I wrote back right away.
Laney: Umm I didn’t actually mean either, but I’m glad it worked that way :-)
Cole had described Skye as having a stubborn streak, so maybe it had been for the best that I’d alerted the whole family to the bed rest indication.
Cole: What time does your shift end? I’m picking you up.
Laney: Maybe it’s best if I go home and sleep first and we meet in the afternoon. I’ll sleep half the day anyway.
Cole: I can work until you wake up.
Laney: And then what happens?
Cole: You’ll see tomorrow ;) I promise you’ll like it.
The tips of my fingers tingled. My stomach flipped twice. Oh, this man.
Laney: My shift ends at eight o’clock.
After finishing my rounds, my right temple was pounding furiously. I’d forgotten to have dinner, and the cafeteria was closed, which meant my options were chips, M&Ms, or some god-awful vending machine sandwiches. It was probably going to be chips and M&Ms.
I wanted to check on Skye again before indulging in that dinner of champions though. She’d been put together and reassuring while her family had been around, but I didn’t know if she was still holding it together now, even with Tess by her side.
When I approached Skye’s room, I heard laughter from the other side of the door. Okay, so things seemed to be going just fine, but I still wanted to double-check.
I knocked before heading inside. Tess and Skye both had a deer-in-the-headlights expression, each holding a shawarma. A delicious smell permeated the air. My stomach rumbled.
Skye grinned sheepishly. “Tess... um... bought us some shawarma.”
I chuckled. “I can see that.”
“The hospital food was terrible, and the cafeteria only had some week-old-looking sandwiches when I checked it out. So I went to the nearest food truck.” Tess’s tone was apologetic.
“It’s not against hospital rules to bring food,” I told them.
Tess swirled her hand in the air, pointing a finger at me. “Yeah, but you have a judgy look.”
“Not at all. Just wasn’t expecting it.”
What I actually wasn’t expecting was for Skye to be in such a great mood. In doctor language, when a patient had a healthy appetite, it meant they were doing just fine, at least on a psychological level. Maybe there was something to your whole family camping out in your room the whole day. They’d certainly improved Skye’s mood, and even Tess’s, who had been subdued and silent this morning. Now she was smiling and full of energy. She was pacing in front of Skye’s bed, eating with gusto.
“Are you busy?” Skye asked.
“I’ve just finished the evening round, so I was about to head to the doctors’ lounge with some M&Ms.”
Tess held up the bag. “We have an extra shawarma. Want to join us?”
“Sure, I can stay about ten minutes. Thanks. I’m starving. How come you bought three?”
“Well... we hoped you could join us. And if you couldn’t, we would have sacrificed ourselves and eaten it,” Tess said.
“Yeah. I’m eating for two anyway,” Skye commented.
“And I’m just following your lead,” Tess said solemnly.
I burst out laughing, taking the bag. I leaned against the wall, unwrapping it as fast as possible without spilling it on me. Holy shit, I was even hungrier than I thought.
I devoured half of the shawarma before realizing both were silent, just looking at me.