My Hometown

by SJD Peterson

  “Guess we better take care of these two little guys so we can go get you acquainted with your new pets,” Eric said, sounding way too fucking happy about it.

  “Whoopee,” Jimmy grumbled, and both Eric and Scott laughed.

  Bastards.

  Chapter Nineteen

  AFTER A twelve-hour rotation in urology, Jimmy’s feet were killing him, his back ached, and all he wanted to do was take a hot shower, Skype with Eric, and sleep for a couple of days. He finished his dictation and sat back in his chair, raised his arms up over his head, and stretched as he yawned.

  Rose, one of the RNs taking care of his patient tonight, popped her head in the dictation room. “Dr. Brink, we’re having a potluck tonight, and you’re more than welcome to join us.”

  “Thanks, Rose, but I think I’m too tired to walk farther than my bed,” Jimmy responded with a small smile.

  “I can make you a plate if you like,” she offered.

  Jimmy pushed out of his chair and swallowed down his groan when his knees and back protested. “Thanks, that’s very sweet of you, but I think I’ll pass.” Rose was the same age as his mom, and shortly after meeting Jimmy a few weeks back, she had learned his mom was in Florida and had taken it upon herself to fuss over his eating and sleeping habits. She gave him a disapproving look, and he quickly added, “I’ll be sure to have a big breakfast.” He grabbed his lab coat from the back of his chair and shrugged it on.

  “You be sure you do,” Rose said sternly as he passed by.

  “Good night, Rose. Enjoy your potluck.”

  Jimmy shuffled tiredly to his room, made quick work of showering, and slipped into clean scrubs. He flopped down on his bed still damp from his shower and fired up his laptop. Glancing at the clock, he briefly considered simply rolling over and going to sleep. He’d told Eric he’d Skype him a half hour ago. He knew Eric had to get up early and do his morning chores, but Jimmy hit the Call button just the same. He needed to see that smiling face he missed so much before he’d be able to sleep.

  Eric answered on the second ring, his slightly distorted but still handsome smiling face filling the computer screen. “Hey. I was just about to give up on you and turn in for the night.”

  “Sorry, had a rough day,” Jimmy said, snuggling further into the mattress. “But you’re probably getting tired of hearing about me and my lack of sleep. Hell, I’m starting to sound like a broken record even to my own ears. I’m sure you’re exhausted too.”

  In the weeks since Jimmy’s mom and dad had left, everyone had been working their asses off. The stress of work, the money that was flying out of his account at an alarming rate, and busting his balls when he was home had left him weary in his head, in his bones, and in his heart. Eric was the one thing that could still make him smile. The hardest part of it all was that beyond a few shared kisses, they hadn’t had any other physical contact, nor had either of them spoken again of what was or at least had been growing between them.

  “A couple more days and you’ll be home. If you’re really lucky, I’ll even give you a back massage.” Eric chuckled.

  “Really?” Jimmy asked, his voice stronger and the thought of Eric’s hands on him throwing off at least some of the exhausted haze.

  “Wow, you really are tired,” Eric commented. “You would have thought I offered you a blow job instead of a back rub.”

  Jimmy’s cock made a gallant effort to fill but only twitched and gave up, even though the thought of Eric sucking his dick was something he’d dreamed of both during his sleeping and waking hours. Damn, he really was exhausted.

  “You have no idea,” he finally said and yawned. “How’s things going there with Penny and the rest of your psychos?”

  “Penny is a complete and utter bitch, and I have the wounds to prove it.” Eric held up a hand in front of the computer screen, showing off small sores on his fingers. “I keep threatening that I’m going to let Hansel and Gretel eat her, but I swear she gives me this look that screams ‘I dare you.’ She is completely unaffected by my threats and gives no fucks.”

  “You should follow through. Maybe if those goats got their fill of chicken they wouldn’t keep eating your shirts and hats.”

  “I know, right?” Eric agreed and stood to show off the holes in the hem of his shirt. “Gretel distracted me while her man had a snack.”

  Eric continued to go on about the animals, then mentioned something about Josh winning MVP and the need for a new herding dog. Jimmy was trying his best to keep up, but he was fading fast. The brief rejuvenation from his shower came crashing down in the wake of the soft mattress beneath him and Eric’s familiar voice lulling him to sleep. Try as he might to focus and keep his eyes open, they kept fluttering closed and he could do little more than nod, although he had no idea what Eric was saying.

