Chapter 10

I LAY BESIDE LANA. Her hair is all over the place, covering half her face, tangled in her shirt strap and wrapped around her earrings. She looks peaceful though. Happy.

I brush her hair off her face, my hand aching when I do, but I ignore it. She stirs and stretches but doesn’t wake.

“You’re so beautiful,” I whisper and press a kiss to her temple. She doesn’t move. I just watch her breathe, her chest rising and falling as the sun creeps up over the horizon. I haven’t slept all night. In part, due to thinking about the club and how poorly I protected her. If Alex hadn’t been there, what would have happened? The other part, due to the pain in my hand and face.

I glance at the clock. It’s five until six. I reach over, switch Lana’s alarm off, and watch the minutes tick by. Lana groans and yawns, and stretches until she rolls toward the clock. The clock hits six o’clock, and I rub my hand up and down her arm.

“Good morning.” I kiss her shoulder.

She turns her head toward me and peels her eyes open. “You’re up early.” A smile stretches across the whole length of her face, and she slides her arms around me.

“Hard to sleep when you’ve got someone so beautiful and smart and amazing sleeping right next to you.” I reach up to touch her cheek.

Her mouth gapes open, and she sits up.

“What’s wrong?” Fear pierces me. I turn to look over my shoulder, but she takes my hand in hers.

“Theo, your hand.” She brushes her fingers over my swollen wrist.

“It’s fine.” I try to take it back, but she holds onto me, her eyes full of worry as she shakes her head.

“Oh…” She caresses the side of my face. “And your eye too.” Her brows draw together in concern.

“Really, it's fine.” I try to soothe her.

“No, you need to go to the hospital.” She pushes the covers off. “It could be broken.” She grabs a sweater from the floor and yanks on a pair of jeans.

“Lana, relax.” I slide out of bed.

She the jeans and shirt I wore yesterday into my good hand.

“No, get dressed.” She pulls her hair into a ponytail and steps into some boots.

“Lana, stop.” I try to grab her, but she breezes by and slips her bag onto her shoulder.

“Get dressed.” She sighs and drops her hands. “Do you need help?”

“What?” I shake my head. “No, Lana, just stop.

“Theo, you’re hurt.” She takes my clothes back and tosses my pants on the bed. “Now come here.” She pushes the shirt over my head and feeds my good arm through the sleeve.

“Lana, just stop for a second.” I catch her hand with my good one.

“No, Theo!” Her voice squeaks with her nerves. “You’re hurt, let me take care of you.” Her eyes are all misty again.

I sigh, “Lana, it’s alright.” I watch her distraught features tighten.

“No, it’s not.” Her bottom lip quivers. “You got hurt. I got you hurt.”

“No, you didn’t.” I take her hand in mine more gently. “It was not your fault. It was that guy’s fault and mine, because I didn’t punch right.”

“But…” Lana sighs.

“No, no buts.” I have to be more stern than I would usually be with her. “I’ll go get this checked out, but only if you stop blaming yourself.”

“You’ll go to the hospital?” she asks, timidly.

“Yes.” I bring her hand up and kiss her knuckles, my shirt only halfway on.

“Okay.” She breathes, and she wraps her arm around me and squeezes. “Just… Just don’t get hurt.”

“I won’t,” I promise her. “I’ve had worse injuries playing backyard football when I was ten.”

“That was really specific.” She giggles softly, still holding onto me.

“I wasn’t a sporty kind of guy.” I laugh.

“I like you.” She sounds like a girl in junior high when she says stuff like that.

“I like you too.” I kiss the top of her head and rub my hand in circles against her back.

“Let me help you at least.” Lana takes my other hand and gently feeds it through the sleeve, her hands are steady as she does it. She pulls my shirt the rest of the way down and grabs my pants.

“I can put my own pants on.” I hold my good hand out for the jeans.

Lana glances at my swollen hand doubtfully.

“Lana, go make your tea.” I ease my jeans out of her hands.

“You’re sure?” she asks.

I nod. “I’m sure.”

Lana slips out of the room, casting a big-eyed glance over her shoulder before disappearing down the hall.

“Coffee?” she calls back as I struggle to get my pants around my waist.

“Yeah, please.” My hands fumble with the stupid button. I wince but finally get the button done. Thank god Lana wasn’t here watching that. I grab my way too light wallet off the nightstand before heading out for some coffee.

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Dear Internal Monologue,

He’s a writer. He read to me under the stars tonight and we had Champaign and chocolate covered strawberries, but he had to leave before the clock struck midnight. I guess he was going to turn into a pumpkin or something. LOL, just kidding, he had work.

He’s also working on polishing up his book to get it published. It’s about this girl who’s like sixteen and she meets this little boy who has cancer, well the girl volunteers in a kid’s cancer center and there’s this especially mean boy there and she takes him to fulfill his last twelve wishes because he’s terminal and his parents stopped visiting him because they couldn’t handle the pain of watching their son die.

He read me the first fifty pages and gave me a summary before he had to go. It sounds really good so far.

He hasn’t kissed me yet though. I don’t know why he’s waiting so long. I don’t have forever.

Lana