Claire sniffled when she noticed a sudden change of facial expression in Gabriel. He turned paler and almost green.
"Excuse me." He mumbled as he rushed towards the kitchen with a pretty bad wobble in his step. Claire stood frozen for a good moment before her brain managed to record what has just happened. She followed him through to the kitchen, not finding him there, but instead, she found him in the small hallways behind it.
"Gabriel?" She called out for him as she noticed him kneeling on the floor, bending over. "Are you okay?"
"Never better," Gabriel said with a slight chuckle between vomiting, with his back to her. Claire ruffled his hair. "I'm sorry. I think I've drunk a bit too much." Gabriel admitted as he sat on the floor and leaned against the wall, hugging the bucket with his head over it. Claire's face twisted slightly in disgust as the repelling smell of vomit reached her. But she sat beside him, gently caressing his back whenever he bent over the bucket.
"It'll be over soon enough," Claire said reassuringly. "Let's move you somewhere comfier and warmer." She decided as she felt his cold skin underneath his shirt. "And I'll get you some water."
Gabriel nodded, holding onto the bucket as if it was the most precious thing, and as if his life depended on it.
"I need a moment, I think," Gabriel said as he turned even greener.
"Of course."
"I would appreciate it if you could leave me for a moment," Gabriel said in embarrassment. "I don't want you to see me in this state."
"That's not happening. The last thing I need on my consciousness is you choking on your own vomit because of a stupid argument caused by me." Claire said sternly. "Please, promise me to not drink like this again. I don't think this is healthy."
"I didn't drink that much but I think the medication made it all worse. It was a one-off, I promise." Gabriel mumbled before throwing up again
They sat in silence, or at least Claire did, whilst Gabriel looked paler and paler. She gently stroked his back as if that was going to make him feel any better, but it had the opposite effect as he felt increasingly more embarrassed over his state.
With Claire's help, Gabriel moved to the living room, flopping onto the sofa, still holding tightly onto the bucket.
Claire looked around the living room with disapproval.
"I didn't have much to drink my ass," Claire said angrily as she picked up the two empty bottles off the coffee table and wiped away any spills.
"They were nearly empty anyways. I couldn't just let them go to waste." Gabriel said before he vomited again.
"Shut up and vomit in silence. I don't need you to choke on your own vomit." Claire said in irritation. Gabriel smiled weakly, obediently following her instructions as she tidied the mess he made, mostly including empty bottles, glasses, and quite a few spills.
"Go to bed," Gabriel mumbled.
"Again, I don't want you to choke on your own vomit tonight. I have enough on my plate already. You'll be supervised until further notice."
"You care about me." Gabriel snickered before throwing up again. Claire looked up at him as she picked up his tie off the floor.
"Is that surprising to you?"
"Slightly."
"I cared about you even when I hated you."
"Oh, how charming." Gabriel laughed, which was cut short again. "God, your honesty…"
"You knew about that before you married me."
"Uh-huh. I love it."
"You stink," Claire said with disgust.
"Yep. You have a whole right to go upstairs."
"That's a change of attitude and a half. Not long ago you begged me to stay and now you're sending me away?" Claire asked teasingly.
"Frankly, my state right now is not the most appealing. How can you admire me if I am throwing up my guts?"
"I don't admire you on the best of days, so…" Claire said her blatant lie with a smirk, whilst making Gabriel drink some water. "frankly, this doesn't have any effect on me."
"Not even a bit?"
"What's there to admire?" Claire asked him.
"Let me think…" Gabriel leaned back against the sofa, still holding onto the bucket. "I need to remember what the criteria were for being named the Sexiest Man of 2018…" and another bout of vomit. "I'm tall, kind of athletic, rich, and I have some locks of hair," Gabriel said with confidence which made Claire roar in laughter.
"So… I'm tall, kind of athletic, I have long locks of hair, and I'm rich thanks to you. I should've been voted the Sexiest Person Ever." Claire joked.
"Yeah, definitely." Gabriel nodded eagerly. "The Sexiest Woman Of 2022. I need to put your name forward."
"You've lost it, haven't you?" Claire asked with a smile as she sat cross-legged beside him.
"Long ago. But that's irrelevant."
"It's quite relevant. When did it start?" Claire asked as she moved the streak of his hair off his forehead which had pearls of sweat. In theory, she should've been repulsed by him in his state, but somehow, she was mostly concerned and still in awe of him – of his long eyelashes and that weak smile on his lips, and of course, his dimples.
"When did what start?"
"Your descend into madness?"
"It was progressive since birth," Gabriel said with a smile. "My brain broke into pieces probably when my mum became unwell, and it completely disintegrated after she passed away. That was the worst breaking point for me. But then, there was a different kind of madness when you showed up."
"You say that as if I magically appeared out of nowhere." Claire scoffed.
"You kind of did, though," Gabriel said before bending over the bucket again. "Claire dear, I am vomiting my guts out and I'm drunker than I'd like to admit…" Gabriel mumbled. "I am not sure if you should be here."
"Shut up," Claire ordered him. "I'm providing you with a distraction."
"I appreciate it. I really do. That's not what bothers me. I just don't feel comfortable with you seeing me like this."
"Oh well."
"I don't want to repulse you."
"You are not repulsive to me, Gabriel," Claire said.
"Doesn't it bother you?"
"The smell is absolutely rancid, and you do stink. But it doesn't bother me enough to leave you in that state alone." Claire passed Gabriel more water.
