[jobiehanna]

Rhea & Pan
(Already Life-Mated)

Rhea couldn’t help but smile as she waited on the park bench on the breezy spring morning. Why was the girl there so early in the morning? She was going to meet Pan or course! She was going to spend the day with her loveable, adorable Pan. Her blue eyes searched the area; watching for her man to appear.
As she waited, she began to squirm in her seat. Where was he? He was never late; always early. What if something happened to him? Maybe a car hit him on his walk to the park, or maybe he slept in late or had an allergic reaction to something he ate; after all, he did love eating. If it weren’t for his fast metabolism he would probably be as big as a house. Rhea sighed, crossing her legs and tucking her hair behind her ears. It was coming out of its braid, something it did frequently.
The soft breeze blew across her cheeks as she waited, and waited, and waited. It was cool, and felt nice, but didn’t squelch her anxiety. Where was he? Could he have forgotten? She bit her lip, getting nervous. Suddenly the cell-phone she carried with her began to ring. She didn’t recognize the number, but answered anyway. What if Pan had been kidnapped? “Hello?”
“Hello, is this Rhea?” The voice sounded soft and calm, like it was about to deliver bad news.
“Yes it is,” she said politely, trying to keep her voice level.
“I don’t like to be the bearer of bad news, but there is this man in the hospital, he came in on the ambulance a little bit ago and told us that he was to meet you in the park, then quickly gave us the number before falling unconscious. If you are who he says you are we’ll give you the details when you come in.”
Rhea gulped. So he hadn’t forgotten, and something bad had happened. She could feel the tears stinging her eyes and the lump in her throat. “Uh, yes,” she said. “I’ll be in.”
“Okay,” the voice on the other line said. “We’ll be waiting for you.”
“Okay,” Rhea said, and then the dial tone sounded, the caller had hung up. Rhea closed her eyes and sighed, wanting to cry for fear of what could have happened, but knowing she couldn’t break down now. She had to get to the hospital. She opened her eyes, stood up and brushed herself off. She picked up her hand bag and began walking. Good thing she had worn sneakers.

[jobiehanna]

Rhea reached the hospital within the hour. After verifying her identity, she had to sit in the waiting room. She sat in the room for hours; just watching the other patients come and go. Once in a while a nurse would come in and tell her about what was going on, though it would always be vague. The nurse would say such things as, ‘He’s doing good,’ or ‘We’re doing the best we can,’ or ‘It’ll be over before you know it.’
The longer she waited, the more anxiety swelled in her chest. Children came in with worried parents; the elderly came in alone from falls and whatnot. There were all kinds of injuries, but none of them concerned the young woman. She wanted to see Pan and talk with him.
What worried her most was how critical his injuries were. They said he had been hit by a car when crossing the street.  The driver hadn’t seen him when she came around the corner, and therefore collided with the young man. The ambulance had taken him to the hospital, but by the time they reached the hospital he had fallen unconscious, but only after he had told them about Rhea. “You must be the last thing on his mind before he blacked out,” the staff had told her. “He kept saying ‘Rhea, I’m sorry.’” At that Rhea had gotten teary eyed again. Oh, dear Pan, she thought with a sad smile. He was worried about their date!

[jobiehanna]

Another nurse came in, but this time she had a smile on her face. “You may see him now,” she said happily, trying to soften the tension written all over Rhea’s face. Rhea got up and followed after the nurse, a little stiff-legged from her wait. “He’s in room 408,” the nurse said. As they walked, the nurse briefed Rhea on Pan’s condition. He was stable, with a broken arm, a few cracked ribs and some internal bleeding, which the doctors had taken care of. “The internal bleeding was what had taken so much time”, the nurse said.
They finally reached the room, and Rhea was nervous but excited to see Pan. Would he be awake? How would he look with all the tubes? He was probably pale as a ghost… Oh, what if he blamed her for the accident? She was the one who wanted to go to the park on this day, this retched day. She was fuming now, cursing herself for wanting to go to the park. Why, oh why, oh why?
The nurse knocked on the door and walked in quietly, telling Pan he had a visitor. Then the nurse motioned for Rhea to come it. She did as was told.  There he was, lying in the hospital bed with an IV running from his hand to the stand. He looked weak, and his arm was held to his side with whatever the doctors had used to keep it immobile for the time being. It was his left hand, the hand Rhea always held. He had a bruise on the left side of his cheek, like he had hit the pavement or car with it, or maybe a body part had hit it. His eyes were closed, and his breathing was steady. Rhea gave the nurse a look, and she scurried out of the room to give the pair privacy.
Rhea made her way over to the side of Pan’s bed. “Hey,” she said softly, not sure of what else to say. What could she say? Why’d you jump out in front of that car?

