Jason
Belmont races by as the car weaves along side streets and main roads. That yucky, gray feeling I used to get when I looked at these streets isn’t here anymore. All I feel is gratitude for still being alive to see this place.
I look at the back of Doug's head as we drive home from the hospital. He's visited a lot more than I expected. He doesn't say much, but he's been present.
Linda sits in the passenger seat, fiddling with the radio.
Gabe's hand rests on my leg, and I look at him. His soft brown eyes make all of the nerves in my belly disappear. I lean in and kiss him.
"Everything okay?" he asks.
"Yeah," I reply.
The car turns onto the park's gravel road and comes to a stop in front of our trailer. Gabe's out first, rushing to the trunk to get the walker. He opens the door and sets it up before helping me out of the backseat.
Once I'm stable, I attempt to walk to the front door, but I can't. The gravel road makes it nearly impossible to move this damn walker.
Gabe tries to help, the two of us struggling.
"Here," Doug says while rushing over. "Hold onto Gabe's shoulder." Doug moves the walker, asking Linda to take it inside, then approaches. "I'll carry you."
Before I can even realize what's happening, Doug is closing in, encouraging me to relax. Linda hurries to open the door, and Doug carries me inside. But instead of setting me down on the floor once we're in, he carefully places me on the couch.
"How you feeling? Hurt? Need pain meds?" He doesn't make direct eye contact with me while he asks the questions. Instead, he rushes about the trailer, picking up loose items on the floor to ensure the walker has a clear path.
"I'm good. Thanks."
He stops right before me and asks, "You sure?"
Our eyes meet, and Doug's face shifts. I feel him studying me, staring at the swelling and bruising.
"I'm sure," I say.
He shakes his head, swallowing and nodding with a plastered-on stoic face before taking a seat at the kitchen table. Linda sits across from him, and Gabe joins me on the couch.
"How's it feel to be back?" Gabe asks.
I think about the question. "Surreal," I say.
"Same," Gabe responds.
I glance at Gabe to see him smiling at me, and I can't hold back. I pull him closer and kiss him.
Doing it so freely in front of Doug doesn't feel nearly as weird as I thought it would.
I guess a near-death experience makes you stop giving a shit about certain things.
The sound of a motorcycle outside sends my heart racing, and Gabe runs to the front door.
He sighs, then says, "It's Torren and Felix."
My sigh of relief is palpable. I noticed in the hospital that I tense up when I hear a motorcycle. I don't remember scenes from the accident; I remember certain things I sensed: sounds, colors, textures. Those things have stuck with me.
And sometimes trigger me, too.
Gabe, who has spoken freely with everyone since I came to, greets Felix and Torren before inviting them inside.
Waking up to Gabe speaking so freely was a light in what would have otherwise been the darkest moment of my life. Whatever happened while I was out shook him free from his self-imposed silence. It feels like that’s behind him now.
Felix walks in carrying two big bags. He holds them up and says, "Food from Maggie’s! You're all set for at least a week."
"Fuck yeah," I reply. "Donuts, too?"
Felix smirks. "Of course."
I mock-raise my hands in victory. "I call that a win."
Felix laughs while placing the boxes in the fridge, and Torren approaches. "How was the drive home?" he asks.
"Not bad."
"Pain okay?"
"For now," I say.
"We've got the pain meds," Gabe adds.
"And a lot of TLC," Linda hollers.
Torren chuckles, then looks at me with an unreadable expression. "We hear you're available for hire."
"News travels fast," I reply sarcastically.
"Oh, those HellCats boys are a freaking sewing circle," Felix says, waving his hand dismissively.
"I'm also the leader's brother," Torren adds. "So, I usually get the scoop before most."
I look at Gabe, who's watching me with sad eyes. So, I hold his hand and smile. "Yup. I'm a free man."
The smile that appears on Gabe's face could stop traffic. That smile alone makes being excused from the HellCats worth it.
"Well..." Felix says. "We have a business proposition for you."
"Oh yeah?" I ask.
Felix leans against the wood paneling. "I'm using the money my folks left me to buy a couple of buildings in the Patch. Too many people are being evicted, and I want to create affordable housing. Would you and Gabe manage our first building?" Felix asks.
“Really?” I ask.
Felix and Torren nod, and I look at Gabe and see not the slightest bit of surprise on his face. "You knew about this, didn't you?"
Gabe shrugs. "They might have mentioned it when they visited you in the hospital.”
"You were asleep at the time," Felix says. "We thought it would be better to ask when you were in better condition."
My eyes pan across the room, looking at all of the people in this trailer who are here to make sure I’m okay...
"I don't know what to say."
"Say yes," Felix says, bouncing on the balls of his feet.
I shrug, then rub the back of my neck. "I don't really know how to fix things."
"I'll help," Doug says with zero hesitation. "I can teach you."
"Yeah?"
He nods.
We share another look.
My body might be in pain, but I don't think I've ever felt better in my life. "Okay," I whisper.
"Yay," Felix cheers. "Then it's settled. You'll move in when we do some renovating, and the building will be both yours to manage."
Move in.
Our own. Gabe and I will have our own place.
A home.
Something that’s just ours.
Kind of like a grown-up version of the fort.