Love Simmers

by Jules Deplume

  “I figured,” my vision took a minute to focus. I saw Ollie clearly, his eyes troubled and his face pale in the terrible hospital lighting. I felt bad for him. His restaurant and his sister had been damaged tonight.

  “Now you’ve broken two more bones than me,” he said.

  “So you’re finally admitting you did break my toe and not just bruise it?”

  “I’ll give you that if you admit it was an accident on my part,” he smiled, “I mean, what type of six year old drops a Lego set on his sister’s foot on purpose?”

  “An angry one. I did take your cupcake just before it happened.”

  I looked up as Nate entered the room with two cups of coffee. He handed one to Ollie. “I thought we’d put the great Lego accident of 95’ to bed years ago,” Nate said as he caught the end of our conversation.

  “We reopened it,” I said, feeling a sense of relief that he was here beside me now.

  “I called your mum and Maddie,” he told me as he took the seat Ollie had left. “Your mum wanted to cut her trip short.”

  “I hope you told her I’m fine.”

  I didn’t want to ruin her relaxing night away. My poor mother, one of the few times she leaves town for the night and her daughter breaks her arm. There was no such thing as vacation when you were a parent.

  “I’m sorry,” I said at the same time Ollie said a heartfelt “Sorry.”

  We smiled. We’d done that all the time when we were young. Not so much lately though.

  “I shouldn’t have thrown you out. I mean, you had been targeted by a hate group and I pushed you out on the road alone with no ride home.” Ollie shook his head in disbelief at his own actions.

  “I’m sorry about Sails. Please let me try and make it right,” I apologised again, taking a sip of the water on my bedside table. The pain in my arm and head was a dull throb now. I guess I was pretty dosed up.

  “That would be great,” Nate said. I leaned my head back onto the pillow, reaching a hand up to my head to feel around the large plaster on my forehead. I hoped the scar wouldn’t be too bad. If it was, at least it was a badass story to tell. The scar on my wrist was from when I’d fallen at an ice-skating rink. That was a lame story to have to tell over and over.

  “The police will be in later but can you tell us what happened,” Nate asked, a strength in his tone that reminded me he was a force to be reckoned with when angry. Nate had never been in a fight he’d lost.

  “I was walking home. A car pulled up and three guys wearing rabbit masks hopped out.” I stopped to laugh, “hopped, get it.”

  Neither of them was amused. I laughed loudly, the painkillers more to blame for my outburst than the joke I think.

  “I ran. One tackled me. I hit the ground and he landed on top of me. My arm broke and I hit my head. They ran when they saw the injuries.”

  “Can you describe them?” Nate pressed, his jaw clenching in fury.

  I shook my head lightly; figuring the last thing he needed was to take justice into his own hands. He needed to focus on fixing Sails.

  “I’ll go tell the doctor you’re awake.” Ollie gave me a light kiss on the head before leaving the room.

  Nate moved closer to me, picking up my left hand and kissing it softly. His stubble tickled my skin.

  “You gave me a heart attack when I saw you standing there covered in blood,” he said raggedly. I pulled my hand from his and touched his face tenderly.

  “You’re always so calm in the face of chaos.” I used to hate that about him. When I was young I thought a man had to be explosive to be passionate. But calm in the face of crisis didn’t mean that a man was not passionate, it meant that he was rational. That when you were broken and in need of help, he could take care of you first and react later.

  “I don’t feel calm. I want to smash something,” he took a deep breath to calm himself, “but I also want to be here for you. And that outweighs everything else.”

  His words filled me with happiness. I felt a warm fuzzy emotion tighten in my chest. I didn’t want to analyse it too closely. Nate was the only guy who had ever touched my heart. And I’d run from him.

  “Miss Blake, I’m Doctor Scott. How are you feeling?” A young, handsome doctor came into the room followed by Ollie, his face friendly yet professional. I bet the female nurses and patients had wild fantasies about him. He was this hospital’s very own McDreamy.

