9. Chapter 9
I blew my nose into some toilet paper since I was out of tissues.
Ugh, I hated being sick. It took me away from work and much-needed money.
I couldn’t keep up with Dad’s spending, and we were running out of food.
Whenever that happened, Dad would make promises to stop gambling, and he would go grocery shopping.
But it never lasted. Because of it, I didn’t have any cold medicine, so I suffered, unable to breathe through my nose.
I guess I should be grateful that Dad still had a job to make money at all.
The virus had hit me hard the day before yesterday, and I’d been suffering ever since .
At least I had the house to myself with Dad working and Annie at school. I stayed in my room to avoid getting anyone sick. Annie would just have to make dinner for her and Dad tonight.
There was a sudden pounding on the front door, but I ignored it as I scrolled on my phone, with nothing else to do with a head that felt like it was stuffed with cotton instead of a brain.
Then the doorbell rang and rang.
Ugh! God, I did not want to get out of bed.
When the knocking and ringing didn’t stop, I got out of bed in a snotty huff and headed downstairs. When I opened it, I found a raging Easton, pacing with a clenched jaw and fists.
“Where were you?” he demanded. “I’ve been expecting to see you at work, and you haven’t been there.”
He missed me so much, he was angry about it. So stinking cute! “I’m sorry. I guess I should’ve texted you, but I’ve been really sick.”
His body completely unwound, as if he’d deflated all his muscles. “Oh.” His pale brown eyes scanned me up and down, then nodded, coming to some sort of conclusion.
“You could’ve called or texted, too,” I said.
“I needed to see for myself where you were and what you were doing.”
I narrowed watering eyes at him and smirked. “ Jealous ?” I teased, before I sneezed into the crook of my elbow.
“Yes.”
“How’d you find me, anyway?”
“I looked you up. How else? ”
I chuckled before my eyes watered and my nose tingled again. Then a loud and wet sneeze exploded out of me… again ! “Oh, right,” I sniffed. “Ugh, I hate sneezing. It’s the worst.”
I pulled out a wad of used toilet paper from the pocket of my pajama bottoms and blew my nose, which was getting raw.
“Come in, if you want, but I worry about you getting sick.”
“I don’t get sick.”
I chuckled. “Everyone gets sick, East.”
“It’s rare. I haven’t had a virus in three years.”
“Well, if you ever do, I’ll be there to take care of you.”
“You don’t want to be anywhere near me when I’m sick. I’m not… pleasant.”
I snorted a watery laugh as Easton pushed past me, and I shut the door behind him. He turned to face me and cupped my face with his smooth hands as he scanned me again.
“Sorry about the house,” I explained. “It’s a bit… dirty. I haven’t been able to pick up.”
He looked around before landing back on my face and dropping his hands.
“Back to bed,” he ordered, removing his coat and hanging it in the tiny coat closet.
“Ugh, good. I’m a little woozy. I haven’t eaten in a while, either. Dad has… spent a lot of money lately, so the cupboards are bare, as they say.”
“Noted.”
I dragged my contagious corpse up the stairs and fell face-first into my bed before rolling onto my back. “Being sick sucks, but I’m glad you’re here. I missed you. ”
He sat on the edge of my bed, eyeing me, before he pulled out his phone and began searching and typing. Once he finished, he set his phone down on the nightstand and turned to face me.
“I have tissues, cold medicine, vitamins, and soup from one of my favorite restaurants coming. It will be delivered shortly.”
I sat up against my scratched headboard as my lip trembled and my eyes watered, feeling the emotions spill out of me.
“Why are you crying?”
I heaved a shaky sigh. “Because I don’t feel well, and you’re so nice, taking care of me. God…”
“I need you better, and fast.”
I huffed a wet laugh. “You and me both.”
He sat there for a moment before he said, “No one has ever called me nice before.”
“They’re idiots, then. You’re damn special, East,” I said, yawning.
“Do you need me to hold you?”
“Please…”
He scooted next to me, leaning against the headboard, and wrapped his arm around me as I rested my head on his shoulder. His other hand rested on his thigh as he tapped out a rhythm I couldn’t discern. Easton was so sweet and thoughtful.
I sighed happily against him. “I wish I could smell you. You always smell so good.”
“When your stuff gets here, I’m going to leave and get you groceries. I can’t have you hungry.”
“That’s so nice, but you don’t have to.”
“I do have to. You need to maintain your health at all times. Your father needs to get his shit together. He’s harming you, and I won’t stand for it.”
I smiled sleepily. “He’s harming himself more. I know he loves Annie and me. He really does care, but addictions are tricky. I’ve had to research gambling addictions to understand him. At the end of the day, only he can stop if he really wants to.”
“I can make him,” he growled in a voice that sent shivers down my body. I had no doubt Easton could be persuasive, but it still wouldn’t change my father.
“He’ll learn eventually.”
“Only after you’re hurt by him enough to ruin your relationship.
Negligence can be as bad as abuse. Or they shut their eyes to the abuse because they can’t be bothered to care.
Your father needs to be dealt with because if I find you like this again with no food, I’m going to hurt something or someone. ”
His body was hard and tense against me as he tapped faster on his leg.
I rested my hand on his chest, feeling his rapidly beating heart on my palm.
One thing I’ve noticed about Easton was that he was calm, cool, and collected most of the time, but he had moments of anger that came with this over-protective vibe.
It would’ve been scary had I not known how he felt about me.
He was honest about everything, even with his anger. Easton was… pure.
“Is that what happened to you?”
“Yes. My father knew my mother was abusing me for years. He never stopped her. Maybe he didn’t know the details, but he knew enough to intervene, and he never did. But what did he care? ”
I sat up, blew my nose, and climbed onto his lap. He looked at me curiously, but didn’t stop me. “What the hell? She abused you?”
