Pleasurable Expectations

f o r t y - f i v e

Even though Jeremiah had woken up, Dr. Musazi kept him in the hospital for the next three days. She wanted him close so she could monitor his progress and administer oxygen. She said his lungs just needed a little extra support before he was good to go.

King stayed for the next day before he and Sienna headed back home. He needed to get back to work, and Sienna wanted to stay with him just in case. Luckily, before he left, he and Jeremiah had a chance to talk in private and sort things out.

The moment we were alone, Jeremiah tried to pick up where we left off, but I shut him down immediately. I didn't want to table the conversation any more than he did, but this all happened at the worst time. The hospital was not the place for this, no matter how private his suite was. And doing this right after he got shot was not the time.

"The car's out front when you're ready," I said as I stepped into the room.

"I gotta sign this last thing, then I'm good," Jeremiah said as he looked up from his discharge papers.

I grabbed my overnight bag. "You ready to get outta here?"

"I've been ready," he said as he shook his head. "It's eerie in here."

"Eerie?" I asked as I raised my eyebrows.

He smacked his teeth. "I was knocked out in this room for days, Ki. And when I was up, I could always hear my heartbeat. That's eerie."

Jeremiah downcast his eyes, his hands balled into fists on top of the clipboard. I only looked at him for a second before I realized that I'd do best to tread lightly right now. This is the first time since he'd woken up that he acknowledged that he'd even been out in the first place.

"My bad," I said, sensing his irritation. "I just wanted to know what you meant, that's all."

Jeremiah nodded before making his way to the desk with his discharge papers. My attention followed him as he passed by the window and out of sight. I considered for a moment before I made a few calls to switch hotels. If the idea of his heart being monitored creeped him out, I didn't want to see what happened if we pulled up to where he got shot.

I joined Jeremiah at the desk a few minutes later. His arm snaked around my waist as he listened to Dr. Musazi give him a very detailed rundown of his aftercare. She wanted him to take his medication as prescribed and come back in a week for a check-up. And absolutely no flying, so we were stuck in Baltimore for at least one more week.

We got to the car and headed on our way to the hotel. Jeremiah was quiet as he looked out the window, and his thumbs chased each other in a circle. He looked distracted as his teeth chewed his bottom lip.

"Are you okay?" I asked, slicing through the silence.

His fingers stopped fidgeting as his head turned towards me, his eyes still focused on the buildings passing by. His hand swiped his eyebrow as he said, "I'm good."

I sighed. "I know your tell by now, Jeremiah. You don't have to tell me what's up, but haven't you learned you don't have to lie to me?"

"Trust, I've learned that," Jeremiah said with an easy laugh, his eyes finding mine.

"So, are you okay?" I pressed once more.

"I was shot, Ki. I've got the bullet wounds and bandages to show for it and a giant gash on my side from a tube that drained blood and air from my chest," he said as his expression fell serious.

I watched as Jeremiah shook his head and shut his eyes. I could see the wheels turning in his head as he gently shook his head back and forth. I imagined all the events from the past few days settled in and really hit him for the first time.