Page 70 of Up In Flames
“Doctor Dorsey shouldn’t shower with his patients, but you’re in luck. You’re his favorite patient so he’s willing to make an exception.”
“I’m his only patient.”
Will took my hand and pulled me to my feet. Even when I gave him most of my weight, he remained unmoved. There wasn’t anything about him that I didn’t love, but in that moment, what I loved the most was how safe I felt. He was willing to look after me and protect me, even protect my comfort and my dignity as we shuffled our way to the bathroom.
Once inside, Will started the shower, and I took advantage of having made it this far to take a piss and avoid looking at my reflection in the mirror.
He helped me out of my clothes, and once we were in the shower, he looped my arms around his neck. “Just hang on to me. I’ll get us cleaned up and then we can curl up in bed and eat soup.”
“Not bed. Please.”
“Okay, then we’ll sit in the living room and eat.”
Will took my weight like it was nothing, even as he grabbed the loofah and worked it up into a soapy lather before scrubbing all the bits of skin he could reach with me clinging to him like a spider monkey.
I stepped away, taking my own weight again, but I didn’t reach for the loofah. I let Will continue his mission to look after me.
“I could get used to this,” I said as he started to wash between my legs. It was more clinical and less recreational than I’d have liked, but it felt nice to be taken care of.
“I’d be happy to do this for you anytime. You don’t even need to get a migraine first.”
For the first time since I woke up, I managed to get a look at Will. His expression was still pinched into a worried frown, and he looked exhausted.
“I’m okay, Will. I promise. I haven’t had one in months, and I’d hoped they’d gone away, but the stress of being in that elevator was too much. I’m better now. Good as new. Well,maybe not new. But… thank you for coming to look after me.” I’d slept better after Will arrived. At first I thought I’d dreamed him up like my subconscious had wanted him with me so badly that it was willing to fuck with me and make me think he’d shown up.
“We need to get you a set of keys, though. Just in case it happens again. I thought you were a hallucination at first.”
“I’m real.” Will paused. “Tip your head back.”
Strong fingers sank into my hair, working shampoo into all the strands and massaging my skull. “I’d like to give you keys to my place too. Then next time you get one of these, you can sleep it off at my place.”
“What makes your place superior?”
“Well, I’m on the ground floor, so no elevators.”
“I’ll move in tomorrow.” I laughed, closing my eyes not only to keep the soap out, but to fully enjoy the experience of being pampered.
“My place also has better food, and I wouldn’t have to order groceries so I could make you chicken soup.”
“I already said I’d move in.”
Will stopped moving. “Oren, I need you to look at me for a second.”
He pulled his hands out of my hair. I opened my eyes and looked at him. Something was wrong. Or not wrong, but different.
“Will…”
“Oren, I want that more than anything. I want a life with you. One where I can look at you the way I want in public, hold your hand, kiss you. Fucking hug you, for shit sake.”
“I don’t need any of that. I?—”
He put his hand over my mouth. A smile slowly appeared on his face.
“Maybe I do. Maybe I need that. Maybe I want that with you.” He took a deep breath, but he didn’t move his hand from mymouth. “I told Briggs. About us. About us and I told him about me, and in all the scenarios I ran in my head when I imagined telling people, I never thought about them having my back.” Will moved his hand from my mouth and cradled the side of my face instead.
“Briggs knows? You came out to him? I’m so proud of you. I know how scared you were.”
“I’m still scared, but it’s getting better now that everyone knows. Almost everyone.”
