“That’s...uh...he okay?”
“He will be,” Beckett replied. “I gotta get up for a second, darlin’.” The last part was for me. After a second, I got my body to lean to the other side so I wasn’t using Beckett’s leg as a leaning post. I was instantly cold but didn’t bother to find a blanket. Instead, I blinked down at the ones I sat on as he stood from the couch.
Taking deep breaths, I listened to Beckett’s steps towards the small kitchen, where Noah followed. I wasn’t able to catch what either of them said, but knowing they were both here stopped my mind from going anywhere but where it was right then.
“Got him to eat a slice of toast.”
“Good. Those pills aren’t nice on him sometimes.” That was Noah. He’d know what I needed or could handle. Knowing that, I laid down in a fetal position, back against the couch.
I’d be safe. Noah would make sure of it. So would Beckett.
“Asher?” I squinted an eye open, looking at Noah who was now lying in front of me. “Hi.”
That took too much work to reply to, so I grunted some sort of noise.
“How are you doing?”
Why did he want to talk? I just wanted to...well, not talk.
After a long sigh, I finally answered. “Sleepy.” Then, to make sure someone at least knew, “No more pills.”
“Okay. No more. I know you don’t like them.”
Reaching out with a hand, the one that happened to have his stuffed animal squished to my chest, I paused to drop the toy before taking ahold of Noah’s hand and giving it a small squeeze. “Why two?”
It took a moment for Noah to answer. He moved my arm back to my chest, tucking the toy in, too, before his hand rested on my cheek. I closed my eyes at the contact, never tired of his touch. “You were crying. A lot. I think nightmares, but you wouldn’t wake up enough to get them to go away. I didn’t know what else to do. I hate seeing you like that, but I don’t like seeing you like this either.”
Well, there was nothing I could do for either of those things.
“Sorry.”
“I forgot how you are afterward,” he sniffed, moving closer to me, where he was nearly pressed up against me.
I huffed, letting my eyes slide closed. He meant well. That was all that mattered.
***
Crap.
Double crap.
With my heart in my throat, or maybe it was completely gone by now because it was racing too fast in my chest, I scrambled out of Noah’s hold. Whatever he said was lost as I took half a second to debate where the closet's place to expel fluids was going to be. The kitchen or the bathroom.
Neither of them was an option as bile filled my mouth. My feet were tangled in a blanket, causing me to fall to my knees.
“Let it out. It’s okay.”
I didn’t need to be told twice as bile, water, and whatever else made an appearance in a trash can that Beckett – or at least I assumed it was him – held under me as I all but puked my guts out. I gagged and coughed before there was nothing left in me. Only then did Beckett take the trash can away, setting it somewhere I couldn’t see.
Then, he wiped off my face, before taking care of that too.
At least I felt better now in one way, but worse in others.
“Here, take this, darlin’,” Beckett held out a small purple pill in the palm of his hand. My arms were too weak to lift, so I just opened my mouth, letting him slip it in. Instantly, it dissolved on my tongue, but also made it a tiny bit easier for my stomach to finish settling.
“I’m going to get this taken care of, check on Noah who disappeared, and then I’ll be right back, okay?”
I lifted a shoulder, not caring what he did as I settled back down to lay on my side. My eyes were wet, again.