"You must be an angel…" Gabriel mumbled as he rinsed his mouth.
"Definitely not. If you remember, I am the reason why you're in that state."
"You didn't pour alcohol down my throat. And you're not responsible for how I deal with my emotions."
"That sounds like therapy talk." Claire smiled.
"Possibly."
"How is that going?"
"Mostly okay," Gabriel said as he leaned back, his stomach finally settling down.
"Not every session has the best outcome, and not every week brings on progress," Claire said reassuringly.
"I know. I haven't missed a week in months, and I try to do my work between the sessions. I have been assigned some reading during the last session so I will have to go over that by Thursday."
"Anything interesting?"
"It's boring as f*ck," Gabriel mumbled. "It's a self-help book that reads like a textbook."
"I have a passionate dislike for them too," Claire said as she gently caressed Gabriel's cheek, feeling his scratchy stubble on her smooth fingertips. "However, I found a few books that helped me over the years which are essentially fictional stories that touch on difficult subjects whilst providing a new point of view through the character. I found them more interesting and it kind of helped me gain a new perspective on the issues as well as myself."
"How did you do it?" Gabriel asked quietly.
"How did I do what?" Claire raised her brows.
"How did you learn to function again? How did you heal?"
"I don't think I'm the best person to talk to." Claire laughed. "I don't think I've healed; I don't think I can function properly. Maybe I never will. Certain things change you forever, and you can't just leave them behind. The cracks remain. My phobia of bodies of water is a perfect example of me not being able to function, never mind my anxiety and obscene hyper-independence and lack of trust in people."
"Let's heal together," Gabriel said softly as he finally put the bucket on the floor and grabbed Claire's hand.
"Okay." Claire nodded. "Let's heal together. Can you last few moments without the bucket?"
"Possibly," Gabriel said as he leaned back, resting his head on the back of the sofa. Claire picked up the bucket and run towards the nearest bathroom to clear it, coming back as soon as she could, finding Gabriel asleep.
She sat down beside him, and held his hand, as she fell asleep too.
Mark walked in to find Claire and Gabriel sleeping in an embrace on the sofa. Gabriel was completely dishevelled, whilst Claire looked peaceful and neat in her simple dress. For a second, he thought that he walked upon the murder scene due to their stillness. He gently nudged Gabriel's bare foot, which led to Gabriel's groan. Mark let out a sigh of relief.
"Not yet," Gabriel grumbled, tightening his grip on Claire.
"You reek like a brewery," Mark said as he scrunched up his nose. "Never mind the stench of vomit."
"Yeah." Gabriel nodded. Claire shifted in his arms, but she hasn't woken up yet.
"I've contacted the lawyers and they'll be collecting all the data possible to file the restraining order against Francesca Jones."
"That's good. How long will it take?"
"I'm afraid that I don't know. Watters was concerned that there wasn't enough evidence yet."
"That's less than ideal," Gabriel grumbled which woke up Claire.
"Good morning, Mark." Claire smiled as she sat up, rubbing her eyes.
"So, you didn't run away?" Mark asked Claire. "I'm genuinely surprised. I thought that that was it."
"I didn't," Claire answered with a yawn. "I wasn't planning to."
"Where did you disappear off to?" Mark asked directly which was met with Gabriel's scowl. "Do you have some lover on the side?" He said to tease Gabriel.
"No, I'm sorry to disappoint you with my boring life and lack of any new gossip, but I only visited a family friend," Claire said honestly, biting her tongue straight after.
"Hang on. Was it the person you've mentioned to George?" Gabriel sat up now too, sobering up quickly. "You've said you were to visit someone."
"I've already said too much," Claire grumbled flopping back down.
"Who's George?" Mark asked with raised brows.
"I don't know," Gabriel admitted. "He seemed… nice." Gabriel hesitated. "Like, he saved our asses, but he clearly didn't like me."
"I think that's how most people feel about you." Mark joked. "I'll leave you to it. I'll keep you updated. And I've put a nice fresh pile of paper in your study."
"Great," Gabriel grumbled.
"It has to be reviewed by tomorrow, so I'd advise you to get some aspirin and crack on," Mark said seriously.
"Are you busy over the weekend in two or three weeks?" Claire asked Mark with a yawn before he managed to escape.
"Maybe."
"We need to organise a karaoke night."
"Karaoke?" Mark repeated.
"Gabriel lost a bet and he owns me one," Claire explained quickly.
"I do, don't I?" Gabriel grumbled.
"I can't miss it." Mark laughed. "Text me when and I'll be there."
"Sure." Claire nodded, at which Mark left. Claire looked around at a very hangover Gabriel. "I'll get you something to eat and some water."
"I feel like I'm going to die," Gabriel said in a rather hoarse voice.
"Don't be dramatic. Go get a shower. I'll bring you some aspirin too. We have work to do."
"Why do you have to be like this?" Gabriel asked with a whine.
"Like what?"
"So work-obsessed. I am pretty sure that you're a workaholic."
"And you aren't?"
"I need to get you that trillion though. Maybe then you'll sit your bottom down and chill."
"Maybe." Claire planted a kiss on his cheek before hurrying away to make him coffee and breakfast.
Gabriel listened to her, and as expected, he found a huge pile of documents on his desk in his study. With hatred towards the entire company, mostly due to his hangover, he worked through it relentlessly, whilst Claire hid in her study.