Neighbor Dearest(60)
“I love your jealousy. And you were totally right about him.”
“I’m always right. Haven’t you figured that out?”
The door opened, and Tyler walked in, holding a coffee. “Hey. I just talked to your doctor. They said you’re free to go.”
I turned to Ty. “Are you taking him back to the apartment?”
Knowing I didn’t have a car, Damien asked, “How did you get here?”
“I pretty much stole Murray’s car.”
“That piece of shit? You were probably in more danger than I was.”
“Do you want me to come take care of you?”
“Trust me, he wants you to take care of him very much,” Ty cracked.
Damien shot daggers at him. “Shut the hell up.”
I ended up letting Damien rest that night, opting to head back to my apartment while Tyler took him home.
The first thing I did was open up my laptop to search the Internet for information on Damien’s condition. Some of the stories about hypertrophic cardiomyopathy were terrifying. There were countless reports of young people who’d dropped dead without warning, some of them on athletic fields. Their families had only discovered the condition after the fact. One of the articles indicated that conditions like Damien’s were responsible for at least forty percent of all sudden deaths in young athletes.
I also looked up the types of surgeries and the risks associated with them. It was all starting to hit me. It was easy to see how Damien let fear rule his world, especially when his fears weren’t totally unfounded. An unbearable heaviness weighed on my chest. While it was all too easy to let my mind wander to that horrible place of “what ifs,” I wasn’t going to let fear rule my world.
I shot Damien out a text.
I was going to stop by tomorrow after work. Will you be home?
Damien: Actually, I’m leaving in the morning. Going away to San Jose for a few days. I need some time away from here to think.
What did that mean? Not knowing how to respond, I texted back the first thing that came to mind.
Chelsea: Do you know the way to San Jose?
Damien: I do. And that’s a song.
Chelsea: Very good! My grandmother used to sing it to me. I used to always want to go to San Jose as a kid, thinking it was some far off place. Little did I know you were there.
Damien: I would have tugged on your ponytail and thrown sand at you back then. I was a dick.
Chelsea: So, not much has changed?
Still making girls cry.
Damien: We’ll catch up when I get back.
Chelsea: Actually, when you get back, I’ll be gone. I’m leaving for NY to visit my sister. I’ll be staying with her for a week.
Damien: Wow. I’m glad you’re finally doing that.
He knew that was a big step for me, that I’d always avoided New York because Elec lived there. A few days before Damien’s fainting episode, I’d finally bitten the bullet and purchased tickets to see Jade.
Chelsea: I guess I’ll see you when I get back.
Damien: Ok. Be careful in the big city.
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
HIT THE FLOOR
It had truly been a dream come true to see Jade perform. She had a lead role in a new off-Broadway musical called The Siren and The Suit. The banter between her character, Eloise, and the main male character, Tom, was hysterical. Tom was played by a handsome actor named Jeremy Bright. I later learned Jeremy was very married in real life. Up until that point, I thought maybe something was brewing between Jade and him, but I guess they’re just really convincing actors with great chemistry.
After the show, Jade took me to dinner with the cast. We went to a Japanese restaurant and bar called Sake Sake. Between the drinks and the loud conversations, I’d almost forgotten about Damien for a couple of hours. Almost.
When we got back to Jade’s tiny apartment, though, thoughts of him were back in full force. It was the first time I had an opportunity to tell Jade the news of my discovering his heart condition. Since I knew I was coming to Manhattan, I’d waited to talk to her about it in person.
Jade sat on the floor with her legs crossed. Her face was still in full makeup. “Wow. I’m just…I’m speechless.”
“I know.”
“It’s like everything I thought I knew about this situation just went out the window.”
“What changed?”
“Well…” she said, “There was always a part of me that felt despite what he was telling you, that his feelings for you weren’t as strong as yours for him. But this news is a game changer. He really was trying to protect you from getting hurt. I do think what his brother said was right, that he’s in love with you and truly feels like he’s protecting you.”