Chapter 45~~AJ-Delivery Boy or 00Doofus??
By Chelle and Tess

Chelle laid in bed, thankful that the morning was over. She hated being poked and prodded. And needles were not high on her like list either. She looked out the window at the afternoon sun, wishing she was anywhere but inside. It looked like a beautiful day and she didn't want to spend another minute in bed. But the doctor had said she was stuck inside for a while. She had wanted to tell him to bite his tongue. Thank God Nick had been there..or she might have. Nick....she missed him already. Her mom and dad had talked him into going back to the hotel for some much needed rest. A light knock on the door pulled her from her thoughts and she looked up to see four friendly faces. "Brian, Howie, Tanya...Sherry!! Thank goodness.....company!! Hey get me out of here!" Chelle pleaded.
"Now you know we can't do that!" Howie said sensibly.
"Please.....I'll be good." Chelle promised
"Yeah...come on, Howie....we could sneak her out on a stretcher...we could dress like doctors..." Brian said with a goofy grin.
"Yeah..yeah...." Chelle said, liking the idea.
"Oh please...do not encourage her," Sherry said, smacking Brian.
"And how would we tell Nick....that would be a good explanation.." Tanya said.
Brian looked perplexed, then said, "Oh yeah.....how would I explain that? Letting his girlfriend talk us into sneaking her out of the hospital. On second thought...sorry Chelle. You're stuck!"
Chelle stuck her tongue out at Brian and proceeded to pout. "You are a stick in the mud Brian Littrell!"
"Hey speaking of Nicky...where is he?" Howie asked.
"He went back to the hotel for a while," Chelle said. "he didn’t get too much sleep last night with the nurses coming and going all night"
"How did you manage to convince him to leave?" Brian asked, knowing how stubborn Nick was.
"My Mother..." Chelle said. Everyone just nodded. Of course. No one ever argues with a Mom.
"So...have you been tired out by all the visitors?" Tanya asked.
"What visitors? You are the first ones here. Did you all forget about me?" Chelle whined. Chelle once again stuck her lower lip out...."No one loves me."
"Well...we are tired. I mean...someone kept us so worried, we didn't get much sleep...." Sherry said. The room grew quiet as they all realized how close Chelle had come to dying.
"Hey what's with all the frowns in here?" AJ asked as he burst through the door, Carmen right behind him.
"Chelle's pouting because Howie won't let me sneak her out of here," Brian said.
"What? You don't like the food or something?" AJ asked.
"Dammit AJ...all they are giving me is jell-o...broth...tea...ugh!! I would kill for a burger!" Chelle cried, once again pouting. "It's not fair!"
"Hey babe...don't you get ice cream?" AJ asked.
"One flavor...vanilla. At least they could spice it up a bit." Chelle complained.
"Well, I tell you what .....If you promise to be good.....I will sneak you in a cheeseburger, fries and a milkshake..." AJ said.
"Ok...I promise," Chelle said, crossing her heart. "And all those mean things I said about you? I take them back...everyone."
AJ eyed her over his sunglasses, but smiled.
"Before you take off again...where were you earlier?" Howie asked.
"Yeah, Carmen...you two were up awfully early," Sherry said.
"Well....we went for a drive....saw the sun come up....It was very romantic," Carmen said, hoping everyone would buy her explanation. Chelle looked at Carmen, closely. She was more of a sunset kind of gal...not sunrise. What was she hiding? She decided that she would talk to her later, when they had a chance to be alone.
"AJ romantic at the crack of dawn? Now if he could stay awake that long....maybe, but first thing in the morning?" Brian joked, earning a scowl from AJ.
"what's this about AJ being up at the crack of dawn?" Nick asked as he entered the room, his arms full of presents for Chelle.
"He and Carmen went missing this morning...." Howie said.
"And Chelle almost did earlier..." Tanya said.
"WHAT?" Nick asked, looking at Chelle.
"She wanted Brian to sneak her out of here...we talked her into letting me sneak food into her instead," AJ said, defending her.
"Oh really?" Nick asked, looking over at Chelle. "Maybe since she's not being a good girl..she doesn't deserve the presents I brought," Nick said, taking the bags back from the edge of the bed where he had set them.
“I’m being good, Nicky!" Chelle cried out, reaching for the nearest bag.
Chelle opened the bag and started to cry. Inside was the picture she had given Nick. She placed it on the table by her bed. "Oh Nick..."
"I am so out of here..."AJ said. "They are gonna get mushy."
"You better come back," Chelle warned. "I want my food!"
There was a light knock on the door and Dr Michelson peeked in. "Hey I need Ms. Popularity for a bit." he said with a smile.
"Oh...sure...we were just headed out," Brian said.
