to happen, her face fell, disheartened and disappointed.
“I met you at the Regina Miller show,” she said. “Outside, remember? You didn’t have your lighter.”
I tipped my head as recollection settled in, remembering a tight tank top and little denim shorts. “That’s right. You’re the wiseass who thinks she’s a fake.”
She sighed. “I don’t think she’s a fake, I know she is. But whatever, yeah, that’s me. I’m glad you remember.”
Snorting, I nodded. “Sure, whatever you say. Anyway, it was nice seein’ you again. Have a good night.” Then, I stepped into the elevator and let the doors close, all while noticing she hadn’t walked away.
***
After smoking and getting a breath of air, I headed back upstairs to find Pops asleep. At his side was a nurse, dressed in scrubs and a sloppy, blonde bun. When she heard me enter the room, she turned to stare at me with now familiar, blue eyes.
“We just keep bumping into each other,” she laughed.
“You’re his nurse?”
She rolled her eyes and turned back to her computer screen. “No, I just thought I’d creep on him for no reason.”
Stifling a groan, I dropped back in my chair. “Do they know what’s goin’ on with him yet?”
“Um …” She glanced over her shoulder, biting her lip. “Well, nothing’s been written in his file yet, they’re still running some tests, but I could give you a guess, if you’d like.”
“Yeah, sure,” I nodded, “tell me what you think.”
Clearing her throat, she stepped away from the computer and toward me. “He didn’t have another heart attack. What’s going on … or, what I think is going on is, your father is battling heart disease.”
“Oh,” I said, nodding. “So, he’s gonna take some pills and be okay.”
The nurse chewed at her lip for a moment before shaking her head. “Well, it’s not always that simple, and with Ischemic heart disease, the prognosis isn’t great. You should be prepared for that. But we can be positive and hope for the—”
“Well, you just said that they’re still running tests, right?” I interrupted, instantly annoyed and defensive.
She swallowed, clutching at her hands. “Right, but—”
“Then, I guess we’ll wait for the results to come back before we start assumin’ anything.”
Nodding, she offered an obviously fake smile. “Absolutely. And I’m Andrea, by the way. I have your dad tonight.”
I nodded once, not bothering to ask how she knew he was my father. “Vinnie.”
For a moment, Andrea stood, frozen in front of me, before walking back to her computer. She’s weird, I thought. Weird and awkward, but that sarcastic wit of hers told me she was okay. With a nice ass, I also noted, glancing at her back, and smirked.
***
Pops hadn’t slept much, and I slept even less, little thanks to Andrea and her seemingly constant vital checks. So, come morning, he and I were both running on fumes and desperate to be back home and in our beds.
Without warning, the door of the room flew open and in came my brother and sister, worried and frantic.
“I told you guys, you didn’t have to come,” I mumbled, seeing as Pops had only just drifted off into something kind of like sleep. “I know shit looked kinda bad last night, but we’re good. At least for now.”
Jenna scowled angrily. “You’re kidding, right? I couldn’t even get back to sleep after you called.”
“I tried but there wasn’t any point,” Zach muttered in reply, glancing over to the bed. Then, he asked, “How’s he doin’?”
I shrugged. “I dunno. I mean, he had that little episode late last night but that was it. After a while, he was feeling better.”
Jen swiped a rogue tear from her cheek. “I can’t believe we’re back here again.”
“Me neither.”
Zach tightened his arms around his middle and shook his head. “He should’ve taken better care of himself. We knew he’d be back here again if he didn’t get his—”
“Will you stop?” Jenna snapped quietly, smacking the back of her hand against his chest. “We could all talk about what he should’ve been doing or what he should’ve not been doing, but the fact of the matter is that he’s—”
She was interrupted by the door opening. I thought it would be Andrea again, she was just about due to check Pops’s vitals again, but it wasn’t her. A doctor, short with dark hair and dark skin, entered the room wielding a clipboard. She saw the three of us, huddled together at the foot of our father’s bed, and when she noticed he was finally asleep, she