He's sitting in the corner of the hospital room, his head in his hands as he anxiously waits for news as to why his mother collapsed this morning. He hears someone walk in and his head shoots up, expecting to see the doctor - but it's Erin.

She's wearing a pair of teal scrubs and her hair is up in a high ponytail. Her eyes are fixed on the iPad in her hand so he takes the time to observe the bruises on her face that are barely covered by her makeup.

Her voice breaks him from his thoughts as she walks in further and introduces herself to his mom, telling them that she'll be right outside the room if they need anything before she exits.

Once his mom falls asleep, he goes outside to get some air and call his brother, but just as Jay was expecting Will blows him off, telling him that he'll have to call back before hanging up.

He was just about to throw his phone at the concrete pillar closest to him when the sound of someone yelling stops him. Looking towards the street, he sees Erin get hit in the face and pushed to the ground. Then the guy hops in his car and races out of the parking lot.

He runs over to her as she stands up and moves out of the street. She runs her hand through her hair that was pulled out of the ponytail, as she steps onto the sidewalk.

She jumps when she feels someone touch her arm. She turns to see Jay, her eyes meeting his and she gets lost in his blue-green orbs that have so much emotion held within them, his gaze calming her a little.

"Are you ok?" Jay reaches up and places two fingers under her chin when she looks down. He tilts her face up and sees the tears in her eyes. She nods and wipes the blood from the corner of her lips.

"Let's get you inside." His hand is on the small of her back as he gently guides her towards the entrance.

"I'm going to go talk to my supervisor but I'll catch up with you later." She tells him

XXXXXX

When he gets to his mom's room the doctor walks in and tells them what's going on. Jay has a difficult time trying to wrap his head around what the doctor is saying and he shakes his head in disbelief. "So what's next? How are you going to treat it now?" He asks, even though he doesn't want to hear the answer, pretty sure it's going to be the news he's been dreading for the past two years. He feels like his heart is a grenade with no pin, ready explode at any moment.

His mom is sitting up in the bed but she still looks so tired. He suggests that she rest but she shakes her head, telling him that she'll rest soon enough. His heart sinks at that realization – it aches at that word. Soon. She apologizes againas he looks down at the floor.

After a couple minutes she asks about Erin and how he knows her. The change in subject is welcome distraction as he begins talking about the hazel eyed beauty. A warm smile comes to her face as she listens to her son speak so fondly of the nurse.

"Is she ok? That hit looked pretty hard." When Jay gives her a confused look, she nods towards the window.

Jay shrugs his shoulders. "She said she was…" He was going say something else and his mom knows it because she raises her eyebrow at him. But just as he was about to continue, a different nurse comes in and introduces herself, letting them know that she'll be covering for Erin for the rest of the day. His mom looks from the young blonde in the doorway and back at him. She doesn't have to say anything for him to get up. He gives his mom a kiss on the head before going to look for Erin.

When he gets outside it only takes a few seconds for him to spot her. She's sitting at the bus stop. He makes his way over to her quickly but his last few steps are slow and cautious, giving her time to notice his presence. He greets her with a simple, "Hey." When he asks her again if she's ok, she shakes her head. He decides to sit next to her on the cold metal of the black bench.

A few minutes of silence pass before she looks past him with tears welling in her eyes. "Sometimes I dream that I switched places with one of them." She sniffles and he tries to decipher who exactly she's talking about. Instead of asking, he just places his hand on her knee and waits for her to continue. "I dream that they come home to their families. They hug their kids and kiss their spouses. And when I wake up I wonder why someone like me – someone who doesn't have a family – was one of the people that didn't make it back."

"No one deserves that Erin. Just because you don't feel like you have a family doesn't mean that it should have been you that didn't make it back. And it doesn't mean that you won't have a family one day. That you don't have someone in your corner or that you wouldn't have been missed." He moves his hand from her knee to cover her hands as they sit in her lap. Her eyes meet his again and she nods.

"Do you need a ride somewhere?" It's an innocent question but she still takes time to mull it over as she looks down.

She nods. "I'm going to stay at my friend's, but she doesn't get off of work for another couple hours." She stands from the bench as the bus pulls up to stop.

"Wait Erin," he says just as she was about to step onto the bus. "I was just about to go hang out with Luna for a little bit. I can take you to your friend's place on my way back here if you want."

She tucks her hair behind her ear and nods shyly.

XXXXX

They pull up to a quaint little gated community shortly after leaving the hospital. Jay shows the guard a pass and introduces the heavy set guy to Erin. She nods her head in greeting before they continue to drive.

After parking the truck in the driveway of a large tan house, he looks over at her and she gives him a tight lipped smile.

When they walk through the door, she instantly feels herself relax. Pictures adorn the walls in every direction and little knickknacks are placed tastefully on each of the tables. Jay's voice pulls her attention away from the decor briefly before he runs up the stairs.

Less than a minute later, Luna comes running down so quickly Erin thinks she might fall. The puppy greets her the same way she did at the park a few weeks ago, her tail thumping against the leg of the table to the left of them as she whines.

