Choices - 6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

It was the day before Marty had to return home, and Liam couldn’t help but feel melancholy. He loved having his best friend with him, and was going to miss the man when he left in the morning. Not wanting to come across as needy, he pasted on a smile and tried to remain positive throughout the day. His friend seemed overly upbeat, which Liam knew was Marty’s way of dealing with a potentially teary goodbye.

Nathan had come over the other day for the promised Chinese food and a movie. Liam ordered dinner from his favourite place and, after a short debate, they decided to watch Lara Croft, The Cradle of Life. Marty, closet set-up artist that he was, suddenly remembered some urgent work he needed to complete and made himself scarce, retiring to the spare bedroom. It was obvious from the paramedic’s blush that he realized what was going on. To be fair, Marty had never been accused of subtlety.

“I’m sorry about that,” Liam said with an exasperated sigh. “He thinks he’s eHarmony or something.”

The other man smiled at him and shrugged. “There’s no need to apologize. I have a friend like that too. She’s always trying to throw me into the path of any guy she thinks is cute.”

Liam laughed. “Maybe we should introduce her to Marty? They can keep each other occupied and leave us alone.”

Nathan grinned as he swiped an egg roll from the carton. “That might have worked if Sara wasn’t happily married with two kids.”

“Ah well, it was worth a shot.”

The movie started and the two men settled back, sitting next to each other, but not quite close enough to touch. Liam was hyper-aware of the other man’s presence, and had difficulty concentrating on what was happening on the screen. It felt as though he was wound tighter than a spring. What did Nathan think was going on here? Did he think this was a date? Did it matter if it was a date? Did he want to start a relationship with Nathan? He found Nathan attractive, but was it enough? Over and over his mind spun around the same questions. He didn’t notice the movie had been paused until Nathan touched his arm, startling him out of his reverie.

“Sorry,” Nathan apologized. “I didn’t mean to scare you. Are you all right? Do you want to pick another movie?”

“No, no. Lara Croft is great,” Liam replied, giving the man what he hoped was a convincing smile. “I’m just a little distracted tonight... sorry.”

“I can go and we can do this another time if you need rest.”

“God, I’ve slept so much this week I may not have to sleep again for a month. You don’t need to leave. I’m sorry. I invited you over and my mind is a million miles away.”

“Anything you want to talk about?”

“No… I… maybe?” Liam huffed a breath, irritated with his own indecisiveness. Finally, he asked the question that seemed most important at the moment. “What do you think is happening here, Nathan?”

“What do you mean?”

“Why are you here?” Liam muted the television and turned to fully face the other man. “I know the question is out of nowhere, but where do you see this going? Do you think this a date?”

“Well,” the other man started, and then paused. His brow furrowed for a moment before he met Liam’s gaze. “I had hoped it might be a date when you invited me over, but I know you’ve recently gotten out of a relationship, so I’ve tried not to presume.”

“Oh.” Liam looked away from the paramedic’s questioning eyes. “I like you, Nathan… I do, but I’m not sure if I’m ready to start dating again.” Screwing up his courage, he looked up again, and saw only understanding reflected back at him. “Alek and I were together for over a year before I ended it. That was a little over six months ago. I really thought I was over him, but….”

“But seeing him again after the accident brought your feelings back?”

“Yeah. Like a tidal wave.” Liam rubbed his palms over his face. “I want to be over him. Believe me, I would like nothing better than to move on and find a nice guy… like you.”

“It’s okay, Liam. I like you. You seem like a great guy, but if you’re only ready for friendship, I’m all for that.” Nathan gave him a supportive smile. “Don’t get me wrong. I would love nothing more than for you to agree to go out with me, and I think we could be good together, but I’m not going to pressure you. If it never happens, then at least I’ve made a good friend.”

“You’re a really good man, you know that? Thank you for being so understanding.”

“You’re welcome.” Nathan reached across the space between them and gave Liam’s knee a gentle squeeze before turning back to the television. “Now, let’s finish this movie. We still haven’t seen Gerard Butler shirtless.”

Liam laughed, feeling much lighter now that he and Nathan had cleared the air. He nudged the paramedic with his shoulder as he resumed the movie. “No shirtless Gerard Butler? That would be a sin.”

After the movie ended, Nathan gave him a hug before heading home, promising to text him to set up a coffee date. He was just starting to clean up with the mess from dinner when Marty made an appearance.

“Nathan gone?”

“Yeah, he just left a few minutes ago.” Liam narrowed his eyes at his best friend. “You’re not as sneaky as you think you are.”

“Me?” Marty’s expression was all innocence, and completely fake. “I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

Liam snorted. “Please. You suddenly remembered some vague emergency correspondence? Not very original.”

“Fine, I give, but in my defence, I wanted to give you two a chance to talk. I know you’ve been driving yourself crazy about the guy’s expectations, and there was no way you would ever have that conversation with me in the room. I figured I would give you the chance, if you wanted it.”

Liam sighed and ran his hand through his dark waves which had gotten long enough to fall into his eyes. As much as he didn’t like being set up, Marty did have a point… not that he would admit it. He picked up two empty glasses with one hand without making further comment. Marty smirked as though he could read Liam’s thoughts.

“So, did you pluck up the courage to talk to him?” his friend asked as he followed Liam into the kitchen with the food cartons in hand.

“Yeah, we had a good conversation.” Marty didn’t ask, but the question was clear in his eyes. “Nathan is a great guy. He understands why I’m not ready to date right now, and he’s willing to be patient with me… at least for now.”

