed of a hundred and ten only slowing down for bumps.

The drive from Utawala to Parklands was roughly about thirty minutes without traffic but I got there in fifteen. I had narrowly escaped death a few times but I got there in one piece. The guard at the gate allowed me in and showed me where to park. The hospital was deserted at that time of night except for the night staff so it was easy to spot Dishan waiting for me next to the nurses station.

"Did you fly?"He asked as soon as he saw me.

"I wish? Where is she? What happened?"I asked bracing myself for the worst.

Rugged had to be okay. She just had to be or someone would be paying with their blood at the end of the night.

"Nobody knows. She arrived at the hotel lobby at one and passed out in Felista's arms. They called me and we brought her here."He explained.

"Two hours?"I mumbled quietly.

"What?"

"It took you two fucking hours to call me."I gritted out.

"I'm sorry man but I was freaking out as well. I've never had a guest attacked under my watch."Dishan defended.

"Where is she?"I asked ignoring his apology.

"She's with the doctor. He asked us to wait."Dishan replied.

"How bad is it?"

"From what I could tell she has a broken nose and maybe a couple of broken ribs. The rest are minor cuts and bruises."Dishan explained.

"Jesus!"I cried grasping my head in my arms.

A broke nose? Ribs?

"So no one knows how she got hurt?"

"She passed out before she could say anything and was still unconscious when we arrived."Dishan replied avoiding my gaze.

He knew more than he was telling me.

"Dishan don't make me beat it out of you. We're in a hospital, I'll do it and they'll just patch you up. Maybe I can give you a broken nose."I threatened.

"Okay fine but only because I like my nose. Felista told me that River left the hotel at about nine to go get pizza and when she didn't see her come back she just assumed she had arrived when she was on break."Dishan rushed out.

"Pizza? Why didn't she just order that from the kitchen?"

"It's not on the menu. Felista offered to order for her but River insisted on going out on her own."Dishan defended.

I didn't know who to be mad at so I stormed off away from Dishan before I smashed his pretty face in. How could River had been so reckless? The one rule I gave her was to never go anywhere without me. I knew how unsafe Nairobi could be especially for a foreigner as young as River. At least she was alive but how much suffering had she endured. What had those thugs done to her besides beat her up? Nine am and one pm was four hour difference of unaccounted time. A lot could have happened in four hours. I refused to let my mind drift too far before I went on a killing spree.

I caught my reflection on a clear mirror and I stepped back in fear of what I saw. I'd never been so angry before so I took deep breaths to calm my breathing. Once I could breath normally again I walked back to where Dishan was and sat quietly next to him. He didn't say anything to me which was for the best as I was very close to snapping.

An hour later which to me felt like a whole decade, the doctor came and I immediately jumped to my feet.

I was already on him before he had a chance to say anything."How is she?"

"What is your relationship with the patient?"The doctor asked.

"If this is the part where you tell me you can't tell me anything unless I'm family then forget it and start talking."I demanded.

The doctor looked scared for a moment so Dishan pulled me back and stepped in.

"Miss Anderson is a tourist staying at my hotel and my very angry friend over here is a close companion. Just tell us doctor, we are all she has."Dishan explained.

"Okay fine. Miss Anderson will be okay. We reset her nose and it will heal in three to four weeks. She has two broken ribs and the rest are bruised which will heal in a month or so as long as she avoids any strenuous activity. She also has a cut on the back of her head that we managed to treat. It should heal on its own without any stitches because to get those we would have to shave her hair and I didn't want to do that. Other than that she is okay."The doctor explained.

"What about other injuries?"I asked emphasizing the word so I didn't have to spell it out for the doctor.

Thankfully he was a sharp man and understood what I meant.

"She's safe."He assured me.

"Thank God."I sighed in relief.

If whoever had attacked River had touched her, I would have razed the whole city in anger.

"We'd like to keep her under observation for a couple more hours due to the concussion then we'll discharge her later in the day."The doctor requested.

"Thanks doc, can we see her?"Dishan asked.

"Of course, one of the nurses will take you. She'll be waking soon."He replied.

Dishan thanked him once again while I acknowledge his help with a polite nod. I was too wound up to play nice but I would be okay once I set my eyes on River. The nurse took us to her room and Dishan allowed me to walk in first but I was not prepared for what I saw.

Her face was different shades of purple especially around her bandaged nose. She had another one crossing over her forehead. They had changed her into a hospital gown making her look more delicate than she was. Her hair still had dirt on it ruining the blonde curls I'd grown to love.

"My beautiful rose, what did they do to you?"I whispered caressing her face.

She looked like a fallen angel with her injuries but I preferred my flawless beauty.

"Doctor said she should be awake soon."Dishan whispered next to me.

