Page 56 of Psync
Haruka snorted. “With his face.”
Eli’s eyes went to Haruka’s face. His beautiful face that now sported a split lip. Eli lifted his bandaged hand to it. “Your mouth.” His eyes stung.
Haruka’s eyes widened slightly. “It doesn’t hurt. I’m fine.”
Eli pulled away from the nurse who was busy cleaning the wound on his head. “Fix him!”
“We’ll get to him next, sweetie.”
“No, fix him now.” Why couldn’t he get his eyes to focus properly?
“You’ll have to let him go for us to do that.” Amusement laced her voice.
Haruka’s hand tightened on Eli’s, and Eli squeezed right back. He wasn’t ready to let go yet, but . . . Haruka’s face.
:I’m staying. So don’t ask me to go.:
“Okay, but as soon as I’m done, you have to fix him.” Eli yawned, and it made his head throb hard enough to break through the happy haze of Haruka’s touch. Yawning equaled bad.
“We’ll take care of him while you’re getting your X-rays.”
Eli grumpily conceded.
When they wheeled Eli away for X-rays, the anxiety, stress, and pain all rushed back the moment Haruka released his hand, but he forced himself not to complain because Haruka needed medical care too.
It took forever for them to finish, and they didn’t even have the decency to let him sleep through it. All he was left with were his muddy thoughts and his injuries to keep him company.
As they wheeled him back down the hall, he vaguely registered words like sleep-deprived and malnourished and spared a braincell or two to be glad Haruka wasn’t around. Otherwise, Eli was going to end up with food in his mouth every time he dared to open it.
“Thank you, Doctor. I’ll make sure he sleeps and eats.”
Haruka was there.
Eli didn’t even get a chance to spin up his anxiety engines before a large hand cupped his face and peace stole over him. He was out in seconds, but not before he heard, :It’s okay. I’ve got you.:
Chapter Twenty-Two
Eli
Ribbons of blue flowed softly around Eli as he drifted. Every time he began to wake, a ribbon would wind around him and gently pull him back down.
Eventually, a particularly pressing need gave Eli the energy to fight the ribbons until he was finally able to open his eyes a teeny, tiny bit.
It had been a terrible idea. Everything was blurry and violently bright. Maybe he could hold out a little longer before actually getting up? He’d never been so content.
Eli stretched lazily and snuggled into his bed. His extra lumpy, magical bed that he wasn’t ever planning on leaving. Every inch of his body was singing.
Wait, was he dead? Death couldn’t be that bad if it felt like this. He ran a hand over his bed, enjoying the silky-smooth, warm texture. The bed rumbled agreeably.
Eli rubbed a cheek against the bed and buried his face in it, breathing in its intoxicating smell. He’d died and now he was in heaven. Who knew heaven was real?
“Stop thinking about dying,” his bed said.
Eli’s eyes came fully open, and he took in his surroundings.
The bed he was lying on was a person, and the soft, silky sheets were actually warm, golden skin that seem to go for miles.
Eli’s head jerked up.
