William opened his mouth to object, but Oliver didn’t let him.
“Have you ever stopped to think that maybeIfeel indebted toyou?”
“Oliver—”
“Don’t think I didn’t notice how hard it was for you to see me after the accident. But you were there anyway. Always. Pretending everything was okay, so I wouldn’t have to worry about you.”
“It was the least I could do,” William whispered.
“Is that really what you think? You really have no idea, do you? I swear, for someone with two eyes, you can be embarrassingly blind sometimes.”
William made a painful grimace, which then turned into a frown. “Wait. I’m lost. What are you talking about?”
Oliver sighed. “Never mind.”
“Like hell! What were you going to say?”
“This isn’t a good time. Forget it.”
“You call me stubborn, then you pull this shit and expect me to just drop it? Well, I’ve got bad news for you. I’m not hanging up until you spit it out.”
Oliver sighed again. “Fine . . .”
Well?
“I never told you, but . . .”
But what?
“. . . after the accident . . .”
After the accident what?
“... I considered ending my life.”
A sharp pain ripped through William’s chest. “You—”
“But you gave me the courage to keep going. You helped me get out of bed. You helped me get dressed. You helped me bathe. You made me eat. You drove me to all my physical therapy appointments. You cheered me up when I could only see darkness. You taught me how to smile again.”
Great. Now William was crying in an upscale hotel lobby.
“It’s you who gave me the will to keep living,” Oliver said. “I owe you my life. So, please. Please let me help you. Let me help him. I need it.”
“The hell, man. Why didn’t you tell me?” William exhaled a sharp breath. “Sorry. Sorry. I’m not angry. I’m just...” The mere possibility of losing Oliver made his heart ache with despair. He still had panic attacks when he recalled the moment he’d stepped into that hospital room. The beeping machines, thetubes, the wires, the bandages—so many bandages. At the center of it all, Oliver’s broken body, his life hanging by a thread.
“I’m better now,” Oliver said quietly.
William wiped his cheeks with his sleeve. “You sure?”
“Yeah.”
“Promise me you’ll call me if you have those kinds of thoughts again.”
“I promise.”
“You better keep your promise.”
“I always keep my promises.”
