by Lynn Kelling
“Yeah. Once I get the forms from Brennan, I’ll call you back so you can help me fill them out. We do have the insurance thing covered, I think, and I’ll keep you posted if there’s any change. I’m sure Evan would be very happy to see you if you can be here.”
“Th-thank you for the call, Luka,” he said, sounding overwhelmed, with good reason. “Seems like Brennan is lucky to have you there for him right now. I’m grateful for it. Those damn kids. Gonna send me to an early grave with worry for ‘em. Have Brennan call me.”
“I will.”
“And let me know if there’s any change.”
“I will.”
Once the call was ended, Luka felt drained and thin, like there wasn’t much left he had to give. Thinking of Brennan, though, and what he was dealing with, gave Luka the strength he needed to call the next number.
He put the phone to his ear and squeezed his eyes shut, rubbing over them.
“Hello?”
“Yeah, is this Jimmy?”
“It is. Who is this?”
“It’s Luka Popovic. Brennan’s boyfriend. Brennan told me about your history with the family and all, so let me preface this by assuring you he’s in stable condition right now, but Evan’s been hurt. He was attacked outside a bar, and—”
Jimmy interrupted, cutting Luka off. “Where are you? What hospital? Mercy?”
“Yes, sir. Fourth floor. He’s not allowed visitors yet, he just came out of surgery a few hours ago, and—”
“I’ll be there in ten minutes,” Jimmy said abruptly. The line went dead.
“Jesus Christ,” Luka groaned, sinking down farther into his chair, leaning his head back against the wall. Wanting sleep and some sort of peace of mind, Luka knew it was still very far away.
On Alek’s phone, a new text popped up with Evan’s latest vitals printed out neatly for him, sent from Brennan.
Any change? he sent back.
The numbers looked good. Evan’s blood pressure was up closer to normal levels again, his heart rate steady and temperature only slightly raised.
He groaned. Might be dreaming, Brennan replied.
Alek pulled up the camera-phone shot Brennan had sent him only after much prompting and pleading, an image of Evan asleep in his hospital bed. Alek had looked at it a couple hundred times already, touching the tiny screen like Evan could feel him there, watching over him, too. It was a horrible sight. Evan’s nose was bandaged, his eyes and cheekbones bruised dark, swollen and discolored. His lips were also badly swollen and dry, particularly his lower lip which had six stitches in it from where his teeth punctured it. Wearing a hospital gown, Evan’s hands laid at his sides on the bed, a puffy wad of bandage raising the sheet slightly at his middle where the wound was located.
Send me another picture, Alek typed.
No. Brennan answered.
Seething, drowning in jealousy of Brennan and how close he was able to be to Evan, how he could hold his hand and wait by his side… it drove Alek insane.
The phone rang. When he answered, Alek’s tone was clipped and angry even though he saw it was only Luka calling. It was too easy to unload on his brother. He was an easy target because he knew Luka would always forgive Alek instantly, unasked. And Luka knew how upset Alek was, so he’d be expecting a sour mood. Even if Alek could pretend to be okay, it would have been a waste of effort with Luka anyway because Luka could feel Alek hurting—nothing as crude as words was required. But, no matter how riled Alek was, he couldn’t take it out on Brennan. Luka was a safer target, and possibly the only one.
“What?”
“Can you come up here? We need the keys to Evan’s car. Carter and Presley are gonna go and get it. Jimmy’s here, too.”
“Fine,” he snapped, ending the call.
The waiting room on Evan’s floor was quite full when Alek got there.
For whatever reason, it was usually when Alek was overextended or not really focused on what he was saying his twin connection with Luka became more apparent to everyone else. As soon as Alek was by Luka’s side and had managed a tight-lipped nod of welcome to everyone, the twins began responding to questions in tandem, finishing each other’s thoughts.
“They gave us Evan’s things,” Luka said.
“And I was going to take care of his car,” Alek added.
“But it’s not like there’s a rush to get it out of the lot.”
“I just didn’t want to forget about it. He loves that car.”
“So thank you for getting it.”
