“I know. Thank you for taking care of my girl. And thank you for holding down the fort when I couldn’t.”
He shook his head, anger still in his eyes, though I knew he wasn’t angry with me.
“Don’t ever do that to me again.”
I smiled. “I won’t. I promise.”
I wiggled my foot, feeling something there.
“You broke your leg,” Theo said when he noticed where my attention was.
“What else?”
“A sore back you’re going to be feeling for a while, fractured rib on your right side, and a broken leg. You also hit your head pretty hard. There was some swelling and bleeding, which is why you were in a coma for so long. They had to operate. Which is why one side of your head is shaved.”
I frowned and touched my hair. Sure enough, I felt a bald spot on the left side of my head, shorter strands of hair than I was used to, and some longer strands of hair.
“You look fucking stupid,” Theo said.
I glared at him. “Youlook fucking stupid.”
“Real mature.”
Beside me, Lia stirred.
“You guys have things to talk about,” he said, standing up from the chair. I didn’t like the way we left things. I knew this was going to affect me for some time, but fuck.
“Theo?” I called out when he was by the hospital door.
He paused for a long second before turning around and looking at me blankly.
“I love you,” I said. I didn’t think I told him that enough. We said it when we were younger, but the older we got, the more infrequent it became until it stopped altogether.
His shoulders sagged. “I love you too, asshat.”
I shook my head and grinned at him. He didn’t smile back, but he looked better. Lighter.
I turned back to my girl. She let out a small groan and sat up, stretching her muscles. That position couldn’t have been comfortable. My poor baby.
I waited for her to notice I was awake.
She didn't disappoint. Her eyes connected with mine, and they widened comically.
“Mael!”
She rushed toward me, hugging me from the side and hitting my sore rib. I held in a groan, not saying anything.
She pulled back, tears welling in her tired eyes.
“Baby,” I breathed out, wrapping my arms around her and pulling her in closer to me. “It’s okay. Don’t cry.”
She shook her head against me and cried harder. “I’m so glad you're okay, you stupid, stupid man.”
She pulled back and lightly slapped my chest.
I grabbed her hand and held it there.
“How could you do something so stupid?”
