“Don’t leave me,” Dane said quietly. “I barely knew Sandy, and when she died it almost destroyed me. If I lost you….”
“I’m not going anywhere, sunshine.”
The nurse came in with their meds. Both took them without hesitation.
“Food will be here in twenty,” she told them and left them again.
Bas’s stomach growled again. “I’m so hungry.”
“Me too, actually. I hope they bring me veggies.”
“I asked them for raw fruits and veggies for you.”
“Thanks for thinking of me.”
They both sat in silence for a few minutes. Bas began to nod off again just as the nurse opened the door with their food. Bas sat up and helped Dane up. Wow, the beds were small. He could smell his soup, though, and wanted it so bad.
“I feel like a zombie, only instead of saying ‘Braaains!’ I wanna say ‘Fooood!’”
The nurse laughed and so did Dane. She set their food on the moving tray.
“Door stays open while you eat. And we have the cameras watching.” She pointed to the small camera that kept a good view of the room.
Bas had a spoon. Dane had no silverware, but he had a stack of fresh veggies and fruit, and they both had pudding cups. Bas didn’t hesitate before diving into the soup.
“So good,” he mumbled as the salty goodness slid down his throat, soothing as it went.
Dane started with the carrots, popping them into his mouth and crunching away. The nurse left to let them eat.
“I’m sorry,” Dane said after a minute.
“For what?”
“When all that crap was going through my head last night, I was thinking that you and Ru were fat. It wasn’t nice or fair. And really it isn’t my place to judge.”
Bas laughed. “Does it matter that it’s your messed-up brain that’s making you think that? I’m actually in a very healthy range for my weight. So is Ru. Adam has done a ton of research on it since Ru has such a horrible body image. Now if you compare Ru to Tommy, yeah Ru is bigger, but he’s also more muscle.”
“Tommy said he’s a beanpole.”
“He’s not that skinny. Right nowyou’rethe beanpole. But Tommy doesn’t have Ru’s wide shoulders, muscular arms or back. Adam is more like Tommy in physical body type. Naturally lean, not overly muscular. Ru and I are bulkier because we have more upper-body mass. It’s about body type, not weight. Nothing we do will change the body type we were born with, other than maybe plastic surgery. And even that doesn’t really do it.” Bas sipped at his soup and watched Dane plow through the vegetables.
“Starving yourself, working out ’til you pass out, that is not going to change the general shape. I could work out all day, every day and never have a six-pack for abs. Same with Ru. Adam has the abs without even trying. But unless Tommy has some secret I don’t know about, he doesn’t have abs like that.” He thought back to the singer and the last time they’d all gone to his apartment to use the indoor pool. “His tummy is flat, but so is his ass. Take the good with the bad, I guess. I have both an ass and a tummy.”
Dane paused in his eating to look Bas over. “When I’m not nuts in my head, I like it. Your ass, I mean. And your tummy, though you hide it well with clothes.”
“You say the sweetest things. I can’t recall the last time someone unattached admired my ass.” He patted his ass compassionately. “I’m pretty fond of it myself. Really good at landing on it when I fall and turning the other cheek, per se. So people can kiss it, if you know what I mean.”
Dane laughed. “You’re so snarky.”
Another shrug. “Defensive mechanism.”
“But I love it about you. I say shit out of nowhere, and you totally get it. As much as you try, your brain is mis wired just as bad as mine.”
“Then we’re perfect for each other, aren’t we?” Bas eyed one of Dane’s cucumber slices, wondering if it would hurt his throat. It looked so good. “How’d you like to go to prom with me?”
“Um, wow. See, now that was out of the blue.”
“Is that a no?”
