“Get in,” he says, and within moments, we’re out of the parking lot and heading through the snow-covered streets toward the hospital. It’s not far, but when snow falls in Seattle, it’s like something out of a horror movie. People lose access to their brains, completely forgetting any rules of the road. It’s likeMad Maxon the streets.
I have to admit, Ben’s driving probably gets us there more quickly than mine would have. He lets me off at the emergency door and, after getting Jo’s last name, says he’ll meet me inside after he parks the car.
“Thanks,” I shout as I run full speed into the emergency room, skidding to a halt in front of the check-in desk. “Hi, I got a call about my friend. She was in a car crash, and she’s in surgery, and I’m her next of kin,” I stammer, and the nurse gives me a kind smile, directing me down the hall to a different check-in desk, where I go through the same routine, but this time, I get checked in, and the clerk gives me a pass to clip onto my shirt, along with directions to where Josie will be when she gets out of surgery.
Once I get up to the proper waiting area, I quickly discover the meaning of “hurry up and wait.” Josie is apparently still in surgery, but no one can give me any more information than what I got on the phone, so I’m stuck waiting for the doctor to come talk to me after they’re done fixing her.
I’m only there a few minutes before Ben walks in, looking every inch a doctor. His presence seems to command the room, his quiet confidence sending a wave of calming energy through the space.
“What have you heard?” he asks me quietly, and after I tell him they haven’t told me anything more, he goes up to the nurse’s desk, where they talk in hushed tones.
He comes back a few minutes later with a bit more info. “Okay, so there isn’t much more news than what you already know. There was a car accident, likely due to the bad weather. The cops didn’t say anything about anyone being impaired or anything. The other driver had minor injuries and has already been released. Josephine has a badly broken leg, and they’re working on it now. Most of her other injuries are bumps and bruises, nothing to be too worried about.”
I nod, closing my eyes with relief. “How long will she be in surgery?”
“They aren’t sure, but it shouldn’t be more than another hour. The doctor will come talk with you as soon as they finish up. She’s going to be okay, Aleks.” He gives me a smile while reaching out to hold my shoulder, but instead of letting him comfort me like a normal person, I lunge forward, wrapping my arms around his waist and burying my face in his neck. After a moment of hesitation, he wraps his arms around me and holds me tightly against him. We stand there, not moving, for I don’t know how long before he loosens his grip and leads me gently over to a row of uncomfortable plastic chairs lined up against the wall. He guides me to sit down in one, but instead of taking the seat beside me, he crouches in front of me, placing his hands on my knees, a small smile on his face. He produces one of those little packs of tissues from somewhere, so I blow my nose loudly and wipe the tears from my face, trying in vain to look a little more put together.
“I’m sorry,” I say. “I didn’t mean to lose it. I was just really scared.”
He squeezes my knee with one of his big hands and catches my eye. “You have no reason to apologize. It’s fucking scary to get a call like that. But it seems like she’s going to be fine. Can I get you something to eat? After that kind of shock, you should eat something to help even out your blood sugars.”
“Um, okay, but I don’t want to leave in case the doctor comes out.”
“That’s okay, I’ll go grab you something. I know where they keep all the good stuff anyway.” He winks at me and pats my knee again before rising and saying a couple of words to the nurse before disappearing down the corridor.
Chapter 14
BEN
AsImakemyway down to the hospital cafeteria, I try not to let my imagination run away from me. Aleks didn’t even hesitate when he got that call about his friend. He dropped everything, even though this game was really important to his career. It was clear right away that nothing is more important to him than his friend. I knew when his face went white as a sheet that something bad had happened, and I’m curious about this friend of his. According to the information the hospital has, Aleks is listed as her only next of kin—and her only contact. I can’t help but wonder if they’ve hooked up. Maybe their relationship is closer than he’s implying. He never actually said whether he was gay or somewhere else on the LGBTQIA+ rainbow. He certainly seems to be upset at the thought that she might be injured.Not your fucking business, Jacobs. He’s a free man.
Shaking my head, I grab a few snacks and a couple of coffees from the cafeteria and bring them back to Aleks. If she’s still in the OR, we’re probably going to be waiting at least a couple of hours before he’ll be able to see her.
I don’t examine why I feel the need to stay with him.Something to unpack another day.
When I get back to the waiting area, Aleks is sitting in the same place I left him. He’s not facedown in his phone like everyone else in the room. Instead, he’s staring off into space, his red-rimmed eyes still watery. He doesn’t notice me taking the seat beside him until I give him a gentle nudge.
