Page 37 of Fractured Constellations
“Okay.” She gives me a smile and a nod, then quietly leaves the room.
Butterflies flutter around my stomach as I walk over to the bed, where Chase has set my bag that I packed this morning.
“Okay, so pjs?” he asks, and I nod, licking my dry lips. “It’s okay, Star. We’ll be with you every step.”
Taking a deep breath and exhaling, I take the pajamas from him—one of Thorn’s T-shirts and my sleep shorts, plus fluffy socks that Chase bought me—and head into the bathroom to get changed. When I emerge, my mind once again blown with how luxurious that en-suite was with its marble countertops and rainfall shower, Patty is back with my fluids.
“As you probably know, but I have to say it anyway, these are just to help protect your organs, particularly your kidneys. You’ll be on them the whole time near enough, though we’ll adjust the milliliters per hour so at night you can have less bathroom breaks,” she tells me as I walk over on slightly wobbly legs and perch on the end of the bed. “I’ll just check your vitals before we start, okay?” Patty tells me, and I dip my head in acknowledgement. She runs through her checks, but I can’t focus on them, just on continuing to breathe slowly, in through my nose and out through my mouth.
“You’re doing so well,” Thorn whispers into my ear, and I blink, turning my head to realize he’s sat down next to me.
I give him a grateful smile, but can’t utter a word because my tongue feels thick. I don’t know why I get so nervous before each treatment; it’s always been like this. I think maybe because there is so much riding on this working. More so now than ever before, because I want to stay with these guys, my stepbrothers, whosomehow mean so much more to me than the marriage between our parents.
“Ready?” Patty asks, and the butterflies from earlier turn into wasps, buzzing around my stomach and stinging.
“As I’ll ever be,” I reply, Thorn helping me to get under the covers. He joins me because that man has no fucking shame. To give Patty credit, she doesn’t say a word as Blade settles into the armchair on the other side of the bedside cupboard, Chase on the couch across from us.
It’s so innocuous, just a bag of liquid and not even the real drugs. This is just the precursor to the main event. It’s crazy to think that the drugs I’ll receive over the next three days may be the thing that helps save my life, that will keep me here. That will let me continue to experience whatever this is between my stepbrothers and me.
She hooks me up, using a Huber needle in my port, and I watch as Thorn stares at it with horrified fascination, trying and failing to hide his wince. I know from before the good thing about the ports is everything can go in via that, so no need to keep fucking jabbing me like a pincushion. Thorn holds my shaking hand the whole time, his thumb running over my knuckles in a soothing gesture that does help calm my racing pulse a little.
“All done, Luna. I’ll be back in about two to three hours to start the next phase. Can I get you anything?” Patty looks at me, and I shake my head, settling back against the mound of pillows on the bed.
“No thanks, I’m fine for now,” I reply, my voice steady as I prepare for what I know is coming later as soon as the chemo hits my system.
“Okay then. I’ll see you soon. Just press the button there if you need anything,” she instructs, pointing to the button besidethe bed before giving my other hand a reassuring squeeze and then leaving the room.
“That was fucking intense,” Thorn says, bringing my hand to his lips, and I huff a laugh.
“Yep.” I let out a trembling exhale.
“Did I ever tell you about the time I snorted a wasp?” Thorn asks out of the blue, and I whip my head to him, my eyes wide and mouth agape.
“You did what?” My tone is a mixture of incredulousness and laughter because what the actual fuck?
He chuckles ruefully, and my stomach loses some of its tension. “Don’t get your panties in a twist, gorgeous. I was only seven at the time and it was an accident.”
“You were always so accident-prone,” Blade grumbles, but I turn to see a small smile making his lips twitch. “I lost count of how many times we ended up in the emergency room because of the shit you did.”
“Not always my fault,” Thorn says, pointing a finger at his brother. “Anyway, I was eating a chocolate ice cream, and obviously had it all around my lips.”
“Obviously,” I reply, my face scrunching up as I adjust my position, trying to find a more comfortable one.
Thorn helps to adjust my pillows. “Well, along comes Mr. Waspface and wanted some of that chocolate goodness for himself.”
“Can’t blame him really, chocolate is life,” I add, and he nods like this isn’t the most ridiculous story.
“Exactly. So he lands on my lip and I’m stock-still, thinking that he’ll just fly away, but obviously I needed to breathe and couldn’t open my mouth because he was crawling around there, so…”
“Oh my god! That’s…I have no words.” I chuckle, mildly horrified as the images flash through my mind.
“His scream was legendary,” Blade interjects, his deep voice sending shivers across me. “And his nose was pissing blood as he rushed inside.”
“Mom was so calm,” Chase adds, and I look between them, seeing that the memory of their mom is like the soft, early summer breeze that still flows in from the window. “She made him blow his nose, then called for Percy to get the car, and we all drove to hospital, Thorn’s nose swollen to twice its size with a cloth full of ice pressed to it.”
“The doctor had to use tweezers to get the stinger out, which tickled like a bitch,” Thorn carries on the story, rubbing his nose like the thought made it itch. “They gave me some antihistamine and sent me on my way with a sticker and lollipop.”
“Wow, that is quite some story.” I laugh, resting my head back against the bed and closing my eyes. “Have any more?”
