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I frown, causing the dull pain in my face to make itself known. Ouch. What the fuck happened to me?
“Here, C. Try these.” Adam’s form comes over to my other side, and he slides my glasses on. It helps a little, but these are an old prescription, which just makes everything worse. Everyone is only slightly blurry now, which hurts my head, and where they’re sitting on my nose burns.
I close my eyes. I’m not sure what my face is doing, but Sam must know what I need because half a second later, the glasses are gone.
“Thanks,” I croak. “Old prescription. Pain.”
“Fuck. I’m sorry, Carter. I didn’t know. I just grabbed what I could find first.” Adam sounds so dejected I find myself reaching out for him. Well, I turn my hand over. I don’t have the strength to hold my arm up yet.
He places his palm against mine. I still don’t have any clue what happened. Based on the fact that I’m no stronger than a newborn kitten, I’m guessing I’m in a hospital. Not in my bed.
“What happened? Why am I in the hospital?”
“You don’t remember?”
I go to shake my head, but it feels like my brain is sloshing back and forth in my skull. Right, so words only. Got it. “No, I don’t have a clue. I can tell that I’m in pain, but it’s sort of abstract. Movement isn’t great, so I’m doing my best to stay still.” I haven’t opened my eyes again. It’s a little pointless when I can’t see much in the way of details.
The long pause confirms that whatever happened was bad.
“Just tell me. I’m assuming the worst here, so better to just rip off the Band-Aid.”
Someone clears their throat. “You were physically assaulted. Pretty brutally. Your ribs punctured one of your lungs, and they had to surgically repair it. You’ve got a major concussion, and they were worried about your brain swelling, but it never did.” Adam describes my injuries without emotion, which tells me he’s shut down every part of him to keep from falling apart.
“How long have I been here?”
“Three days. You’ve gone in and out of consciousness, but this is the first time you’ve been lucid enough to have a conversation.”
“We should get the doctor,” Sam says.
“I’ll go.” Adam’s footsteps follow him out, and all that’s left is silence.
“You don’t remember anything from that day?” Sam asks.
“No, the last thing I remember is leaving the fire station.”
“It’s probably for the best.” Sam’s cool fingers slide across my face. “You’re as bruised up as an overripe banana right now.”
“Hmm. Better mash me up and make banana bread, then.”
Sam breathes out a laugh. “You’re mashed enough as it is. God, I was so scared, Carter. So fucking scared. I can’t even imagine what it was like for you.”
“Come here.” I tug on his hand, needing him to get closer.
The bed dips on the other side of me, and he presses his nose into my neck. He doesn’t put any weight on my chest, which tells me I’m more beat up than I thought.
I still enjoy the closeness, though.
“I heard you’re awake and talking.” A new voice enters the room.
“I am.” I open my eyes without thought, and I’m reminded why I had them closed in the first place. Sam explains why I won’t be able to look at her, which I’m grateful for.
The doctor introduces herself as Dia Mendez, and she walks me through my current injuries. Then she asks me questions about how I’m feeling while she checks my vitals. By the time she leaves, happy with my recovery, I’m exhausted and ready to sleep again.
“Everyone is in the cafeteria having lunch, so you might want to rest now before they get back,” Sam teases.
My lips quirk up at the side. If the whole family is here, then he’s right. I will absolutely need my rest.
“Mom. Seriously. Stop fussing. You’re driving me crazy, and I’m not even the one in the hospital bed,” Nolan groans.
