Annie wiggled out from behind me to retrieve it off the charger. I pulled up FaceTime and Annie shielded herself from view.
“Nick, I don’t have a shirt on! This is your mom!”
“It’s a sports bra. And she’ll be thrilled, trust me,” I said as Mom picked up.
“Nicky? What’s going on?”
“I’m sick, Mom. I got what those kids had. Hand, foot, and mouth.”
“Nicholas John, you are twenty-one years old and you stillhaven’t learned how to wash your hands?”
Annie stifled a laugh.
“Who’s with you?”
I put the camera over my shoulder to put Annie on the screen. “This is my friend, Annie. Say hi, Annie.”
“Hi,” she said with a wincing smile. “Nice to meet you.”
“Annie, I’m Krystal. Nick, you’ve got an awful lot of pretty friends. That Dylan was cute, too,” Mom said. “Are you two in bed together?”
“Mom,” I moaned.
“How the hell did you get hand, foot, and mouth? Did they sneeze in your mouth?”
I scrubbed my hand over my face. “Bella fed me a Goldfish in the middle of the night, and it might have been a little wet.”
Annie and Mom both chastised me. “Ew, Nick!”
“Thanks a lot,” I grumbled, then grabbed my throat.
“Nick’s convinced he’s going to die, Mrs. Oberbeck. He wants to hear from you that he won’t.”
Mom cackled, calling over one of her friends at the nurse’s station. “Penny, come see. Nick’s got a girl in his bed and thinks he’s going to die from hand, foot, and mouth.”
Another face appeared in the frame, my mom’s longtime friend and my pediatrician, Dr. Penny Grote. “You’re not going to die, Nicky. Your throat will hurt for a week or so, but you’ll be back on your feet soon.” She took a longer look, squinting. “And your girlfriend’s beautiful.”
“A week?!” I squeaked.
“Oh, baby, I’m sorry. I know that one hurts, usually worse for adults than kids. Take some Tylenol and get some sleep. And Annie?” Mom said.
“Yes?”
“Thanks for taking care of my baby.” She looked like she was holding back a laugh. “But for the love of God, don’t kiss him.”
* * *
I woke up in a pool of sweat to the sound of running water in the bathroom. Annie’s sweet scent filled the air. A glance at the clock showed it was around 6:30 a.m. She was getting ready for work.
My night had been fraught with weird fever dreams. Had I dreamed she said she would teach me how to fuck? It seemed real.
Annie came out of the shower in a towel, her long hair piled on top of her head. She smiled broadly when she saw me awake. “You’re up. How are you feeling?”
“I think my fever broke. Maybe I can play the game tonight,” I said. I shuffled to get up.
“What are you doing getting up?”
“Greg needs to go out.”