"She's never that excited to see me." Jay smiles at the interaction and it earns him a smirk from Erin. His phone rings and he excuses himself as he moves into the other room to answer it.

She goes to let Luna outside for a few minutes but instead of going to the bathroom she brings Erin a pink tennis ball. Erin throws it a few times, glancing back inside every so often to see Jay pacing before going into another room out of sight.

Erin is just about to toss the ball across the yard again when Luna goes to scratch at the door and then there's one loud crash followed by another.

"Jay!" Erin's usually raspy voice comes out a little more high-pitched and practically echoes through the large house as she rushes inside. She waits for an answer but she's met with silence as she goes towards where she saw him last. She repeats his name just before she finds him on the floor of the kitchen. Two of the cabinet doors are broken, and the glass is shattered all over the counter beneath them. The room is dimly lit with the only light coming from the window above the sink, but she can still see the blood on his hand as he pets Luna.

He's just staring at the island in front of him. Even when Luna lays down by him, his gaze is set on the same spot for a minute before shifting to the dark brown and black fur of the dog next to him. He hears his name again but this time her voice is much closer and the worry is more evident, calming the storm within him.

She kneels in front of him, taking his hand in hers to assess the cuts. Luckily they aren't deep enough for stitches. "He doesn't care." His voice is cold as he pulls his hand back. "They said there's nothing that can be done. She's dying and there's nothing that they can do for her. And my selfish brother cares about partying more than he cares about the fact that our mother is dying." His eyes are rimmed red as he looks at her and it's as if everything he's feeling is portrayed through his blue-green orbs.

She moves to sit next to him and he leans his head on her shoulder. Her hand comes up to cup his jaw as she kisses the crown of his head. She's not sure how long they sit there before he goes to get the first aid kit so she can dress his cuts.

He watches as she gently tends to his wounds. A smile comes to his face as her lips pucker and her eyebrows knit together in concentration.

After she finishes wrapping his hand and wrist, she goes to put the first aid kit away and she comes back to find Jay opening two beers. He hands one to her as she comes to stand next to him.

As they start to clean up the glass, he tells her a story about the time he broke the kitchen window while he was practicing soccer. "My mom didn't yell or get mad at all. She just asked me to show her the new trick I was trying. Then she cleaned up the glass and took the heat from my dad."

"She sounds like an amazing mom."

He nods and gives her a sad smile, and that's when he notices the blood on her shirt. "I'll go get you a new shirt." He gestures towards her stomach and she looks down to see the red spots all over the lower half of her scrub top. She pulls the shirt off, leaving her in the white camisole as she walks to the sink to start rinsing the shirt in hopes that it'll come out. She's so focused on the teal material in her hand that she doesn't realize that he returned. The sound of the running water masks his gasp as he sees the bruises practically covering her back and upper arms.

His legs move of their own volition as they carry him over to her. His hand reaches around her and lays flat on her toned abdomen. He vaguely registers the muscles in her stomach tense briefly but she makes no attempt to move out of his embrace as he slowly pulls her back. His eyes take a closer look at the dark splotches marring her ivory skin. And before he can talk himself out of it he's leaning down to place a feather light kiss to the bruise on her right shoulder blade, just to the side of her bra strap, his lips lingering for just a few seconds.

She slowly turns in his arms, his hand moving to the small of her back. Their eyes search for any sign of reluctance as they both lean in and their lips meet in the middle. The kiss is slow and deliberate, one meant to comfort before it deepens and starts to overflow with passion. She teases the hem of his shirt before pulling it over his head, her hands mapping out every inch of his skin and gently tracing each scar she comes across.

When her phone rings, he pulls away from her lips and shuts off the water. Her eyebrows furrow as she brings the phone up to her ear.

"That was my friend. She umm….her shift ended early." She tells him after the call ends.

He looks down at their hands still clasped together and nods as he leans down to peck her lips a few more times. "Do you think your friend will mind if Luna stays with you guys?" He asks, and she looks at him, confused. "I just don't know how long my mom will be in the hospital and I don't really want an eight-month-old puppy to have to sit in a crate most of the time."

"I ummm…..I'll ask." She looks down at her phone and presses down twice before bringing it back up to her ear.

XXXXXX

He walks with her up to the apartment, the large wire crate folded and held in his left hand while his right hand holds the bag of dog food.

She knocks on the door of the apartment across from the elevator and they wait for a moment before a young brunette woman opens the door. Erin introduces Jay to Nadia and then she leads them to the bedroom at the end of hall.

He sets up the crate while Erin takes some of Luna's things to the kitchen. When she gets back, the crate is up and the red dog bed is inside.

He starts mumbling about Luna's schedule as they walk back down the hall and his hand goes to scratch the side of his neck.

She chuckles softly as he reaches for the door handle. "She'll be fine. But if I have questions I'll text you." He blushes as she stands on the tips of her toes to place a kiss to his lips. "If you need anything I'm here for you Jay."

He nods and gives her one more kiss before he leaves.

XXXXXX

A/N: Sorry to leave this unfinished but I'm going to be taking a little break - at least for now. Thanks to those of you who have followed/favorited and reviewed!