All I wanted was to see those beautiful blue eyes to assure me that she really was okay. I took a seat next to her on the bed holding her warm hand in mine.

"Dean I know you're angry but you have to understand..."

My gaze snapped to him remarried rendering him silent with a glare"No! I don't have to understand shit so you better shut the fuck up or leave."

When River was with me she was my responsibility and I always made sure she was safe and happy like carrying her for two kilometers when she was too tired. When she was at the hotel it was Dishan's responsibility to make sure that she was safe and he had failed at that.

"Don't fight boys."River croaked and I turned to find her struggling to wake up.

"Waridi."I yelped getting to my feet to help her sit up.

I propped up her behind her pillows making her more comfortable.

"Where am I?"She asked tugging at her hospital gown.

She looked confused and disoriented but safe which is what mattered most.

"Aga Khan Hospital."Dishan answered.

"How bad is it?"River asked echoing the same question I had earlier.

"A broken nose, two broken ribs, more bruised ribs and a concussion."I recited.

"Not as bad as I thought."She replied nonchalantly even though it was clear that she was in pain.

I scoffed at her nonchalancy to the whole situation"Not as bad? River you're literally purple! What were you thinking going out on your own like that?"I demanded.

"I'm sorry, I wasn't thinking."She apologized.

"What was the one rule I gave you?"I asked trying to stay cool but failing miserably.

River dropped her head to her chest avoiding eye contact with me."To never go anywhere alone."

"Exactly, to never go anywhere alone. Then why did you go out by yourself tonight? You could have died River? There is a reason I made that rule. Not everyone is as kind as Dishan and I. There are ugly people out there in the streets who would kill you without blinking. What you did tonight was stupid and reckless. You didn't think about the consequences and....." I rambled on but Dishan cut me off.

I had so much more to say and reeling it in only made me angrier.

"D.K enough. You're scaring her."Dishan boomed.

"She should be scared. What if she had died tonight?"I bit out looking at River who's shoulders were shaking as she cried.

It hurt to see her crying because of my words but she needed to understand the gravity of what she had done.

"The point is that she did not die. She is safe and sound with us. Now calm down. River, sweetheart, stop crying. Dean didn't mean it. He was worried as we all were."Dishan consoled.

"Dean I'm sorry."River sniffed but I refused to let her tears sway me.

I could have lost her.

"Tell us what happened?"Dishan requested.

I didn't want to hear the story of how they beat her up but at the same time I couldn't not know.

"I was coming back to the hotel when they attacked. They pulled me to a dark corner and took all the money I had. When they realized I didn't have much on me or my phone, they got angry and beat me up. I passed out when I hit my head on a rock and when I woke up I had no idea what time it was so I dragged myself back to the hotel."River explained.

Each word she spoke was a like a dagger straight to my heart.

"Did you see any of their faces?"Dishan asked.

"No they had their faces covered and it was too dark for me to see."River sniffed drying her tears with the palm of her hands.

"Usually cases like this don't get solved but we can try and report to the police."Dishan suggested.

"There's no need, they probably won't be caught and I don't have the energy to work with the police. They didn't take much and my injuries will heal."River replied.

"They didn't take much? River you look more blue than white."I gritted out unable to take my eyes off her.

I knew I was repeating myself but it hurt to look at her. Her once pale white cheeks were mangled with cuts and scraps. Her ruby red lips, the reason behind my nickname for her had cuts and bruises. She looked like she had just survived a fight with a bunch of street dogs and lost.

"Dean seriously you need to cool off. Scolding her in only making her feel worse and achieving nothing."Dishan demanded.

"No Dean is right, I broke the rules and I got hurt. It's all my fault."She cried burying her face in her hands and breaking down all over again.

Dishan glared at me but he didn't faze me.

"River stop berating yourself. The important thing is that you're safe and you will heal."Dishan consoled.

He was coddling her when he should have been backing me up.

River lay back on the bed turning on her side ignoring the both of us.

"I'll leave you to get some rest and will come to check up on you in a few hours."Dishan said to River squeezing her shoulder comfortingly.

"Fix this."He whispered glaring at me before leaving the room.

Rivers cries faded out to soft sobs and I couldn't take it anymore. I sat at the edge of her bed and pulled on her shoulder. She struggled at first but eventually let me turn her. I opened my arms for her and she cried sitting up to hug me burying her face in my neck.

"Shh, it's okay, I've got you. I'm here now."I cooed.

I rubbed her back running my fingers through her hair to soothe her.

"I'm really sorry Dean."She sobbed.

I could feel her tears soaking my shirt and with each gut wrenching sob my guilt for scolding her increased.

"Hush now waridi. You're safe now."I reassured her.

