Page 55 of Unraveled

“Better crazy than stupid enough to miss out on the opportunity to be with the girl of my dreams.”

How did I possibly have a chance against a line like that? “You keep saying amazing things like that and I’m likely to start crying in the lobby. I want you there. At least to start. We’ll play the rest by ear.”

He grinned. “Let’s do this. Shall we?”

I took a deep breath, the anxiety having eased but not dissolved completely. “Yes.”

His hand held mine to the elevator and up to the oncology department. My butt hadn’t even hit the waiting room seat before I was called.

A young nurse with deep bronze skin and big brown eyes smiled at me. “Layla Olson?”

“Yes. That’s me.”

“Come on back. I’m Sara, and I’ll be your nurse today.” She glanced between Kellan and me, prompting him to introduce himself.

“I’m Kellan. Layla’s, uh, friend.”

My brow rose as I wondered how I felt about the label of uh, friend. I should have been relieved he hadn’t made the jump to boyfriend.

“After we get your vitals and blood work done, we’ll head up to the infusion room. Dr. Frost will come by in a few minutes to talk to you about the treatment today.”

Thirty minutes after getting my blood drawn, after which I waited in the lab, I was led one floor up.

We followed Sara into the infusion room, which was small and private. Not all chemo places had privacy, so I counted myself fortunate. I also liked the large comfy chair in which I could spend the next few hours.

“We have some pre-medications along with the steroids Dr. Frost spoke to you about. Those will be administered first. They will help you with nausea and other side effects.”

She hooked up my port, while I tried not to feel insecure about Kellan seeing the weird plastic tube protruding from my upper chest. He wanted reality. This was it. In color.

He took one of the visitor’s chairs and moved it beside mine to look at the Netflix I had cued up on my iPad. “Game of Thrones season seven?”

“Yep, trying to refresh my memory before the next season starts.” That should take my mind off of things.

During the entire five hours I was there, Sara was amazing at explaining all of the steps and taking care of me. By the time I was finished with my first chemo cocktail—during which I’d sucked on half a dozen fudgesicles in case of mouth sores—I was weak and nauseous. I was given telephone numbers to call in case of vomiting or high fever and strict instructions to flush twice anytime I used the toilet. Basically, I was to ensure none of my bodily fluids touched someone else. That meant no more kissing for the next few days. Not that kissing was the first thing on my mind as I walked out of the hospital on shaky legs with Kellan’s help. But it was a reminder of how un-relationship-y this chemo thing was.

Kellan had been incredible throughout the day. He’d kept me laughing, engaged in Game of Thrones, and most importantly, he kept my mind off of the poison feeding into my body. I was also grateful he’d been there to listen to all of the details of after-care. My mind shut down about midway through the lecture. By then, I felt fuzzy.

When I arrived home, Patty was already there, greeting us in the parking lot. She went along with Kellan into my apartment, where she readied my bed and took out some ice chips. I was beyond exhausted and said very little before climbing beneath the cool sheets and shutting my eyes. I’d told him to go home, but when I woke hours later, I found him snoozing on the living room couch.

“Hi,” I greeted, finding my voice rough. I had a metallic taste in my mouth and absolutely no appetite for anything, but I forced myself to the kitchen to drink some Gatorade. It was important I stay hydrated.

He practically jumped up. “Hi. How are you feeling? Can I get you anything?”

“No. I’m okay.”

“The side effects?”

“Metal taste, nausea, and little appetite. But otherwise, doing okay so far.” I glanced at the microwave clock. “It’s after nine o’clock. You should get home.” I tried not to sound ungrateful, but about now was when I wouldn’t be very good company.

He walked over, looking rumpled yet incredibly handsome. “Are you kicking me out, babe?”

My lips twitched. “I’m telling you to get some real sleep as you have a busy week of work ahead of you.” I could imagine all of the extra hours he’d need to put in after missing today.

“How about I worry about that? Can I make you anything to eat?”

“I’m not hungry.”

“This is the point where I say you should eat, you tell me you’ll eat when you’re damn well ready to, and we have our first fight?”