  He sighed. So tired. I’ll just close them for a minute.

  “Jimmy!”

  Jimmy jerked awake, blinking at the screen. Jesus, how long had he had his eyes closed? “I am listening.”

  “What did I just ask you?”

  “Umm… umm… shut up,” he finally settled on.

  “Thought so.” Eric chuckled. “Go to bed and I’ll talk to you later.”

  “I’m in bed,” he said softly, snuggling in again.

  “Then go to sleep.”

  “Yeah, I better. Sorry I was such a dud tonight. I can barely keep my eyes open.”

  “Yeah, I know. So we’ll talk tomorrow, yeah?”

  “Not sure if I’ll get a chance. Lecture all day and I’m on call tomorrow night, but I’ll try. I’ll be home around five on Thursday.”

  “Cool. Mom is serving Thanksgiving dinner at noon, so I’ll be more than ready for a little of Mama B’s sweet potatoes for dinner.”

  “Oh God, I’m so looking forward to Mom’s home cooking,” he groaned.

  Eric tilted his head and leaned in closer to the screen. “That all you’re looking forward to?”

  “I might be looking forward to seeing you. Maybe.”

  “I meant your dad. You haven’t seen him in weeks either, you dork.” He then winked and pulled back from the screen with a sly smile curling his lip. “I already knew you missed me. Good night, Jimmy. See you Thursday.”

  “Night.”

  The screen beeped and then went black. Jimmy set his computer aside, rolled over, and flipped off the light. Yeah I miss you, but you miss me too, Jimmy thought and then drifted off to sleep with a smile on his face.

  WHEN THE front door opened, Eric was greeted with the smiling face of Barbara Brink and a hug. “Eric, it’s so good to see you. Come in, come in.”

  “Thanks, Mama B, good to see you too.” He held out the covered plate. “Apple pie compliments of my ma.”

  “Aww, she’s such a sweetheart.” Barbara accepted the pie. “I’ll have to call her later to thank her. How are she and your dad doing?”

  Eric pulled off his boots, set them on the boot rack, and hung up his coat on a hook. “Driving me crazy as usual.”

  “That’s what parents do,” she teased. “Jimmy hasn’t made it home yet, but I expect him any time now. C’mon, I’ll get you a glass of tea, or would you prefer a beer?”

  “Tea is fine.” He followed Barbara into the kitchen. “Happy Thanksgiving,” he said to Jimmy’s dad, who was kicked back in his favorite chair as Eric passed.

  “Same to you.”

  The warm scents of roasted turkey, warm bread, and cinnamon greeted Eric when he entered the kitchen. “Wow, it smells amazing in here.” He scanned the area and frowned.

  “It’s in the warmer,” Barbara said, knowing exactly what Eric was looking for, and pulled two glasses from the cupboard. “Grab the tea from the fridge, will ya?”

  “Yes, ma’am.” Eric did as he was told and poured them each a glass, then returned the tea to the fridge before asking, “You need help with anything?”

  “Yeah, you can sit right there”—she nodded toward the kitchen table—“and keep me company while I
make my gravy.”

  Eric took his tea and sat in a chair facing her. He glanced at his watch. Five fifteen. “Did Jimmy say he was going to be late?”

  “I haven’t talked to him since this morning. He probably got tied up at the hospital. I’m sure he’ll be here soon.”

  “Yeah, I’m sure you’re right.” He glanced at his watch again. It wasn’t unusual for Jimmy to be late. There seemed to always be an emergency or another patient to see, but for some reason Eric couldn’t explain, he felt a sense of dread hanging in the air around him, causing his stomach to churn unpleasantly.

  Barbara turned up the heat on the stove and took a whisk to her gravy. She seemed unaware of the unease Eric felt and chatted happily. “I hear we’re not the only ones with new additions to the farm. Jimmy mentioned you’ve been acquiring quite a few pets.”

  “I don’t know if I’d call them pets, but yes, ma’am. It’s been really crazy with all the extra work I’ve taken on the last couple months.”

  “Still finding time to enjoy life, I hope.”

