Page 103 of Tide Over

As they all fall into another argument about why they should or shouldn’t do that, I slip out of the room and down the hall, towards my room.

I pull my phone out on the way and text Theo.

Home yet?

I’m just dropping onto my bed when he texts back.

Yeah, Grandpa just dropped me off.

I tap his name and hit call.

“Hey,” his voice sounds through the speaker, immediately putting a smile on my face.

“Hi,” I say. “How’s your arm today?”

“My arm feels ok, but my hand is sore,” he says. “At least this new splint I got the other day in therapy is lighter, so it’s not so big and awkward.”

“How are the exercises going?”

“They hurt,” he admits. “But the scars are the worst part right now. Now that the stitches are out, they’ve put silicone strips on them. My whole arm and hand feels tight and uncomfortable. Sounds like it’s going to be months of scar tissue management.”

“You’re doing all the right things,” I say in a reassuring tone, knowing how frustrated he’s feeling with the amount of therapyhe has to do. “With all the work you’re doing, you’ll have the best possible outcome.”

He sighs. “Yeah. I just wish ‘best possible outcome’ was returning to normal.”

“I know.” I release my own sigh. “But you’ll be able to get back to what you love. It’s just going to look a little different.”

“Yeah…” he murmurs.

“Where are you right now?” I ask.

“I just laid down in bed.”

I pull the phone away from my ear and hit video call.

Theo answers with a curious expression. “Hey.”

But there’s a small smile on his lips, and my eyes immediately drop to them.

“Hm,” I hum. “I can’t wait to kiss those lips…”

He lifts an eyebrow, and the corner of his mouth twitches. “And what else?”

I huff out a breath of laughter. “You know what else.”

He chuckles and I soak in the sound.

There’s been a new sense of ease for both of us this past week, since we each stepped out from under the weight that’s been pressing down on us. And while there are still hard steps we need to take, knowing that we can face them together and get through it… it feels good.

And I want to makehimfeel good tonight.

“Set your phone up on the bedside table,” I say.

His brow furrows. “Why?”

I just smile. “You know why.”

Theo cocks an eyebrow at me with a playful smirk. “What about your roommate?”

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