After our beach day on Sunday, the next week of school has flown by and now it's Saturday again. Reece, Anna, and Liam are at my house at the moment to binge-watch some more episodes of friends.

Liam snickers, "Joey's so dumb. I'd hate to be like him."

I subconsciously look to Reece who is sitting beside me and I watch his lips pull up into a smirk. Oh no. "Liam-" I quickly reach over and place a hand over his mouth, preventing him from saying anything mean to his best friend. Reece looks to me with narrowed eyes, but I don't feel intimidated at all.

"What?" Liam asks, looking between Reece and I with innocent curiosity.

I smile at him, "Nothing, Sweetie, just watch the TV."

He frowns slightly but turns back around to pay attention to the episode of Friends we are watching anyways.

I let out a soft sigh and remove my hand from over Reece's mouth, smiling up at him innocently. He huffs childishly, furrowing his eyebrows as he sinks back into the couch. "Why does he get a nickname?"

I laugh before cooing, "Oh, I'm so sorry, Sweetums. I didn't realize you wanted one, Snugglekins. You should have told me, Babycakes."

He just rolls his eyes at me, looking like he is about to respond before his phone suddenly starts ringing. He frowns and digs it out of his pocket before answering it. "Hello?" He waits for a moment before continuing with a frown, "What's wrong?" There is another longer pause before he suddenly stands up, eyes wide. "God, is she okay?"

I quickly stand up as well, looking up at him worriedly. I don't like the little crease that has formed between his brows or the frown on his lips. His eyes connect with mine and they gaze intently into mine.

"Okay, yeah, we'll be there soon. Bye, Mom... Love you too, bye." He ends the call and reaches a hand up, running it through his hair.

I look up at him worriedly, "Is everything okay?"

He quickly shakes his head, blurting, "Sophie's in the hospital."

~

Reece swings into a free parking space near the entrance of the hospital and cuts the engine before quickly getting out of the car. Anna, Liam, and I hurry after him, the four of us rushing through the doors of the hospital and straight to the front desk. The smell of disinfectant invades my senses and I immediately hate it.

A middle-aged lady with greying hair and a kind smile looks up at us as we walk in. Seeing our rushed state, she instantly asks, "How can I help you?"

"My little sister was just brought in here. Her name's Sophie Carter." Reece says gruffly, tapping his fingers on the edge of the desk impatiently.

The lady quickly types something into the computer before saying, "Yes, she's on floor three, room 62."

Reece immediately turns and starts towards the elevator, not bothering to thank the lady. I hurry after him, stepping into the elevator right behind him. I look up at him once I step inside, seeing his face set into a frown as he holds the door open for Anna and Liam. Once they are inside, he lets the door close and glances down at me.

"She'll be okay, Reece," I assure him softly. He doesn't say anything, but I see his shoulders relax slightly at my words.

The elevator doors open once we reach the third floor and we step out to go find Sophie's room. After a short walk, we find the right room and step inside. The first thing I see is the injured little girl laying in the hospital bed, the rest of her siblings and her parents surrounding her. Her left arm is held to her chest by a sling and there is a small bandage on her forehead.

When Sophie spots us, a smile lifts her lips and she sits up a little straighter, "You're here!"

Reece is the first to greet her, leaning over the bed and hugging her gently, "Of course we are, Princess."

Reece steps back to allow Anna to see her too and instead hugs his parents and greets the rest of his siblings. Once Anna has finished hugging her sister, Sophie looks at me.

"Layla!" She exclaims and I laugh softly, giving the little girl a gentle hug.

"Hey, Princess. I heard you took a bit of a fall."

She nods, "Yup. I have to get my arm in a cast!"

"Oh no." I murmur, brushing some of her hair from her face.

"It's okay. Will you sign my cast when it gets put on?" Sophie asks hopefully.

"Of course I will."

The door opens again, and a doctor walks in. Everyone instantly pays attention, waiting to hear what he has to say. "So, Sophie is going to need a cast to keep that broken arm in place while it heals. She also has a second-grade concussion. Seeing as she is so young, we'd like to keep her overnight to make sure it's not any worse. Now how about we go get that cast on?" The doctor smiles kindly at Sophie and she nods. Carefully, she gets out of the bed and walks towards the door with her parents.

