Behind the Scenes(88)

I snort. “Yeah, he does.”

“He cares about you.”

I give that some thought. “Yeah, I think he does… but I still don’t know that we want the same things. Or that, supposing we do, we can even figure things out. So much is different about us.”

“You didn’t get that far in the conversation?”

“No. We walked into the living room and Eryk was on the floor.” I shut my eyes, trying to block out the image of a pale Eryk strewn across the rug, but it only gets brighter and more well defined.

“Looks like he’s giving them a talking to,” Crystal says.

She’s referring to Simon, who is gesturing sharply with his hand while speaking to a man in a white coat. His face is calm, but his body language means business. I wonder if he’s pulling out certain mannerisms he uses at work when he needs to remind people that he’s in charge. He’s certainly coming off as a force to be reckoned with — at least from where Crystal and I sit, staring at him.

We watch the conversation continue for a minute. The doctor walks off and Simon comes back over to us.

“They’re going to let you in to see him,” he says.

Crystal bolts up and hugs him. He seems surprised but pats her on the shoulder in that awkward way some men can have of showing affection. It’s probably been a long time since someone spontaneously hugged him.

She pulls back. “Thank you!”

“He’s in room four twelve.”

Crystal takes off for the long hallway nearby and I take a step as well, but then stop when Simon doesn’t move.

“Aren’t you coming?” I ask him.

He shakes his head. “I don’t think I should intrude. If Eryk is awake, he won’t want a lot of people in there.” His fingers curl around mine for an instant. “I’ll wait out here for you.”

“Did they tell you anything else?”

“No. Just that they ran some tests and hope to have an answer soon.”

“That’s nothing,” I mutter.

Crystal comes back and tugs on my hand. “Come on. Let’s go. We’ll find out ourselves.”

The room is easy enough to find. We push the half closed door open the rest of the way and slip inside. There are two beds. The first one is empty but in the second, lays Eryk. His back is elevated, and although he still looks pale, he smiles at us.

“Hey, bitches.”

Crystal stomps forward, and for a second, I think she’s going to tell him off. Instead, she just reaches out and places her hand on his shoulder. He looks up at her with a regretful smile.

“I’m sorry, you guys.”

A shuddering exhale leaves Crystal. “I want to give you hell and say you should be sorry… but I’m just glad you’re alive.”

I step forward. “Did the doctors or nurses tell you anything?”

“No.” His face goes blank. “I’m a little scared.”

“Don’t worry.” Crystal squeezes his shoulder. “We’re right here. It’s going to be okay. Did you tell them about what you’ve been doing differently lately?”

He looks embarrassed. “Yeah. They asked me a bunch of questions about my diet and I told them the truth.”

There’s a knock on the door and a dark skinned woman wearing a doctor’s coat and carrying a laptop comes in.

“Hi, Eryk,” she says, then nods at Crystal and me. “Friends of yours?”

“My roommates.”

She grabs a rolling stool from the corner and pulls it over to his bedside before sitting down. “So we got the results of all your tests back, and I have some news.” She glances at me and Crystal. “We can speak in private if you prefer.”

“No,” Eryk quickly says. “I want them here.”

Crystal keeps her hand on him.

The doctor nods. “All right. So it turns out you have type-1 diabetes. It’s nothing to be alarmed about. It’s a perfectly manageable condition. It may have only recently developed, or you could have had it for a while and not known because you were doing everything right. A change in diet is what brought about your fainting.”

Eryk’s eyes fall to his lap.

“This is good,” Crystal says. “We can manage it.”

The doctor pulls out some sheets tucked in between her folded computer. “Exactly. Or, more specifically, it’s not as harsh a condition as some other ones. I’m going to give you some information on healthy eating and managing diabetes. It’s important that you keep track of everything you eat so you can regulate your blood sugar. I’m also going to refer you to a nearby clinic and a nutritionist who specializes in diabetes management.”