[jobiehanna]

At the sound of Rhea’s voice Pan’s eyelids fluttered open. A smile crossed his lips and his eyes shone with happiness. So they had contacted her! He was so glad to see Rhea that he wanted to jump out of the bed and wrap his arms around her, to rid her of that sad look in her eyes. He wanted to comfort her and say everything was going to be okay, but he couldn’t jump out of the bed and do just that. He was bed bound for a few days.  “Hey,” he said roughly, offering a smile. He hadn’t used his voice for a while, and it was very rough, and a little hard to get his words out. He moved his right hand out from underneath the blankets and offered it to her.
Rhea took the hand offered to her with a little smile and leaned closer to the bed. He looked so weak, why had this happened? “How are you feeling?”
Her voice seemed so fragile, like it could break. The feisty woman he had last seen looked so frail, even though she wasn’t the one hurt. Perhaps it was the amount of worry over the last several hours that made her look as she did. “I’m doing alright,” he said, squeezing her hand. He could see the disbelief in her eyes, “I’m not lying,” he said. “They fixed me up good.” He squeezed her hand again, offering her a smile.
Rhea smiled, though it was a little sad. She hated blaming herself for things, and usually didn’t dwell on the bad, but this? Yes, this was bad. “I’m sorry,” she said, looking down. She couldn’t keep eye contact when she wanted to bawl her eyes out.

[jobiehanna]

The first thing Pan thought of to that question was what was she sorry for? She hadn’t done anything; it was his fault for stepping into the road. He knew it was a busy street, but it was the quickest way to the part. So he asked, “What are you sorry for?” Pan tried looking into her eyes, but she wouldn’t look at him. Was it because of the state that he was in? He wanted to look into her beautiful blue eyes, those eyes that were so comforting to him, even in times of pain. As he watched her face, he noticed the tears streaming down her face. “Hey,” he said, pulling her hand closer, over his chest. She leaned forward with her hand, so that she was very close to him. Pan could feel her breathing, almost feel her heartbeat. “You didn’t do anything wrong,” he continued. “It was my stupid mistake, I knew the road was busy, but I wanted to take that way ‘cause it was the shorter way to you.”
At that Rhea smiled, wiping her eyes with her free hand. “Yes it was,” she said, still hoked up from crying. “I wanted you to meet me there, it was stupid. I shouldn’t have convin-”
“No, it wasn’t,” he said, letting go of her hand to touch her face and wipe away the tears that had started flowing again. At that Pan had to cut her off. He hated to see her blame herself, it wasn’t like her. She was usually the confident one that stopped him from blaming himself. “I stepped out in the road,” he continued. “You didn’t,” he said this, putting stress on the words ‘I stepped’ and you didn’t’. Now he could see the stubborn look in her eyes. She was going to argue with him! Pfft, that wasn’t going to happen, especially about this. So, he put his finger to her lips. “Shhh,” he said. “It’s alright, I’m fine now.” Then, he pulled her closer and kissed her.
Rhea couldn’t help but smile. He knew her too well. She pulled away and put a hand on his cheek, the not bruised one. “I love you,” she said softly, “I guess what matters is that I still have you.”
“I suppose,” he said with a smile, caressing her face with his hand. She was so beautiful. How could I guy like him end up with such a jewel?
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
At that, the nurse came in. “It’s time for this guy to get some rest,” she said. “You can come back later.”
Rhea looked furiously at the nurse. She had bad timing. Pan chuckled at the look on her face. “I guess you’ll have to wait for my answer,” he said. “And we can talk more later; I’d like to know why you wanted to meet at the park so early this morning.”
Rhea smiled, “I guess.” She kissed his cheek and stood up. The nurse was looking at her with a look that said, ‘Let’s get going, a little faster please.’ “See ya later, Pan,” she said with a smile. “I love you.” She blew him a kiss when she reached the door.
“I love you too,” Pan said with a smile. Then he blew her a kiss in return.

