Touch And Go - Aiden Bates Page 0,41
his wrist as I began to strap it up. “Even the really messy mess?”
“Oh, yeah.” I gently turned his forearm for a better angle. “I’ve had my share of it, in my life and my brothers' too. I know how to climb out of the shit. My brothers and I are real experts at shit-climbing.”
“Ha!” I loved seeing him relaxed and happy, a glimpse of the ‘real’ Seb without the arrogant smirk or the annoyed pout. It made me want to share more, an unusual feeling for me. I spoke softly and spiraled the bandage up his arm. “I grew up in foster homes, maybe you got that already. My mom died when I was eight, which is an awful time to go into the system.”
Seb hummed and I met his gaze. “Orphan club.”
“Huh?”
He grimaced and shrugged. “My parents died when I was fourteen. Car accident. Both of them, just suddenly…gone.”
“Shit.” I sat back, surprised that we had this in common, and my heart aching for his loss. “I’m sorry.”
I expected him to give me a fake smile or a glib response, but I was touched when he held my gaze and nodded as he spoke softly. “I’m sorry for you, too. You get by though, right?”
“Yeah. You do what you can.” To keep the grief from pulling me deep into a flashback, I tried to focus on caring for his wrist but I’d messed up and had to redo a section. “You didn’t go into foster care?”
He grunted, and I caught a hint of disappointment in his voice. “Nah, my big brother was old enough to become my guardian.”
“Hm.” Ben. The scary older brother. I wondered if the bruises had anything to do with him.
The wobble in Seb’s voice told me I might be right, and my heart surged. I wanted to protect him. To build walls around him and keep him safe. “He’s never been my greatest fan but I’m having a really hard time with the idea that he’d want me dead.”
My fingers refused to tie off the bandage, and Seb glanced at me sheepishly.
“Too heavy?” He grimaced like he’d made a faux pas and I was quick to put a reassuring hand on his shoulder.
“No. Tell me more.” I held my breath and hoped he’d take the invitation. I wanted nothing more than to know everything that was going on with him, and how I could help.
He pinched the bridge of his nose and squeezed his eyes shut in frustration. “I don’t want to say it out loud because it sounds insane.”
“Hey, I’m the doctor here. I’ll be the judge of that.” I tried to sound light-hearted but my chest was heaving. Seb was in danger.
He laughed and then shot me a warm smile. Warm and beautiful. “You’re a really nice guy, huh?”
Every time, he made it sound like an insult almost. Something mired by the intention to show off my goodness which was never the case. “Is that such a bad thing?”
“What? No. Shit, no. It’s…nice.”
I bit back a smile, but I couldn’t help but beam at him. My fingers started to work again, and I tied off the bandage and tucked the ends in.
“Thanks. About being insane…well, after you bandaged me up”–he held up the wrist and admired the new wrapping with a satisfied nod–“the first time at the hospital, I went home and Ben asked me to fix his computer. I saw something I shouldn’t have, evidence of him stealing money from some big power players.”
“Ah. And he knows what you saw?” The pieces were starting to fit together, and I was glad I’d listened to my gut when Ben had been asking after Seb.
“Yeah, he was pissed. And then…” His eyes glazed, and he stared into middle space. I put a hand on his knee and he snapped back to look at me.
“The river?” I spoke quietly.
His bottom lip trembled, and he gave me a stoic shrug that made me want to take care of him even more. “I don’t know, I guess so. All I can remember is Ben coming at me, and then…you.”
I let out a long, strained breath. So he didn’t have an abusive boyfriend, but he might have a psychopathic brother. Great.
He picked at my sheets and mumbled quietly. “Pretty big mess, right?”
“Not the worst.” I squeezed his knee again and cleared my throat, desperate for him to really listen to me. “But I’m worried. Don’t go to meet him alone.”
He glanced at my hand, and his eyes