Page 11 of Past Tents

“Oh. That.”

“Yeah. Where else does it hurt?” Gently, I ran the pads of my fingers over her hip bones and watched as she winced and pointed.

“Just this side. I think I fell on one of the starting blocks.”

Those things are hard metal with awkward pieces that wouldn’t make for a soft landing. “Ouch. Okay, so could be a deep bone bruise. That’s why you were limping.”

“Plus this knee hurts.”

“Yeah. Not surprised.”

She bit the part of her bottom lip that wasn’t bleeding and looked concerned. Then she nodded and slipped off the table. “You know what? I can deal with all of this when I get home. Really. I have supplies and I can clean everything off in the shower. You’ve done more than enough.” In three seconds she’d scooted past me and was halfway out the door.

“Hey.”

She stopped moving but didn’t turn. “Yeah?”

“Let me run the concussion protocols before you get into a car and drive.”

Her shoulders slumped, and she shook her head before turning around. Stubborn or not, she knew I was right.

“Fine. But I’m pretty certain I don’t have a concussion.”

“Uh-huh. Well, ‘pretty certain’ isn’t one of the boxes you’re allowed to check. You either do or you don’t. So get your ass back on the table, Alexandra.”

She pressed her lips together and sulked back to the cot but didn’t sit. A test of wills. I moved closer, taking all of her in now.

I hated seeing her hurt, bleeding and disheveled. Gently, I lifted her onto the cot. Her eyes went to where my hands wrapped around her hips, which looked small beneath my large palms.

Legs parted and dangling off the side of the cot, she looked dazed. Our bodies were nearly flush against each other as I moved my hands to her head, checking for lumps. I heard her take a sharp inhale as the sleeve of my shirt brushed against her skin.

“Did I hurt you?” The last thing I wanted was to make it worse.

“N-no.” She choked out the word, then swallowed hard.

“Tell me if I do.” My eyes bored into hers, searching for signs of concussion, but her gaze followed mine steadily as I moved. I felt a small measure of relief.

“You could have really hurt yourself. Promise me you won’t try anything like that again.” I couldn’t keep the anger from my voice, and seeing her hurt made my blood boil.

She let out an exaggerated exhale. “Yes, Sir Snarlypants.”

“Thank you.” I meant it sincerely, and I caught a hint of a smile as she nodded. As her lips pulled to the side, it was like the sun moving from behind a cloud, lighting up her pretty heart-shaped face.

“Now let’s rinse this track dirt off your arms.” She nodded and didn’t push back as I ran through the various tests and concluded she likely had a mild concussion. Not serious enough to warrant a trip to the hospital but enough to force her to take it easy for the next twenty-four hours. I wasn’t sure she was capable of doing that.

“You know the danger is if you get hit a second time. That’s where you’re at a real risk of brain damage,” I reminded her.

She snickered. “You gunning for my job as fill-in nurse? I won’t go quietly, you know.”

“Hardly.”

“You just happen to know about concussion protocols?”

“I’m a track coach, remember?”

“Exactly,” she shot back. “I could see if it was soccer or football, where concussions are more common, but how many two-hundred-meter-dash runners end up with concussions?”

I bit down hard on my bottom lip to tame my laugh into submission, but I couldn’t stifle it as I tipped my head and waited for her to see my point.

---