When Alec rubbed his hand over his face, it was nothing more than tired bewilderment as he listened. "K, you don't need to do shit like apologise in advance for having a chronic illness. I'm a Campbell. I can handle it. But there's also this little factor of me being a doctor that I think gives me a bit of an edge too. In all seriousness, though, I know how lupus can hit someone. I know the physical and psychological challenges that come with it. Pain and fatigue of a chronic illness is next fucking level during flares. It's not laying a lot on me. You know whatever went down between us that veered off the rails has nothing to do with how much we care for each other or want to be there for each other. So, I don't need you to apologise now or at any point in the future. And I want you to remember me saying this. Make peace with it now so you don't need to think about it when you have those bad patches down the track. All I ask is you tell me if you're not feeling great if it's not so obvious on the outside, so I really can be there for you. At least, until we find a groove together again. I also don't want you thinking you automatically come second to my family if things are chaotic with them. Believe it or not, before Jus and Sash had the accident, things were going pretty smoothly. I honestly don't know how it's going to be from now on, though. But you don't come second. You should never have been made to feel like that. Do you trust that I can shoulder everything? If not, it's okay for you to tell me."