Page 124 of Healing Eleanor

Nik gestures for me to follow.

The hallway beyond the doors is crowded with life and illness. Lunch trays sit abandoned on carts, nurses guide frail patients down the corridor, and bags of fluid sway from tall metal poles as people shuffle past. The sterile, heavy air clings to me.

I edge closer to Nik, my skin prickling with unease. Maybe I shouldn’t have come. But I promised myself that I would be here for him. And I’m not going to break that promise now.

We stop in front of a door marked 153. Nik knocks softly, and it opens to reveal a middle-aged woman with dark curly hair piled into a claw clip.

“Nik, thank you so much for stopping by on such short notice,” she greets warmly, then notices me lingering behind him. “Hello, I don’t think we’ve met.” She extends her hand. “I’m Rosie, Irina’s nurse.”

Her palm is cool against mine. I force a smile, trying not to seem as uneasy as I feel. “Eleanor.”

“It’s nice to meet you.” Rosie’s eyes soften, but when she looks back at Nik her tone shifts, businesslike. “It shouldn’t take long. I noticed a few unsigned documents while going through paperwork. I tried calling Vadim, but he didn’t answer… and since you’re listed as next of kin…” She offers an apologetic smile.

Nik answers quickly. “It’s no problem, really.”

“Great.” Rosie pushes the door wider. “Eleanor, why don’t you go sit with Irina, while I take Nik with me.”

Nik goes pale, the color draining from his face as his attention shifts from me to Rosie. “Uh, can she come with us? I don’t think—”

“I’m afraid that due to HIPAA she can’t. It really will only take a moment.” Rosie winces sympathetically.

I cut in before he could argue. “It’s okay. I can stay.”

He gives a small, reluctant nod, like he’s trying to convince himself it’s safe to leave me.

“Thank you,” Rosie says. She leads us further into the room, and my eyes land on the woman in the hospital bed. Pale, fragile, and a blanket tucked up to her chest.

“Irina, I have a surprise for you, darling,” Rosie announces gently.

Irina’s head turns at the sound of Rosie’s voice, and when her gaze lands on me, her face lights up with a wide smile.

“Eleanor, Milochka, how good it is to see you.” She stretches out a thin hand toward me.

I hurry to her bedside, the weight in my chest loosening just a little. Her skin is cool and fragile beneath my fingers as I clasp her hand. “It’s good to see you too,” I whisper.

Nik clears his throat from the foot of the bed. “What about me? Not happy to see me?” His smile is small, but his voice carries the faintest thread of vulnerability.

Irina narrows her eyes playfully. “I’m always glad to see you, Nikusha. But today you brought a lovely girl with you, and I am also happy to see her.” She punctuates the words with a wink in my direction.

Blood rushes to my cheeks, forcing me to fight for a calm expression.

Nik rolls his eyes. “I need to sign some papers. Please don’t say anything… embarrassing.” He arches a brow at her.

“Me? Embarrassing?” Irina scoffs dramatically. “Please.” She gives me another smile, one that brings warmth through the sterile hospital air. “Now shoo, it’s girl time.”

Nik fights back a smile, shaking his head. “Be good, you two.” He follows Rosie out the room, leaving me alone with Irina.

She shifts her body toward me. “Please, sit.” She gestures toward the chair by her bed. “Tell me how you’ve been.”

I lower into the seat. “I feel like I should be the one asking you that,” I mutter.

“Nothing interesting happens in hospice other than dying, dear,” she says, lighthearted as if death is just another appointment on her calendar. “Now, go on. Tell me how it’s been at the studio.”

Irina is a light. Even here, staring down the end, she wants to talk about me, not herself. She isn’t asking for pity or flowers the way my mother would. She just is. And it baffles me.

I want to lie, say everything is fine. But there’s something about her gaze that forces the truth out of me. “Everyone misses you.” A small smile tugs at my lips. “And rehearsals are going great… except for me.”

Her brows knit together. “And why do you say that?”