“You have the address to Evan and Bren’s?”
Carter raised an eyebrow, glancing at Presley. “Yeah. Luka hooked us up. How are you doin’, man? Hangin’ in there?”
Alek replied, “I just want to see him.”
“They haven’t allowed visitors yet,” Luka said.
“But we’re hoping that’ll change today,” Alek finished.
“The doctor said head injury patients can have a lot of swelling.”
“And can be combative, so since Evan suffered multiple blows to the head….”
“For safety reasons, they medically induced a coma.”
“Until the brain swelling comes down.”
“So Evan’s been given fentanyl for the pain and sedation.” .
“And norcuron, a paralytic agent. Bren texts me all of the names, to keep track of everything.” .
Luka dug in the bag of food and offered Alek a protein shake while Jimmy—sitting with paperwork laid out on his lap, attached to a clipboard—looked up at the twins with some amazement.
“Drink this. You look like shit,” Luka said to his brother under his breath. “Or sit down for a minute. Close your eyes.”
“I’m fine.”
Luka unscrewed the cap and physically put the beverage in Alek’s hand.
“Thank you,” Alek sighed, drinking it down.
“We’re gonna take off, but we’ll come back after,” Carter said.
“If you guys want anything specific for lunch or dinner, call us and we’ll pick it up,” Presley offered.
The pair left after brief, one-armed hugs for Luka and Alek, as well as muttered sentiments of support, encouragement and hope. Then it was only Alek, Luka and Jimmy.
Collecting himself, Alek stepped up to the thirty-something-year-old man who had been Evan’s support system for so long, and extended a hand to him.
“I’m Alek. You must be Jimmy. I’m really glad you could be here for Evan.”
His jaw set and expression stern, Jimmy nodded curtly and took Alek’s hand, pumping it twice, and squeezing hard.
“I must admit,” Jimmy said. “I did not get the best first impression of you, Alek, because of what I heard from Evan about your first couple of dates. But just the fact that you’re here and clearly very concerned about Evan’s well-being is slowly convincing me not to castrate you for having sex with him.”
“…Oh,” Alek managed, taken aback.
Sighing and running a hand over his face, Jimmy appeared to instantly regret what he’d said. “Look, I apologize for my anger. I know you’re dealing with a lot and I, uh, tend to be very frank when stressed. Evan has always confided in me. You could say I’ve been his self-appointed counselor for the past number of years. So yes, I know who you are, and some of what’s happened between you and Evan. He called me in tears some weeks ago with remorse over how quickly and how far things went with you, so I admit that has colored my perception of the whole thing. I feel it’s only fair to be honest about that. I’d like to remind you of his age, and his vulnerability given the many things he’s endured in his childhood and adolescence. Please attempt to show some responsibility in your, uh… handling… of him. I’m sorry. I just needed to say that upfront for my own peace of mind, even if it’s a bad time to bring it up.”
Flustered, upset, Jimmy stared in the direction of Evan’s room and appeared to lose his train of thought. Then he apologized again and continued.
“I realize there are other prioriti
es right now, other than my opinions about Evan’s sex life. With Charlie away, it typically falls on me to manage Evan’s care and I feel like I’m playing catch-up right now. Luka has kindly explained everything that has happened since last night and, I must say, I’m not surprised Evan did what he did, trying to stand up for that young man. That’s who he is; Evan does whatever seems right without thinking it through and consequently putting himself in harm’s way. He’s always been reckless like that. I’m just sorry it turned out the way it did for Evan. But it sounds to me like Evan may have saved that person’s life by sticking his neck out. Now, are there any new developments? The doctor hasn’t been in to update Luka since six a.m. but I hear you’ve been in regular communication with Brennan?”
“Yeah. I have,” Alek said, tightly, dealing with his own raging emotions but trying to be diplomatic. “No change. Evan’s blood pressure has improved gradually over the course of the morning and they’re just watching for any sign of infection or complication.”
“Of course,” Jimmy nodded.
Not too long after that, Alek decided the waiting room was once again too stifling to endure.
