“And I didn’t mean to like it.” That’s good. We’re on the same page.
Wait.
Didhe like it?
I mean, I liked it, but I thought I was kissing Justin, so of course I liked it. But Caleb? This has to be the confusion from the altitude talking.
I place my hands on my hips. “How sick are you?”
“Sick.” He shakes his head, closing his eyes. “My head hurts.”
Oh, crap. He’s likesicksick. Do I need to take him to the hospital or something?
“Okay, don’t worry.” This sounds like a situation for WebMD. I rush to the table where I left my phone, Googling acute mountain sickness as I walk back to the couch. I kneel beside Caleb, reading off the symptoms.
“Headache, nausea, fatigue, dizziness, lightheadedness…” I glance at him, catching his nods with each thing I list. “What about breathlessness, elevated body temperature, or coughing?”
“No.”
“Okay, but all the dizziness and confusion could mean you have HACE, which is fluid accumulation in the brain.” I gasp, looking at him with wide eyes. “It’s deadly.”
He shakes his head. “Water. More water.”
I scramble to my feet, refilling his water and bringing it back as quickly as possible. I chew on my nail as I watch him gulp it down.
In addition to kissing Justin’s brother, I’m going to fail to diagnose his life-threatening symptoms, and he’ll die under my watch.
Then, no one will have to know about the kiss.
I tilt my head. Tempting…but no.
I decide to call Justin instead. He can be like a co-conspirator if Caleb ends up dying.
“Hey, babe!” He sounds breathless. “I know I’m not home yet. I was on my way out, and then Isaac—”
“Justin, I don’t care,” I snap. “I just got to your condo, and your brother—which, by the way, thanks for warning me he was here.”
“Oh, yeah. I forgot to tell you Caleb is in town.”
“Whatever.” I shake that topic away, shelving it for later. “I think he has altitude sickness. He has a headache, and he’s dizzy,confused.” I make sure to add that symptom, hoping it will come in handy later when I tell him about the accidental kiss.
“Really? Are you sure?”
“Pretty sure.” My eyes drift over his shirtless body on the couch. “Do you think I need to take him to the hospital? Or drive him to lower elevation?”
“No, it’s just altitude sickness. He’ll be fine.”
“Well, he’s pretty confused. I Googled it, and in some cases, it can be really serious. Like when they’re showing signs of delusion.”
“Is he showing signs of delusion?”
“Uh, just a few.” If you count kissing your brother’s girlfriend a sign of delusion.
“Keep him hydrated. Fluids help with altitude sickness. You can take him in if he doesn’t improve in the next half hour.”
“Are you sure? His death will be on your hands.”
“Make him drink some water, and I’ll be home in a little bit.”
