Page 48 of This Pack of Ours

“Gotta work," she said stubbornly. “It’s moving day. Just get me some painkillers.”

“That’s not a good idea,” I replied.

“I’ll cover." Kit sat down and handed her the contacts. “I’ve done it with you plenty of times.”

“Perfect.” I smiled. “And you’ll stay here with one of us and recover.”

“I’m fine," she said again, trying to get up, but twitched back down with another hiss. Kit folded his arms and pursed his lips.

She ended up staying.

JUNIPER

“We have to make sure this is fair,” Jhin said.

I’d put my contacts in, and then I’d gotten Kit to help me to the couch. Someone had returned it to its proper place in the living room.

Kit was—very gently—helping me brush my hair, using his nimble fingers to work through the knots nearest the lump.

The medicine had kicked in, and I was feeling a lot better, very much regretting that I’d agreed to stay home. The pack was in the kitchen, currently deciding who would stay and keep an eye on me.

Jhin was holding out a bowl, with four little slips of paper in it. They each took one and unfolded it. I was trying to ignore them. Apparently, staying with me all day was so unappealing they had to decide via chance.

Ez peered at his slip, then grinned.

“Winner!” he said, waving his hand in the air, and I was surprised to see it was the one with my name on it. He caught my eye and came over, sitting on the love seat and putting up his feet.

“Trust me, this is the best case scenario. You don’t want to be stuck with any of those boring grandpas all day.”

“Grandpas?” Jhin interjected. “We’re only four years older than you.”

“You’re all ancient, dudes,” Ez said, pulling out his phone and raising an eyebrow at me. “The other day, Adrian asked me to explain a level three meme. I tried, but it was painful.”

I glanced at Adrian, who had gone red.

“They all used to be cats!” he said furiously.

“Andhe called it a Mee-mee,” Ez continued with a grin, not looking up from his screen. Kit giggled, and Adrian sank down in his chair, focusing heavily on eating his cereal. Maybe I should tell him Ialsohad no idea what Ez was talking about.

When Kit was done with my hair, I pulled him over and opened my laptop. I needed to tell him what he’d need to know for moving day. Jhin was phoning Tyler, the McKracken pack lead, checking in about the apartment.

“Are you listening, Kit?” I asked, as he frowned down at my laptop.

“Yeah." He looked at me and put a smile back on. I wasn’t so sure. I was worried about how his eyes kept glazing over.

“Right. So, it should be pretty straightforward if you follow the checklists. You know Daisy’s shifts ended yesterday, and Luna’s on duty today; she tends to skip steps, so you need to keep an eye on her. And Kit, it’s not in the checklists, but you need to have the sedation room set upfirsttoday because we have an omega on standby, and I’ve promised her we can start at two o’clock at the latest.”

“Mhmm,” Kit said, looking a little panicked.

“I’m assuming there’s a separate medication list for the sedation room?” Jhin asked. He’d finished his call and had been peering over Kit’s shoulder, but I didn’t know he’d been listening.

“Yes,” I said, looking at him suspiciously.

“Oh, yeah, I remember now.” Kit clicked around and I suppressed a groan. He’dforgottenabout the medication lists? I loved him dearly, but this was not his strong suit.

“And you said you rent a trailer, and have a van?” Jhin piped up. “We can lend you our van too, and help you set things up.”

I felt myself sag in relief. The timeline would have been tight with moving, cleaning, and being ready by two o’clock if I’d been in charge, and with me out for the day, I’d been worried. Extra moving vehicles and hands would go a long way.

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