A few hours later, Seb texts me they're in the parking lot, so Zander and I walk down to meet them. "Sunshine," Seb calls, breaking into a big smile. I get picked up and twirled around in a hug.
"Hi Hurry. Glad you're here," I smile. I get hugs from Bay and Alex, then we head back through the hospital. The guys have their bags with them, not wanting to leave them all day in the parking lot.
We stop at the security desk in the research wing so the guys can show their IDs and get visitor passes. Once they have their lanyards, we take the elevator to the 6th floor and down the hallway to Jake's room.
I introduce Ray first, and they all shake hands. Ray thanks Alex for all his help in getting Jake here, expressing how grateful he is. Alex brushes it off, saying I'm family.
Next, I step over to take Jake's hand. "Guys, this is Jake. Jake, meet my friends Seb, Alex, and Bay." I look nervously over at them, but I shouldn't have worried.
Seb comes straight over, putting his arm around my shoulder. "Hey man. It's nice to finally meet you. Sunshine is always talking about you. I hope you're ready for 5 new friends when you wake up because we'll adopt you just like we adopted Summer."
I beam up at him as Bay and Alex step up to the bed. "Great to meet you," Bay smiles at Jake.
"Hello Jake. Nice to meet you in person," Alex adds, looking into Jake's closed eyes.
My friends are the best. I give Jake's hand a squeeze as we step back. The guys drop their bags on a side table before we take seats around the lounge area. Zander gets an extra chair from the next room so we can all fit. Seb asks Ray questions about himself, and he chats with each of the guys, getting to know them. I can't help but smile as my two worlds come together.
Zander offers to grab us lunch and asks Ray to join him. We decide on a restaurant Leigh told us about yesterday. After telling Dad to order a variety, we pull out our books to start homework. Bay and Alex have notes for me from Friday, and Jaxon gave Bay my physics homework.
Since I already began Thursday's work, I finish quickly, except precalculus, then move on to review Friday's classes.
An hour later, Zander and Ray come back with food. They got a little of everything from the Mexican restaurant, so we clear the coffee table and set out containers of food, grabbing what we want. It's all fresh and good. I try a shredded pork taco and a piece of quesadilla with guacamole. Trying new foods always makes me think of E, and I get a little sad for a minute, but I shake my feelings off and focus on the family around me. After Zander, Ray, and I finish eating, the guys easily consume the rest of the food.
Gathering up the garbage, Zander invites Ray to join him in visiting his friend. He initially declines, not wanting to impose, but Zander insists, telling him they're visiting a museum. That catches Ray's interest, so he takes the garbage and leaves with him.
I introduce Leigh when she comes to check on Jake, then it's back to homework. "Bay and Alex, you've gotta help with math. My head hurts just trying to understand it," I tell them.
They smile at me and lean over to see what I'm working on. Both help me work through the questions from Thursday. Luckily, their explanations make much more sense than the notes from class. I still have lots of questions, but they're patient with me.
We continue through Friday's lesson. As Bay explains the class notes, I make my own in a way that makes sense to me. When he finishes, I'm able to do many of Friday's questions based on my own notes. "Bay, ever considered being a teacher? You'd be amazing. Look, I did all these questions myself with your explanations."
He blushes at the compliment. "Haven't really considered it. It's something to think about, though Alex actually did some research on different ways to explain the math, then showed me."
"I believe your mind processes information differently than the teacher explains it. We just adjusted to how you learn," Alex tells me.
These guys… "Thank you so much," I smile.
Alex checks my answers for me when I'm done, and I have to make a few corrections. I'm pleased, though. The guys switch to SAT prep while I continue to read through the other Friday class notes.
Mid-afternoon, I get up to stretch and check on Jake. I offer to get drinks for everyone, and Seb jumps up, wanting to come with me. Once we're out of the research wing, he pulls me into an empty room and up against the wall. Lining his body up with mine, he kisses the heck outta me. I happily wrap my arms around his neck and kiss him back. It feels like forever since we were alone, and I missed his kisses. Seb pulls back once we're both panting. "Sorry, Sunshine. I needed that," he says.
"No complaints here," I smile. "Sorry things havebeen so busy."
"I'm not complaining either, Sunshine. Life is crazy right now. Come on, let's grab some drinks and snacks before we get caught," he says, wiggling his eyebrows at me.
Chuckling, I grab his hand and lead him to the cafeteria. We order smoothies along with water and snacks. Once the smoothies are ready, we carry everything back to Jake's room. Seb hands Alex and Bay their smoothies while I take a bathroom break. After checking on Jake, I rejoin the guys.
Alex is quizzing Bay and Seb with SAT questions as I finish my homework. As soon as I'm done, Alex pulls me into the questioning. It's not long before Seb's complaining about all the science questions, so Alex switches to the humanities.
We stay at it until Zander and Ray return. They're both smiling, so they must've had a good afternoon. We pack up our stuff and get ready to leave.
"What do we want for supper tonight?" Zander asks.
"There is a park with several food trucks a few blocks from our hotel," Alex tells us.
"You and your food trucks, Alex," I chuckle. He just shrugs in reply with a small smile. "Ray, does that work for you?" I ask.
"Sure, I'm not fussy."
