“No lollipops for you!”Lovepreet clicked her tongue, tapping Matt on the forehead with a scolding fingertip.
Jace tossed him one anyway.
“I’m gonna get your legs adjusted, stay lying back,” Jace directed, scooting Blake’s knees up so that they were elevated above the level of his head.He gathered up Blake’s hand, pressing two fingers to the divot between his tendons.“Is your breathing okay?”
Blake nodded, not wanting his speaking to affect his heart rate.Jace set his hand down after a few moments.
“Well, your pulse seems fine,” Jace said.He squinted his eyes at Blake, suspicious.“You been eating enough lately?”
“Uh,” Blake said, staring down the hallway at the uneaten corn dogs that he had dropped.He didn’t want to lie to his buddy (and former friend with benefits), but he also didn’t want to get sent home.“I had breakfast this morning.”
Lovepreet and Jace were nowbothsquinting at him, skeptic.
“Please don’t write an incident report about this,” Blake begged Lovepreet.“I promise I’m fine to keep working, I need the hours.”
“Hmm,” Lovepreet pursed her lips, unimpressed.“Sounds like something someone who regularly skips meals would say.”
Jace continued to gaze down at Blake, wary.“I’m gonna grab you some juice.Stay there for now.”
Well, that was better than nothing.
Blake sat back up, allowing Marin to help him before sitting beside him.Matt took a seat on the floor next to the couch as if he lived there, sucking away at his lollipop.
“How are you, Blake?”Marin asked.
“Yeah, you doing okay, B?”Matt chimed in.Blake nodded.
“Yeah, I think I’ll live,” he said.He waved at Lovepreet and Alex.“Thanks guys, I think Jace’s got it from here.”
“Okay.I hope you feel better, hun.Don’t overdo it,” Lovepreet told him with a gentle tap to the shoulder before taking her leave.“Radio us if you need anything, okay?”she said, indicating the walkie talkie strapped to her belt.She hesitated for a moment, before glancing over at Blake and adding: “We give langar at the temple every night, if you ever need to stop by.I know my sister would be happy to catch up.”
Blake thanked her, a little embarrassed to have been offered assistance for his less-than-stellar food situation—he figured he should probably take Lovepreet up on it at least once.It was better than going hungry on the regular, and the food at langar was delicious at that.
Alex plopped down on Blake’s other side.“I think I’ll stay here with you guys.I needed a sensory break anyway,” he said, popping in his earbuds.Sadie sidled up to him, resting her chin on his knees.It was a veritable party.
Jace returned from the snack bar with a big cup of punch and some fruit gummies.
“Sorry, this was the healthiest stuff in stock,” he said, handing over the spoils to Blake.He didn’t even have to face Matt to know to smack away his grabby hands.“Have these and sit for another fifteen minutes.Be sure to get something more substantial in you than corn dogs after that though, okay?”
“What, pizza?”Blake grunted into his drink.
“Don’t think I won’t tell Lovepreet to send you home,” Jace glared.
“Ugh, fine.I’ll go out and grab a sandwich,” Blake groused.“That healthy enough for you?”
“You need to sit and rest,” Marin reminded him, hand gentle on his knee.
“Let me call Faren to pick up some food, it should be their break anyway,” Alex told him, digging around his pocket for his phone.“I don’t want you driving yet.”
Within moments, Alex and Jace’s datemate Faren had materialized on FaceTime.After filling them in on the Water Zone happenings, Alex passed the phone to Blake so he could give Faren his order.
“Sorry about all this,” he grumbled.“You really don’t have to, that’s got to be expensive—”
Faren rolled their eyes at him as they organized a colorful row of tattoo ink at their workstation.With a flip of golden-brown curls, they affixed Blake with a withering glance and said: “Blake DeLuca, stop playing the stoic hero and let your friends get you some goddamn food.”
“Oooh, if B doesn’t want a sandwich, can you bring me one?”Matt interjected, eyes sparkling.“I want a large turkey and salami with provolone on Dutch crunch, extra Italian sauce, and—”
“Ugh, I’ll come pick you up, you little glutton!”Faren threw back their head with a gargantuan sigh.
