* * *
Throughout the morningand into the afternoon, Joshua drifted in and out of consciousness. During his waking moments he remained confused and disoriented. At times he would remember being attacked by Lukas Page, and at other times he had no awareness of where he was, why he was injured, or who had hurt him.
Colin struggled to cope with the injuries, both to Joshua’s body and his mind. Over and over again he repeated where they were and why Joshua was in the hospital. David and Nate would spell him at times, but Joshua continued to call out for Colin. His was the only hand Joshua wanted to hold. His was the only voice that could calm and reassure him.
By two p.m. that afternoon, Colin was staggering with exhaustion. He’d had only a short nap in more than twenty-four hours, and the unrelenting stress and anxiety of the past day and night had drained him of all strength.
“Why don’t you go home and sleep for a few hours?” David suggested. “Nate and I will stay with him.”
Colin stared at his friend, his face screwed into a comical look of shocked disbelief. “You’re kidding,right?”
“Right.”
He glanced down at Joshua who was still unconscious then blew out a long breath and grabbed his phone. “I’m gonna go call Joshua’s mom. You guys stay with him, OK?”
David watched Colin walk from the room then he shook his head. “I don’t envy him. That would be a tough call to make.”
“Hey,” Nate said from where he sprawled in a chair, “at least he’s calling with good news. Josh is going to be OK.”
David nodded, staring down at his friend’s bruised and swollen face. “I hate for Bracha to see him like this.”
“It’s cuts and bruises,” Nate said. “Moms are used to that kind of stuff. She’ll keep it together.”
David shrugged and bent over Joshua, peering down at the bandaged head wound. “Four inches long? God, that’s awful.”
“Twenty-two staples, or so Colin says.” He reached past David to stroke Joshua’s hair. “Broke Colin’s heart that Casey had to cut his hair.
David scoffed. “He’ll get over it.”
It was several minutes before Colin strode back into the room.
“Did he wake up?”
“Nope. Sound asleep the whole time,” Nate said.
“Good.” Colin bent and pressed a soft kiss to Joshua’s forehead. He leaned his forearms against the raised bed railing, his head low. “God, last night was horrible, David. I hate seeing him so scared.” He shot a quick look at David. “I hate myself for saying it, but I’m glad he’s asleep. Itkilledme to see him that way.”
“Well, think about it,” David said, reaching to take Joshua’s hand. “He wakes up and he’s beat to shit, hurting all over, can hardly see, hasnoclue where he is or how he got there.” He shrugged and glanced at Colin. “I’d be scared too.”
“Are his mom and Abel coming?” Nate asked.
“Nope. I told them not to.” He lowered the railing and sat on the bed, leaning over Joshua. He propped his hands on either side of his husband’s head. “I told them to wait and let us come to them. He’s going to be OK, so there’s no desperate need for them to fly out here. I want to take him there for a long weekend after this is over so he can rest and heal up.” Nate saw Colin’s head drop and heard his breath stutter in his chest. “My sweet boy,” he whispered, then bent and pressed a gentle kiss to Joshua’s swollen lips.
“He’ll be OK, Colin,” Nate said. He rubbed Colin’s back. “As long as you’re here beside him, he’ll be fine.”
“Jesus, Nate, he’s the sweetest soul I’ve ever known,” Colin whispered, his fingers sliding through Joshua’s dark locks, carefully avoiding his bandaged scalp. “The kindest. The gentlest.” He hissed out a ragged breath. “How could anyone hurt him like this? How could ILETanyone hurt him like this?”
“You didn’tletanything happen to him, Colin,” David told him. “And there’s not one damn thing you could have done to have prevented this!”
Joshua stirred, then blinked and looked up at his husband. For a moment he simply stared, then he tried to reach for Colin with his right hand and winced as if in pain. “Damn!”
“Your arm’s broken, sweetie,” Colin said. “Not broken bad, but you’re gonna have to be a leftie for a while.”
Joshua nodded then swallowed. He lifted his left hand and touched Colin’s cheek. “Why are you crying?” he asked, his voice a sleepy whisper.
“Who me?” Colin said. “You must be talking about someone else. Not my style.”
Joshua tilted his head and gave a small smile.
