The Ways in Which I Die (COMPLETED)

CHAPTER 11: "GLUE ME TOGETHER"

SUMMER

"So what caused this?” Summer asks as she changes the dressing on the cut in Anthony’s forehead. The cut itself doesn’t look infected, but the heat of Anthony’s skin against her hands tells a different story.

“Marble counter,” Anthony mumbles, his raspy voice subdued with pain. “She shoved my head into the corner.”

Summer sighs wishing that she could have helped him escape Sunset in a safer way.

“She said she was going to kill me,” he says absently, staring blankly out at the room. He seems to be on a whole other planet. “I believed her.”

“That will never happen,” Summer promises and wraps fresh gauze around Anthony's head. “I won’t let her hurt you again.”

“I hope that’s true,” he whispers and breaks off into a bought of coughing. His shoulders heave as the hacking coughs tear through his body, shaking him.

“Hey take it easy!” Summer soothes and rubs Anthony’s back gently. “Just breathe. Nice and slow.”

It takes Anthony a few tries, but he finally gets his breathing under control again.

“Are you feeling okay?” Summer asks, eyeing him with concern. He’d spent a night out in freezing rain, him getting sick is to be expected. “You’re warm and look pale.”

“Just tired… And still light headed,” Anthony says as a shiver courses through his body.

“How about I make you some soup and you stay nice and warm while I do that?”

“What if you just stay and curl up with me?” Anthony asks sheepishly.

“You need to eat and make sure you’re getting enough fluids,” Summer says, wanting nothing more than to stay with him and curl up under the warm covers. “What if I make soup and then come curl up with you?”

“Okay,” Anthony agrees as Summer helps him lay back down in bed.

“I’ll be back soon,” she promises, giving his hand a gentle squeeze before leaving to make him soup. 

Part of her is tempted to flop down on the couch and take a nap. The past day and a half have been a lot, and she’s still not entirely sure how to process the fact that Anthony’s mother died in a car wreck and was then the donor of his new heart. She wants to help him heal from the trauma of it all but has no idea where to begin. She’s not even entirely sure that there is anything she can do to help aside from being there for him and making sure he feels like he deserves to be alive. She’ll give him the love he needs and hopefully in the process help him to love himself, and feel like the heart in his chest belongs there.

By the time the soup is done and Summer is back in Anthony’s room, he’s asleep snoring peacefully. Deciding the soup can wait she sets the bowl down and climbs into bed next to him. She gently massaged his back while he sleeps hoping to loosen the tense muscles in his back. Every once in awhile he twitches and lets out an unhappy moan. Each time Summer rubs his back a little more firmly and speaks soothingly, hoping to pull him out whatever bad dream he’s having. She decides next time he does it, she’ll wake him up.

 
~~~

ANTHONY

Anthony wakes to the sound of slow breathing next to him and a warm hand rested on his shoulder. He shifts in bed just enough to see that it’s Summer who’s fallen asleep next to him with a book in her lap.

He hauls himself into a sitting position next to her and gently shakes her shoulder. She jumps a little and blinks her eyes rapidly, waking herself up.

“Did I fall asleep?” she asks scooting away from him slightly. “Sorry…”

“It’s fine, I’m a handful. I can see why’d you be exhausted…”

“Oh stop it,” Summer groans. “You’re not that bad… actually you’re not bad at all.”

“We’ll see how long that lasts,” Anthony mutters and swings his legs out of bed. His head is still throbbing, but he ignores it, he’s gotta get up sometime. Since his heart transplant 8 years ago, he become immunocompromised and also feeling the chronic pain in his chest.

Summer lets out an exasperated sigh as Anthony pulls himself out of bed with a grunt.

“You’re a good person Anthony, being depressed doesn’t make you unworthy of love.”

Anthony stops and turns around to look at her, something hopeful shining in her eyes. “Is that what you think?”

Summer slides out of bed, her feet touching down on the cold floor, and steps close to Anthony so she’s looking up into his tired brown eyes. “Yes Anthony, that’s what I think. You’ve been broken a few too many times, and I know that loving you isn’t going to magically make it so it never happened, but if you let me, maybe I can glue you back together.”

“Like you did that pot?” Anthony asks nodding his head toward Summer’s dresser.

Summer glances back at the glued back together pot sitting on her dresser. “Oh… I forgot I kept that…” she mumbles for a second before getting back to her point. “But yes, just like that pot. It didn’t deserve to be broken but did deserve another chance. A shot at life, a good life.”

“I don’t know if there’s enough glue out there to fix this old pot,” Anthony says quietly.

“I think you underestimate the amount of glue I have,” Summer says sliding her hand into his. She looks deep into his eyes. “And my level of persistence. Please let me try.” 

He doesn’t waver as he replies. “Okay, Summer. Glue me back together.”