Under My Body

chapter five

     As Thali and I reached the hospital, I could feel his urgency through his quickened steps. The moment we stepped inside, he rushed over to the counter, asking the nurse for Asher's location. I watched as the nurse checked the records, her calm demeanor a stark contrast to the worry etched on Thali's face. When she finally told him which ward Asher was in, he turned to me, his expression conflicted, as if he was torn between going in alone and having me come with him.

I caught the meaning behind his unsure smile and gave him a reassuring nod. "It's okay, Thali. You go see him. I'll wait here," I said, trying to ease his worry.

He looked at me for a moment, as if considering what to say, but then just nodded. "Thanks, Vili," he said quietly before heading down the corridor.

I watched him disappear around the corner, and as soon as he was out of sight, I felt a pang of helplessness. Sitting in the waiting area, my mind was racing, but I couldn't just sit still. I wished I knew what had happened to Asher, and more importantly, if he was okay.

Even though I'd only just met these people, I couldn't help but feel a connection to them. Sure, I'd met them through Xavier, and they weren't exactly my friends yet, but there was something about this group that made me feel comfortable, almost like I belonged with them. Well, with some of them, at least.

But as I sat there, the unease gnawed at me. I wondered if whatever had happened to Asher had something to do with his leg. I didn't know much about him—just that he had a brooding, mysterious air, and he clearly kept people at arm's length. But I couldn't just ask him, or anyone else, what had happened to his leg. I was still the new person in their group, and I hadn't earned their trust yet. Thali hadn't even told me what was going on earlier, and I couldn't blame him for that. They'd known each other for years, and I was just a newcomer.

I sighed, frustrated with myself for feeling so out of the loop. Maybe I could ask Xavier? He was the one who introduced me to everyone, after all. But would he tell me? Or would he just brush it off like Thali did?

"V," a familiar voice broke through my thoughts. I turned around and saw Xavier walking towards me, a soft smile on his face. Relief washed over me as he wrapped his arms around my waist and pulled me into a hug.

"Is Asher okay, Xav?" I asked, my voice barely above a whisper as I rubbed his back.

"Yeah... this is normal for him," Xavier said, though his tone was anything but casual. "He gets pretty overwhelmed and does stupid shit that gets himself hurt."

I didn't quite understand what he meant by that, but I stayed silent, sensing there was more to the story. Xavier let go of me and sat down on one of the chairs, and I followed suit, the tension in the air settling over us.

"If you don't mind... what really happened?" I asked cautiously, not wanting to push too hard. "I understand if you don't want to tell me."

Xavier sighed, rubbing his face as if the memory weighed heavily on him. "No, you came here, and you shouldn't be left out waiting and all. But... I'm sorry if I can't tell you much because it's not my story to tell. Asher wasn't always like this." He paused, then pointed to his own right leg, making it clear that the "this" he was referring to was Asher's leg.

"For his 21st birthday, we all planned a mini trip to Greece," Xavier began, his voice low and heavy with emotion. "Things were tough at his home at the time, but we insisted he come to relieve some stress and enjoy his 21st. The first few days were great, but after the fourth day, we noticed he started drinking a lot. Almost every few hours, he was downing another drink. We all got kind of worried, so we took the bottle away, but things got messy, and we ended up cutting our trip short and left the next day."