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BEN & MARIA’S
Ricardo paced the living room doing knee bends and stretching his aching muscles. Ben, Maria and Benjy were out for the afternoon and Gabi was taking a nap. "I can’t keep this up much longer," he muttered out loud. Sitting in that damned chair all day having people push him from room to room was making him crazy. He really wanted to move back into the loft, back to all his creature comforts. What he really wanted, was some privacy with Gabi. He thought long and hard about what Gabi would do if she knew he could walk. Gabi was getting closer to giving in to her feelings for Ricardo. He could sense it. He would have gotten her to make love to him the other day if she hadn’t almost passed out. His thoughts turned more serious as he pondered her current health. She had been sleeping a lot lately and when she wasn’t sleeping, she was coughing up a storm. Last night in bed, he heard a rattling wheeze coming from deep in her chest as she slept. Antonio was out of town on his retreat. Ricardo smirked as he thought about what his brother’s reaction must have been when the Bishop confronted him about the tape Ricardo had sent. It must have ashamed the hell out of him, Ricardo thought. Antonio certainly hadn’t discussed it with anyone in the family, but he assumed this little sabbatical was the Bishop’s way of forcing Antonio to re-examine his faith and commitment to God. Fortunately for Ricardo, it also put some welcome distance between Antonio and Gabi. Ricardo was disturbed from his thoughts by hoarse, vicious coughing from the bedroom. Without thinking, he sprinted through the door to find Gabi sitting up in bed gasping for air. The cough barked from her throat and she clutched her chest. The panic he found in her eyes almost made him weak. "Hold on, Gabi," he instructed her as he grabbed the phone to dial 911. Gabi was wheezing and sputtering as she held onto his forearm. "Yes, send an ambulance immediately," he shouted the address to the operator. "Hurry." Ricardo hung up the phone and cradled Gabi in his arms. Her coughing had subsided and she was now crying from the pain. Ricardo was stunned at how hot her body felt against him. He held her tightly, his mind never wavering to the fact that he had just walked into the room on his own two legs. THE HOSPITAL Ricardo waited anxiously for news of Gabi’s condition. He had no idea she was so ill. She kept telling him that she just had a cold and was run down. He chided himself for allowing her condition to worsen right before his eyes. For a moment he thought about how he was going to explain his sudden "miracle." He had been unable to control his instinct to protect her and now, he was afraid he might have put a dangerous crimp in his plan. "Ricardo," Tyus called to him as he exited Gabi’s room. Ricardo looked up from his seat in the hospital chair but didn’t stand. Tyus took the chair next to him. "Gabi is very sick, Ricardo. She has pneumonia." Ricardo stared in disbelief. "Her temperature is 103 and she’s having a hard time breathing." Tyus looked over his chart. "She wasn’t able to tell me much, how long has she been ill?" Ricardo thought carefully. She had passed out on him almost five days ago and that was when she began sleeping so much. Her cough started a day or two later. "Probably about five days ago." Tyus shook his head. "I wish she had come to see me before today. I could’ve given her some antibiotics and kept it from getting so bad." Tyus could tell Ricardo was very concerned. "She’s going to be fine, Ricardo," he said reassuringly. "We just need to keep her here for the next few days to make sure her breathing stays clear. We’re going to put her in ICU in an oxygen tent…to help her breathe. I’ll let you know when you can see her." "Thank you, Tyus," Ricardo shook his hand. "Thank you." "Sure, Ricardo. By the way, I had no idea that your physical therapy was going so well." Ricardo took a deep breath. "I’m very impressed with your recovery." "Thanks, Tyus." Ricardo put his hands against his legs. "I didn’t want to get everyone’s hopes up until I was completely recovered. You understand?" "Sure. I better go see about Gabi." Tyus stood from the chair. "I’ll come find you in a bit." Ricardo smiled as Tyus walked away. He was impressed that he had fooled the good doctor, now if he could just convince everyone else. Ricardo sat next to Gabi’s bed holding her small hand underneath the clear plastic shell that surrounded her. She looked so fragile, almost as if too strong a touch would break her. Gabi’s eyes fluttered open and she clutched Ricardo’s hand in fear. "It’s okay, Gabi...relax," he leaned as close as he could. "You’re in the hospital. Do you remember what happened?" "No," her voice was raw and her throat hurt