Page 14 of Magically Generated
Nora walked to the door.Not sure what she’d find, she opened it slowly.Cautiously.
Everett was lying on the floor.
Chapter 7
“Areyouokay?”Noraasked, then felt ridiculous.
Everett obviously wasn’t okay.He was lying face-down in the hallway, one arm cushioning his head, the rest of his limbs splayed.He wore his usual winter jacket and hat, and something in her twisted.Her mind flashed back to three years ago, when mother had collapsed.They’d spent their last Christmas together in the hospital.Since Brianna had had a baby and a toddler at home, much of the care had fallen to Nora.
His eyelids fluttered.“Um…ugh…”
At least he was conscious.
“Don’t worry.”She tried to sound calm, tried not to show the panic she still felt.“I’m calling an ambulance.You—”
“No.Don’t need…ambulance.”His voice was weak.
“Are you drunk?”
“No.”He struggled to sit.He was sweaty and pale.
“Do you know what happened?”
He nodded, though he didn’t provide any details.“Need…food.”
He started to get up, but his legs didn’t seem strong enough.
“Hand me your keys,” she said.
When he passed them over, she opened the door and dragged him inside.It was no small feat, as he weighed a lot more than she did.
Finally, she had him settled against the door.She went to the fridge and found a container with two slices of pizza.She didn’t bother to warm them up; she took the container right to him.
“This okay?”she asked, sitting down on the floor next to him.
In response, he picked up a piece and took a bite.
“Mis…calculated,” he said.“Wanted to make it…extra nice…for you.”
Nora had no idea what he was talking about.Or maybe he had no idea who she was.
She decided not to clarify what he meant.
She still didn’t know what was wrong, and she wouldn’t ask.He didn’t owe her any medical information, but whatever this was, it seemed like it had happened before, and after half a slice of pizza, he did look better.She hoped it was nothing serious, yet she kept thinking of the worst-case scenarios.
“Water?”she asked.
When he nodded, she stood up again.She quickly located a water bottle next to the advent calendar in the kitchen, and she brought it back to him.
“Thank…you.”
She had the sudden urge to run her hand through his hair, to comfort him with her touch.But they didn’t have that sort of relationship, and so she kept her hands to herself.
She also wanted to tell him that she’d appreciated his company lately—it was helping her get through a difficult season, full of bad memories.But she didn’t say that, either.
“You can go,” he said.“Okay now.”
“No, not yet.A few more minutes.”
