“I like hearing you say that, but I’m not sure it’s the truth. Can you have lunch with me?”
“I’ve got to get some things out in the mail today. I don’t want to get any further behind.”
“Have you eaten?”
“Not really, but I will. I have sandwich stuff at the house.”
Arik nodded as they stared at one another in the blistering cold. Neither seemed compelled to move this conversation into the car. Choosing his words carefully, he asked, “How did it go today?”
“The choices aren’t great. There’s a place in Fort Worth that can take him, but his mom picked one in northern Ellis County to be closer to her. Those were the only local options; the others were full.”
He watched Kellus’s face closely and couldn’t read anything more than sadness there. After a second, he reached out, pulling Kellus fully into him.
“His family’s lucky to have you,” Arik said, adjusting his legs to allow Kellus to fit between them.
“I don’t know. I know you won’t agree with this, but if the tables were turned, he’d have done this for me.” Yeah, Kel nailed it. Arik didn’t agree with that at all. Instead of saying that out loud, he moved on to more important things.
“So we’re good?”
“I hope so,” Kellus said and bit his lip before continuing. “I know you don’t understand…”
Arik put his lips to Kellus’s to stop the flow of words. “It doesn’t matter what I understand. I want you happy. That’s all.”
“I’m happy with you.” Those words helped to ease some of the turmoil holding his heart hostage.
“Good. Me too. I thought we needed this conversation in person, but I’m really far behind, too. I need to get back to the office.”
“After I get done shipping out the orders, I’m coming home. You’re right, I need some sleep,” Kellus said and cupped Arik’s cheek before turning away. Arik caught Kellus’s hand, but not to pull him back, just extending his arm to keep contact a little longer until Kellus opened the door.
“I’ll meet you there then.” The engine started before Kellus got inside. He had one foot in the car when Arik stopped him. “That’s a first. I like you calling it home.”
“No matter what you think about all this, I do feel like you’re my home.”
Arik smiled brightly, he liked hearing that a lot. He lifted his hand to wave, turning away as Kellus got inside the car. Kellus drove past him, waving as he went. Arik stared at the hospital, thinking about John lying just a few floors up. He had to let his distaste for the man go. He hadn’t been in those private meetings, but whatever was going on, sure didn’t sound good. He got inside his sports car and started the engine. The blast of cold air hit, sending a shiver through him before the heat kicked in.
At all cost, he had to keep this current momentum with Kellus. His heart couldn’t take any more of their fighting. They were too in sync to let John have the final word in their relationship.
Chapter 28
Five days later
Kellus entered the semi-private room where John lay in what looked like the exact same position as the last time he’d visited. He couldn’t be sure; he hadn’t spent as much time there as he should, but his gut churned. As unhealthy as John was before the accident, he needed competent, professional care, otherwise, he’d just lie there and die a slow death. Kellus reached for the call button to ring the nurse then stopped himself. They were too overworked; the facility was at full capacity.
“Hey, John-boy,” Kellus finally said.
Yesterday, he’d read of the possibility that John could hear everything going on around him. Kellus wanted to keep things happy, give John a reason to fight for his recovery, and ignore the obvious: that John was a shell of a man with a severe brain injury. There was literally zero hope this would end well.
“It’s cold outside. They’re saying it’s probably going to be the coldest November on record. After that hot summer, I know you’d like this change.”
Kellus removed the blankets, looking down the length of John’s body. He was little more than skin and bones. His casts were still on and his ribs were still bandaged, but they needed to be changed. On the positive side, Kellus reconciled that changing John’s bandages guaranteed he be turned at least once a day.
Shaking those thoughts away, he began the process of mimicking the moves he’d watched before. The entire time he worked John’s body, he talked about nothing important. He caught John up on the NFL and NBA—John’s interests, most definitely not Kellus’s. He talked about the art he was working on and about how much time John’s parents were spending up there with him.
For approximately thirty minutes, Kellus worked John’s body, lifting his legs and arms in some way before covering the unconscious man with the blanket. Like always, he then focused on John’s gaunt face, mentally marking the hollow cheeks, the scraggly facial hair, and weirdly pale skin that used to carry John’s olive complexion.