Page 33 of Chasing Infinity

“Of course. Is there anything else I can get you?”

She shakes her head and leans over to set the cup on her nightstand before hunkering under the covers again. I spot her cell phone on the charger and reach for it, holding out for her to unlock it when I come to the passcode screen. I punch my phone number into a new contact, aware that I might regret doing this down the road.

“You have my number now in case you need anything. I’m going to head downstairs and get everything sorted with the diner, and then I’ll get you a few things from Monty’s. Call me if something comes up, or you need me back up here, okay?” I instruct her. She nods, grunting to let me know she got the message.

I head down to the diner, tossing one more look at her door before leaving. When I get down to the main floor, Jack has already opened things up, and a few customers linger in front of the counter, waiting for their breakfast and coffee.

Jack’s standing at the coffee machine, his back facing the customers. I sidle up next to him and mutter, “Addison’s sick. She asked me to talk to you and Grace about handling things down here today. I can help out where needed too. Just tell me what to do.”

Jack nods his head. “That’s no problem. I got it covered. Do you want to go back to the kitchen and see if they need anything?”

I do as he asks, and the cook informs me he’s all set. Grace arrives fifteen minutes later and sashays into the back office to drop off her personal items. I follow her in to let her know what’s going on.

Grace startles when she turns around and finds me standing in the doorway. She places a hand over her heart. “Jesus, Noah. Gotta give a girl some warning before you sneak upon them.”

“Sorry,” I say sheepishly. “I’m efficient at stealth mode.”

Grace rolls her eyes and asks why I’m bothering her, to which I laugh under my breath and inform her that her business partner is ill. Grace doesn’t miss a beat and steps into Addison’s shoes right away, calling in Jack and delegating jobs to him and also—to my surprise—me. I expected to be more of a busboy again today, picking up the slack where I could, but Grace put me on front counter duty for the morning so Jack could help her with more of the big tasks.

To my complete and utter amazement, the morning goes by smoothly. The regulars came in and got their breakfast, only a few commenting on my presence behind the counter. I stay there until the lunch rush is over, signaled when the steady stream of customers starts to slow. As soon as things slow down enough, Grace peeks her head out of the office and tells me to take a break. I take the opportunity to zip over to Monty’s Market to pick up some supplies for Addison: cold medicine, soup, tissues, and some popsicles just in case her throat hurts.

Once I have what I need, I come home and bound up the stairs to the apartment, unlocking the door and going straight to her room. I knock on the door once before going in and find her in precisely the same position I left her in. She’s curled up under her blankets in the fetal position, an arm outstretched off the edge of the bed with a tissue bunched up in her fingers.

“Did you bring me drugs?” Addison asks. Her nose is all stuffy, making her voice muffled.

“Just some cough syrup and soup. Hope that will suffice.”

“How’s everything going down there?” she questions me further, trying to sit up and reaching a hand out for the cold medicine. “Are Grace and Jack doing okay?”

“Everything’s perfect, Parks. All you need to worry about is getting better. You picked a good team. They’ve got everything under control.”

Parks rips open the packaging on the medicine and pours herself a dose, downing it quickly and then hacking a little at the taste. She looks down at the bottle and scowls at it. “Gross.”

“Is there anything else I can get you? I told Grace I’d be back as soon as I checked on you.” I sit down on the edge of her bed.

“Are they putting you to work?” Parks asks, settling back down into her pillows.

“Yeah, I hope that’s okay. They're all so worried about you. I think Jack is two seconds away from coming up here himself.”

She groans into her pillow. "Oh God, please don't let anyone up here. I look like a snot goblin."

I chuckle. "Don't worry, I'll make sure no one bothers you. You sure you're okay with me helping out downstairs?"

“Of course, thank you. It—" Addison takes a break to cough into her arm. “It means a lot to me.”

I ask Addison again if there’s anything else I can do for her before I go back downstairs. She declines my offer, her eyes already drooping. I restate her blanket for her before stepping out of her room, closing her door behind me. After ensuring everything in the apartment is in order, I return to the diner to help.

I spot a few stragglers from lunch still hanging out in the diner and finishing their meals, but overall the place is empty. I grab a washrag from the bucket and start wiping down the counter and tables. Just as I complete my task, the bell above the door rings, and an angry voice fills the room. I look up, an unamused expression on my face.

“What are you doing back there?” Eli snarls at me as soon as he walks in the door, Charlie tailing right after him.

I stare at him deadpan until he’s got smoke coming out his ears, and then I look back down at what I’m doing. “Parks is feeling under the weather today, so I told her I’d handle things here today.”

“She’s sick?” he asks, his tone taking on a more worrying approach. “Where is she? Is she upstairs?”

Eli makes a beeline for the door leading up to Addison’s apartment. Still, I’m faster than him, and I move swiftly, reaching my arm across and blocking the doorframe. “What do you think you’re doing?”

“I’m going up to check on her. Nowmove, McCoy, before I move you myself.”

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