Page 174 of Pistols and Plush Toys

“I’m okay,” Nikolai assured him. “Doc stitch me up, remember?”

Right. Right. “And the pain?” They’d come right from the shower to bed, and Elliot hadn’t remembered to grab the pills Dr. Williams had left.

“Coming back, but I’m thinking would be good to eat first. Can you eat?”

Food was so far from Elliot’s mind, but he hadn’t even had breakfast today. He should probably at least try. “Maybe.”

“I’m thinking I’m want burgers,” Nikolai said. “From diner I like. Is okay?”

Nikolai’s hand traced to the front of Elliot’s hairline, and then gentle nails scraped over his scalp.

“Do they have milkshakes?” Elliot asked tentatively. He might not be able to eat a burger right now, but a shake might be doable.

“Yes,” Nikolai said. His hand lifted off of Elliot, reaching for the bedside table. The table now had two cell phones, one of which Elliot recognized as his own. “Alex, he’s bring them to me,” Nikolai said when he caught Elliot looking. “You want yours?”

“No, that’s okay,” Elliot said. He was glad to have the phone back, but didn’t think he was ready to look at a screen.

Nikolai talked through ordering food in a low, soothing tone. Elliot closed his eyes to focus. He drifted in it, sighing when Nikolai finished with the order and his hand moved back to playing with Elliot’s hair.

Eventually Nikolai roused him again. “Food is here. We should get it, okay?”

Elliot liked that ‘we’. He still didn’t want to let Nikolai out of his sight. They got up out of bed slowly, and shuffled together out of the bedroom. Elliot found himself watching Nikolai, making sure he was moving okay.

The bags of food had been left on the dining room table, and they grabbed them along with Nikolai’s pain medication. Nikolai looked over at him, and then tilted his head back the way they’d come.

They returned to the bedroom.

By unspoken agreement Nikolai put on Checklists, and the two of them curled up in bed together to eat. Elliot got the milkshake down, and more of his hunger returned. He ended up eating half an order of onion rings and most of a burger, and Nikolai finished twice that.

They went through episode after episode. Nikolai didn’t suggest leaving the bed, and Elliot was glad. Eventually they’d have to leave this room, this house, and face everything that had happened, but for right now he was happy to be cocooned here with Nikolai.

Elliot started to get sleepy again after a while. He hadn’t looked at his phone, but he knew several hours had to have passed, if only for how much TV they’d watched.

“Would it be okay if I stayed here tonight?” Elliot asked when the next episode of Checklists finished. He was tilted into Nikolai, head partially leaning on his shoulder.

“Yes, of course.” Nikolai said. “I’m would… like it if you stayed. If I knew you were safe.”

Elliot felt the same. “Thank you,” he said with a relieved sigh.

“But we should get your friends, maybe,” Nikolai said a moment later. “So they aren’t lonely without you.”

Elliot hadn’t even been thinking about his stuffed animals, but the fact that Nikolai had made his heart clench.

“Okay,” he said.

Nikolai paused the TV from playing the next episode, and they slowly started to detangle from each other. Nikolai suggested brushing their teeth first, and Elliot agreed. Once hegot back in bed, he couldn’t imagine himself getting up again to do so.

They went back into Nikolai’s bathroom, and Nikolai retrieved a fresh toothbrush under the sink for Elliot. They made quick work of it side-by-side in the dual sinks, and when he was finished, Nikolai took the toothbrush and put it in the holder next to his own. Elliot felt a warm burst of happiness seeing it there.

When that was finished, Nikolai took his hand and led him to his room down the hall. There they collected Apricot, Sheep, and Max. Fezzik was left behind for being too big, but Elliot made sure he was tucked in nicely.

They returned to Nikolai’s room and climbed back into bed. As Nikolai laid down and wound an arm around Elliot to tuck him close, he reached for Sheep.

“Today was scary,” Nikolai said quietly as he brought Sheep up to nuzzle Elliot’s cheek. “But you were so brave. So smart.”

Elliot ducked his head at that. “I didn’t do anything,” he mumbled.

“This is not true,” Nikolai said. “You were so brave.” Quieter he said, “You let him hurt you, so he would not hurt me.”

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