by Brandon Witt
“No, you’re not,” Rae said with obvious frustration. “The doctor said you had to stay overnight. You have a concussion and they need to make sure you don’t die.”
“That’s a little dramatic, don’t you think?” he asked and rolled his eyes, which made the room kind of swimmy.
“Yeah, I’d say dying is a lot dramatic, so stop being a big baby and do what the doctor tells you. He said twenty-four hours”—she pointed a finger at him—“and you’re staying every last second.” Ridley tried to grab the digit but his vision was blurred and he ended up with empty air, which caused Rae to laugh raucously. “Yeah, you’re so ready to go home.”
“I could if you would stay with me and play nurse,” Ridley said hopefully, but he already knew the answer. The evil glare Rae gave him confirmed it. He wasn’t going to give up, but he gave her a momentary break by changing the subject. He needed time to come up with something to guilt her with. “Hey, did you happen to see Alex?”
“Nope. I checked at the nurses’ station and no one by the name Alex Firestone was brought in.”
Knowing Alex hadn’t come to the hospital upped Ridley’s desire to get the hell out of there. His head was sketchy, the exact events elusive, and he needed to know Alex was okay. Rae had informed him that she hadn’t seen Alex, and she’d arrived not too long after he had gotten to the hospital. Ridley hadn’t seen him since the puking instance. The really weird thing was that the cops had thought Ridley had taken Kyle and his flunkies out. He was badass, but seriously? No.
From what little he and Rae could ascertain, the yahoos who’d started all the shit weren’t talking—sudden amnesia. Probably too embarrassed to admit they tried to gang jump a single man and got their asses handed to them. Ridley also had a sneaking suspicion that the cops didn’t know Alex had been there and that he wasn’t supposed to talk about him. He didn’t know why he thought that, but it felt right. Thinking about it made his head throb so Ridley closed his eyes. He took a few deep breaths, in through his nose and out slowly through his mouth, as the nausea returned.
“Mr. Corbin?”
“Jesus H. Christ, what now?” Ridley huffed and pulled the covers over his head.
“Sir, could you please open your eyes? I need to check your pupils,” the same old fart asked and pulled the covers away.
Ridley squeezed them tighter. “Didn’t we just do this?”
“Sir, that was two hours ago. Now please open your eyes.”
Two hours? Holy shit! He opened his eyes and winced when the nurse shone the light in them.
“Sir, can you tell me what your name is?”
“Willy Wonka.” He flinched, waiting for the slap to come. When it didn’t Ridley turned his head to find the chair empty. “Do you know where my friend went?”
“She’s not here.”
He started to say “Thank you, Captain Fucking Obvious,” but the nurse had the sense of humor of a wet noodle and pissing her off wouldn’t help him with his mission to get them to release him. Instead he gritted his teeth and, trying to keep his voice as friendly as possible, asked, “Do you know how long she’s been gone? Did she say where she was going?”
The nurse wrote something in her notebook, then returned it to her pocket along with her light. “She left over an hour ago, and I believe she went home,” she informed him and left the room.
Fuck! He was so going to get Rae for this. How dare she leave him here alone with…. He rubbed at his burning eyes and tried to think. He needed a plan. Obviously he wasn’t going to have any luck getting Rae to agree to bust him out. The doctors were refusing to release him. He guessed his only option was to go the AMA—Against Medical Advice—route. He pulled the covers back up over his head; he’d ask about the forms next time they came in.
Some time later a cute little nurse in blue scrubs and dark brown hair pulled back into a ponytail popped into his room, all smiles. “Hi, Mr. Corbin, I’m Molly and I’ll be taking care of you tonight. How are you feeling?”
“Great. I’d be even better if you could bring me some AMA papers.”
“You really should reconsider,” Molly said cheerily. “While your X-rays and neuro check have come back normal, you still need to be monitored closely. Concussions can go from bad to worse very quickly.” She hung another bag of saline and attached it to his IV pole.
