Somehow, we learned we’d both been Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles fans when we were kids, and maybe we still were. I liked Raphael; he liked Michelangelo. He seemed to get a kick out of the fact that I’d named my cat after a mutant turtle that lived in the sewer.
It was after one in the morning when I finally told him I should go.
GoodWithHisHands: Sweet dreams, Doc. I hope you feel better.
TheDoctorIsIn: Sweet dreams, and I do.
I went to sleep feeling oddly comforted that somewhere in this complex, my mechanic was in bed, doing the same.
4
Ryder
It was ridiculous, this strange obsession I had with my doctor. We began talking every night, joking and flirting and once even cooking dinner together while messaging. It was… Well, shit, it was weird. I didn’t know what we were doing or why. Hell, I hadn’t even wrapped my head around how it happened, but he became a staple in my life over the next week. Not a day went by that we didn’t talk, and I found myself looking for him in the building, on the sidewalk, every time I came and went from my condo. Considered using the north elevator to possibly see him.
I was pretty sure I’d lost my mind. Why didn’t we just meet, fuck, and get on with it? But there was something pure about our conversations, something that never seemed to happen when I met up with or dated someone. And while I wondered what he looked like, how his lips would feel around my cock, I didn’t want to lose what we were doing either.
We hadn’t shared any names or specifics about our lives, but I’d hinted that I lost my closest friend when I came out, and he told me he had a sister he was close with and adored, but his relationship with his parents was rocky.
I thought about him on my way to Children’s Hospital, where I was going to volunteer in the cancer center. I knew he didn’t work oncology, or hell, even at this facility, but being in this environment made him pop into my mind.
Along with donating, volunteering was something I’d started doing as soon as I’d moved to Los Angeles, but today was my first time since I’d been back in Atlanta—I’d had to go through a whole process with background checks and the like first. Money and time were two things I had plenty of, and while I didn’t do anything incredibly exciting that made kids want to talk to me, it was important to give back. I remembered when we were young, coming to see Mads, and how lonely some of the children had seemed. She’d had more people and things than most. Some had been alone. Others had one parent there while the other was out breaking their back, working multiple jobs to make sure their child had the care they needed. If there was a way I could help with that, I damn sure planned on it.
When I arrived, I checked in and was introduced to a woman named Gabriella, who went by Gabby. She had long, curly black hair, warm brown skin, and after only a few minutes around her, it was clear she was strong, sarcastic, and also a little tired from the things she saw every day.
I liked her instantly.
We chatted while she showed me around. “We have the buddy program, which means being paired up with someone you spend time with. If you do that, most of your time here will be with them. The whole point is to make them feel special, if that makes sense, so while you can do other things here, your buddy comes first. If you’re not sure about one-on-one, you can float, working with a different child every time you’re here. Some kids are inpatient, more long term; others are outpatient for their care or a mixture of both.”
“Can I play it by ear?” I liked the idea of being someone’s buddy but wanted to get a feel for things first.
“Yeah, of course. We do ask that if you go the buddy route, you make a commitment. There’s nothing like a child getting a friend and having that person come twice and then ghost them.”
Christ, I couldn’t imagine doing something like that. “Yeah, absolutely.”
Gabby led me to the group playroom, where I looked through the glass on the door. There was a nurse inside and about seven kids who seemed to range in ages from six to about sixteen, give or take.
“It varies on how many kids will be here any given day. Their health, treatment, family, a number of things can change it from week to week. This is a good group today. We’re only missing Layla. She’s with her buddy, but she should be here soon.”