[jobiehanna]

When Rhea had left the room the nurse closed the door softly and gave Pan his pills. “Time to get some rest, young man,” she said. “You’ve had quite the day.”
“Yes ma’am,” Pan said. His mind was still on Rhea. When would he see her again? In a few hours? The next day? He didn’t know; all he knew was that he wanted her there, by his side. As he swallowed his pills he thought of Rhea. After the nurse left she was still on his mind. She was like a disease to him, but a good disease, a disease you didn’t want to get rid of. He soon fell asleep, the drugs kicking in.

[jobiehanna]

Rhea hadn’t realized how long they’d been together in the hospital. It was getting dark already! As she looked up she realized that the reason was because of the storm clouds above. It looked like it was going to rain. She hurried home, trying to get to the little apartment as fast as possible. She hadn’t brought an umbrella, as she hadn’t counted on the rain. The rain suddenly started coming down, oh how she wished she’d looked at the weather forecast! She finally reached the apartment complex and rushed inside. She was wet, almost soaked to the skin. She rushed up the steps and into the apartment she shared with Pan. It was empty, what else had she expected? Pan wasn’t there; he was stuck in a bed, in a hospital far from home.
The young woman went to the bathroom and got a nice, warm shower, letting the water run down her back. It was so warm and felt so good after the day’s stress. She wanted to stay in there forever! As she got ready for bed she thought of the day and why she’d wanted to meet Pan at the park, not walk together. She had wanted to talk about their life together and where it was going. They had been together for years, and she thought it was time to talk about things such as having children and getting married. Sure, they lived together, but they hadn’t done anything, like trying for kids, as she wanted to be married first, and Pan respected her wish, thinking that it was just because she wasn’t ready to have kids. They were committed to each other, yes, but Rhea wanted her children to have that comforting feeling that their parents weren’t going to abandon them for some other man or women.
Now that Pan had this accident, Rhea was sure of what she wanted to do. She had been wearing and engagement ring for months now, but now she felt she was ready for the actual day. They could start planning it when Pan was out of the hospital. They could get married and have kids, be the perfect family. It had always been a dream of Rhea’s, even if Pan hadn’t known.
Rhea fell asleep that night thinking of Pan and their future together. It was going to be so perfect! She had no worries about him not wanting to be married, as he had been urging her to make the plans.

[jobiehanna]

When Rhea woke up the next morning she jumped out of her bed and was ready to go within an hour. She was excited to go see Pan, and was in a hurry to get there. She ate a half a bagel with cream cheese and orange juice, threw a pair of jeans and a shirt on, grabbed her bag and was out the door. She took the bus to the hospital, eager to get there. The ride seemed to take forever, and the walk to Pan’s room seemed to take forever. She knocked on the door. It felt odd, knocking, she usually just walked in.
Pan had just finished eating when there came a knock at his door. He softly said, “Come in.” Rhea walked in, looking stunning in her blue sweater, her hair done in its usual braid, though it hadn’t started falling out yet, which was unfortunate. Pan loved the way the hair fell into her eyes, even if she didn’t like it. “Hi there, beautiful,” he said happily, sitting up a little.
“Good morning, handsome” she said happily, sitting on the bed beside him. She smiled, taking his hand. “I can’t wait ‘til you’re outta here,” she began. “This place is way to clean for my liking.” She said this last part as a joke, smiling a bit. Their little apartment was always messy, but it was an organized mess. The pair seemed to know where everything was, even if it took a little bit to find something every once in a while.  
Pan chuckled too. It was good to see her in a better mood. Perhaps getting some rest had unwound her a bit. “Yeah, I know, right?”
“So,” Rhea started. “What did you mean by, ‘I suppose,’ last night after I said ‘all that matters is that I still have you?”
He chuckled again. “I think you’re more important than I am, so what really matters is that I still have you,” he said with a twinkle in his eyes. “I don’t know what I’d do without you; you take such good care of me.”
Rhea smiled. “Of course,” she said. “We’ve had this argument before, you always win,” she added.
“Yup, always.”
Rhea stuck her tongue out at him. He was so good with winning things, but Rhea didn’t mind. She liked to give him what he wanted. “So, how’s the food?”
“It sucks,” was Pan’s response. “It’ll never be as good as yours and they don’t feed me enough, nor do I get much of a variety.”
Rhea giggled. “Well, good thing I brought this then.” She pulled out the other half of the bagel and gave it to him. “I always share my bagel with you, why would today be any different?”
Pan chuckled as he took the bagel half. “Thanks,” he said happily. He took a bit and savored the flavor. “It’s pretty good,” he said. “Blueberry?”
“Mhm.” Rhea watched Pan as he ate the bagel, knowing that he didn’t like to talk when they were eating, as it took away from the food. And the thought of the food took away from the conversation. Well, that’s how he looked at it, and she respected that.
When Pan was done he licked his lips. “Very good indeed,” he said, sucking the cream cheese off of his fingers. “So, what did you want to talk about?”