“I don’t think I’ll be needing that,” he informed her, eyeing the IV. “I’m aware of the risks. So, about those papers?”
“The doctor has ordered something for your pain. It’s mild but should help take the edge off,” she said, smiling broadly.
The expression on her face had him a little nervous. She looked way too happy considering he’d been a royal pain in the ass with his demands of being released. But the thought of having the vise squeezing his head eased a little was just too alluring to turn down. “Okay, sure. You can bring it at the same time you bring the papers.”
Ridley knew his mistake the minute he’d swallowed the pills. Molly just laughed when he asked for the AMA papers. Apparently he wasn’t of sound enough mind to make that kind of decision. She smiled broadly and winked at him just before she turned off the light and shut the door behind herself. Sneaky bitch.
Like the ride to the hospital, the entire night was a haze. The injury in combination with the lack of sleep was no doubt making the confusion all the more extreme. Not only was he being awakened every two hours for neuro checks, but to make matters worse, the constantly running IV fluids caused his bladder to conspire against him, keeping him up. He’d tried getting out of bed earlier on his own, but learned quickly a concussion with little sleep ended in his naked ass hitting the cold floor. No way in hell did he want to go through that again.
With a groan he rolled over and reached for the nurse’s call button. He froze midmotion when he spotted a familiar blond head of curls. Alex was sitting in a chair next to Ridley’s bed, elbows leaning on the mattress and head propped in his hands.
Ridley blinked several times, but the vision didn’t dissipate. He tried shaking his head, but still Alex remained. “I must be dreaming,” he muttered.
Alex lifted his head, looked around the sterile room, and then gave Ridley a lopsided smiled. “Not what I would call much of a dream.”
Ridley shrugged. Alex was wrong. Having Alex there felt like a dream, a really good dream, and the way he smiled…. Hell yeah, it was a damn good one.
“How are you doing?” Ridley asked.
“Better than you,” Alex murmured.
Ridley nodded toward Alex’s swollen and bloodied knuckles. “Looks painful,” he pointed out.
Alex hid his hands in his lap. “Just some scrapes. So what the hell made you jump into that mess earlier?”
“Five against one. I didn’t like the odds and figured I’d help even them up a bit. Plus, I fucking hate bullies.”
“I could have handled myself,” Alex said with a note of pride.
“And just how in the hell is that possible? Don’t get me wrong, you damn sure dominated my ass,” he said dubiously. “But I kind of wanted—”
“Kind of?” Alex interrupted.
“Okay I did,” Ridley muttered with a weak swat at Alex’s head. “My point is, dominating my ass during sex is one thing. You taking on five assholes who want nothing more than to smash your head in is a whole other thing.”
“I saved your ass,” Alex said smugly.
“How?”
“Well, after the two by four came in contact with the back of your head, I took out the guy who swung it before he could hit you again.” Alex’s smug smile grew. “That makes me the one who saved your ass. Your hero, so to speak.”
“Yeah, yeah, you’re my hero,” Ridley agreed. “But what I mean by ‘how’ is where in the hell does a library geek learn to fight like that?”
“Haven’t you learned you should never judge a book by its cover? There is a lot about me you don’t know, a lot of assumptions you’ve made based on appearance.”
“So clue me in. Who is Alex Firestone?”
“Mr. Corbin, it’s time for your neuro check,” a nurse announced as she stepped into the room and flicked on the overhead lights.
Ridley hissed and shielded his eyes with his hand. “Jesus, is it necessary to burn my damn retinas each time y’all come in here?”
“Sorry, I didn’t realize you were awake,” she responded, not sounding the least apologetic. “Oh,” she muttered with a scowl when she noticed Alex in the chair. “You’re not supposed to be here, sir. Visiting hours were over at nine.”
“I called him,” Ridley lied. “I… I….” He pulled at the neck of the gown. “I needed something other than a gown to wear home.”
The nurse looked skeptical as she looked back and forth from him to Alex. Since there were no bags or piles of clothes, she had to know he was bullshitting her. Still, she did her checks, checking the strength in all four limbs, asking the stupid questions, and of course, doing more damage to Ridley’s eyes with her penlight before leaving the room.
