Page 67 of New Growth
He pressed the call button and stepped back, giving me space as I slowly sat up.
A few moments later, a nurse came in.
Meticulously, she checked my vitals and ran a few tests, all while under Elliot’s concerned gaze. He had questions about everything the nurse was doing and studied her movements thoroughly. The man was making me nervous.
“You’ll be fine,” she assured me as she wrote on the clipboard. I heard El’s deep sigh of relief next to me before she continued, “But next time, you might not be. You’re lucky your friend was there to help you.”
El leaned into me with a grin, his breath warm against my ear as he whispered, “I guess this makes us friends.”
I scoffed at his playfulness, grateful he relaxed a bit. “Oh, we’re definitely BFFs after this.”
The nurse slid a tray of food in front of me. “Eat something so you can take your meds, then you can go home.”
I glanced down at the tray of the most unappetizing food known to man. Plain steamed fish, a baked potato with no toppings or seasonings, a banana, a small cup of apple juice, and a rice pudding. “Yuck.”
El chuckled. “Come on, it’s not that bad. The rice pudding looks good at least.”
I grabbed the banana and peeled it as I studied him. I didn’t know how long I had been here or how long he had waited, but he looked drained.
Who knew if he had time to eat today with everything that had happened?
And with his diabetes, the poor thing’s blood sugar must be so low.
“You want it?” I offered.
“No, you need it for energy.”
I wrinkled my nose. “I’d drink a cup of straight-up almond milk before I eat that. Just take it.”
With a smirk, he took the pudding, tore it open, and shoved a spoonful into his mouth with a moan. He was actually enjoying it.
My eyes widened at the sight. “You just showed every bit of your age.”
?
After swallowing two painkillers the size of beetles and picking up enough EpiPens to take down a horse, I finally made it home. El walked me to the door with his head down and hands in his pockets.
I think I traumatized him.
“Today was… eventful,” he said finally when we reached my porch. “We’re never stepping foot in that place again.”
I huffed a laugh and tried to lighten the mood. “Agreed. But the highlight of my day was you scarfing down that pudding cup. Peak middle-aged behavior.”
El scoffed. “I refuse to be judged by someone who can be taken down by something as simple as a peanut.”
Wow. My mouth fell open at his insult. “Peanuts aren’t even tree nuts, stupid.”
He looked shocked by my boldness, and we held each other’s eyes awkwardly. But ultimately, we both ended up laughing. The laughter scratched my damaged throat, and I started coughing dryly.
El’s amusement faded. “You okay?”
I nodded, clearing my throat. “Yeah, just need a good night’s sleep, and I’ll be right as rain.”
He looked like he wasn’t satisfied with my answer, but he eventually decided to let it go. “Okay. ”
“Hey.” I gave him a playful poke in the chest. “Thanks again. For everything. Seriously, I could never repay you.”
El smiled at the gesture. “You don’t have to, Ellie. But. I do have a bit of a weird request.”