"I'll walk you all out," Nick said, giving Chelle a quick kiss.
Everyone said goodbye to Chelle and headed out the door. "AJ McLean.....don't forget your promise." Chelle yelled at his back.
AJ raised his arm, his hand above his head in a thumb's up. "Will do beautiful, " he called back to her.
Dr. Michelson glanced at her, wondering what the tattooed AJ could've promised her. "Chelle...how you feeling?"
"Restless...I want out..." Chelle said with a small pout.
"I know....but you had a real close call...and I know you are feeling good, but I want to keep you a while yet. You had some extensive injuries." He explained.
"I know...really I do, But I hate just lying in this bed." Chelle whined.
"Well...how about tomorrow we take you for a ride?" the doctor suggested.
“Really?" Chelle asked with a small smile. This was the best news she heard all day.
"A small trip around the ward. In a wheel chair." He replied.
"Yes!" she cheered.
"Okay...but for the rest of today...you have to be good. Rest up...don't over do it. And we will see how your injuries are doing. Those ribs will heal in a few weeks. Everything else will take some time, but I think you'll be just fine."
"Thanks, Dr. Michelson....you just made my day," Chelle said with a smile.
"Get some rest..." he said, then headed out leaving Chelle’s door slightly open.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~the handsome stranger arrives~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
He walked out of the elevator, the flowers he was carrying not as nice as the original bouquet, but good enough. He walked up to the nurses' station and asked for Chelle Wilson's room. The nurses all just pointed down the hall, awe struck by his good looks. He smiled and asked for a room number. "Ms. Wilson? She is in the room second on the right," a doctor told him.
"Thanks Doc," he said, heading toward the room. He straightened his shirt, hoping he looked okay. It had been a long time since he wore jeans and a t-shirt. He was so used to business suits. He raised his hand and knocked lightly on the door. He heard Chelle call out for him to come in, her voice light and airy. "Nicky...baby...." Chelle started, but as she looked up she gasped. "What are you doing here?"
~~~~~~~~~~~~about twenty minutes later~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Nick walked down the hallway, his shoes squeaking on the floor. He was still chuckling over AJ nearly falling into the hospital water fountain outside the main doors. Only that goofball could do something like that.
As he walked by the nurses' station he over heard several of the women commenting on a man. "Oh my God...he was so tall.....so damn gorgeous..." "And that ass...tight enough to bounce a quarter off of it..." "God I wish he was visiting me instead of Miss Wilson..." "To get a handsome hunk like that to visit me..I would jump in front of the car...." Nick blushed, wishing the women didn't talk like that about him with him standing right there. "I just loved that dark hair...those beautiful blue eyes...." "And that smile...those dimples......whew... need an ice cube..."
Nick frowned...now who the hell were they talking about? Kevin did not have blue eyes...though he has the dark hair. He had the blue eyes, but he sure as hell didn't have dark hair. He hurried along the hall and as he got closer to Chelle's door, he heard her laughing. Then an unfamiliar voice joined hers. It was deep, sexy, even to his ears...and very male.
"I can't believe you came all this way...." he heard Chelle say.
"I can't believe you got me all this way by getting hit by a car..." the male voice replied.
"You're staying right? I mean, it's beautiful here. I can promise you one thing. You will have a lot of fun if you do..." Chelle suggested.
"You promise, huh?" the stranger asked.
Nick had heard enough. He pushed open the door and stepped inside, startling Chelle and her visitor.
"Chelle?" Nick questioned looking Chelle’s visitor up and down.
"Nicky.....hi...." Chelle greeted with a big smile.
"You must be Nick. Chelle has told me all about you..." the man said, standing.
Nick looked up at him. Damn he was tall. "Funny...she didn't tell me about you....."
"Nicky.....don't....I can explain. He came so far just to see me.." Chelle said trying to calm Nick down. She could tell by the look on his face that he needed an explanation quick of who this man was.
"Hey man...I don't want any trouble," he told Nick. “I was just concerned about Chelle."
"Nick...he's my boss......" Chelle explained.
Nick turned to look at her...his face pink. "Your boss?"
Nick turned back to him, when Chelle nodded. "Oh man..." Nick said, then as Chelle and her boss laughed, he joined in.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~In the hospital gift shop~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Tess walked around, looking for something to replace the balloons she had lost when her mystery man had literally run her over this morning.