[jobiehanna]

Rhea looked down at her fingers, which were laced together in her lap. “Well, I don’t think it’s the right time to talk about it,” she said a little gruffly. She didn’t want to talk to Pan about getting married and having children while he lay in a hospital bed.
“Aw, come one,” he said. “You can tell me.”
Rhea shook her head. “I’d prefer not to talk about it while you’re lying in a hospital bed.”
Pan sighed. “Fair enough,” he said. He could see the anxiousness written all over Rhea’s face, and wondered what in the world it could be that she wanted to talk about. Certainly not to break off their engagement? “Why don’t you come up here and sit with me?”
Rhea smile. “Okay,” she said and got up on the hospital bed beside him after taking the railing down. She snuggled close to him. She already missed snuggling on the couch with him and watching a movie, like they did almost every night after their busy days.
Pan wrapped his arm around Rhea, playing with her golden hair. “Will you tell me one thing though?” He asked her, twirling one of the strands in between his fingers. Rhea nodded, looking into Pan’s light brown eyes, they seemed playful, yet a little worried. “What you want to talk about, does it have anything to do with breaking off the engagement?”
Rhea’s eyes widened in surprise. She lifted her hand to hold Pan’s, which was still in her hair. “Of course not! I love you Pan, I would never,” she said in an astonished whisper. How could he think that? Well, she was being elusive. “It’s about something that, well, I want to do, that I didn’t want to do before,” she added quietly. “But I don’t want to talk about it while you’re lying in a hospital bed, that’s all.”
The worry seemed to melt from Pan’s eyes when she said this. “Good,” he said simply, pulling her closer so that her head rested on his chest. “I can’t wait to get outta here,” he added. “And hear what you want to say.”
Rhea smiled, “I can’t wait to tell you.” Pan smiled as well, playing with her hair once again. As Rhea lay there, she began to drift to sleep. She felt so comfortable, lying there beside Pan with his arm around her.

[jobiehanna]

Pan noticed that Rhea’s breathing was evening out like she had fallen asleep. He smiled softly. This was the girl he loved. He rested his head against hers and waited for the nurses that brought his pain medicine to come in. When they did, they didn’t seem to mind the young girl asleep beside him. They smiled as if they understood. One even whispered, ‘Young love.’
When Rhea woke up she rubbed the sleep out of her eyes and yawned. How long had she been asleep? The sky was darkening outside and Pan was asleep as well. His arm was still around her. She smiled. What a good nap, but now it was time to go home. She touched his hand. “Pan,” she said softly, squeezing his hand.
Pan woke up to the sound of Rhea’s voice. Ah, such a sweet sound. He opened his eyes. “Yeah,” he said.
“I think it’s time for me to go,” she said.
“Already?”
“Yeah, it’s getting late.”
“Okay,” he said. “I’ll see you tomorrow then.”
Rhea smiled and stood up. “Yeah,” she said with another smile. She leaned over and kissed him before picking up her stuff to go. “Bye, I love you,” she said.
“I love you too, and remember, it’s not bye, it’s see you later,” Pan said, recalling a time when she had said that to him.
Rhea giggled, “Of course.” Then she went to the door and blew him another kiss. He caught it, and she left. She took the bus home instead of walking, as she was still a little drowsy from sleep.

