Page 31 of Just Breathe

Aiden

“Wow Nathan, that was sooo good.” Jane leaned back on a lawn chair in our courtyard, taking a sip of beer. Nathan invited Jane for taco Tuesday after she complained on Sunday there was no good Mexican food here.

“Honestly, yours was tricky, but I think I made it work.” He looked smug with himself, like he doubted he could pull it off.

Callum rolled his eyes, and I laughed.

“Fuck you guys.” Nathan attempted to glare at us, but it held no actual heat.

I looked over at Jane. She was smiling at us, looking better than she had last week. “You can cook for me anytime, Nathan.” She smiled at him and he soaked it up.

“Well, you can come over anytime.” He smiled at her, still a little shy, which was unusual for him.

“Ever think of becoming a chef?” she asked, taking another swig of her beer.

I felt the tension, even though I knew Jane hadn’t. “Uh… not really. I just like to do it for us.” He chugged his beer. “Anyone want another one?” He got up, not really waiting for an answer.

“How was your shift last night?” Callum asked Jane covering for Nathan.

“Not bad. It was slow, a lot slower than the last week I’ve been there. I organized and helped with an order of supplies.” She stared off into the fire.

“How long have you been working in the ER?” I asked.

“On and off for about five years. I left because it was overwhelming, but then I end up missing it, so I came back.” She looked at me with her sad eyes. “I haven’t done ER since Henry and the baby died. It’s been hard going back to the place where we all went, and I was the only one who survived.”

I glanced at Callum, and he was staring at her with his jaw clenched. I suspected he was getting feelings for her because he never has shown this much interest with any woman. He was always closed off and made sure he kept his distance. We all did this to a certain extent.

“Fuck, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to get so serious.” She ran her hand through her hair and took a deep breath.

“There is no need to say sorry.” I shrugged. “You have every right to become serious whenever you want. It’s how you grieve, and it’s the process.”

“I wish there was a how to grieve handbook. It would make it so much easier to handle. I guess.” She chugged the rest of her beer, still looking lost. “I….”

“Alright, I think it’s a Mario Kart kind of night,” Nathan interrupted Jane and probably for the better, she was looking uncomfortable. Callum groaned because he knew Nathan always won the game.

“Mario Kart?” Jane looked confused. “You guys play that?”

Nathan’s enthusiasm faltered a bit. “Uh yeah, who doesn’t?” I knew he was probably a little disappointed she reacted that way. I think he was hoping for a gaming buddy since she said she used to play a lot of games.

“I guess I could give it a try.” She shrugged and stood up.

“Yeah? Cool, let’s do it, guys.” Nathan went back inside to set up and Jane followed.

Callum got up with a scowl on his face. “Cheer up dude.” I smacked him on the back and chuckled.

“He always wins. I don’t know why we have to play.” We walked through the door that led into our living room. Callum hated to lose. They were so competitive that sometimes it ended in a pissed off Callum stomping to his room.

“Look on the bright side. You might win, since Jane is here to distract Nathan.” I walked into the living room to sit on the sectional closest to the TV.

“I heard that!” Jane yelled from the kitchen.

Callum smirked at Jane’s reply. “I guess we will find out.” He sat on the floor. Nathan was busy getting all the controllers ready when Jane walked in with a bucket of beer and the guac and chips.

We all stared the bucket like it was the best thing to come into the living room. “Sorry I should have asked if this bucket was ok to use but I figure it would help, so we weren’t constantly getting up.”

“Well, shit, that’s a great idea.” Nathan looked at Jane like she was a genius.

“I can’t believe we’ve never thought of that.” Callum smiled at Jane. It threw me off at how natural his smiled looked. Most of the time, he looked like he was constipated when he smiled.

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