He excused himself to wander the halls again, thinking of his next course of action, of what all of this meant and what he’d have to do because of it.
Chapter 3
Shaken Up
Complete consciousness kept slipping from Evan’s grasp. He clawed his way to awareness, hearing beeps and muted voices from all around him. Sometimes he felt someone…
Brennan. It’s Brennan….
…holding his hand or touching his legs. It got his hopes up. He tried to hold on to that sensation, to let it keep him there, but then the pain came back and he let go, giving up. Tiredness and the drugs weighed him down, clouding everything out. He sank into the blackness of his mind, detaching from his battered body entirely.
It happened again and again until, finally, he had success. Perhaps that was because there were more voices.
Alek….
Or because Brennan was actually laying next to him, on Evan’s good side—the one that didn’t feel wrong, patched together and screaming.
Evan’s bed was tilted, positioned slightly upright so he wasn’t flat on his back, allowing him to bear the broken ribs more easily. But Brennan was there, curled up on his right, holding his hand and urging him to open his eyes. Evan heard his name called and did open his eyes a few times before he could actually make any sense out of what he was seeing.
“Come on. You can do it. Come on, Evan. Open your eyes. Keep ‘em open. Can you hear me? Evan?”
It sounded to Evan like his own voice, calling to him. It was disorienting, especially coming out of a prolonged, drug-fueled unconsciousness. Nothing seemed quite real. Staring straight ahead of him at a face he knew well, Alek’s face, Evan felt his left hand taken by someone else, someone who wasn’t Brennan. Jimmy was there, too, Evan realized, and standing a few feet away.
Why is Jimmy here? Is it happening again? Did I try to kill myself again? Why does everyone look so upset?
No. The bar.
I got jumped at the bar.
It wasn’t my fault. I didn’t do it.
…Did I?
The white hot, blistering sensory noise of excruciating pain zapped away all thought as Evan tried to move. It flared outward from his ribs and gut, up his spine to the top of his skull, out through every single bone, every nerve in his body.
He cried out sharply in a hoarse, worn voice. Tears sprang from his swollen eyes, coursing down his bruised face. Whining back in his throat, he battled through it, wanting to be asleep again.
“Hey, take it easy, baby. You had surgery and you’ve got more than a couple fractures, so don’t try to move right now. Do you know where you are?”
“A-Alek?”
His vision swimming, blurred with wetness, Evan blinked at the dark-haired, hazel-eyed, towering man standing at the foot of his bed, the one with the deeply concerned, piercing stare, drawn expression and bloodshot eyes.
“Right here.”
The beckoning words came from Evan’s left, his bad side and he tried to at least turn his head that way. It was very hard to see anything clearly and Evan didn’t know why. There was warmth radiating on his right side where Brennan was pressed against him in places. Reassured by Brennan’s closeness, Evan tightened his grasp within Brennan’s encircling hand. Blinking his eyes clear, Evan finally saw Alek, understanding at last it was Luka at the foot of his bed.
“Why is it so hard to see? Did I forget my glasses?”
“You don’t wear glasses anymore. Remember?” Brennan spoke the words softly by Evan’s ear. Evan didn’t entirely realize the words weren’t spoken from inside his own head.
“I don’t? Oh.”
“The tissue all around your eyes is pretty inflamed right now,” Alek told him, stooping down and sitting on a chair, which he moved more into Evan’s line of sight. “There are also bandages over your nose. That’s probably why it’s hard to see. You have a concussion, too. Do you remember what happened?”
He glanced around the room, pausing when he saw Jimmy again, by the door. Jimmy glanced between Evan and Brennan, at their joined hands and physical closeness, but it didn’t mean anything to Evan.
“They were gonna…. They were gonna hurt him. He was just looking for a hook-up, like I was, but they… they all went after him. Because he was gay. I couldn’t… I couldn’t let them do that. But I went outside, then…. Oh.”
He was quiet for a minute, as it all sank in. They gave him time.
“You said I had surgery? Did it go okay?”