Eventually she did stop crying so I gave her a handkerchief to clean her face.

"Don't cry anymore but you have to understand that what you did tonight was..."

"Stupid, I know."She sniffed her voice gruff with emotion.

"Yes and reckless. I've never been so scared in my life. What if something worse happened to you? I would never be able to forgive myself."I expressed showing just how vulnerable her attack had made me.

"When Dishan called me every worst case scenario ran through my mind as I tried to get here. River you've become important to me and the rules we set are there for a reason, to keep you safe and to keep me sane."I reasoned trying to make her see why I was so angry at her.

"I know and I'm sorry, it will never happen again."She promised me.

"I know. Get some rest now, your body needs it."I said getting up to help her lie back down.

"Stay with me."She begged holding back my hand.

"Of course, I'm not going anywhere."I said taking my previous seat next to her bed.

River linked our hands together laying them on her stomach as she glanced at me.

"Don't be mad at me anymore."She begged.

"I can't promise that but I promise not to yell at you again. Now sleep."I soothed lifting her hand to my lips.

River closed her eyes and within minutes she was asleep giving her body the much needed rest.

She was okay. She was safe.

With that thought in mind I was finally able to relax. I lay back on the seat and dozed off with River sleeping peacefully infront of me.

I woke up a sometime later to multiple voices conversing in the room.

I was disoriented at first unaware of where I was until I recognized River on the bed. She looked much better now that she wasn't crying but the bruises on her face told me that her accident had not been a dream.

"Now see what you've done, you woke him up."River scolded as I lifted my head off her bed in a stretch.

Dishan was back and the doctor was also in the room. The clock mounted on the wall read nine am meaning I'd been out for a couple of hours.

"Sorry."River apologized.

"It's okay, what's going on?"I asked.

"Miss Anderson is out of danger and we can discharge her now. All you need to do is pay the bill and sign her discharge papers at the nurses station."The doctor explained.

"Okay, thank you."I replied.

"Yes doctor, thank you, for everything."River echoed.

"You're welcome. Get well soon Miss Anderson. Follow all my instructions, take your medicine and get some rest. You'll be back to full health in no time."The doctor encouraged.

"I will."River assured him.

The doctor left the room so that now it's was just us three.

"I brought you some clothes to change into. Don't worry I didn't go through your stuff, I asked Felista to get everything. She wishes you a quick recovery."Dishan said giving River one of her huge handbags.

"Thank you Dishan."

"You're welcome. Why don't you go get changed while I settle the bill."Dishan said.

"I'll pay the bill."I insisted.

"No I feel responsible so please let me take care of everything."Dishan insisted.

"Guys stop arguing, gosh you're like siblings. I'll pay my own bills. Now get out, I want to changed."River demanded.

Dishan and I left the room walking to the nurses station together. There was no way I was letting River or Dishan pay so when we got there I signed her discharge papers and settled the bill much to Dishan's dismay. The bill was high for one night but then again it was a private hospital so it was to be expected.

"Let's take her back to the hotel."Dishan said once I was done.

"No I'm taking her with me to my place."I retorted having thought about it the previous night.

I didn't trust River's safety with Dishan anymore so she was coming with me until she was fully healed.

"Don't be irrational Kamau."Dishan scoffed.

At that moment River came out of her room in a wheelchair being pushed by one of the nurses freshly changed with her bag on her lap.

"You should have protected her Dishan, look at her."I pointed out.

"I am looking and I'm sorry but we couldn't stop her. What would you have me do? Make a guard follow her."Dishan argued.

"If need be yes, then none of would have happened."I yelled feeling myself start to get angry all over again.

I knew I was being irrational but I was too angry at myself, at River and at Dishan to see any reason.

"She'll be safer with me and I'm not arguing about this any longer. She's under my protection." I gritted out

"Dean you can't...."Dishan argued but was cut off by River.

"Guys please stop arguing. Dishan I'll go with Dean. Dean please stop being angry, it was my fault I got attacked."River pleaded.

Dishan sighed in defeat knowing he couldn't argue with River. I took the nurses place behind River pushing her wheelchair forward.

"Let's go."I said.

"I'm sorry Dishan."River apologized.

"It's okay darling, get better soon. Your room at the hotel is still yours."Dishan replied.

"Thank you."River said as I pushed her wheelchair out of the hospital.

On some level Dishan was right but I would never admit that to him or anyone. My studio apartment was no place for River but with me she would be safe and I could keep an eye on her. I'd help her get back to her normal healthy self. She was my responsibility and I would be damned if I let anyone else take care of her.

🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹

They are gonna be roomies. I can bet you nobody saw that one coming. I love it when a story starts piecing together.

It's gonna be epic 😁😁😁.

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