Page 77 of Tiny Fractures

“This looks terrible, Ran,” he says as I lower my shirt and turn toward him. “What the fuck happened?”

“She was mad because I forgot to clean out the fridge.” I shrug.

“You need to get this checked out, dude. Does it feel like she cracked a rib?”

I shake my head with a frown. “You’re joking, right? I can’t walk into a doctor’s office like this; what am I supposed to say?”

“The fucking truth!” Shane says, as if his answer is the obvious choice.

I shake my head. “No. I just need some ice.” I sit down in the creaky chair, feeling stiff and exhausted. The adrenaline coursing through my body just minutes ago is finally wearing off, and all I want to do is sleep off the pain. “And a shot. Ice and a shot. Can you do that for me?” I ask, lifting my eyes toward my best friend.

I can tell he’s not happy with my refusal to rat on my mother, but he leaves nonetheless, only to return a minute later with a bag of ice and a double shot of tequila.

I take the shot, then gingerly hold the ice against the bruise. “Thanks.” My voice is raspy, and I close my eyes as my raw skin becomes numb from the ice.

“Why don’t you just hang out in here a bit? Come out when you’re ready. There are some painkillers in the top right drawer of the desk,” Shane says.

I don’t tell him this enough, but he’s an amazing friend.

“Okay. I’ll be out in a few.” I lean back, careful not to put any more pressure on the sore.

“Take your time. Seriously, take some pain meds, it’ll help.” Shane looks at me a second longer—his eyes a mixture of pity, worry, and anger—before he leaves, closing the door behind him.

I sit, letting the ice numb me for a few more minutes before I retrieve the painkillers from the desk drawer and swallow a couple of pills dry. Finally, I get up and leave the office, joining Shane and Jack behind the bar, where I get a lay of the land. It’s already crowded in here; it’ll be a full house tonight.

“Are you gonna be alright?” Shane checks with me, his voice low, eyes worried. “I can take over your section if you need the night off.”

“I’ll be okay.” I adjust my ballcap. “And besides, I’d rather be here than home.”

Shane makes a face like he gets the point, and I start my shift.

The painkillers take the edge off, but I have to stop every thirty minutes or so and put more ice on my back. It’s almost half past eight and I’m standing by the bar, waiting for Jack to mix a drink order for me, when Shane flags me down and motions for me to follow him into the office.

“You still doing okay?” he asks, searching my eyes.

“Yeah, I’m alright.” The pain has subsided somewhat, and work is keeping me sufficiently distracted from thinking about what a fucking hell my life at home is.

“Okay,” he says, skepticism in his voice. “I want you to take your break. Grab some food, I’ll cover your section.”

We head back out and I move to the bar, pulling a stool around so I can sit for a minute to gulp down a glass of water.

“Hey, did Steve tell you about our plans for July Fourth?” Shane asks me, leaning onto the bar counter as he waits for Jack to mix some drinks.

“I thought we were going to hang out at your place?” I say.

“Yeah, well, turns out my mom is planning her own party, and I really don’t want to stick around for that,” Shane says with a grunt. “And I sure as fuck don’t want to be in the city. So Tori thought it might be fun to go camping in the Hamptons. Right on the beach. We could head out Friday and come back on Monday. What do you think?” Shane tells me, and I can tell he likes the idea.

“Uh, yeah, that sounds good.” I love the idea of getting away for a few days, especially if Cat can come along. A long weekend with her and my best friends, away from home? Fuck, sign me up!

“Sweet. Should be a good weekend,” Shane chuckles and gets back to work.

I scarf down a bowl of Irish stew and spend another twenty minutes chatting with Jack before I, too, get back to work until Shane finally locks the doors at just before 2:30.

“Hey, Shay,” I call to him on our way to our cars.

“What’s up?”

“Do you mind if I come work with you every night until Cat gets back into town? I need the distraction.”

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