  “Trying, but unfortunately the lack of time has made it a bit of a challenge.”

  “Keeping busy is a good thing, I suppose, especially when you’re missing someone. Jimmy sure has been now that he’s single again.”

  “I don’t think he misses Oliver,” Eric assured her.

  “I wasn’t talking about him. It’s good you and Jimmy worked out your issues. He’s not the only one who missed having you around.”

  Eric shifted nervously in his seat, uncomfortable with the topic of conversation. He wasn’t sure how much he should reveal about his feelings for Jimmy or in what direction they were going as of late. He decided now wasn’t the time.

  He picked up his tea and brought it to his lips before saying, “I missed you all too. I’m glad Jimmy and I are buds again.”

  He then took a big drink when he heard her murmur “Mmm-hmm.” He knew that sound and it was way more telling than he wanted to admit.

  Barbara turned the heat down and covered the pot before picking up her glass of tea and joining Eric at the table. “I’m glad he has you to keep an eye on him while James and I are gone.”

  “Don’t know how well I’ve been doing that. He’s usually at the hospital, but Mom’s been making sure he gets a home-cooked meal when he is home.”

  “Another thing I’ll have to thank her for. I’m just glad things are getting back to normal. The way they should be.”

  Normal sure as hell wasn’t how Eric would refer to the current situation between him and Jimmy. He wasn’t even sure he wanted it to be normal, whatever the hell that meant. He knew they needed to talk because there was still something unsettled hanging between them, but Eric wasn’t sure he wanted to rock the boat. Things were going good. Plus, with how busy they’d both been, getting into heavy conversations wasn’t really what they were looking to do when they finally got a chance to be together. Or at least Eric wasn’t.

  “Barbara!”

  The tone of James’s voice had both Eric and Barbara up and out of their seats and rushing to the living room. Jimmy’s dad was sitting on the edge of his recliner, a panicked expression on his face as he pointed to the television.

  “Isn’t that Jimmy’s car?”

  Eric stared at the TV screen. A news reporter was talking about a fatal accident, and then the camera panned off the reporter toward the wreckage. The camera zoomed in on the silver Impala, the front end crushed, and Eric’s heart stopped and the air rushed out of his lungs. He knew the instant he spotted the rainbow air freshener hanging from the mirror and the Coopersville Memorial Hospital sticker on the windshield that it was Jimmy’s car.

  “Oh dear God,” Barbara gasped.

  Eric wanted to pull her into a hug, but he couldn’t move, he couldn’t breathe, couldn’t wrap his head around the headline across the bottom of the screen: Fatal Crash. Luckily James rushed over and wrapped his arms around his trembling wife and held her as she began to cry. Eric stared in horror at the scene, trying to get a grasp on what he was seeing. He refused to accept it. It couldn’t be Jimmy. There had to be a mistake.

  Warm tears streamed down Eric’s face, his heart thumping painfully as he stood there like a fucking idiot. “I’ve got to get to him,” Eric blurted out. His muscles finally released their tense hold, and he started for the front door.

  “Look! It’s Jimmy,” Barbara cried.

  Eric spun back around and looked toward the TV. Firefighters, cops, flashing lights, wreckage—“Where, I don’t see him?” Please don’t let her have seen him dead.

  “Rewind it, James,” Barbara demanded. “I saw him, I saw my Jimmy.”

  Eric stayed riveted, willing Jimmy to appear on the screen. James retrieved the remote and rewound the newscast.

  “There!” Barbara exclaimed excitedly.

  James paused it, and Eric’s legs nearly gave out, he had to lock his knees as relief so profound slammed into him. There on the screen, dressed in his blue scrubs was Jimmy, not lying dead, but talking to a paramedic. He looked disheveled, his scrubs stained with dirt and possibly blood, but he was alive.

  “A fatal crash has shut down the intersection of Highway 5 and Sheridan Road. Motorists are advised to seek an alternative route,” announced the reporter.

  The accident had occurred just ten minutes from home. Jimmy was only a short drive away and no fucking way was Eric waiting another second for him. Eric went to the door, stomped into his boots, and grabbed his coat.

  “Where are you going?” Barbara asked.

  “Keep dinner warm, Mama B. I’m going to go get Jimmy.”