[jobiehanna]

A few days passed like this, with Rhea coming to visit Pan for the entire day. They would talk and watch movies on the TV. They would also play board games that Rhea brought along. The staff didn’t mind, as Rhea wasn’t a nuisance. The pair ate hospital food and complained about it, but also laughed. It was a good few days, where Pan tried to pry Rhea open so that she would tell him what she wanted to say, she never did, insisting that it would be better if he were not in a hospital bed.
On the day Pan was to be released, Rhea rushed to the hospital to get him. She rented a car and everything. This was unusual, as they usually walked everywhere.
As Rhea pushed Pan out of the hospital in the wheelchair, so generously lent to them from the hospital for the trip to the car, she thought of getting Pan home and finally being able to tell him what had been on her mind for days. As Pan was pushed out of the hospital he thought of the mystery that Rhea was to tell him. What was it? Was the question that had been itching in his mind for the days he had been in the hospital. They reached the car and Pan got it and twiddled his thumbs like a boy that had been caught stealing cookies. Rhea came back from dropping the wheelchair off inside and started the engine. She smiled at Pan. “Are you ready?”
“Yup,” was Pan’s response. “It feels so good to be out of that place!”
Rhea chuckled. “Of course you are,” Rhea said. She put the car into drive and headed home. The ride to their apartment was quiet, but not an awkward quiet. It was the kind of quiet that once two people spend so much time together it just becomes the time when you enjoy each other’s company.

[jobiehanna]

When they reached the little apartment Rhea shut off the car and exhaled. The more she waited to talk to Pan about getting married and having a family, the more nervous she got. She glanced over at him, and saw him staring at her. “What’s wrong?” he asked with a concerned note in his voice.
“Just a little nervous,” was Rhea’s response. As she turned to look at Pan she noticed the look in his eyes that said, ‘What are you nervous about?’ Before he had a chance to ask the question, she answered, “I’m nervous about what I want to talk about. I’ve been thinking about it for days.”
“I see,” Pan said, reaching over to hold her hands. “Don’t be nervous,” he added. “I don’t judge you.”
Rhea smiled. “Thanks,” she whispered.
“How ‘bout we go inside and talk?”
“That sounds good.”
Rhea let go of his hands and opened the car door and got out; Pan did the same. As they walked up to the apartment they held hands like most happy couples do. It was such a good feeling for Rhea and Pan to hold the other’s hand while walking around again. Though it did feel awkward, as they were walking on opposite sides of where they usually were.

[jobiehanna]