She had already found a pair of sandals to replace her heels. And she had picked up a book for Chelle to read. She really wanted something more than flowers. She noticed a small stuffed dolphin and smiled. It reminded her of Nick...so maybe Chelle would like it too. She made her purchases then headed out to a small bench so she could change her shoes. Boy would she have a tale to tell Chelle. She headed for the elevators and rode up to her floor, thinking all the while on how she was going to tell her goodbye. When the doors slid open she walked down the hall, her sandals barely making a sound. She reached Chelle's door and smiled. Her story would cheer her up. "Chelle, you will never believe the morning I have had," she started, opening the door. She went inside and looked up, coming face to face with her mystery man. "Oh.....' she said, thinking she had the wrong room.
She started to turn around and leave when she heard, "Well, tell me girl...it can't be much worse than what mine was." Tess looked around and saw Chelle sitting in bed, smiling. "Get in here, I want you to meet someone."
He smiled at her and Tess smiled back. "We kind of already met, Chelle...." he said.
"Yeah..he made me lose your balloons....and I broke my shoe..." Tess commented.
"And my bouquet of flowers were destroyed....." he said.
"All but one," Tess said, producing a rather wilted yellow rose.
Chelle watched the exchange with a smile. She knew these two would hit it off. She just could never get either one to give in enough to go out on a blind date. She turned to look at Nick who was watching Tess. He was amazed at the change in her. She practically glowed. He looked at Chelle and grinned. "Tess...this is...." Chelle began....but he cut her off...."Elliott.....Elliott Mackenzie," he said holding out his hand. "Dammit Elliott!" Chelle yelled at him...."He's my boss..." she quickly added in before he could.
"Tessa....Dayne," she said, taking his hand in hers.
Elliott looked over his shoulder at Chelle as a spark flew from Tessa's hand to his. "This is your writer friend?"
Chelle nodded. She had been talking his ear of for the last three months about her. And it took her getting hit by a car to get them together. Damn if she had known that she would've jumped in front of a NYC taxi. "Yes, Elliott...this is Tess...she wrote that book you've been glued to for the last 6 weeks."
Tess looked at him with a crimson blush staining her cheeks..."You're reading my book?" she asked.
“Read it...twice. Damn good." he told her.
Chelle watched as Tess smiled. The chemistry between the two of them was definitely heating up the room. "Oh...these are for you," Tess said, realizing she hadn't given Chelle the book or the dolphin yet.
"Thanks Tess....." Chelle said, but she was more interested in the scene before her.
Elliott had given his seat to Tess and was now standing behind her, his hands resting on the back of the chair. Chelle could see his hands twitch every so often as Tess moved against them. Chelle grinned as she noticed Tess squirm a bit in her chair. She knew that Elliott's hands were occasionally straying. This was better than any book she could be reading, she thought.
"So...how long are you staying Elliott?" Chelle asked.
"A few days...I like the scenery after all," he said, glancing down at Tess. Nick smirked. Of course he did. Tess was a good looking woman. Chelle grinned. Finally. Tess was gonna get a good man. A knock at the door interrupted Chelle's match making.
AJ walked in, bearing a McDonald's bag and a milkshake. "See..I kept my promise." he told Chelle.
Chelle yawned and smiled weakly at him. "Thanks...but I am so tired" she said in hopes that she could push Tess and Elliott together. "AJ...this is my boss, Elliott Mackenzie."
AJ turned around and shook hands with him, noticing how close he was standing to Tess. "Uh oh...busted," AJ said, holding up the food.
Tess grinned. "You nut...give her the food, before she falls out of bed trying to get it."
AJ stuck his tongue out at Tess, but handed the food over to Chelle. "You owe me, sister."
"I am gonna go Chelle...." Tess said as Chelle yanked the food out of AJ's hand.
"Chelle...you shouldn't be eating that.." Nick said. Chelle gave him an evil look.
Tess laughed "Nick...she will kill you if you take that food. Just offer to keep quiet if she will share her fries." Chelle picked up the jell-o and threatened to toss it at Nick.
He feigned terror then held up his hands. "Ok..Ok...eat your food." She smiled at him, taking a bite of the cheeseburger.
"Ok....I will see you later, Chelle. Now that I know I can leave and Nick will be safe," Tess said, picking up her broken shoes and her purse. "bye...and thanks for the book," Chelle said. She looked at Elliott and motioned for him to follow her with a quick nod of her head.
"I'll walk you out," Elliott said. "Bye Chelle. I'll check in with you later." Tess smiled as Elliott placed his hand on the small of her back. They walked out, leaving AJ and Nick staring at her back.
"what the hell was that?" AJ asked.
Chelle looked up, grinning ear to ear. "My hard match making work finally paying off," she said between bites. "Now...someone go follow them...I need all the juicy details!"
AJ rolled his eyes. For some reason he knew that she meant him. "I'm going..I'm going..." AJ opened the door and peeked out. Next thing Chelle knew he was humming the theme song to the Pink Panther as he slipped out the door. She laughed so hard she nearly choked on her cheeseburger.