  He didn’t wait for a response, just rushed out the door, slipping his coat on as he went to his truck. He pulled out of the drive, the tires spinning, sending gravel and dust flying behind him. At the end of the drive, he jerked the wheel to the left without taking his foot from the gas pedal, then pressed it to the floor once he straightened out the wheel.

  He spotted a car ahead of him; one accident today was enough, he thought, and he eased back on the accelerator but not without great effort. He just needed to get to Jimmy, see him, touch him, prove to himself that Jimmy was okay. Eric stayed at a safe speed—safe for him—although his fingers were cramping from the white-knuckle hold he had on the steering wheel. Each agonizing mile caused the tightening in his chest to get worse. He’d seen Jimmy, knew it wasn’t him that had been killed, yet the headline kept flashing in Eric’s mind’s eye: Fatal Crash. It could have been Jimmy; in the blink of an eye, he could have lost him. He’d been so busy, too scared to truly accept his feelings for Jimmy, worried about what others would think, the what-ifs, that he hadn’t simply enjoyed each precious moment he had with Jimmy.

  He could have died!

  The tears he thought he’d wiped away and gotten control over spilled from his eyes, part relief, part guilt, part so fucking happy Jimmy was still there and he could see him, touch him, and tell him how he felt. He had been given a second chance to do the right thing; he wouldn’t fucking waste it.

  At the edge of the roadblock, Eric slammed on the brakes and slid to the side of the road. He threw open the door and broke out into a dead run toward the accident, only one thought in his mind—getting to Jimmy.

  “Sir, you can’t cross the tape,” a trooper informed him and grabbed Eric’s arm, stopping him.

  “My best friend’s over there. I’ve got to get to him,” Eric protested and tried to break free, but the trooper caught both of Eric’s arms from behind and restrained him.

  “Sir, you have to stay behind the police tape.” He pulled on Eric, forcing him backward.

  “Dammit, you don’t understand.” Eric spotted Conrad, a local cop he and Jimmy had grown up with. “Conrad! Conrad, Jimmy’s in there. Tell this guy to let me go.”

  Whether it was the determined look on his face, the tears on his cheeks, or due to the fact that Conrad knew little would come between Eric and his best friend, Conrad changed direction and came ov
er to them.

  “It’s all right, Trooper Matthews, I’ve got this.” Conrad held up the yellow tape.

  Eric started to run past him, but Conrad stopped him. “Eric, you can’t go rushing over there. They are investigating an accident and you’ll fuck up the scene.”

  “I have to get to him,” Eric said imploringly. He had to.

  “He’s okay,” Conrad said sincerely.

  “I need to see him.” Conrad looked uneasy, glancing back and forth between Eric and the wreckage behind him, no doubt trying to decide if he should break protocol. “Conrad, you know me and nothing is going to keep me from him. You can take me to him or I’m going through you, but either way, I’m going.”

  Conrad must have realized it was futile, that he’d have to cuff Eric or shoot him to stop him. “Fine, but stay right next to me, understood?”

  Eric nodded his head vigorously. He’d agree to anything. “Thanks, Conrad,” he said sincerely.

  As Conrad led him past the wreckage, Eric scanned the area wildly. Each agonizing step caused the tension in him to ratchet up until his head began to throb painfully. Where the fuck was he and why were they walking so goddamn slow?

  The tension became so unbearable it needed an outlet and it burst forth from him in a shout. “Jimmy!”

  “Dude, cool it.”

  Eric ignored Conrad and screamed louder. “Jimmy! Where the hell are you?”

  “Eric?” Jimmy said, sounding confused as he stepped out from around an ambulance.

  Jimmy was dirty, disheveled, and had a white butterfly bandage over his right eye but otherwise appeared okay. In that second Eric had never seen the man looking so fucking good. Without regard for the integrity of the scene, Eric rushed to Jimmy and pulled him into a tight embrace.

  “What are you—?”

  Jimmy’s question was cut off when Eric smashed their mouths together, hand roaming along Jimmy’s back as he reconnected and reacquainted himself with the man who had stolen his heart. He dictated and demanded more and more from the kiss.

  “Don’t you ever scare me like that again,” Eric said fiercely, peppering Jimmy’s handsome face with kisses.