“Okay. Leo, plenty of rest and fluids. No school tomorrow. And see your PCP.”
Buzzing off the adrenaline for the night, Elissa was fine driving, hyperalert though there was almost zero traffic. It was nearly midnight when they finally returned home, and Elissa tucked her brother into bed.
“If you wake up and feel bad, come get me.”
“Yes, Mom.”
She smoothed his hair back but resisted the urge to plant a kiss on his forehead.
As she was shutting the door behind her, he said quietly, “Thanks, Liss.”
“It’s what I live for.”
Elissa dropped on the bed in her old room and stared at the ceiling. The adrenaline had worn off, and the sluggish aftereffects had her struggling to put more than two words together, let alone to summon the courage to call her parents. The important thing was Leo was fine. He was a stupid teenager who hadn’t been taking the medicine he was supposed to, but he was fine. That’s what she’d concentrate on when she called her parents. In the morning.
For a second, as she closed her eyes, she thought about texting Ryan and letting him know she was okay. But before she could pull out her phone, she was sound asleep.
twenty-six
not my girl
Sleep eluded Ryan. He resisted the urge to text or call Elissa to find out how her brother was doing. If things were bad, she wouldn’t appreciate the interruption. But he couldn’t stop thinking and worrying about her.
Ryan watched a movie, then another. When movies didn’t help, he binged half a season of Brooklyn 99. He kept his phone beside him, hoping she’d contact him to let him know how things went. When the sun rose and she hadn’t, he pretended that wasn’t what he’d expected. After all, they’d only been on two dates, and had only a handful of interactions.
“You look like shit,” Iz said when they emerged from their room at something resembling a normal hour. His friend poured a cup of coffee. “Refill?”
“No, thanks. That’s the second pot. I’m good.”
“Jesus, Ryan. That’s a lot of caffeine, even for you. You gonna be okay?”
“Yeah, I’ll be fine. I’ll crash as soon as I get home tonight.”
The last was a real downer. He’d been hoping to work on his podcast script, but working all day, every day, limited the time he could dedicate to his passion project. After spending all night worrying about Elissa and her brother, he needed sleep more than he needed to work on some stupid podcast. No matter how much he wished otherwise.
“Whatever you say, man. Want me to give you a ride in? I’m sure you can convince one of your cousins or your brother to bring you home.”
Sounded like a great idea. He didn’t need to be riding his motorcycle when he was this tired. Tired bikers were dead bikers.
“Thanks, Iz. Let me get ready.”
While Iz drove, Ryan sent a quick text to check in with Elissa.
R: I hope everything is ok
Ryan promised himself he wouldn’t check his phone incessantly. If her night was anything like his, she might still be asleep. And if things were worse, she might be too busy to be the emotional support human for a worried date. Before he could silence it and tuck it into his pocket, the phone dinged at him.
E: OMG, I’m so sorry. I crashed last night before I could text you. Leo is a lot better and he’s still asleep.
Of course she texted in complete sentences. Ryan smiled to himself as relief flowed through him like a cool shower after a hot day. He liked that. He liked her.
R: No worries figured something like that
E: Called my parents at 6 and they’re coming home today. Leo hasn’t been taking his meds, so there will be lots of yelling. He’s home from school and I’ll be home from work this morning.
R: Good. I was?—
Ryan deleted what he was going to write. He had been worried, but it wasn’t his style to worry about the women in his life, with the rare exception of a cousin. He didn’t need to clue in this woman about how much she’d already got under his skin.