“Oh, sorry,” he murmurs. “Thanks for this,” he says, giving me a grateful smile as he takes the coffee and big chocolate chip cookie. It’s not exactly healthy and balanced, but there’s something to be said for comfort food during times of crisis.
We sit in silence for a few minutes, sipping our coffees. Aleks nibbles on his cookie, but he doesn’t make much of a dent in it.
“So how are you and Josephine friends?” I ask casually. I really am just curious—there’s no ulterior motive in my question. Honest.
“Josie,” he corrects with a smile. “She hates her full name. She’s always planning to get it legally changed to just Josie, but it hasn’t been a priority.”
He lets out a deep sigh that seems to come from the deepest part of his soul before continuing. “We grew up together. Jo was one of the first kids I met when we moved here after my dad retired from hockey. I was the scrawny, super-nerdy, new kid in school. I was an easy target, and she stood up for me against a big group of bullies.”
Aleks cracks a smile. “I still remember being confused when this fucking spitfire with bright red, curly hair appeared out of nowhere. She went after those fourth graders hard. I’d never seen anything quite like Josie when she was that mad, and my dad was an NHL enforcer, so it’s not like I hadn’t seen violence.” He laughs again before his eyes become serious.
“We were besties from that day forward. She told me her parents were mean, but, hell, every kid says that sometimes, y’know?” He shakes his head and lets out a deep breath. “But I had no idea what her life was like until I was, I don’t know, ten or eleven. I snuck over to her place because she hadn’t been at school. I… I went to her window, and she let me in. Her mom had pushed her into something that left a huge welt on her shoulder and then smacked her around because she cried.” Aleks closes his eyes, and I tighten my grip on his hand. “I didn’t know parents could be like that.”
He pauses and shakes his head. “Then her father came down the hall, and she pushed me into her closet to hide.” He swallows, and his grip on my hand feels like a vise. “Jesus Christ, the things he said to her… I’ve never been able to forget the way he sounded—he was socold… He was like… emotionless. Like a weird, cruel robot. My dad used to get a little scary when he got mad, but he would get hot, you know, like yelling at us and stuff. But her dad… I knew he was angry, but he was just so… detached or something. He talked to her like he was talking about the weather, in this weird, polite tone of voice, with this posh British accent, but he was saying the most horrible things. He kept telling her she was stupid and it was her fault her mom had to punish her. If she was smarter or if she behaved better, she wouldn’t get in trouble so often. And then he threatened to sell her but said he probably shouldn’t bother because he wouldn’t get much for her anyway.”
Aleks covers his eyes with his free hand and sniffles. “I was just a kid. I had no idea what to do. But after her father left the room, she begged me not to tell, and… I didn’t. I let her stay in that shit for two more years. Then it got worse, and they started locking her in the basement, sometimes for a whole weekend. It was so bad. I was afraid they might do something even worse to her, so I finally told my parents, and they helped get her out. They worked with a lawyer as soon as she was old enough to be emancipated. And they made sure she got every dime of her grandmother’s inheritance her parents were trying to steal from her—we found out about that later, but that’s all a whole other story.” He swallows hard and wipes his runny nose on the arm of his jacket like a little kid, and it almost breaks my fucking heart. Not just for his friend but for Aleks himself. Just a little kid trying to keep this horrible secret for his friend but knowing how terribly wrong it was. He picks up his coffee and stares into it. “I’ll never forgive myself for not doing something when I first found out.”
He looks so fucking alone I simply can’t ignore my instincts screaming at me to take care of him. I release his hand and put my arm around his shoulders instead. He leans into me, and with my other hand, I take his coffee, setting it on the low table in front of us before brushing my fingers against his cheek, dashing away the few tears there. “Aleks, you were just a kid. You were there for her as much as you could be, and you did tell your parents in the end. Don’t feel guilty—you did as much as any child could do. And you helped her.”
He smiles wanly and takes another deep breath. “Anyway, through all that shit, Josie was always my protector. Even when she was the one who needed protection. I grew up to be a lot scrappier than the bullies counted on, but it was because Josie showed me how to be brave.” His eyes fill with tears again. “Fuck, Ben, she’s like my sister, way more than any of my actual siblings. If anything happened to her, I don’t know… I don’t know what I would do.” His voice cracks as tears spill over his cheeks again. It’s all I can do not to lean in and kiss them off. Even when he’s so distraught, he’s fucking gorgeous.
