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“Wait, how’d you break your leg this time?”
“I fell down an escalator.”
“How did you—?!”
“I thought it was the one going up…it wasn’t.”
Jack couldn’t help laughing, and Mark reddened sheepishly. “I’m sorry, I’m sorry!” the former chortled, trying to control himself. “You just…God, Mark, you hurt yourself in the stupidest ways.”
Mark rolled his eyes good-naturedly. “Thanks for the update, I had no idea,” he said sarcastically. “Yeah, it’s all very funny, I’m sure, but the hospital bills are no fun.”
“How long’re you gonna be in there?” Jack asked, readjusting the laptop in his lap. Mark caught a glimpse of the outdoors through his window and was surprised to see how dark it was in Ireland. Jeez, there were some things that he had trouble getting used to in a long-distance relationship, but time zones was definitely the biggest one.
“In where? The hospital?” Mark shrugged, glancing at his leg dangling in the air. “I can’t put any weight on it right now, and I’ll need physical therapy…it’ll probably be two or three weeks before I’m allowed to go home.” He couldn’t even get his own laptop; he was stuck using his phone to Skype, which only wanted to work part of the time.
“Damn, that fuckin’ sucks,” Jack said sympathetically, and Mark smiled. Swearing was Jack’s favorite form of sentiment. “Have you had any visitors?”
“No, not really,” Mark sighed. He tried not to sound too disappointed. “Mom’s in Cincinnati, so she can’t really come down…and even if Thomas could, he’s away on business.”
“There’s no one else in the area to come? Not even to, like, bring you some stuff?”
“Uh…nah, I can’t really think of anybody.” Mark shrugged. “You know most of my friends are online, dummy.” He smiled a little.
Jack shrugged with a small laugh. “Yeah…same goes for me, I guess.”
“Damn…I don’t know how I always manage to hurt myself.” Mark tried to readjust on his bed without jostling his leg. It hurt like hell every time he tried to move it.
“Oh God, remember when you dislocated your shoulder because a mannequin fell on you?” Jack said suddenly. He burst into a fit of giggles, and it warmed Mark’s heart to see his boyfriend so amused. “Or that time when you sliced your wrist because you got it stuck in a chain-link fence?”
Mark laughed. “Yeah! It’s still scarred!” He showed the wrist in question to the webcam. A thin, squiggly scar was left over from the incident. “God, I have the worst luck.”
“I don’t know how you’re still alive. You need adult supervision when you go out.”
“Okay, Mom, thanks.” Mark laid back against the pillows and yawned. “What time is it?”
“For who? For me it’s three in the morning.”
“Damn, Jack, why aren’t you asleep?!”
“Because you emailed me sayin’ you broke your fuckin’ leg! I needed to make sure you were okay.”
Mark smiled genuinely at his boyfriend. He readjusted the phone so that he could lay down and see him at the same time. “Thank you, that’s really nice of you,” he said quietly, feeling grateful.
“It was my pleasure.” Jack chewed on his lower lip, seemingly thinking something through. “You look tired. Do you wanna go to bed?”
“Nah, I’m good,” Mark yawned. “I wanna keep talking.”
“C’mon, you don’t fool me,” Jack chided. “Go to sleep, Mark. It helps healing.”
Mark closed his eyes against his will. “I wanna talk to you….”
“I’ll talk to you ‘til you fall asleep, okay?”
“Okay, thanks,” Mark mumbled.
If there was a conversation afterwards, Mark didn’t remember it. He was out like a light.
* * *
The next day was much like the first. Mark was given food and a pain pill and his bedpan was changed (disgusting for both parties). He watched whatever was on TV (mostly talk shows and Family Feud) and used his phone off and on. He tried to message Jack a few times, but he wasn’t answering. Mark felt lonely, but he didn’t hold it against Jack. It wasn’t like his entire life could revolve around his boyfriend.
Mark fell asleep early (healing really took a lot out of him, it seemed) and woke up to a Skype call at around eight in the morning. He answered and was happy to see Jack’s smiling face. He was walking down some kind of busy street, meaning he was probably using Skype mobile too.
“Hey!” Mark said excitedly. It felt so good to see a friendly face. “Where are you?”
“I’m runnin’ an errand,” Jack said nonchalantly. “I felt bad for not callin’ yesterday, sorry about that. I had some shit to take care of.”
“It’s fine, shit happens.” Mark tried to raise up on the bed and winced as he moved his leg by accident. “Dammit! This thing hurts.”
Jack frowned sympathetically. “I’m sorry. Do you feel any better?” He crossed a crosswalk, glancing around to make sure there weren’t any cars.
“Yeah, a little. Dude, should you really be Skyping and walking?”
“I’ll be fine, don’t worry about me. So how’re you gettin’ your stuff to you at the hospital?”
“I haven’t, really. I’m just hanging out here until I can go home and get some of my own stuff.”
“Damn. I can’t believe your own mum didn’t come down to check on you.”
“She’s busy with work and Thomas. She’s called me a few times, anyway. I know she cares.” Mark was a little miffed that Jack was accusing her of not caring.
Jack seemed to sense this, because he backpedaled. “I didn’t mean anythin’ by it, sorry,” he said quickly. “I was just sayin’—”
“It’s fine, don’t worry about it.”
“Anyway, what kind of stuff do you wish you had?”
