As It Was

Chandler

Everyone's faces expressed shock and a bit of confusion as Henry cowered next to Sam. He suddenly looked like even he himself was surprised by his words; as if he had been thinking out loud and hadn't meant to say anything at all.

"Henry," my voice was slightly stern, knowing it was the only way he would actually listen to me instead of interrupting immediately, "I'm not letting you do that. You finally got back to working your normal schedule again at the publishing firm and I'm not putting you in any position that would give you even more to worry about. It's the last thing you need right now."

"Chandler, don't worry about my job." His voice was soft as ever but held a bit more confidence than it usually did when he spoke. He furrowed his brows at me and I saw his fists clench lightly at his sides as if he were trying to become somewhat threatening. Even the thought of him being anywhere near scary was hilarious, "I can still work. I normally get off at half-past five anyway, so I can ask to get off about an hour or so earlier. I don't start my shift until nine now, too."

His eyes were desperate, and as I looked around at the faces of those I loved, I could see the pleading expressions they held. I knew they were worried and concerned because they care about me, but I hated the feeling of being pitied and babied because of something that none of us could have controlled anyways. It felt useless.

"I really appreciate your offer. However, I really can take care of myself, Dr. Perez." I looked away from my best friend's doe eyes and looked to my neurologist instead, hoping that he would finally agree with me and get my family to stop their nagging.

Just as he opened his mouth to speak, Henry stepped forward from where he stood next to my brother, lips set in a pout and his round eyes slightly squinted. The sight alone almost made me spit out a cackle, but I suppressed it as he began to speak slowly, "Either you stay at my place, or I'm coming to yours."

His tone was as if he were a mother scolding her child for eating too much candy; stern but soft enough around the edges that it didn't cut too deep.

I sighed and ran a hand down my face slowly, suddenly exhausted from this grueling conversation that I was now bound to lose.

I peeked through my fingers to glimpse at his usually soft, gentle face. He looked like a dejected Chihuahua trying to embody a Pitbull. I closed my eyes again and let my head fall back against the plastic headboard with a bang that made my skull ache slightly.

Henry Sallow, what am I going to do with you?

I sighed and sunk into the soft leather seat of Henry's car as he shuffled in and got situated in the driver's seat. He looked over at me, eyes slightly widened innocently and a bright smile spreading from cheek to cheek.

"You ready to go?" He fastened his seat belt and ran a hand through his bangs, eyeing himself in the rearview mirror after he acknowledged my nod. His hair had grown longer than he ever let it, the bottom curling around his ears and the strands going every which way in a type of messy that still conveyed an effortless elegance. I brought my own hand up and ruffled it out of habit, making it messier and disheveled in the most endearing way.

"Chan," he groaned, pulling his head away from my abusive hand as I chuckled softly, "don't make it even worse! My hair's been an absolute mess, I should cut it soon." He seemed to be lost in his thoughts as he tried to smooth over his fluffy strands, eventually giving up.

"Don't," I voiced softly, a smile thick in my words as I looked over at him gently, "I like it like this. It's cute." His nose wrinkled like a kitten as I tickled under his chin teasingly, a blush rising from his ears to his cheeks.

He's so timid and innocent.

He's so gentle, kind, smart, and caring.

He's a mixture of qualities that most people have to fake in order to get where they want in life.

Henry doesn't need to fake anything, though; he's simply himself and that's more than enough.

He cleared his throat and started the engine, pulling away from the curb and starting down the road.

Minutes went by in a comfortable silence, but my throat tickled with the need to say what I was thinking- to say what I'd been thinking ever since he convinced me to stay with him back at the hospital two days prior.

"Henry," I broke the relaxing haze of quiet and watched as we pulled up to a red light. He looked over at me and raised his brows slightly as if questioning me, "you really didn't have to do this. I can take care of myself."

He huffed, rolling his eyes and shaking his head softly before he looked over at me again, "Chan. I know I didn't have to, but I wanted to. I want to take care of you. Please," his eyes went soft and held a tint of something else there that I couldn't quite grasp. His knuckles were white where he was gripping the steering wheel, "Just let me take care of you for now."

I looked away and swallowed, taking a deep breath and letting it out slowly as I gazed out the window once the light turned green. Henry glanced at me quickly to gauge my reaction to his words, seeming slightly on edge and anxious.

"Okay." I smiled a little, letting the corners of my lips turn up inevitably as he let out a content sigh, seemingly happy with my response.

The rest of the drive to Henry's apartment was calm and decently quick. After we pulled into the parking garage and he parked in his designated spot, he got out of the car before I could and made his way to the trunk to retrieve my duffle bags. I grunted as I slipped out of the car as quickly as I could and made my way to the trunk to grab the rest of my belongings.

"Hand me the other bags." I tilted my head in the direction of the second bag Henry had slung around his shoulder. Of course, he took the heaviest of the three bags I had packed, leaving me to take the lightest.

"Nope." He smiled up at me cheekily, closing the trunk and locking the car before beginning to walk away toward the elevators. I huffed and caught the strap of a duffle bag he was trying to lug as he passed, causing him to come to a halt in front of me.

He turned around and sighed, "Stop feeling so bad for everything. You're here for me to take care of you. Now, I know I'm smaller than you but I'm sure as hell strong enough to carry two bags at the same time." He rolled his eyes slightly and stepped a bit closer to me.

"Come on. Try to think positively about this. It's like a little vacation!" He tried to cheer me, pushing at my chest gently. As he turned back around to head inside the complex, he smiled gently and looked at me with something I couldn't catch buried deep in his sepia eyes.

Before I could observe the sudden, somewhat vulnerable emotion he was holding between furrowed brows, he looked down, blinked, and looked back up at me with a faint dimpled grin that felt so familiar.

He looked like he wanted to say something but was holding back. However, I didn't want to pry, feeling bad enough that I was here and he was stuck taking care of me.

He turned around, walked a few steps, and then stopped once again. Henry turned his body just enough to look at me, grabbing my arm gently to pull me up next to him so we were standing next to each other.

"Think of it as..." he paused to think, humming as we linked elbows and started toward the garage's elevators, "a new beginning."

His honey eyes seemed to glow amber under the elevator's yellow light as we stepped in and waited for the doors to close.

"Yeah," I replied, looking down at him, feeling that strange tickle deep in my stomach again that I'd felt at the hospital as I stared into him rather than at him. I let my own orbs wander down to his wind-chilled nose and pink-tinted lips before blinking out of my daze and teasing,

"A new beginning, all thanks to my hero."