  “Fine,” I replied tiredly, ready to go home and hopefully sleep peacefully in Nate’s arms for the night.

  “Let’s run through some questions. If all goes well, I’ll send you home. Are one of you staying with her tonight?” Doctor Scott looked between Ollie and Nate. “She’ll need to be woken up every few hours to make sure she has no concussion.”

  “She’s staying with us so I’ll check on her,” Ollie answered, crossing his arms to watch as the doctor checked my vitals. I squeezed Nate’s hand in a gesture that hopefully conveyed I wanted him to check on me.

  “I can do it,” Nate said to Ollie. I noticed my brother frown, as if finally realizing how close Nate and I were becoming.

  Half an hour later we headed home. I’d barely made it through the door when mum called to check in on me. I soothed her concerns and promised not to walk the streets alone anymore at night. Apparently, I was a trouble magnet, even in a small town with a near non-existent crime rate.

  Maddie had sent me a brief get-well text but when I tried to call there was no answer. I was more worried about her now than myself.

  Nate and I headed to his room. We’d almost made it when Ollie’s voice stopped us.

  “How long?” He asked and we both knew what he meant.

  “Today,” Nate answered and put an arm around my shoulder.

  “Hmm,” was the only sound that Ollie made as we walked into Nate’s room and closed the door.

  “He’s worried about what happens when I leave.” I guessed, knowing my brother as well as I knew myself. That’s what I was worried about so I’m sure it was what he was worried about.

  “So am I,” Nate said as he pulled off my clothes and tucked me into bed, his body wrapping gently around mine. He made certain there was no pressure on my arm.

  “I’ll wake you up in a few hours.” He kissed my check and I sighed in relief that I was here with him. I was safe with him.

  “Thank you for taking care of me,” I whispered in the dark, quiet room.

  “Always,” he said and there was a truth to his words. Ever since kindergarten he’d been there for me whenever I’d been in trouble or sacred or even just lonely. He’d been there for me.

  Chapter Eight

  My head and arm throbbed in equal measure the next morning. I felt like death would be a welcome relief from the pain. My tendency for melodrama was clearly in overdrive from the night’s events.

  I opened my eyes as Nate entered the room, the effort to sit up exhausting me enough that I wanted to lie back down and go to sleep.

  “Water, painkillers and eggs and bacon,” Nate’s voice was quiet as he placed the breakfast tray on my lap, his eyes searching my face for signs of discomfort. He didn’t need to search hard.

  “Eggs are cooked through?”

  “Of course.”

  “Bacon is crispy,” I checked to make sure.

  “I wouldn’t dare bring you bacon that wasn’t crispy,” he pretended to be irritated that I had checked.

  “I thought you might have forgotten.”

  “I haven’t forgotten anything about you.”

  I smiled and looked down at the meal in front of me.

  “It’s perfect.”

  I threw back the painkillers with a gulp of water, digging into the hot breakfast with gusto. I was hungry and food always made a person feel better. Comfort eating was a problem of mine. Pilates was the solution.

  “We’re going to head over to Sails…”

  “I’ll come,” I interrupted Nate to say, eating the rest of my food quickly and heading to the bathroom to shower.
The painkillers had numbed my arm and head enough that I was able to face the day.

  “Are you sure you wouldn’t rather rest?” Nate helped get the shirt off and wrap my cast up.

  “I want to help you guys fix the mess that I’m responsible for.” I hopped in the shower, gasping in surprise as Nate stepped into the stall behind me, his hands taking the soap.

  “Nurse’s usually give sponge baths while dressed,” I leaned into his chest, his hands tenderly washing my arm before moving along to my neck and shoulders. I moaned as his firm hands moved onto my breasts. His finger’s teased my nipples and I lost all train of thought.

  “I guess that means I’m your nurse with benefits.”

  His fingers slid down my stomach. I held my breath as he lathered more soap on his hands and knelt down to wash my feet. I stared down at him with anticipation. My legs trembling with need once there was only one place he had yet to touch. This felt better than the painkillers.