“Is that what he said?” Marty’s brow furrowed. “You don’t think he’s going to pressure you, do you?”

“No, but what attractive, sexually active man is going to wait forever for me to get over another guy?”

“They might if it meant waiting for someone very special.” Marty pressed a kiss against his temple.

Liam stared at the man for second before grinning. “And you said I was sappy? Have you gotten into my pain medication?”

“Fuck you, Shorty,” the other man grumbled. “See if I give you a compliment again.”

Liam laughed and headed for the kitchen, followed by his mumbling friend. It felt great to laugh, even if his ribs ached. He wasn’t sure what he was going to do when Marty went home. No one could keep his spirits up like his best friend could.

Liam smiled, thinking back to that evening. If Marty’s potential move didn’t happen soon, he was going to have to return the visit. He might have to plan a trip regardless so he could drop in on Marty’s parents. Although they spoke on the phone, he hadn’t seen them since the funeral.

Liam was mentally planning a possible vacation when he heard the doorbell. Before he had a chance to leave the room, Marty answered the door. Male voices could be heard from the front of the house, but the voices were too muted for Liam to figure out who the visitor could be. Pulling on a pair of sweatpants, which had become his garment of choice with the broken wrist, he left his room to investigate.

He’d rounded the corner into the living room just as Marty entered from the other side, looking over his shoulder and speaking to their guest. “Have a seat. I’ll go see if he’s awake yet. Those pain meds have been knocking him on his ass.”

Liam’s curious expression morphed into a wide smile as Corey walked through the archway. He and Jason had come to see him for a short visit the day he was discharged from the hospital. The entire day was fuzzy, but he remembered Corey’s promise to come by again soon.

“Never mind, it looks like he’s up now,” Marty said, sounding amused when he spotted Liam standing by the couch. “Sit. I’ll bring in some coffee and juice. Are you hungry Corey? I picked up some fresh cinnamon rolls from coffee shop downtown.”

“As good as those are, nothing for me. Jason made us a huge breakfast this morning. I’m still stuffed.”

Marty left the room briefly, returning with a tray holding two cups of coffee, cream, sugar, a glass of apple juice, and a promised cinnamon roll for Liam. Liam’s mouth watered immediately when the scent hit him.

“When did you have time to get these?”

“Earlier this morning. I’ve been up for hours.”

“Really? I don’t remember you being such an early bird.”

Marty rolled his eyes. “Li, you do realize it’s almost eleven?”

“Holy crap.” Liam sat heavily and looked up at his boss and his best friend, who appeared to be suppressing smiles. “I can’t believe I slept for almost twelve hours.”

“Liam,” Corey chastised him gently as he sat in a chair adjacent the couch. “You know as well as I do people healing from major injuries sleep a lot more than they are accustomed to, especially if their medication manages the pain adequately.”

“Yeah, yeah, Doctor Smyth.””

Corey grinned at him. “You know I’m right. You’re just pissed off because you hate feeling like you’re being lazy.”

“That’s what I keep telling him.” Marty sat beside him, grabbing the glass of juice and a pill from the tray and handing them to Liam. “Now be a good patient and take your medicine.”

“Great, now I have both of you ganging up on me.”

“Don’t forget Nathan,” Marty teased. “He agrees with us too.”

“Nathan?” Corey asked, looking confused. “Who’s Nathan?”

Much to his mortification, Liam felt himself start to blush. “He’s a friend. Someone I met recently.”

“He was a paramedic on scene at the accident,” his friend volunteered. “Apparently Liam made enough of an impression that he came to check on him at the hospital.”

“He was just being nice. He visits other patients too.”

“Oh?” Corey said, raising an eyebrow. “This Nathan sounds interesting. Is he hot?”

“Now that…,” Marty responded as he stood up, “is my cue to get back to work. I’ll just be in the kitchen if you need anything.”

Liam found himself telling Corey about Nathan: the hospital visits, his hot chocolate and caffeine mercy runs, and the two movie ‘dates.’

“He sounds like a good guy,” his boss stated when Liam finished talking. “It was probably a good idea, telling him you wanted to take things slow. You were with Alek for a while and that breakup really wrecked you.”

Liam was a little taken aback. He knew he’d been having a hard time moving on, but didn’t realize it was so noticeable.

“Don’t look so surprised,” Corey said with a crooked smile. “Those of us who care about you saw how much it hurt. I think the wedding was the first time I heard you really laugh in months. Not just the polite laugh you have for patients who tell bad jokes.”

“I didn’t realize I was that… bad.”

“It’s not a bad thing,” Corey responded, patting his hand. “You were in love with Alek. You wanted forever with him. No one gets over something like that overnight. Just because it was the right thing for you to end things when you did, doesn’t mean your heart is going to fall in line. At least you were dealing with your feelings instead of hiding from them. I would have been more concerned if you’d started dating again within the month. ”

“Between you and Marty you could start your own advice column,” Liam joked, swallowing past the lump in his throat.

“I knew I liked him,” the other man joked with a wink.

The two men talked until Corey said he had to get going. He was interviewing applicants for the temporary receptionist position. Liam felt a little uneasy until Corey assured him he had a job the moment he was ready to start working again. His practical boss had even brought disclosure forms with him for Liam to sign, giving the doctors permission to discuss Liam’s injuries and prognosis. It was thoughtful, and practical, and so like his friend. With Corey’s help, Liam didn’t doubt he would be back on his own two feet in no time.

A big thank you goes out to my editor/friend, Gary, for all of the extra time he puts in helping me improve and grow as a writer.    Thank you to all of you who read and support this story.