Just as they are about to leave, the door bursts open, almost smacking the doctor in the face. Liam stands there, panting a little. I hadn't realized he was been so far behind us. "I'm here! Some old lady in a wheelchair just would not move."

"Liam!" Sophie exclaims with a giggle, running over to give him a hug.

"Hey, Shorty." He smiles, bending down to hug her carefully.

"Come on, Sophie," Lucas says, urging his youngest daughter to follow the doctor out of the room. They leave, leaving the rest of the Carter family, Liam, and I in the hospital room.

I give Macy and Cody a hug in greeting and get a fist bump from Max before Liam and Anna go over to them. I turn and watch as Reece leans against the hospital wall with his eyes closed. I hesitantly walk closer to him before stopping a few feet away. "Reece, are you okay?"

He opens his eyes and meets mine, opening his mouth to reply, but he stops, sighing instead. He tears his hands through his hair, blinking a few times, "Sunshine, I should have been there."

I frown and take another step closer, "Where?"

"At the house when she fell off the porch. She hit her head and got a concussion and broke her arm... what if I'd been there watching them play? I might have been able to stop it. Or catch her before she could fall." He curses under his breath, letting his head fall back against the wall.

I let out a soft sigh and take yet another step closer, "You had no idea that would happen. Yes, you may have been able to prevent it from happening, but maybe not. Even if you were there, it still could have happened. It's not your fault, Reece."

He meets my gaze, "But I'm her older brother, I'm supposed to protect her. Always."

"And you do," I take another step forward, "But you can't always be there. Stuff like this happens, Reece and you're not always going to be there to protect your family. But it's okay because that's how they learn and grow. And besides, now Sophie has an awesome cast to show off to everyone at school on Monday."

His lip quirks up into the smallest of smiles, "I guess."

"You guessed right," I step forward once more and lean against the wall beside him. "You have no reason to worry, Reece. You're an amazing older brother. They'll all be just fine."

He looks down at me, "Thanks, Sunshine."

I smile and let my head rest against his shoulder, "Anytime."

~

It is well into the night now and we have all stayed at the hospital with Sophie for the rest of the day. Everyone signed her pink cast once it got put on and she loves it. We finished dinner a little while ago and everyone will be heading home soon. I'm not sure who will be staying with Sophie tonight. All the kids will be going home and so will Liam. But Both Novah and Lucas have work early tomorrow morning.

"Alright, I think it's time we get these kids home." Lucas says, looking towards the hospital bed where both Macy and Sophie are lying, looking as though they are falling asleep. Cody is sitting in the chair next to the bed on Novah's lap, nodding off as well.

Novah nods and gently shakes Cody awake, telling him they are leaving. She then looks up at her husband, "Maybe I should just stay with her, Luc. You can take all the kids back and-"

"I'm not leaving." Reece suddenly interjects. His face is set and determined.

Novah gives him a gentle smile, "Baby, I know that-"

"Mom," He interrupts again, "You go home. I'll stay and look after Sophie. You both have work tomorrow."

"You're not going to stay here by yourself." Lucas says with a sigh, running his hand over his face.

"Dad, I'll-"

"I'll stay with him," I cut in, smiling sheepishly as everyone turns to look at me.

"Layla, Hun, you don't have to do that." Novah says with a smile.

I shake my head, "No, I want to." I've already told my parents what has happened and that I might be home late. I'm sure they won't mind me staying.

"Sunshine, I'll be fine by myself." Reece mutters, shaking his head.

"I know you will," I say, "But your parents don't want you to stay alone. And I want to stay. Problem solved."

He stares at me for a long moment, his turquoise eyes burning into mine. Then he sighs, looking towards his mom, "Alright, if Sunshine stays, can I?"

Novah sighs and looks between Reece and I, "Alright, you two can stay. I just have one question first," She pauses as she turns her gaze to Reece with a smirk, "Sunshine?"

"Right, bye," He quickly dismisses them, making shooing gestures with his arms. I laugh, watching in amazement as Reece's ears turn slightly red. After saying goodbye, they all depart, leaving me, a slightly embarrassed Reece, and a half-asleep Sophie alone in the hospital room.

Sophie shuffles around a little before asking, "You're staying, Layla?"

I walk over to her bed and sit down on the edge, looking down at her with a smile. "Of course I am."