from coughing. "Am I..." She coughed harshly from her effort to speak. "Shh. You have pneumonia, Gabi." He patted her hand comfortingly. "Tyus says you’re going to be fine. You just have to stay for a few days while the antibiotics take care of it." Gabi was staring wide-eyed at him when he realized that he was standing at her bedside. "Oh," he smiled sheepishly. "That!" "Ric...Ricardo," she gasped. "You...you’re..." "I wanted to surprise you, Gabi," he said with a smile. "I’ve been working so hard with Michael and I didn’t want you to know until I was strong enough to show you on my own." Ricardo squeezed her hand. "Are you proud of me?" Gabi smiled and shook her head yes. Ricardo sat down in the chair. "Enough about that…what I really want to know is how did you get pneumonia, Gab?" Gabi’s mind raced to the night she ran away from Antonio at the Mission, the night of the terrible storm. She had been drenched in the rain and there was the draft that blew through Antonio’s room where she spent the night. Gabi closed her eyes as she swallowed painfully, her face grimaced and she began to cough. "It’s okay, Gabi. Don’t try to talk." Ricardo handed her a glass of water with a straw. "Take a sip of this, it’ll help." Gabi sipped the water slowly and passed the water back under the plastic to Ricardo. "Now who’s taking care of whom?" Ricardo smiled softly as she lay back against the pillow. Gabi closed her eyes again as the pain medication was making her quite drowsy. Ricardo sat with Gabi until she dozed off. At least her being in the hospital would buy him some time to figure out exactly what he was going to do next. First, he had to let Maria and Carmen know that he was able to walk again. That would be an incredible weight off his shoulder and make it much easier to proceed. Antonio would still be away for a few more days, so he didn’t have to worry about him for now. Ricardo watched Gabi sleeping and felt his resolve falter slightly. She was his wife, after all, and so technically, she belonged with him. He still believed her could make her love him, if he could just get her to make love to him. He had a few ideas, but nothing would happen while she was in the hospital, so he decided it best to go see his mother. Gabi had been in the hospital for three days and was beginning to feel much better. She could finally take a deeper breath without racking her body with coughing. Everyone had been by to see her…except Antonio. He was due back from his retreat today and she hoped he would visit her as soon as he heard. Things were going to be very different when she got out of the hospital. Ricardo could walk again and that changed everything. Her marriage to him now became more real and valid. His expectations of her would now be more of a genuine husband and wife relationship. They hadn’t consummated their marriage yet, and she knew that would be one of the first things on his mind once she was released. Not wanting to think about that, her mind wandered to Antonio. She had missed him terribly the past week and hoped that he had found some solace on his retreat. More than she had found in his absence. BEN & MARIA’S "So," Maria said as she poured Antonio a cup of tea. "Then what happened?" Antonio had gone straight to Maria’s upon his return to Sunset Beach. His time away had done nothing to lessen his need to see Gabi. If anything, it made it that much worse. He was bombarded at the door by Maria’s exuberance to see him and she had waylaid him from his ultimate destination. "That’s really all, Maria. It was peaceful and beautiful and I got a lot of reading done." Antonio took a sip of the tea and attempted to remain casual. "So, where are Ricardo and Gabi?" Maria threw her head back with the realization that Antonio knew nothing of recent events. "Oh my gosh," she exclaimed. "Well, first of all, Ricardo is walking again." Antonio’s eyes widened. "He apparently has been working up his strength so he could walk completely on his own before he told anyone." "Really," Antonio smiled. "That’s great. So," he looked away from Maria. "He and Gabi have moved back to the loft, then?" "No," Maria’s voice grew somber causing him to lift his eyes immediately. "Gabi’s in the hospital." Antonio felt panic swell in him at the thought of Gabi being ill or injured. "She has pneumonia." "Pneumonia?" he repeated for confirmation. "How did she get pneumonia?" As soon as the question left his lips, he knew the answer. Their night together at the Mission in the storm. Before Maria could answer, he stood from his chair. "I have to go see her." He headed for the door. "I’ll call you later." Antonio rushed off. THE HOSPITAL Antonio slipped quietly into Gabi’s room. He was taken by surprise by the sight of her ensconced in the clear plastic tent. Her eyes were closed