When I finished, I returned to bed. “I should put on some clothes,” I muttered.
Kal kissed my neck. “You’re fine. Sleep.”
“Hmm,” I grunted. “Stay with me?”
“Until the sun implodes.”
Chapter 39
Recovery Part Two: The wrath of joint pain.
Days passed in a blur. Sleeping. Forcing down nibbles of food and sips of water. Kal hovering. Dr. Qinlin and NAID checking in. Eventually, Qinlin removed the tubes from my arms, even though my appetite hadn’t returned. The best part was showering, though Kal sat outside in case I needed him.
For the first time since I’d woken up, Kal had left me alone. Captain Talvax had wanted to talk to him. She’d ordered him to get his ass to Command or she would drag him there.Apparently, Kal had been avoiding calls from his family, and his father had had enough.
Lucy dropped her plastic ball with a bell on my lap, and I tossed it out my open bedroom door. She tore after the ball, returned, and dropped it. I threw the toy again and again until my arm started to hurt. It didn’t take much to tire me out anymore. My joints ached with every move, and I couldn’t stand for longer than a couple of minutes before I had to sit again.
A whoosh reached my ears. Kal was back. He came straight to my room, mussing his hair. I wordlessly held out my arms, and he settled in my embrace, laying on top of me.
He hadn’t been sleeping. NAID had told me, while Kal had been in the shower, that he averaged an hour before he woke up to check on me. Kal was exhausted, and I felt guilty.
My fingers trailed down his back while I held the nape of his neck with my other hand.
“My Seth,” he whispered, lips brushing my skin.
I tingled in awareness. If I wasn’t so tired, I would initiate something. “How did it go with your dad?”
Kal grunted, arms coming around me.
“Bad?”
He didn’t respond.
“Good?”
“I don’t want to talk about it.”
“Alright.”
Stroking his back to soothe his tension, I wished he would rest. I’d tried to get Kal to sleep, but he would only nap when I did, and even then, he didn’t stay asleep. He needed to rest, but I couldn’t convince him I was fine. Even Dr. Qinlin’s scans hadn’t convinced him.
An idea popped into my thoughts. “Babe?”
“Yeah?”
“Could you help me?”
“With what?”
“I need a change of scenery.”
His jaw clenched, and his eyes widened in obvious fear. “You can’t leave our quarters yet.”
“My decision, but no. I thought you could help me to the living room. I want to lay on the couch.”
“Sorry.”
“I know you’re worried, but I’m alright.”
