36. The chapter where Christian has no filter
Rose
I watched Christian sleeping peacefully in that hospital bed feeling strange about his statements minutes ago. I had spent most of the day irritated with him for picking on me without really knowing his opinion.
With a small smile on my face I turned the TV back on, concentrating on Leatherface chasing yet another victim with his chainsaw. I curled up in my chair, covering my face during the bloodiest scenes when the doctor handling Christian's case arrived.
" Has he slept long? " she asked, flipping through his chart.
" About half an hour. Are the exams ready? " I squatted down in my chair.
" Your boyfriend has a kidney infection, it's not serious, but he has to take some care not to aggravate it," she explained.
" An infection? What kind of care? " I stammered, staring at Christian lying there.
" Yes, we discover early, so he will need to take antibiotics at the correct times, avoid alcoholic beverages and drink plenty of water " she explained " it's a very painful condition, and it can get quite serious if the infection worsens, so it's important that he follows all the guidelines.”
I nodded in understanding, thinking about how bad he must have felt at the party.
" The nurse will take his vital signs one more time." The doctor spoke again, jotting down a few things in her chart until her gaze fell on the wings that were on the armchair. “Were you guys celebrating Halloween?”
" Yes, we were at a party when he got sick. Our first Halloween will be remembered," I gave a half smile as the nurse tried to wake Christian up.
" How long have you been together?”
"We met at the beginning of the school year, he is minoring in chemistry and I am minoring in visual arts," I replied automatically.
" Wow, very different fields, but you make a great couple and have many parties to go to together," she tried to console me.
I forced a smile and went back to watching Christian who had woken up but looked a little bewildered while the nurse checked his blood pressure. It's okay Rose, there is no reason for you to correct a stranger about the fact that you are not really together, she doesn't need to know everything about your life.
The doctor gave him a simplified explanation of Christian's condition, and then left, telling him that she would arrange for his discharge and prescriptions.
" Hey " Christian lifted one of his hands a little with difficulty, giving me a lazy smile.
" How are you feeling? " I approached his bed, running the tip of my fingernail lightly along the back of his hand.
" Like my mind is disconnected from my body," he let out in a slow, slurred rhythm.
I had never taken morphine, but from the situation he was in I could imagine how strong it was.
" Can you sit up? You need to get dressed so I can take you home," I offered my hand for support, helping him to sit up with his legs out of bed.
" Sure," he babbled, closing his eyes for a long second.
" You're going to need some help, aren't you? " I watched him.
Christian opened his eyes, smiling at my question.
" If you're so eager to see me without my clothes on, I won't deny it.”
" Davis, the last thing on my mind right now is you without your clothes on.”
I laughed in response, and reached up before leaning over, reaching for the knot that tied the back of the hospital gown he was wearing, sliding it off his body, leaving him in just his boxer shorts. Watching every scratch I left on his body, I held back a small smile knowing that no matter how many girls he took to bed, they would always see my marks.
Maybe in the end he was a little right, I did like to mark territory!
Feeling Christian watching me, I stepped away, picking up his folded clothes from the armchair and helping him put them on, not resisting the urge to go around the scratch I had made on his neck earlier.
" I should have told your father exactly how I got that scratch earlier," he joked.
" It wouldn't be smart to tell that to a guy holding an axe," I scoffed, reaching back into the chair to grab his pants.
" It wasn't real," he reminded me.
" I guarantee you it would still do some good damage, can you stand up?”
I helped him up, bending down in front of him to help him put on his pants.
" When I saw you dressed like that and thought about ending the night with you on your knees in front of me, that's not what I had in mind," Christian sneered, making me laugh as I stood up, pulling up his pants, then zipping them up.
" My God, Davis. The morphine really took away your filter, didn't it? " I declared with a small smile as I looked into his eyes. “Let's go home, I hope you know that I'm not returning your jacket.”
We waited a few minutes until the doctor returned with all of Christian's tests and prescriptions, giving him his last recommendations before we left. It was after four in the morning when I finally parked in the garage of my mother's house. Christian was getting more and more sleepy, making me wonder how I would get him inside in that condition. He was too heavy for me to help him get to his room.
But before I could even try, the inner garage door opened, and my parents came to meet us.
" Finally you're here, how is he? " My mother asked.
" He's taken morphine and isn't thinking much, so it's best not to ask any questions," I warned, fearing that Christian would say something inappropriate to my parents.
Jack came closer, taking my place, supporting my friend to get him inside without much effort.
" Come on, kid, I heard that you decided to end your party with an MRI.
" Anywhere turns into a party in the company of your daughter, Mr. Campbell," Christian declared, causing me to take a deep breath.
My parents gave me an amused look, seeming to be amused by my embarrassment.
" Please, I'd rather not think about any kind of party you might have thrown with my daughter, so keep the details to yourself," Jack quipped.
" Rose, your friend has taken your room at your father's house, so you two can stay here," my mother warned, "We know you're more than friends, so you can stop pretending you're not and share your room. I don't want my room messed up in the morning.”
For a second I thought of denying it, but it would be useless, besides, the rest of the group was in the house next door, they didn't need to know we shared a bed, and it's not like anything would happen between us with Christian in this state.
" Thank you," I sighed.
My father put Christian to bed, I just took off his shoes and it didn't take long before he was in a deep sleep. I grabbed a Columbus Blue Jackets jersey that was my father's, putting it on after brushing my teeth and getting rid of my makeup, settling down on the bed next to Christian. It wasn't long before fatigue overwhelmed me and I let sleep knock me unconscious.
