Chapter 6 #2
When Leo wakes up, the first thing he notices is that he has a headache.
He didn’t even drink that much. He never has more than two drinks in a night while he’s on tour.
But the sweetness of the wine is still stinging in his temples.
The second thing he notices is that he can’t feel his feet.
That certainly can’t be the wine. He lifts his head and realizes that he’s still on the couch, Tess curled up against his legs, Ollie on hers.
They’re a bundle of limbs resembling the aftermath of a childhood slumber party.
Blankets tangled around them, dirty wine glasses on the coffee table.
It eases his terror, if only slightly, as he prepares himself for the visit to the hospital that awaits.
Ollie has to leave for Kazakhstan tonight, Tess for Austria tomorrow morning, but they both insist on accompanying him and his mom to the hospital.
Leo first sees Dr. Mennies by his dad’s bed, and she turns and smiles at him. “Guess who’s remembering more today,” she says, clutching her clipboard in delight.
“You brought the whole crew!” Johnny says, seeing Ollie and Tess. He’s sitting up and looking much more alert today, his eyes more focused, his mouth no longer drooping.
Leo and his mom melt into a puddle of tears.
The relief he feels is so powerful, it’s like a priest has just exorcised a demonic entity from his body.
He keeps that feeling to himself, though, because, honestly, Tess would probably bring up how much she loves The Exorcist and he doesn’t exactly want to think about anyone speaking tongues—or Catholicism, for that matter—in this joyful moment.
“The difference a day makes,” Dr. Mennies says brightly. “He’s doing much better.”
“I am,” Johnny says confidently.
“He still has a long road ahead with physical and occupational therapy.”
“I do,” Johnny says less confidently.
“But I’ll explain more later and just let you all have a moment.”
As the doctor leaves, Leo and Sheryl lean down and wrap Johnny in a big hug, and suddenly Ollie and Tess are piled on top of them, too.
“We should also give you all a moment,” Tess says after a couple more seconds of hugging. She looks at Ollie and nods toward the doorway.
“Thank God you’re okay,” Sheryl says, her hands on the sides of Johnny’s face. “Don’t ever scare me like that again.” She sounds like she’s scolding a child who wandered off at the mall. She gives him a long kiss on his forehead.
Over the next half hour, the three of them together, talking like they do around the kitchen island, Leo feels complete again. And he knows he doesn’t want to let this go. He can’t let this go. Not yet.
“I’m taking the rest of the season off,” Leo says without hesitation. “I’m staying here with you both and helping out while you recover.”
“Whoa, Leo, come on,” Johnny says, sounding sure he can convince Leo otherwise. But he’s wrong. “You don’t need to do that. There’s still three months to go.”
“I don’t care,” Leo says. “I’m not jetting off and leaving you and Mom to figure this all out. We almost lost you.”
“You didn’t—”
“Yes, we did. Maybe you weren’t going to die, but we almost lost you. We almost lost the real you. You’ve come with me around the world for the last fifteen years. I can stay with you and mom in Delray for the next fifteen weeks.”
Sheryl is teary again, but smiling ever so slightly.
Johnny, on the other hand, looks at a loss.
But Leo isn’t giving up any ground on this.
Anything his dad could say about the ranking points Leo will lose by missing all the fall tournaments doesn’t hold any weight for him, not after the last twenty-four hours of uncertainty.
“You’re sure about this?” Johnny asks. “This will be the longest break you’ve ever taken. You really don’t need to do this.”
“I’m positive, Dad. Brian already pulled me out of Kazakhstan, told them it was a family thing. I’ll talk to him about how to announce my hiatus for the rest of the season. I want to do this. I want to be with you and Mom right now. I need to.”
Johnny sighs, and they stare at each other for a few seconds, a silent standoff between a dad with a stubborn streak and the son he passed it down to. “Okay.”
“Okay,” Leo says, feeling clearer and more in control than he has in a long time.
“Okay,” Sheryl says, her shoulders less hunched than they’ve been in hours.
“Damn, I really wanted to finish out this season with you,” Johnny says, shaking his head in disappointment. “I’m sorry.”
“Dad, it’s fine, this is so not your fault.”
“I know, but—”
“Dad.”
Johnny nods. “Thank you, Leo. Really. Hopefully, I’ll be back out there with you sooner than we think, sooner than the doctor thinks,” Johnny says, covering that last part with a hand next to his mouth.
Then he turns a bit more serious. “Because, Leo, I’m gonna be honest, I don’t know how many more seasons on tour I’ve got left in me.
I hate to say that, but I can’t lie to you. ”
The words land like an anchor in Leo’s stomach. But it’s hard not to understand where his dad’s coming from, seeing him like this, in a hospital bed. So, Leo just nods, trying to focus on the good: His dad is still here.