  He put the soap bar down and stepped out of the shower.

  “What?” I cried, staring at him in shock. “Why?” I practically sobbed in frustration.

  “Your doctor said not to exert yourself for a few days,” he smirked boyishly as I chucked the soap bar at his head. “That was just a taste of what’s to come.”

  “You’re a tease,” I stepped out of the shower, standing before him proud and naked. His eyes couldn't help but skim over my wet body. I smiled as his body began to react to the sight of me naked.

  “I promise I’ll put out next time.” He left the room quickly.

  “There won’t be a next time!” I shouted after him playfully.

  I cursed his name as I finished my shower with cold water.

  I walked down the steps with what I imagined to be a pretty frustrated look on my face.

  “Trouble brewing in your pointless relationship?”

  You’d think my brother would know better than to poke the bear but obviously not. I was widely considered to be the intelligent twin. In moments like this I understood how I got the title. The bar wasn’t set high.

  “Don’t start,” I snapped as we headed to the car.

  “Nate left laughing a couple of minutes ago.”

  Ollie opened the car door for me, enjoying my meltdown. I hated baby brothers. They were a plague on the earth.

  I put on my darkest sunglasses, the bright light killing my head. It was a reminder of last night’s narrow escape.

  “You know you’re about to leave, why are you starting something you can’t finish?” I fought the urge not to smack his arm with my good hand.

  “Do you have to delay the opening?” My tone becoming serious as my focus shifted to the problem at hand.

  “Hopefully not. We’re on our way there now to meet the contractor,” Ollie told me as we pulled into the parking lot. Nate was standing beside an older man when we walked into the dining room, his expression brightened when I walked in. No doubt he was deeply amused by his earlier antics.

  “I’m Oliver Blake. This is my sister, Logan. Thanks for meeting us on such short notice.” My brother shook hands with the contractor.

  “Liam Turner.” The man greeted us both.

  I took his hand with my left awkwardly.

  The men surveyed the damage, discussing options and costs while I hung back and stared at the writing on the wall. Idiots with a cause did a lot of damage to people’s lives. When I had filmed the segment where I’d cooked an animal that I’d seen alive it had changed my perspective on eating meat quite a bit. I mean, it never bothered me eating steak but when I’d see a cute rabbit bouncing with life one moment and dead the next in order for me to eat, I’d felt bad. Was it enough to turn me vegetarian? Probably not, but it was enough to make me want to contribute to animal welfare charities and campaigns. I guess the more extremist animal activists remained unimpressed. Aside from going full vegan, animal products were a part of most people’s daily lives. I wasn’t sure what else I could do.

  “To get the place done in three days you’re looking at around $6000.” Liam gestured at the state of the walls, shelves and broken windows. I heard Ollie sigh softly. We hadn’t even figured out the cost of replacing the furniture and liquor that had been broken yet.

  “That’s fine. Start work.” I walked over to the group, thanking Liam before he left to call in his workers.

  “It’ll take a few weeks for insurance to process the claim,” Nate said, “They need the police report.”

  “I’ll pay all the bills needed for the place to open on Saturday, no problem.” I eased their worries, glad that I could help. Even if it hadn’t been essentially my fault their place had been trashed, I would have been there with my chequebook. I believed in their business, I believed in them.

  “I wanted to ask-“

  My phone interrupted whatever it was Ollie had been about to say.

  “Charlie walked out,” Maddie whispered when I answered and my heart broke for her.

  “I’m on my way,” I hung up and turned to Ollie and Nate.

  “Charlie’s gone.”

  “I’ll drive you to her place.” Nate wrapped his arm around my shoulders.

  “Why do you think he left her?” I asked Nate as he drove, he hung out with Charlie regularly.

  “He’s an idiot who’s afraid there’s better out there for him than Maddie. Probably got it in his head that unless you play the field a bit you’ll regret what could have been.” Nate’s words hurt. I felt like they were directed at me as much as Charlie.