“I probably should get out of here before security shows up.” Alex went to his feet and patted Ridley’s arm. “I just wanted to check to make sure you were okay.”
“Nice way to avoid the question,” Ridley said wryly.
“Perhaps I’ll answer it for you over a drink some time,” Alex offered.
“How about you pick me up when they spring me and you can tell me about it over a decent meal?” He wrinkled his nose. “The food here sucks.” Alex looked hesitant, so Ridley added, “It would help my concussed head feel better to have something to eat with my hero.”
Alex didn’t say anything, but based on the smile he had on his face as he headed out the door, Ridley knew he’d be seeing him over a cup of coffee or a soda. But first, bladder duty. He pushed the call button. It was his turn to bug the staff for a change.
“IN ENGLISH,” Ridley said with exasperation as the doctor started rattling off discharge orders.
“Sorry,” Dr. Hoffman clucked. “Your brain got slammed around inside your skull, which caused some swelling. It’s going to bother you for a few days.”
“Don’t I know it,” Ridley responded and gently rubbed at the big knot on the back of his head.
“That bump is the least of your concerns. It’s what happened inside that is the problem. You’ll need to take a few days off, stay quiet and no strenuous activity.”
“Damn and I was hoping to get lucky,” Ridley said dubiously.
Dr. Hoffman arched a brow at him but didn’t comment. Instead he just shook his head before continuing. “If there is an increase in dizziness, blurring of vision, slurred speech, nausea, tremors, call an ambulance immediately. A head injury such as yours can turn ugly quickly. Do you have anyone who can stay with you for the next couple of days to watch for symptoms?”
“I’m sure I can find someone,” Ridley assured him. He knew Rae probably would do it, but he was forming a plan in his head that would get him home, safe, and lucky all in one sexy geek.
“Good.” Dr. Huffman handed Ridley the discharge papers. “Sign these,” he instructed, giving him a pen. “I’ll have the orderly take you down as soon as your ride is here.”
“My ride?” he asked absently as he signed the forms.
“You can’t drive until after your follow-up appointment on Friday.”
“I don’t live that far, I was going to walk.”
“Well I guess you won’t be going home today, then.” Dr. Huffman shrugged. “You’re staying until you have someone come get you. You better order breakfast,” he said with a smirk.
“Oh hell no,” Ridley protested and grabbed his cell from the bedside table.
“I thought you’d see it my way. I’ll see you on Friday.”
“Yeah, yeah, yeah.” Bastard had him. Rae was in class until eleven and he wasn’t about to sit there for the next two hours so he only had one other option.
Alex answered on the first ring. “Hello?”
“I need a hero.”
“I’m your man,” Alex chuckled. “What can I do for you?”
“They won’t spring me unless I have someone drive me home and I—”
“I’m on my way.”
Ridley sat there, stunned, as the phone went dead. He really liked the way Alex offered to come get him, just like that. It was almost as if Alex was dropping everything for him. Then again, there were a lot of feelings Alex brought out that Ridley really, really liked. Hell, the knot on the head and the sleepless night in the hospital were almost a blessing if it meant he got to spend some quality time with Alex.
By the time he pissed, got dressed in his dirty clothes, and washed his face, a nurse had come into the room pushing a wheelchair. “You ready to go?”
“I’m just waiting on my ride,” he told her as he tied his shoes.
“The front desk just called to say they are here and waiting out front for you.”
“Wow! That was fast. Uh, yeah, in that case I’m ready.” The room tilted slightly as he stood, but luckily he didn’t have far to go and flopped down into the waiting chair. A lot of guys tried to refuse a wheelchair. Ridley thought it was pretty stupid to play that macho bullshit card. He was hurt, his head was still swimming, and he was still a little nauseated. He figured going for a ride in a chair pushed by a tiny little chick was way more macho than doing a face plant on the tile floor. Hard to be manly from that position. Besides, there was no way he wanted to spend one more moment in the hospital than was absolutely necessary.