They reached their apartment and Rhea called the place where she had rented the car from so they could come pick it up. Pan sat down on the couch as he waited for her to finish up the phone call and pondered what she could want to talk about that would make her so nervous. It wasn’t like her… Just then Rhea hung up the phone and walked over to the couch. She sat down beside Pan and he put his arm around her, holding her tight. Then he asked, “So, what is it you want to talk about?”
Rhea looked down at her finger, fiddling with the simple ring around her finger. The band was made of white-gold and it had a diamond in the middle. It was so simple and beautiful, she loved it so much. “Well, I wanted to talk about this,” she said, holding up her left hand to show him the ring. “Or, well, something that has to do with this.” She put her hand back in her lap and looked up into Pan’s eyes. He looked at her with concern, wondering what she wanted to talk about exactly. She smiled. “I-I want to get married and have a family,” she said softly.
Pan’s eyes widened in surprise. His first thought was ‘Finally’. He had been waiting for this moment for a while now. She was finally ready, and that surprised and excited him. “Well, that’s great!” He exclaimed, hugging her tight. He kissed her full on the lips and she kissed him back, the worry and nervousness was gone from her eyes and happiness had replaced it.
Rhea smiled, looking up at Pan after breaking off the kiss. “Really?”
“Yes, really,” Pan said. “This is wonderful! We’ll have to start planning!”        
Rhea giggled. “I didn’t think you’d be this excited,” she said with a laugh.
“Rhea, I’ve been waiting for this moment for a while now,” he said softly, running his hand through her light blonde hair. “I didn’t want to rush you, so I didn’t push you to make a too quickly, I know how you like to take your time with things.” He smiled, still playing with her hair. “So, what caused you to make this decision?”
“Well, I’ve been thinking about it,” she said. “Time doesn’t stop for no one, and I think time has been getting away from me. I kept saying, it can wait another day, to myself over and over again, until it had waited for a long while. That’s why I wanted to meet at the park, and your accident just made me realize how fragile a life can be, even yours.”
A small grin appeared across Pan’s face. “That was very touching,” he said. They hadn’t talked about this kind of stuff in a while, and this really surprised him. Rhea usually beat around the bush for a while, but this time she had come straight out and said it. He hugged her tight again. “We can start planning as soon as you’re ready,” he said.
Rhea’s face lit up with that. She grinned mischievously, “Would now be okay?”
Pan chuckled. “That’s my girl,” he said, still laughing. Rhea joined in with his laughter. It felt so good to laugh in their home.  

[jobiehanna]

The following day Rhea began making the phone calls, and whenever she ran into trouble Pan was there to stick up for her. He wasn’t a tough guy, but when someone gave his girl attitude, he was there in a heartbeat to give them what was coming to them. Throughout the day they called caterers, dress shops, florists, anyone that had anything to do with their wedding. It was going to be a wonderful day, the pair were excited, and wanted to get hitched as soon as possible.
At the end of the long day of phone calls and making appointments, Rhea found herself sitting the couch with Pan once again. She was leaning against him, and they were watching a movie filled with suspense and romance. She turned to him, kissing his lips. She giggled, drawing him near. “Just a few more weeks,” she said with a smile.
“Mmhhmm,” Pan responded, kissing her again. “And you’ll be all mine,” he added with a chuckle.
“Too bad we couldn’t have gotten a closer date,” Rhea said, referring to their wedding date. It as close as they could get it, as the place they wanted was booked for a while, as it was popular spot for weddings.

[jobiehanna]

They were to be wed in Aldrect, the Holy City, by a priest that would be giving them counseling once a week to make sure they were truly in love with each other. The poor guy didn’t realize he’d be caught in a net of love with the two in the room. Rhea smiled, just thinking about the place made her giddy. It was a beautiful place, the exterior was made of white marble, and the pictures they had seen made it look so grand. However, they would have to take a trip there to make sure it was what they wanted; the trip was planned for the following week. Even though Rhea was sure that it would be the place.
As Rhea and Pan watched the movie, Rhea’s mind was elsewhere. It was so exciting to finally be getting married! She’d have to contact her closest friends to be bridesmaids, and Pan would have to do the same. She didn’t want to have many people up front with her, but a few would do, perhaps two or three. And she and Pan would have to sample wedding cakes and pick out the flowers and the dresses, well; she’d pick out the dresses.
She smiled. She already had some of her closest friends in mind. There was Jasmine, the sweet nurse-in-training she had met in high school; Dream, the girl who had had her heart broken so many times, yet still stuck close to Pan and Rhea; and Odette, the good girl that was so good at offering advice in the toughest situations.
Beside Rhea, Pan was thinking along the same lines. He needed groomsmen, but who would they be? He didn’t speak to many people, but he did have a few close friends. Damon, for example, who was the protective one who was always taking care of his younger sister; Fabian, the ancient one who was a hopeless romantic and had a deep respect for women; and then there was Toby, the marine biologist that didn’t have much to say.
They were both deep in thought when the movie ended, so neither noticed until the credits were rolling. “Guess it’s time to hit the sack,” Pan said with a chuckle.
Rhea nodded. “Yeah,” she said with a yawn, she stood up and made her way to the bedroom to fetch her pajamas before going to the bathroom. Pan followed after, pulling his pajamas on as well. They were both soon nested in their bed, and sleep came upon the couple within minutes.