  “Is that what you think that about me?” I asked a stupid question. You never asked questions you didn’t want to hear an answer to. Better yet, you never asked a man a question when the answer could hurt you badly.

  “I think you didn’t want to settle down with the first guy you kissed, the first guy you had sex with because you thought it was dull.” He pulled up in front of Maddie’s house, watching as I reacted to his words.

  “I didn’t want to settle down with you because I wanted to leave Chester, to live in the city. You didn’t,” I knew there was an element of truth in those words. But I also knew there had been an element of truth in his.

  “Cause we talked about future plans together so much back then,” he said sarcastically. I grimaced at the implications of what he was saying.

  “Go comfort Maddie. She needs you,” he silenced me before I could say anything more.

  I left the car, without saying goodbye.

  Chapter Nine

  “I’m sorry I didn’t come to the hospital,” Maddie said, grabbing another tissue to dab her red, puffy eyes with. We sat on her couch in her beautifully decorated living room. The house that she had created for her and Charlie appeared empty now that he was gone. I looked around and noticed pieces of furniture were missing. I guess he’d taken them with him. It all seemed so abrupt. Six years packed away in two days.

  “Don’t worry about it. I wasn’t there long.” I didn’t really know how to comfort her. I had never gone through what she was going through mostly because I steered clear of long-term relationships. The only man who had ever brought me to tears or fits of rage or bursts of love I hadn’t stayed with long enough to allow him to hurt me. I had thought I was being smart and brave. On hindsight, maybe I was just being…dull. I was doing what was safe thinking I was being adventurous. But it took courage to start something that could ultimately end in so much heartbreak.

  “I thought we were happy. Were we happy?” She looked to me for an answer. I didn’t have the answers to my own life problems let alone hers but I wanted to help.

  “You were so happy that he freaked out and began to question it, and doubt it.” I believed what I said. Charlie was so happy with Maddie he’d decided it was boring. That he needed to add some color into his life by destroying it and starting a fresh one. Some people found happiness boring.

  “Six years together. I don’t know what life is like as an adult without him,” she cried, and I moved closer to wrap my arm
around her sobbing frame.

  “You’ll find out and you’ll thrive and you’ll realise that you can do great on your own.” And then you’ll realise that you’d rather be thriving with him than thriving on your own, I thought to myself but refrained from saying it aloud. Maybe, Nate and I would be where Maddie and Charlie were if we’d started dating in High School. Wondering whether we were missing out on the single, wild life experiences because we were in a steady relationship so young. The differences between Charlie and Nate formed in my mind and I knew that it was unlikely.

  “I love him and he just walked out the door,” she hiccupped, “he said he’d met someone that made him feel things he’d never felt with me! What does that even mean? You shouldn’t say something like that to someone without an explanation!”

  She tried to control her tears, my own eyes starting to water. Maddie didn’t deserve to be hurt like this, no one did.

  “There’s nothing I can say to make you feel better.” The words sounded lame even to me. “Is there?”

  “You can’t but I know what can,” she wiped her eyes and stood up, running upstairs before I could even process what she’d said.

  She came back down three minutes later wearing a cute sundress and enough makeup that her face was no longer red. She picked up her car keys.

  “Where are we going?” I said, ready to follow her anywhere.

  “Get a drink, down it and repeat.” She locked the door behind us, a determination on her face I found unnerving. Maddie rarely drank. She wasn’t a party girl. She was a homebody ready to have a house filled with kids. I wasn’t sure what to think about the path she was about to take.

  “Sure.” I didn’t point out I couldn’t drink with her thanks to my painkillers. No one liked that person who sat sober staring while you got smashed. Either neither of you remembered the night or you both did. It was the proper lush etiquette.

  The local bar was surprisingly busy for a weeknight, the pool tables were full and the TV was on loud as people watched some hockey game or another. Maddie went straight for the bartender. Before I had even reached her, she had a Vodka raspberry cocktail in her hand and was seated on one of the stools. I took a seat beside her.