Broken Dreams(183)

When they finally emerged a short time later, I was getting antsy. Henry jumped in the truck and pulled up in the driveway. When he shut it off, he said, “It’s not a palace, but it will keep us dry for the night.”

“As long as we’re safe.”

“As long as I am around, you will be safe. Don’t you worry about that. I want to unload the trucks, though.” That seemed like a daunting task. I sighed. “There may be looters around. We can’t risk losing everything we have.”

We got out and went to the back of the truck. Claire waved me over so I walked to her, keeping my eye on Henry.

“How’s he doing?” she asked quietly, looking around.

“I…I don’t know. He’s not really talking. He went nuts when he got into the truck afterwards. I think he may have broken his hand. It’s really swollen.”

“Nick said he saw his hand bandaged, but he wasn’t sure why. I’ll look at it when we get unloaded.”

“Thanks.”

Claire smiled at me and handed me Sophie’s pack. I hesitantly took it. “Put this in a safe place…for Henry.” I put it on my back. It was as safe there as it would be anywhere else. Claire smiled at me again.

I looked at the mound of supplies. Everything was haphazardly thrown in the trucks when we left, trying to escape the bombing. The thought of the bombings made me cringe. I really hoped my family home was unharmed but, deep down in the recesses of my mind, I knew that it was probably gone.

Luckily, we hadn’t heard anything as the night began to swallow us. I think it was safe to assume they stopped for the time being. I grabbed a box of supplies and headed into the empty townhome.



***



“Alright, let me take a peek at that hand of yours.”

Henry leaned against the side of Sophie’s truck while Claire untied the scrap of fabric. She held his hand with both of hers, and pushed down on the back of his hand with her thumbs. He hissed. She looked up at his face, but he had turned away.

“I’d imagine that it’s broken. I would like to put some antibiotic cream on the cuts. I am thinking you might need a course of anti-inflammatories, as well.”

“No pain meds,” he mumbled, still looking away from her.

“It hurts, yes?”

“Of course it does.”

“Then…why not?” She was confused by his refusal.

He turned and looked at her. “The pain… It makes me feel alive.” His voice cracked. “I need to know I’m still alive.” That broke Claire’s heart.

“Henry…it’s not just for pain. It helps with the inflammation.” He looked down at her hands. She still held his, gently stroking it. His brilliant, but sad, eyes bore through her. Even though he had exploded on a few occasions in front of her, that was the first time she could actually feel his pain. She reached up to him and wrapped her arms around his neck. He was a little surprised by the embrace, but he accepted it. “I’m so sorry, Henry. I’m so sorry for all that you have gone through.”

“Thanks,” he whispered, as a tear trickled down his face.

“Let me get the cream, and then I’ll wrap it back up.” Henry nodded. She turned around and walked back to his truck, wiping the tears away from her eyes.



***



I walked upstairs. All the bedrooms were about the same size as the one in my apartment. I laid out a few blankets and pillows on the floor for Henry and me.

“Hey. Can I come in?” Claire was standing in the doorway, looking defeated.

“Sure. Are you alright?” She looked as if she had been crying.

“Yeah, I guess. I don’t want to talk about it right now. Anyway, I think we should try reorganizing and repacking everything to be more efficient.”

“Yeah, good idea.” I rubbed my arms, thinking of how heavy some of the boxes were. “I think we should eat first, though. Henry wants to find gas, as well.”

“Right,” she said. Something was off, but I would get it out of her eventually.

We both jogged down the stairs as Henry was rummaging through boxes looking for food. My stomach was more than ready. I didn’t realize how hungry I was until I saw that box of granola bars. Not that they were something amazing, but it was better than nothing.

“Here, love…” He looked at the box. “S’mores?” he said, questioningly, as he handed me two granola bars. “What’s that?” Claire sat down on a box and fell apart.

Nick squatted down beside her, and took her hands into his. “Babe…talk to me.” Nick rubbed her thighs.

“We had a conversation about s’mores with Sophie when we went to get supplies from Henry’s apartment. At the time, it was a meaningless conversation.” The sound of her name made Henry clench his jaw. Nick reached out and held onto Claire.