"Yay." She whispers with as much enthusiasm as her tired little body can muster.

"Go to sleep, Princess." I murmur, brushing some of her hair away from her face.

She frowns slightly, "Mommy usually sings to me before bed. Can you sing to me, Layla?"

I smile a little more, "Of course." Shuffling over to her, she makes space for me to lay next to her. Reece sits in the armchair beside the bed, but doesn't say anything, silently urging me to do as Sophie asked. I clear my throat a little before I begin singing the lullaby my Mom always sang to me when I was little.

"Hush, little baby, don't say a word

Momma's going to buy you a mocking bird

And if that mocking bird don't sing

Momma's going to buy you a diamond ring

And if that diamond ring is brass

Momma's going to buy you a looking glass

And if that looking glass gets broke

Momma's going to buy you a billy goat

And if that billy goat don't pull

Momma's going to buy you a cart and bull

And if that cart and bull turn over

Momma's going to buy a dog called Rover

And if that dog called Rover don't bark

Momma's going to buy you a horse and cart

And if that horse and cart turn round

You'll still be the sweetest little babe in town"

I finish the song and watch Sophie's breaths even out, realizing she has fallen asleep. Gently removing my arm from around her, I stand back up. Before I can even turn around, Reece's words stop me. "You're an amazing singer, Sunshine."

I turn to him with a smile, sitting down in the smaller chair beside him. When the nurses realized there were going to be so many people in the room, they'd brought in an extra chair from the waiting room in addition to the armchair that is already here. Not that the one added chair really did much.

"Thanks, but it doesn't really take much to sing that lullaby." I reply, trying my best to get comfortable in the small, hard chair. It's a difficult task.

"I've heard you sing before, I know you're amazing." He murmurs, leaning closer to me as he speaks so he can speak quieter so as not to wake the sleeping girl.

I laugh a little, "I'm really not that great."

He scoffs, "Please. Sunshine, you and I both know you're amazing."

I try to hide my blush as I lean back into the chair. Wishing I brought a jacket with me, I kick my shoes off and tuck my legs up underneath me with a shiver, feeling the lack of heat the hospital room provides. My eyes close and I listen as Reece shuffles around a little, attempting to get comfortable as well.

"Here." He suddenly murmurs, making me open my eyes. He is holding out a familiar navy-blue hoodie for me. It is the same one he lent me when we had a sleepover. It's also the one he has been wearing all day, meaning he has just taken it off, leaving him in only a black t-shirt.

I furrow my eyebrows, "Reece, you're only wearing a t-shirt, you'll freeze."

"So are you." He counters with a frown.

I huff, knowing he is right. I don't take the hoodie and he sighs, "Sunshine, please just take it."

Grumbling under my breath, I take the item of clothing from him, knowing he won't take no for an answer. I mumble a quick thank you as I pull the hoodie over my head. It smells distinctly of Reece. Prominently his cologne with a little of his washing powder as well. It seems like quite the odd combination of smells, but it is so familiar and comforting. I love it. I instantly feel warmer as I sink into the hoodie that is a few sizes too big for me. It's still absolutely freezing in the hospital room.

Amid my constantly shivering, I manage to eventually fall into a restless sleep. I can feel my nose becoming cold and almost starting to go numb and my lips are frozen. There must be something wrong with their heating system. When it feels like I'm finally falling asleep properly, I am suddenly stirred more awake. Two arms encircle me, one under my legs and the other around my back. I'm lifted into the air and out of the uncomfortable chair before being placed on a much warmer and softer surface.

"Reece?" I mumble, trying to figure out what is going on.

"How the fúck are you still freezing cold, Sunshine? You're shaking." His muttered reply tells me he is much closer than I remember him being. His chest is right in front of me and I can feel the vibrations of his voice as he speaks.

I blink my eyes open slowly, realizing I'm now sitting in Reece's lap. The room is pitch black and I can't see a thing. "Why did you move me?"

"I didn't want you to freeze to death. You need some body heat or something." He whispers, starting to sound unsure of himself. His breath noticeably hitches when I curl into him, tucking my head just under his chin and listening to the insistent beat of his heart.

"Thank you." I whisper back, relaxing into him as his arms wrap around my body. I feel so much warmer and safer being held against him that it doesn't take me more than a few seconds to fall into a deep sleep.