After checking the shipment in the garage Jackson and Cade set to putting the weapons in the second level of the basement for inspection and test firing. They wouldn't let me help because it wasn't my job and I was also rocking stitches still because I kept reopening the wound.

Maddox entered the garage and looked us up and down.

"Any new wounds? Alexi, how's the shoulder?"

"Forget the shoulder, help me out of this monkey suit, I want to see the bruise I'm going to have!"

Maddox didn't even have to ask why the bruise. We all knew when you took a bullet with the vest there was going to be a bruise.

"Where did you get nailed?"

"Ribcage of all fucking spots,"

"Go see Caleb, just for a quick check."

I didn't bother fighting with Maddox about it. There was no point. Might as well go willingly. Maddox didn't help me out of the vest either, because of where I got hit. Strolling the halls of the complex I made it down the stairs, I stopped by Zev's office. I saw him from the hall.

"Hey, Jackson's back in one piece, he's in the garage."
"Good, glad to hear that."
"Yeah,"

I waved bye before I continued what I was supposed to be doing. I heard Zev's door close and him jogging down the hall as I reached Caleb's office.
I was hoping more than anything this guy was sober and functioning today. If he wasn't, I might have to put my size ten boot between his eyes. Caleb wasn't in his office.

I was weighing my options, wait and get looked at or get yelled at by Maddox. Neither sounded pleasing if I had to be honest.

"Alexi, I hope you weren't waiting too long, I have a little one in the medic wing, poor kid, broken wrist."

"Nah, I didn't wait too long."

"Good good, what can I help you with?"

"Maddox wants you to look at my new kiss from the vest."

"Must be a good spot if he's sending you here for a visit."

"Ribcage."

"Alright, let's get this thing off and have a look, I want to also have a peek at your shoulder."

"Alright."

Caleb was pretty quick at assisting with getting the top shirt off and the vest. I hissed in pain when I was freely able to breathe.

"Alexi, I need to take the last shirt off too."
"Fine."

He helped me out of the long sleeve shirt and let out a whistle at the sight of my ribs. He touched the spot where it was tender and I was quickly thinking about putting my boot between his eyes, drunk or not.

"That's a good one, Alexi, it almost looks like you bruised your ribs. Hurts when you breathe?"
"You know it."
"You should be fine, any inconvenience or increase of pain comes back and I'll have a good look at it."
"Alright."

I heard him put on gloves as I was about to leave and then I remembered he wanted to look at my shoulder. I sighed.

"Sorry, Alexi, I did say I wanted to look."
"I was hoping you would forget."
"No, unfortunately not."

As so as he started to touch the skin even lightly he spoke.

"Alexi, I don't like the looks of this wound, it looks infected."
"Doubt it."
"I want you to put---"
"I'll be fine doc, don't worry about it."
"Alexi, I think you should let me at least give you some antibiotics for that."
"If it makes you feel better."
"Thank you."

Taking the bottle of antibiotics, Caleb helped me back into the biggest of the two shirts. I felt his eyes on my chest, but he didn't say anything. I left the office. I wasn't honestly going to take them, they would probably end up sitting on the bathroom shelf. I was just fine. It was only irritated looking because of the vest and shit.

Sitting my ass in my office chair, I figured out why he was looking at my chest. Creed's fucking dog tags. The urge to smack me between the eyes was very present. I still wasn't sure why I had stolen them. Or even why I put them around my neck. It had to be that his feelings were rubbing off on me, plain and simple. We were not lovers, we didn't have that.

I had confessed feelings to him, but not those kinds of feelings, I told the man that I didn't want him to leave because I saw him as a close friend, not that! Not a lover! He was probably a really good lover, fuck he had even taken a bullet for me.

I just sat there with my head in my hands. He fucked me up. I needed a brain scan. I fell and hit my head I had to have. Shit.

Leaping out of my desk chair. I needed a drink. My own thoughts were freaking the fuck out of me.

My choices were limited about who the fuck I could go to about this shit, Zev and Jackson had kids to look after. Maddox and Emerson had Ares and I didn't really want to vent to Maddox about this shit.

Cade and My shit uncle were my last options. I sure as hell was not about to go back to my own wing. At least not sober.

Here I was. In front of my uncle's wing. The door opened before I even got a chance to knock. Maddox was right there, my uncle beside him.

"Alexi, did you need something?"  Maddox asked, a little confused to see me standing here, at my uncle's door.

"A brain scan."

"Excuse me?"

Looking past Maddox to my uncle, I spoke.

"Please tell me you still drink,"

He didn't say anything. Neither of them did. Maddox's phone went off with a text and he looked at us both, almost like he didn't want to leave us alone.

"I have to go, Emerson is paging me."

Once he was down the hall, my uncle looked me up and down.

"Do you want to come in for a drink?"