“Let’s rock,” he exclaimed excitedly.
The nurse gave him an exasperated look before handing him his forgotten discharge papers. “Men,” she muttered and then laughed.
“Hey, I have those memorized,” he grumbled.
“Uh-huh, sure you do,” she said disbelievingly. “Just like you remember how you got that knot on your head.”
“That was yesterday. I remember today.” Sort of. Okay, he really didn’t remember much, the knock to his noggin was messing with his short-term memory, but he remembered enough to know he was on his way to see Alex and that was all that mattered at the moment.
Outside the main entrance, he spotted Alex’s car and pointed toward it. “There’s my ride.”
Ridley waved as Alex stepped out of the car and made his way around to the passenger side to open the door. “Thanks for coming,” Ridley said sincerely as Alex helped him into the seat.
“No problem,” Alex said easily.
“He tried sneaking out of here without his discharge papers,” the nurse informed Alex. “I suggest you read them and keep him in line today.”
“I got this,” Alex told her with a wink. “I’ll be sure he’s a good boy.”
“See that he is.”
Ridley rolled his eyes.
“How are you doing?” Alex asked as he slid into the driver’s seat and got them going.
“I feel like my brains are scrambled, but I’m better now that I’m out from under the watchful eye of Nurse Ratched,” Ridley told him and fastened his seat belt.
“Well don’t get too cocky there, Mr. Scrambled Eggs, you’re under my watchful eye now and I can be a tyrant.”
“Hey,” Ridley protested. “I thought you were my hero, not my warden.”
“One and the same,” Alex said slyly.
“Great,” he muttered. Ridley tried looking out the window, but the flashing scenery made his head throb so he closed his eyes and leaned back against the seat.
“You okay?” Alex asked, sounding concerned.
“Yeah, I’m fin
e, just exhausted,” Ridley assured him without opening his eyes. “I don’t think I got more than an hour of sleep last night.”
“You can get a nap while I make breakfast.”
“Good luck finding anything to cook at my place,” Ridley told him and yawned.
Ridley didn’t cook. Rather, he didn’t cook well, so he usually always ate out or popped a frozen dinner into the microwave. He didn’t even have a pot.
“I figured as much, so I’m taking you to my place.”
“Really?” Ridley’s eyes flew open and he turned toward Alex. The quick movement caused a dizzying sensation. “Whoa!” he hissed and grabbed his head. He had to close his eyes again, the spinning causing his gut to roil.
“Uh-huh, I see how fine you are,” Alex chastised. “You’re going to have to let the macho-boy shit go and let me take care of you.”
“You can take care of me all you want,” Ridley said, trying to sound seductive but it came out slightly slurred, groggy sounding.
“Oh good Lord,” Alex chuckled.
Ridley didn’t respond. If he was a good boy, maybe he’d get what he wanted. He smiled broadly at the thought.
“Here we go,” Alex said after he parked and shut off the engine.
Ridley opened his eyes, blinking a few times until his eyes adjusted and the world righted itself. He took in the small Tudor home nestled in a small grove of trees. The house sat back from the road, the yard and structure hidden from the road by large trees and a privacy fence. It was, in a word, quaint, which just didn’t seem to fit Alex’s personality. “This is your place?”
“Yeah.”
“It doesn’t fit you,” Ridley muttered.
“Why do you say that? It’s quiet and remote. It totally fits me,” he insisted.
“I would have thought so when I first met you, but now….” Ridley shrugged. “Cute and quaint, doesn’t fit you.”
“Sure it does,” Alex laughed and stepped out of the car.
Alex stayed right at Ridley’s side as they went up the front walk to the door. It was a little slow going, Ridley had to keep his head up and clamp down on the nausea, but he made it. He was slow and felt drugged, and no matter how hard he tried to take in his surroundings, he couldn’t. He was worse off than he thought because he couldn’t focus on anything and the room blurred.
