Page 77 of Under Water

He shrugs. “Yeah. Is my dad awake?”

“No. You want me to grab him?”

Elio lets out a small sigh. “Nah. I try to let him sleep for as long as my bladder can take it.”

“I could…” I hesitate. “I mean, depending on what kind of help you need, I could assist? I think?”

“I can do most of it on my own,” he says brightly. “Can you carry me to the toilet and get my pants off? God, is this weird? Like, does it sound like I’m setting you up for that lemonade pedo-catcher guy?”

I burst into laughter. “I’m an EMT. You would not believe the shit I have seen. Literally.”

Elio covers his mouth as he laughs. “Okay. Then pants off, on toilet. I’ll call you when I’m done.”

It’s easy enough and a lot like work has been in the past. I get Elio situated, then close the door all the way and do my best not to snoop through his things. There’s a large bag, which I assume is filled with all his medical equipment, and I’m not foolish enough to mess anything up, so instead, I make the bed, put his mask back on his machine, and turn it off.

By the time I’m done, he’s calling for me through the door, and I get him redressed. “So, your big chair got here last night. You want me to take you to that?”

Elio’s eyes brighten. “Yes. Also, do you have a PlayStation?”

“Uh, no.”

“Xbox?”

“Yeah, but it’s kind of old,” I warn him as I walk through the room and sit him down.

He shrugs. “Can I play anyway?”

“Are you allowed to have video games at the ass-crack of dawn?” I drop to my knees to fix his straps and make sure he’s in a comfortable position.

He gives me a withering teenage stare. “Do you think my dad’s, like, Amish or some shit?”

“No. I think he’s got rules, and I’m trying to get him to like me, so I’d rather not piss him off too much.”

Elio’s eyes narrow. “Did you give him that hickey?”

I almost choke on my own tongue. “How about Xbox and breakfast.”

He grins, looking a little evil, but I’m going to let him have this one. If Rune gets pissed off at me, I’d rather it be for the Xbox than for selling us out to his kid about the hickey. Because that will lead to other questions.

Setting it up, I toss the controller onto his lap, then fold my arms. “I’d ask about breakfast, but I feel like you’re going to lie to me to get what you want but aren’t supposed to have.”

His eyes are already fixed on the TV. “Fair. I’m not hungry right now anyway. Bruhhhhh, you have Spider-Man?”

“Yes, I do. Go nuts.” Turning, I head into the kitchen and immediately start the coffee brewing, and just as it starts to drip into the pot, I hear almost frantic footsteps on the floor. I can all but feel Rune’s panic all the way from here, and I dart back into the living room to find him skidding to a halt near Elio.

“Are you serious? It’s not even seven in the morning,” Rune says.

Elio eyes me, then points with the controller. “He let me. He’s a bad influence.”

Rune narrows his eyes, then walks past his son, and I back all the way up into the kitchen until he’s crowding me against the sink. I think for a moment he might start choking me out, but then he leans in and leaves a mean, messy kiss along my pulse.

“You’re a pain in my ass,” he snarls against my skin.

I groan as softly as I can, curling my hand around the back of his neck. I don’t want to hold him long. Elio is fast as fuck in his chair, and I don’t want to traumatize him too much. “I’m making coffee.”

“I accept this tribute as your apology,” Rune murmurs. He leans back, eyes heavy with sleep, cheeks red with a few pillowcase prints almost like a tattoo. “How long have you been up? And why is Elio up? Don’t tell me he found a way to get to his chair by himself.”

I snort. “No. He was wide-awake, so I figured I could at least get him out of bed and occupied. I was hoping you’d sleep a little more.”