“Yes, and if she didn’t get her way, or I tried to tell anyone, she would beat me. She was a monster, and I’m glad she’s… dead. My father was murdered and I’m glad of that, too.”
I rested my hands on his chest as my eyes watered again. I couldn’t even imagine the pain he’d suffered. My poor Easton. “Oh, god, East… I’m so sorry. You told me you suffered, but I didn’t know how by much. It’s a wonder you turned out so amazingly. So beautiful. So perfect.”
He gave me a curt nod. “I strive to be my best.”
“It shows.”
“If your father doesn’t change, I will make him see the light.”
My smile turned crooked. “He loves us. I know he does. Let me handle him, okay?”
“Fine. I will for now, but I will not tolerate you being neglected.”
“I guess it’s a good thing I have you, then.”
“I’ll take care of you. And you’ll take care of my needs.”
“Definitely. God, I wish I could kiss you right now.”
Before he could say anything, the doorbell rang. “That’s your medicine and food. Stay put and I’ll bring it up to you.”
My face bloomed with heat from his dedication to and care of me. After years of taking care of my sister and my dad, trying to help make ends meet while pursuing an education to better myself, I had to admit that being cared for felt really good.
“Okay. Thanks, East.”
He nodded and left the room .
I climbed under my covers and waited, filled with such a profound sense of love for him. Being in love was new for me. I wanted to tell him, and while he would like me to be honest and straightforward, I still felt it was too soon to say anything, and I didn’t want him running for the hills.
Easton returned shortly after with an old tray he must have found in the kitchen. We used to use it for Mom when she was going through chemotherapy. It was covered with a large bowl of steaming soup, a glass of water, some pills, a box of tissues, and a fresh bread roll.
My damn eyes leaked again. I tended to get more emotional when I was sick.
“Thank you so much, Superman.”
He set the tray over my lap and raised a brow. “Superman?”
“I… yeah. That just slipped, but I wanted to give you a pet name, and since you were my literal superhero the day we met… Is that stupid?”
“You want to give me a pet name? But I’m not a pet.”
I laughed and blew my nose again with the tissues, which were so much softer than the toilet paper. “I know, silly. Don’t your dads have pet names for each other?”
He thought about it for a moment and nodded. “Yes, Sid calls Dalton, ‘ Boy Scout .’ Dalton used to work for the FBI.”
“I love that. So much better than mine.”
He lifted my chin with a finger to look at him. “You can call me ‘ Superman .’ Pet names mean you like me, right?”
I nodded. “More than like.” It was a hint of my growing feelings without saying the words .
He nodded, scooped out a spoonful of soup, and brought it to my lips. I blew on it and slurped it up, eating the chicken and vegetables. I bet it was delicious, too, but I couldn’t taste it.
Easton made me eat all my food, force-feeding me, until my gut felt like it was going to explode. Then he made me take some cold medicine, and I drank it down with a full glass of water.
“I feel better already, but I’m sleepy now.”
He removed the tray and set it aside. “Sleep now. Get your rest. The sooner you feel better, the sooner I can have you.”
“Can you stay with me?”
“I can’t. I’ve already missed too much work, and I have an assignment coming up.”
“Oh, okay.”
He leaned forward and kissed my forehead. “Is that an appropriate response?”
I giggled because he was so damn cute. Others may have found him awkward, but I found him totally endearing. “It’s one of the best kinds of kisses.”
He said nothing and stood. “I need to go.”
“Bye. And thank you for taking care of me.”
“You’re welcome.”
When Easton left, I curled into a ball, the meds kicking in, and passed right out.
It was dark out when I woke up to the smells of something Italian cooking. Thank god the meds worked, and I could smell again .
I climbed out of bed, hit the bathroom, and headed downstairs to find Dad and Annie in the kitchen eating spaghetti with meatballs.
I yawned and rubbed my eyes. “Hey.”
Dad beamed at me and stood to make me a plate. “Hey. Feeling better, Champ?”
“Yeah, a little.”
“Thank you for going grocery shopping and cleaning the kitchen while sick. You’re an amazing son, Tommy.”
Annie rolled her eyes and dug into her pasta. She trusted Dad less than I did.
“It wasn’t me.”
Dad furrowed his brow and sat down, sliding a plate my way. “Oh?”
“Easton probably did it, but I told him not to. Easton does what Easton wants. He’s a take-charge kind of guy.”
“Who’s Easton?”
“Tommy’s new boyfriend ,” Annie teased, elbowing me.
“I didn’t know you were dating anyone,” Dad said.
“Well, we’re pretty new still, but it’s not like a secret or anything.”
If I didn’t love Easton before, I did then. Even when I told him he didn’t have to do those nice things for me, he did them anyway. He really cared about me.
“Tell me about him.”
“Well, he’s very handsome, and he has a really good job. He works for this travel insurance company that contracts for the government.”
“How old is he? He’s not… much older, is he? ”
I shook my head and sprinkled Parmesan cheese over my sauce. “No, he’s super smart, and he got successful pretty fast. He’s my age.”
Dad relaxed and shoved half a meatball into his mouth.
“Easton’s so sweet and took care of me today while I was sick. He brought me soup and meds… heck, he even bought me tissues. He’s so thoughtful.”
“Aww, my big bro’s in love.”
I blushed and smiled as I twirled pasta on my fork, saying nothing.
“So, he’s rich then?” Dad asked.
My body tensed, instantly knowing why he was asking. I regretted telling him what Easton did for a living. “I wouldn’t say that,” I hedged.
“You should have him over for dinner one night so we can meet him.”
“Uhm, I’ll ask, but we’re still new, Dad.”
I guess it made sense for Easton to meet my family, but I wasn’t ready to share him yet.