and her arms rested at her sides. Antonio made an valiant effort to maintain his composure as he walked to her side. As if she felt his presence, her eyes opened and she smiled softly at him. "I knew you would come," she whispered as she extended her hand under the covering. Antonio sat down in the chair and took her delicate hand in his. "How are you?" His eyes glistened with tears as he held her hand and smiled at her. "I’m okay," she replied with a sigh. "I am breath..." she coughed as she inhaled and Antonio winced from the coarse sound. "Breathing better now." "Oh, Gabi," he rubbed her arm as he looked down. "This is all my fault." "Antonio," she shook her hand to get him to look at her. "Don’t be silly. I was the one who ran into the rain. Remember." "Yes," he said quietly as his mind flashed back to that night. "I do." They stared at each other for a moment before Antonio pulled his hand away. "Maria told me that Ricardo is walking again." He looked away from her again. "So you’ll be moving back to the loft soon, huh?" Gabi knew that his mind was thinking the same thing she had been earlier. She wanted to reach out to him, but he was leaning forward in the chair with his elbows resting on his knees and she couldn’t reach him. "Yes," she said softly. "I guess so." "That’s good, Gabi. Then we can all move on." Antonio raised his eyes and saw his own heartache mirrored in her eyes. "I’m glad you’re feeling better. I was worried when Maria said you were in the hospital." "I knew you would come, Antonio." Gabi looked down at her hands. "Because you love me." "Gabi," Antonio cautioned her with his voice. "Well, you do," she responded. "And just because you can’t say it doesn’t mean that I can’t." She impatiently brushed away the tear that slipped from her eye. "I’m sorry," she said sadly. "It’s okay." Antonio fussed with his watch. "I really should go. I just got back to town and I have a lot of catching up to do at the Mission." He looked at her again. "I just wanted to make sure you were okay." "I’m fine," she remarked flippantly. "You don’t have to worry about me." Antonio gave her a look of disapproval. "Well you don’t." "Well, I do and I will," he said as he stood from the chair. "Because I do." Antonio knew Gabi understood what he meant when a small smile crossed her lips. "I do too," Gabi said softly. Antonio winked at her and turned away to leave. He stopped at the door to smile at her one last time before he walked into the hall. No matter how hard he tried, he would never be able to stop loving her. THE LOFT Gabi spent another five days in the hospital. Her cough lingered longer than Tyus anticipated and he didn’t want to release her until she was completely recovered. Maria visited her every day, usually with Ricardo. Carmen stopped by twice but Antonio had managed to stay away. Gabi knew it was hard for him to see her, it was hard for her too but she still wanted to. Ricardo insisted on carrying Gabi up the stairs to the loft. She remarked to herself that he must have been working VERY hard at PT in order to regain enough strength to walk up the stairs and carry her at the same time. "Okay, Mrs. Torres," he smiled as he pushed the door open. "Welcome home." He kissed her tenderly as he carried her over the threshold as his wife. He set her down just inside the door as he turned to bring in their suitcases. Gabi had a strange feeling wash over her as she stood in the familiar loft. The difference was that she was now Ricardo’s wife, and this was their home. There had been so much commotion at Ben and Maria’s they were almost never alone, and Ricardo had been incapacitated. Things were about to change more than she knew. "Why don’t you go lay down and relax," Ricardo directed her to the bed. "Do you need anything?" Gabi shook her head no. "I’m going to head over to the station...I want to meet with Chief Harris and see about getting back to work." "Already?" Gabi was surprised. "Don’t you think you’re rushing things a bit? You just started walking again, after all." "I’m tired of doing nothing, Gabi," Ricardo paced the room. "I’ve been doing nothing for weeks. Tyus says I am fully recovered and I need to focus my energy on something or I’m going to go nuts." "Okay," she relented. "I guess you can tell Chief Harris that I’ll be back soon, too." There was no reason for her not to work if Ricardo was going back. "As soon as I’m feeling up to it." Ricardo smiled at her and headed for the door. "I’ll call you later." He slammed the door behind him and left Gabi alone. She sighed heavily as she looked around her new home. She had spent many nights here with Ricardo, but it had all taken on a decidedly new perspective ... one that was going to take some serious getting used to.
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