Rookie Playing For Keeps #Wattys2015 #NewAdult

Chapter 3 Part 1

Chapter 3

Present

            The nurse is back to check the readings on the machines. I try to keep my eyes open as she presses a few buttons and then writes down some numbers.  Her glasses have slid to the tip of her nose and she is looking through them with her head tipped back. She tucks her notes into her pocket and gives me a small smile. "Blood pressure is stable again." I nod and look at the bright numbers as she tears a long strip of paper from beneath the screen and rolls it up.

            When she leaves the room she almost bumps into my brother Brandon as he rushes in. She shakes her head at him and he just shrugs his shoulders. "She isn't very friendly," he whispers when he sees that Jackson is asleep. He all but collapses into the chair beside the bed and drags his hands down his face. He glances up at the clock—it is still the middle of the night—and has the decency to cringe a little at his judgment. "I guess I wouldn't be chipper working this shift, either."

            I shake my head and smile because we both know that's true. Brandon has been living in Hawaii for a few months, working on expanding our family business over there. Flying back and forth has made him a little off when it comes to time. I lift my arms and he leans over to wrap me in a hug. I hold on a little longer than usual, loving the feeling of having my brother with me.

            "Has he been asleep long?" he asks, lifting his chin in Jackson's direction.

            "Maybe an hour or two. It's been a really long day." I answer, trying hard to smile up at my brother. Having him here means that this is real.

            "I brought you some more of that lotion you love. The sales rep told me there will be a new scent next month!" He feigns excitement and I laugh as quietly as possible. He isn't usually a joker like Caleb. Aside from their looks, you would never know they were twins. Brandon is very serious and down to business, but in moments like this I can see how the two are also very similar. 

            "Thank you. Of course I want the new one, but don't ship it. Make sure it's hand delivered so I can see you again. I hate you being more than a quick drive away. Do you still love it in Hawaii or are we eventually going to get you back?" I move my feet, which have been in the same position so long that a stab of pain runs up my leg.

            "I love it there. I wake up every morning to a sunrise I can't even find the words to describe. I get to walk with my feet in that pure white sand and drink my cocktails from a coconut with a little umbrella. It's paradise." He leans back and folds his hands behind his head. Even as a grown man, his mannerisms remind me of the little boy he used to be. He thinks he is convincing me that his love for Hawaii has nothing to do with the woman living in paradise with him.

            "It's amazing how quickly your plans for the future change, huh?" I reflect. I remember the day he tried to convince me to stay with Greg instead of falling for Jackson. I never held it against him because I knew he couldn't understand until he experienced that feeling himself. There is no way of explaining the feeling of finding the right person. It makes everything brighter and better.

            Brandon's dimple makes an appearance when he smiles. "Who am I kidding? It doesn't matter where I live. I think I'm in love, Madeline. I'm so drunk on this feeling I think I could be happy in a snowstorm in Alaska. Don't tell Ben or Caleb I said that or I'll kill you, but that's how I feel. I get it now." He leans forward and takes my hand in his. "Tell me this feeling won't go away."

            I reach my other hand over to Jackson's. He pulls it up and rests it on his chest, covering his heart with my palm. His eyes open for a brief second and he smiles at me before falling back to sleep. "It doesn't go away," I whisper to Brandon. "Sometimes things make it hard, but at the end of the day I want to fall asleep beside him. Even if that means sleeping in this sterile hospital room."

            Brandon nods his head and his cheeks lift as he smiles at me again. "That's what I thought. I'm having a hard time even thinking about work. She's on my mind all the time. I tried to remember a time when it didn't seem like that was the case for you and Jackson, but I couldn't come up with one. I swear, when you two finally decided to move in together we didn't see you for a month." He gives me a wink and the heat rises in my face. I would try to deny it for the sake of my pride, but the truth is he's absolutely right. 

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