The Opposite of Love

Ch 8

I rolled over and immediately regretted it. I had switched from laying with my injured knee resting gently on top of my good knee to laying the other way around, and it definitely hurt. I opened my eyes and adjusted my position to favor my injured leg. I didn't need a moment to remember where I was; I remembered the events of the previous night even before I woke up. In fact, I had hoped it was all just a very vivid dream, but my rude awakening reminded me that the night before had been as real as my pain was.

The adrenaline of the previous night's events had worn off, and even without moving, I was in more pain than I had expected.

I took in my surroundings. I was still in Charlie's bed, but there was a blanket over me that wasn't there before. The light shining in through the window told me it was morning already. Charlie was nowhere to be seen, but there was a note on the nightstand next to me, along with a covered dish.

Before reading the note, I tossed the blanket off of me to survey the damage. My knee looked about the same as it had the night before. My ankle was wrapped in a bandage, and my feet were covered in small Band-Aids. I gingerly felt my forehead: it still hurt, but there was a bandage covering that as well. The bruise on my arm looked much worse, but that was usually how bruises worked. My knuckles weren't actually bothering me very much. Or, they weren't until I started moving my hand. Nonetheless, I seemed pretty well taken care of, except that I felt twenty times worse than I had the night before.

I carefully reached over and unfolded the piece of paper. Charlie had much better handwriting than I had expected. The note read, "Callie – First, I ask you to remain quiet. My dad leaves for work at 7:30, but my mom will be here until 11." I glanced at the clock above me. It was already just after 10:30.

I had slept for 12 hours.

That was unusual, even for me. Then again, I hadn't slept much the night before, and I felt like I had been hit by a truck. 12 hours wasn't so unreasonable. I continued reading. "I'll be in once she is gone. Until then, any small noises can be blamed on the cat—" He had a cat?

I looked around, and right then, a cute little kitten came pouncing out of the bathroom. I refrained from speaking any of the many baby-voice phrases that came into my head and instead went back to the note. "...any small noises can be blamed on the cat, but please don't be too loud. The rest of my family wouldn't be so quick to understand, and I don't want to start anything. I'm sure you don't, either.

"I can't make you stay, but I would like it if you did. I'll be in at 11 with ice for your knee. Until then, eat some breakfast. – Charlie"

I lifted the cover off the dish and found a bowl of oatmeal topped with fresh blueberries – my favorite breakfast – and a glass of milk, plus a glass of orange juice and a bottle of painkillers. I quickly swallowed two, then dumped half the glass of milk into my oatmeal, glancing at the clock once again. I had about fifteen minutes until Charlie's mom left.

I wasn't sure if I wanted to stay after that or not, but either way, I was going to enjoy my breakfast.

The kitten jumped up onto the bed as I was finishing my oatmeal, so I poured the rest of the milk into the bowl and let the adorable little cat drink it. Once the kitten had finished, I began petting it, and it acted as though it had never been pet before. I was still petting it when I heard a gentle knock on the door as it opened.

Charlie entered, two ice packs in hand, as promised, and I sat up further in the bed. He handed me the ice and I carefully positioned them around my swollen knee, which was what hurt the most.

He was wearing a grey tee shirt and jeans. It was still a bit disorienting to see him out of his uniform. He looked like an entirely different person.