“Yeah.” Alek smiled encouragingly, looking like he was trying his damnedest not to cry, which made Evan want to cry. “You did great. No complications. I guess you can feel your cracked ribs, huh?”
Evan nodded, carefully glancing down at himself, afraid to move his head too much, lest it make his headache worse. Brennan’s fingers brushed lightly up and down his right arm. It felt good. It distracted from the pain that sliced through Evan every time he breathed.
“Guess they did a number on my face, huh? Do I sound weird to you, too?”
“You have a few stitches on the inside of your lower lip,” Brennan told him. “It’s still healing and kind of puffy. They reset the bridge of your nose, and that’s probably swollen up.”
“Fantastic. So when can I get out of here?”
“Soon,” Alek promised. “But for now, just rest. We’ll take care of everything and anything we need to. The doctors are going to make sure you get better fast. Okay?”
“Yeah,” Evan sighed.
As Alek kissed the back of his hand, Evan’s eyes slipped shut. He was asleep again in seconds.
That night, Alek was permitted to stay with Evan. Looking somewhat pacified, he camped out in a chair by Evan’s bedside when the others left to try to get some rest, lulling Evan to sleep by gently brushing his fingertips over Evan’s arm. It was only because of how peaceful they looked together that Brennan was able to part with his brother.
Brennan was at Evan’s side when he had talked with their father briefly over the phone. Not much was affected by the conversation. It was same old, same old—promises to come home soon, unsurprising concern for Evan’s safety and health, all spoken over a crackling connection across long, long miles.
Brennan empathized with Evan’s subsequent frustration. Brennan already had plenty of experience with Charlie’s attempts to overcome distance and his noted absence from his children’s lives with insubstantial words. It was clear, as much as Evan, with his young body in tatters, craved his father’s reassuring presence, he was just as glad Charlie wasn’t there, adding to the tension and stress. That realization just made the ache of regret stronger, knowing how Evan never got to experience the comforting, loving presence of their mother.
Angry, sad, scared, all Brennan wanted to do was safeguard his beloved twin, and do whatever needed to be done to make him healthy and w
hole again.
Exhausted, finally leaving the hospital after days without real sleep, Brennan drove back home with Luka. The plan was to get to his house, shed all clothes, crawl into bed dragging Luka in with him, and curl up with his pillow for many hours.
He didn’t get that far, and fell asleep in the passenger seat of Luka’s truck before they’d even left the hospital’s parking garage. Brennan slept the whole way, and even stayed knocked out when Luka carried him into the house, to bed.
The world was bright and sunlit when Brennan did wake. Thankfully, no tears came that morning. Dry-eyed, Brennan stared at the shifting clouds through the window’s sheer curtain; thinking of his mother, of Evan, and of the future.
He was aware of Luka lying behind him. Gentle, skittering movements of fingers over Brennan’s body entranced him. They went along the side of his arm, just inside the cradle of his hips and down his thigh before dragging back up to do it all over again.
“You have to work today.”
“I do,” Luka agreed.
“I have to get back to the hospital. Maybe they’ll release Evan soon. I can always drive him back home myself, when they do release him, but do you think Alek can be there to help me?”
“Yeah, shouldn’t be a problem,” Luka assured him.
“Good,” Brennan exhaled, rolling onto his back. His chest rose and fell with quickened breath, and his eyes were half-closed with something other than sleepiness. Spreading his legs when Luka shifted to lie on top of him, Brennan almost smiled. “Can I ask a favor before you go?”
He raked his fingers back through Luka’s long, dark hair, brushing it back from his face, tucking it over Luka’s ears.
“You want me to drop you off?”
“Well, yeah, but….”
“But what?”
“But, I want you.” He swallowed a soft moan when Luka rocked in a slow drag against him. Brennan’s hips stuttered, rutting up into Luka, whose pelvis was pinning Brennan to the bed. Luka reached down and caressed Brennan’s hipbone, peeking out from under his low-slung briefs. “You were amazing, you know. Staying there at the hospital with me that whole time, making those calls for us, handling everything I couldn’t, and holding it all together when Alek and I were freaking out. I don’t know what I’d do without you.”