“You aren’t safe to drive home right now.”
She attempts to stand but loses her balance, falling again to sit at the edge of the cushions. I kneel at her feet, my hands moving to her knees and squeezing gently.
“I don’t own a car,” she whispers. “I’ll take the train.”
Fuck. No.
I also refuse to let her go back to her apartment alone. I don’t know if she has a roommate or what, but I don’t trust anyone besides myself to take care of her in this state.
“You’re coming to stay with me,” I tell her as I stand, and the raised-brow look she gives me nearly breaks the tension of the situation. “I mean it,” I say back. “I’m not letting you out of my sight until you’re back to your normal, irritating self.”
“Won’t that be awkward?”
I shrug. “Not as awkward as me sleeping outside your apartment door, checking on you hourly to make sure you’re alive.”
She runs a finger under her lower lash, swiping at the wetness brimming her lids. “I think I’d prefer that option.”
“Maybe next time Sparky … do you think you can stand?”
She nods, and I lean back on the balls of my feet, reaching my arms up to grasp onto her shoulders. Her frame is weak and her body wants to sway with the move, but her resilience pushes her and eventually she’s standing at the edge of the sofa with her feet firmly planted on the floor.
“Good,” I mutter, ensuring she’s holding herself up before I reach down to pack her items back into her bag.
“I … I’m sorry,” she begins, but I cut her off with a wave of my hand.
“Don’t start that. Don’t apologize for something so out of your control. Don’t feel an ounce of guilt over this, please.”
She nods, pulling her hands close to her as she nervously starts rubbing her pointer finger against her thumb. “What do I do about on-call this weekend? I … I don’t think I can work tomorrow. Not the way I’ll be feeling.”
I shove her items back into her backpack before standing, slinging it over my shoulder. Reaching for her hand, she places her dainty, trembling palm in mine. “You don’t worry about anything; I’ll take care of it all. I promise. All you need to do for the next few days is rest, okay? Let me handle everything else.”
She stares up at me, her hand still resting in mine but she makes no effort to move. I give her time, adjusting my stance so I’m ready to hold her weight if standing is too much. “Do you need me to carry you?”
I don’t know how that’d look, me carrying her out of the hospital cradled in my arms like a bride being carried across the threshold, but I’d do it if she needed.
“Yeah, a piggyback would be great.”
My head whips toward her. I hadn’t expected her to actually need to be carried, but I guess it makes sense given the situation.
“Uh, okay.” I awkwardly fumble her backpack around so the sack is over my chest, and as I turn around and start to squat, she starts laughing.
Her laugh is gurgly, softer than usual, but it’s what I needed to hear. The last half hour has taken years off of my life, so when I turn to see her snickering at me, clearly happy with herself that she cracked a joke, I let my own excitement show on my face.
I reach for her hand again, this time she grips my palm and takes her first weak step. “Could you imagine if I hopped on and you carried me out like a child? I’m never going to let you live that one down.”
I roll my eyes as I move to stand next to her with my arms holding her steady while we walk out of the room. “Yeah, and if you know what’s good for you, you’ll keep that between us, Sparky.”
***
“Where the hell is your bed?”
I pause in the doorway, looking around the ridiculously tiny space that Annaliese calls her apartment. She’s still swaying a bit as she walks around the small studio, grabbing a duffel from the corner, and moving to a series of suitcases that line the wall.
She looks over her shoulder at the beige, worn sofa and gestures with her head. “You’re looking at it. Honestly, Colt, it’s a little bold of you to suggest we get freaky right now.”
I scoff, and even though she doesn’t turn around, I can see her shoulders shake with hidden laughter.
At least that means she’s feeling a bit better.
