53: I Get By

Thankfully Inho didn’t have a bike shift that morning, but he did have a restaurant shift scheduled for the afternoon. He only allowed himself a short wallow in self-pity before calling Nathan to tell him the situation.

“That’s terrible,” Nathan replied emphatically when Inho had finished recounting the details of his accident and injuries, “Let me know if you need anything. And don’t worry, your job will be here when you recover.”

If Inho weren’t already laying perfectly flat in bed, he would have sagged with relief. “Thanks, Nathan. I really appreciate that.”

“Of course. We should check if you qualify for employment insurance, too; I’ll look into it and get back to you. Anyway, rest up, and let me know how it goes.”

Inho hung up and held the glimmer of hope Nathan had given him close. He shouldn’t be so surprised by it, Nathan had proven himself repeatedly to be an exceptional employer and a generally good human being. But, the conversation still felt like a life vest to a drowning man. Maybe his whole life wasn’t imploding after all…He decided to combat the swirling despair he’d been trapped in since yesterday.

Inho had recently seen an article on social media that said gratitude would change your brain and make you happier, so he started a mental list of things that were good. Normally, he’d write it on his phone, but it was a hassle right now with the broken screen. He made a goal to find five things that day.

Number one: dad lending me money for the hospital. Number two: Nathan is letting me keep my job.

He’d already talked to Jasmine who was going to stop by at lunch, and he’d texted his bike courier company. Things were mostly handled now, so he could just sleep.

He fell into a deep dreamless rest until noon when he had to haul himself to the door to let Jasmine in. His ribs had stiffened up while he slept and the area radiated pain at every step, while his stomach grumbled at having been ignored for so long. Jasmine was ready for it though, she’d brought him sushi takeout, a heap of freezer meals, and a few of Jellybean’s gummy bears –“These ones are for people pain!” she claimed.

“Ugh, I’m never doing that again,” Inho said with a huff of laughter that quickly turned into a grimace, “oh my god. Don’t say anything funny, it hurts to laugh.”

“Mmmm I’ll try, but it’s not my strong suit,” Jasmine said as she force-fed him an enormous slice of dynamite roll.

After she left, Inho added Jasmine to his mental list of things he was grateful for: Number 3: having a friend like Jasmine. Then he went back to sleep until evening, when Stephen woke him up with gentle pets. He’d given him the spare key for the purpose but still startled awake at the touch.

“How are you doing?” Stephen asked in a soothing voice, “Did you eat? You didn’t text, and I was worried about you all day.”

“Yeah, sorry,” Inho answered groggily wiping the sleep out of his eyes, “I did. I mostly slept though. How about you? Did you get through work okay?”

“Mhmm, it was all meetings today, and I’m a little drained. But, I napped on my office couch at lunch, so I’m not too bad,” He kept petting Inho’s shoulders and chest as he spoke, “I brought some Vietnamese pho for dinner. It might be tough to eat in bed, can you make it to the table?”

Inho could, and Stephen set them up with little plastic soup spoons and chopsticks, squeezing Inho’s lime into the broth for him. He was surprisingly tender as a caretaker and Inho felt warm fuzziness filling him at the attention. It was nice having him here; this was the sort of night that he’d hoped for with Jamie. Getting take-out then maybe watching a movie, snuggling on the couch together all cozy while it rained outside.

“You still have blood in your hair,” Stephen observed as he cleared away Inho’s empty bowl.

Inho was comfy and full of soup, “It’s fine isn’t it?” he grumbled. He didn’t feel like moving again.

Stephen stood in front of him, hands on his hips, looking for all the world like a parent before an obstinant child, “Nope, let’s get you in a bath. I’ll wash your hair, come on,” and with that, he guided Inho to the bathroom and parked him on the side of the bath while it filled.

Inho felt a little shy at first to strip down alone, but he had to admit, once he was sitting in the warm bubbly water, that this was in fact, the absolute best. Stephen bent over him with shirtsleeves rolled to his elbows and massaged his scalp, careful not to wet his stitches.

Number 4: hot baths.

“I talked to my dad about the money for the hospital. He said he can give it to me right away.”

“Okay, if that’s what you’d like,” Stephen answered, his calm voice echoing in the small tiled room.

“Thank you for covering it before...I didn’t say that yet. You really saved me.” He tilted his head back when prompted, and Stephen smiled down at him.

“You’re welcome. You can rely on me when you need to. Now, close your eyes so I can rinse.” Inho did, face tipped back, and instead of the water he expected, he felt a gentle kiss on his lips.

“I was really scared you know, when you texted me about the accident.” A crooked smile masked Stephen’s vulnerable words, “I’m sorry if I was harsh on you. I know we’re new but…” He dipped his head so Inho couldn’t see his face, and turned on the flow of water from the showerhead, “I’m just pretty crazy about you is all.”

Inho wasn’t sure what to say back, so he just smiled and arched his neck for another kiss. The warm fuzzy feeling spread from his chest into his stomach, reached into his limbs and mingled with the hot water, until the whole steamy room seemed filled with it.

Number 5, he thought, drowsily completing his list, a boyfriend that loves me.