Page 4 of Senseless
"Okay, here goes." I stuck the syringe in his arm where I'd just cleaned with an alcohol wipe and pressed down on the plunger.
The boy hissed at the needle’s poke and bit the inside of his cheek against a whimper, shutting his eyes tight.
"All done!" I dropped the syringe in the wastebasket, grabbed the sky-blue band-aid, and laid it carefully over the injection spot. "That's your last vaccine, Jason. You're so brave!"
"It didn't even hurt," he scoffed as he slid off the exam table and returned to his father's side.
The man chuckled as he ruffled his son's hair. "Thank you for squeezing us in at the end of the day, Mari."
"It's no problem at all." I peeled my gloves and white coat off before heading to the sink to wash my hands.
They hesitated by the exam room door. "Do you want us to wait with you?"
"It's okay." I smiled as I dried my hands. "My husband should be outside. Thank you, though."
"Have a good evening, Mari."
"You guys too!"
The door closed softly after them as I pulled on the large, black hoodie. I didn't have to put my nose to the fabric to know that Shadow's scent was fading from it. Trying to catch a whiff of him would only make me feel worse, so I did my best to find comfort in the heavy weight of the fabric. Over the sweatshirt, I pulled on my leather jacket, adjusting the hoodie so it didn't bunch up underneath.
I said goodnight to Rhonda, Dr. Brooks, and the other medics with a smile, like I did every night. A smile that I hoped didn't betray how numb I felt inside.
The rumble of Jandro's bike filled the chilly air as I stepped outside, and my man was leaning against the machine while he waited for me.
"Hey,bonita." He wrapped around me, warm and strong. "Everything okay?"
"Yeah, I just had a last-minute vaccination." I tilted my face up, accepting his kiss.
His lips lingered on mine tonight, one warm hand reaching up to caress my cheek. "You want to drive?"
"Sure."
I threw a leg over the bike and gripped the handlebars, Jandro easing into the seat behind me. Riding felt like second nature to me now that I'd had weeks of practice. These days, being in the driver's seat and with Jandro were the only times I felt remotely alive.
The road led us to the house far too soon—that cheery, cozy facade mocking me as we approached. What was supposed to be my home with my four husbands was actually an empty shell. A place to crash in the evenings after I spent most of my day working at the hospital.
Such a waste of a beautiful house.
So many times I wished to make a different turn at the bridge leading into this development. I fantasized constantly about leaving town, riding off into the sunset to find the man I missed so badly that my chest physically ached.
But Jandro would never let me go. And Horus kept telling me it wasn't time yet.
So every night I kept returning here, to this house that filled me with resentment, and continued to wait for when the time was right.
"What's for dinner?" I asked, removing my helmet. Not that I wasfeelinghungry, I hadn’t truly felt hungry in weeks. I just knew that my body needed food.
Jandro scraped the mud off his boots on the mat outside the front door. "Chickenpozole."
I narrowed my eyes.
He laughed, cupping my face to kiss me. "Notourchickens, don't worry. Joe is thinning out his flock, so he gave me a couple."
I relaxed, making my way inside the house that I knew would be empty. Jandro started up a warm blaze in the fireplace while I quickly showered and changed out of my scrubs. He had two bowls ofpozoledoled out when I made it to the kitchen.
"Thank you,guapito." I kissed his cheek before taking a seat in front of my bowl.
"Of course."
