Brightside | ✓

41 | dial drunk

"Eds." A small tap on her thigh. Gentle. Non-threatening. "Eddie."

Eddie scowled and cuddled a little more into the back of the hospital chair. Didn't even open her eyes.

"I know you can hear me, sunshine."

Eddie wrinkled her nose. "Sunshine?"

"Come on." Another tap from the hands that stopped her from clawing her eczema to the point of blood once Coach had left the property. The same hands that rubbed the small of her back as the doctor told them Rush was going to be okay, he just needed to stay and be monitored as he'd punctured a lung. They were even the same hands that offered the doctor a napkin-wrapped tooth and received a weirded out look from someone who had probably seen more than their fair share of strange working in the ER for a living. "You gotta eat, babe."

Eddie opened her eyes if only to glare at him. "I ate earlier."

"I can literally see the unopened sandwich from here."

Eddie hadn't done a very good job of hiding it; she hadn't brought any personal belongings that weren't on her person.

"Don't make me pick you up and drag you to dinner."

Eddie scoffed. "I weigh more than you when you're soaking wet."

"So, every time I see you—"

"Ew."

"I regretted that as soon as it came out of my mouth."

"You're so gross," Eddie said. "I'm not going anywhere with you, you pervert."

Axel let out a small laugh. "I'm sorry. But you do still need to eat."

"I have a whole sandwich."

"Eddie," Axel said. "You gotta get out of here for a bit. Get some air. Maybe we can go back to my place and—"

"You're really thinking about sex right now—"

"Respectfully, I was gonna suggest you take a shower," Axel said. "It's been a couple days. It might make you feel a little better."

"A good boyfriend would've brought me my deodorant and told me I was gorgeous."

Axel rolled his eyes and pulled her stick of antiperspirant out of his back pocket. He tossed it into her lap and kissed the top of her head. "You're gorgeous."

"Cheesy fucking asshole."

Axel smiled. "Use the pit stick and we're going to dinner."

"You say that to all your girlfriends?"

"Just you," Axel said. "Maika Monroe doesn't need to be told to wear the pit stick."

"You're such a butthead."

"Oh, you wound me." Axel tapped her hip again. "Up like Shania Twain. I'll buy."

"You literally woke me up, you bitch," Eddie said. "Obviously you're paying for dinner."

*

The problem with San Francisco was that Eddie knew her too well; which meant that she knew where the nearest bar was to the hospital and she knew that Axel was going to pay for any drinks she wanted as long as she ate a handful of French fries. Each time that man gave her a look like he wanted to tell her she should slow down on the liquor, she ate a big bite of the burger he forced her to order and there was absolutely nothing wrong with it other than the fact that it wasn't numbing her.