The door opened and Kevin and Shawn walked in. He had a confused look on his face and he frowned pointing out the door. "What is that idiot doing?" he asked, referring to AJ.
"He's on a mission," Nick answered. Chelle reached over and hit him. She did not need Kevin to know what AJ was up to. Not until she was sure of things between Tess and Elliott. She didn't want things to get messed up between them...or Shawn and Kevin.
"About time you guys came to see me.." Chelle complained, easing the conversation away from AJ.
"I'm sorry, Chelle....I had some quick house keeping to help Shawn with," Kevin said, causing her to blush.
Shawn smacked him and he grinned. "Watch it...." she warned.
"Love ya babe.....' he said, liking how the words felt rolling off his tongue. Chelle looked at him, stunned. This was working to her advantage.
Just then AJ burst back into the room and snapped to attention. "Private AJ reporting ma'am....The mission was a success." Chelle tried to keep a straight face. He was such a goof ball.
"Said subjects have a date for dinner...." he reported, saluting to Chelle.
"What? Who? AJ what the hell are you doing?" Kevin asked.
"When AJ?" Chelle asked, ignoring Kevin.
"Tonight ma'am..." AJ said, seriously. Then he did a quick hip swivel and thrust then said. "Oh La La.."
"What the hell are you two jabbering on about?" Kevin asked again.
"Tess has a date with Chelle's boss Elliott," Nick blurted out. Chelle threw him a murderous look. She loved him, but he couldn't keep a secret to save his life. Nick looked at Chelle and had swore. What was it with hospitals and his big mouth? Maybe while he was here he should get them to surgically remove his foot from his mouth.
"She has a date?" Shawn asked.
"Yeah...he was coming to see me...and they ran into each other.....literally. You just missed them," Chelle said, now that the secret was out.
Kevin glanced back at the door. He had seen Tess as they had come in, but at a distance. So she was going out with this guy, Elliott? Why did it matter to him so much? He loved Shawn. But if he did, why did he feel a sudden surge of jealousy for a man he had never met, over a woman he no longer was in love with?
He turned back to Chelle and forced a smile to his lips. "That's great. I'm glad to see she is moving on," he said, wishing he felt what he had just said.
AJ slapped Kevin on the back. "It is great, ain't it? She looked so happy. I want to see her happy."
"Speaking of happy, AJ...where's Carmen?" Chelle asked.
"She's back at the hotel with Tanya....doing some girlie girl stuff I guess. I had to come back here. Had to play delivery boy....You know I didn‘t even get a tip or anything." AJ explained.
Chelle laughed, “Awww, poor baby. Here’s your tip” Chelle threw her green jello at AJ. The others laughed, glad to see their friend was almost back to her normal self.
“So, Chelle? What did the doctor tell you earlier” Shawn asked as she sat on the edge of her bed then looked at the empty McDonalds bag “wait a sec, did your doctor take you off the liquids already?”
“Oh shit. I am busted by Mama Shawn” Chelle grimaced then quickly answered. “He said that tomorrow I will get to move around on a wheel chair. I might even get to go outside. And if I continue to improve I might be released before the end of the week.”
“That’s great. I know you’re getting cabin fever here” Kevin spoke up.
Shawn realizing that Chelle ignored the food question, “and what about the food? Cuz it was my understanding from your doctor you were going to be on liquids for another day.”
“Shawn. If I have to eat any more jello shit, I know I am going to be sick.” Chelle whined.
Nick just laughed having already heard this explanation from Chelle.
“Well, I know you’re on the road to recovery….She’s complaining again” Shawn laughed out. “I am sure you doctor will understand your reasonings here. I just don’t want anything to set you back that is all”
“Oh mama Shawn. What would I do without you” Chelle smiled as she hugged her friend then whispered into her ear “and thank you for taking care of Nick for me.”
“Your welcome” Shawn whispered back. Chelle laid back, suddenly tired. She closed her eyes, listening to the voices around her.
"So where did she get that silly looking dolphin?" Shawn asked Nick, who happened to be playing with it.
"Tess brought it...said it looked like me,' he chuckled.
"Well...not you, but that tattoo you have," Kevin said with a laugh.
"Well...yeah a little....but hey...I like it," he said twirling it around by its tail. He dropped it and as he bent down to pick it up, he noticed Chelle had curled up and had fallen asleep. "Sshh..." he said, placing his finger up to his lips. He pointed to Chelle and then to the door. Everyone quietly headed for the door, not wanting to wake Chelle. Nick said his goodbyes to the others, then turned back to Chelle. She look so peaceful...like an angel. He slipped his shoes off and crawled into bed with her, resting his head on top of hers. Soon he was asleep too.