“More clothes, for one,” Mark laughed, picking at the two-day-old outfit he’d been wearing when he actually broke his leg. They’d taken his jeans because they were bloody, and then his boxers so that he could use the bedpan, so he was stuck with his T-shirt. At least they hadn’t given him a backless hospital gown.
“That’s it?”
“Nah, I wish I had some better food. The cafeteria stuff is always the same. I also wish I had my laptop. Using my phone for everything sucks.”
“Yeah, I hear you. I hate how much data I have to use when I’m inter—” Jack stopped himself and cleared his throat. “Er, away from a Wi-Fi source.”
Mark nodded. “I’m with you there.” A nurse walked up to the room.
“Mr. Fischbach?” she said politely, sticking her head in. “It’s time for a sponge bath.”
Mark smiled. Sure, it’d be embarrassing to have a stranger washing his junk, but he was tired of feeling icky in his bedpan and old clothes.
“Gotta go, Jack. Sorry.”
“It’s fine, I gotta finish my errands anyway. I love you.”
“Love you too. Call me later tonight, okay?”
“Will do.” Jack hung up, and Mark laid the phone on his bedside table.
“All right, nurse!” Mark grunted as he tried to sit up straight. “Let’s get this over with.”
* * *
Mark killed two hours after the sponge bath (which, to his relief, wasn’t quite as awkward as he’d anticipated) and watched Dr. Phil. He’d never been a big fan of the show, but it was amazing what limited choices and no mobility did to a person’s pickiness over TV shows. Outside the door, there was a knock.
Mark readjusted his sheets to make sure his bare bottom half was covered. “Come in,” he called.
The nurse who bathed him poked her head in. “You have a visitor, sir.”
Mark perked up, surprised. He adjusted his blanket further. “Uh, okay, great! Who is it?”
The nurse stepped aside wordlessly, and a familiar face stood in the doorway, beaming cheekily.
“Well, fancy seeing you here!” Jack said with fake nonchalance. He sauntered into the room, weighed down by multiple shopping bags.
Mark gasped audibly, and the nurse closed the door behind him.
“Wh—what?!” he stammered. Jack set down the bags and pulled a chair up close to the bed, leaning gratuitously near Mark’s face. “What the hell are you doing here?!”
Jack shrugged smugly. He looked pretty proud of himself. “Oh, y’know, I was in the neighborhood,” he shrugged. “I heard you had some stuff that needed picked up, and I figured I’d do the honors. No biggie.”
Mark shook his head in amazement. “When…when did you get here?”
“Yesterday evening. I meant to be here earlier, but my flight got delayed.” Jack sighed. “I mean, it’s whatever; it was a last-minute ticket anyway. But I was still pretty annoyed.”
“You bought…a last minute ticket? For me?”
“Of course I did. You said you didn’t have any visitors.”
Mark suddenly felt as though he might cry. He looked down, red in the face, and swallowed.
Jack gasped. “Oh my God, are you gettin’ choked up?” he blurted, sounding touched.
Mark nodded. “Yeah, I am! Jack, thank you…that’s just so….”
“C’mon, there’s no need to thank me.” Jack leaned closer and held Mark’s face gently, and Mark blinked a few times to get himself under control. He was captivating by the brightness of Jack’s blue eyes, and his heart kicked up in his chest. It hit him; Jack was really here!
“I just can’t believe you came,” Mark laughed, and his voice felt thick.
“Well I couldn’t very well let you be here alone,” Jack replied, trying to play it off. He leaned in and brushed Mark’s lips tentatively.
Mark cupped the back of Jack’s head and prevented him from pulling away. He kissed him hard for a good minute or so. It was the first time he’d seen Jack in person in several months, and it felt damn good to touch him again.
Jack laughed a little and pulled back forcibly. “C’mon, don’t seduce me too soon,” he warned teasingly. “I gotta give you your stuff.”
“What, does my broken leg turn you on?” Mark said impishly, raising his eyebrows. Jack turned away with a smile and began opening the bags. He’d brought some snack foods: Oreos, Cheez-Its, Go-gurts, and mini-sodas. (The last two were put in a small cooler that Jack brought, already filled with ice.) He also had a burrito and Coke from Qdoba, which he set in Mark’s lap.
“Oh God, that smells like heaven,” Mark moaned. Jack smiled.
“Yeah, I figured you might want a break from whatever they’re servin’ downstairs.”
“Believe me, I do.” Mark bit into it and was rewarded by the spicy goodness inside. “Is there anything else?”
Jack pulled out some shirts and pants. “I had to guess on your size, but I think I got ‘em right,” he explained. “I couldn’t get your laptop for you, sorry.”
“No, you’ve done way more than enough,” Mark said quickly. He wiped his mouth with a napkin and gripped Jack’s hand, kissing the back of it. “Thank you, really. You’re the best.”
Jack blushed. “It was my pleasure. I didn’t want you to be sittin’ here all alone.”
“This was the best thing you could’ve done.” He beckoned for Jack to lean closer, and when he did he planted a kiss on his lips. “I appreciate you so much.”
“I love you too, you sappy dork,” Jack laughed, but he looked flattered.
“When are you going back to Ireland?” Mark asked. Jack shook his head.
“Not ‘til you’re ready for me to.”
Mark smiled at him, feeling truly blessed for the skinny, blue-eyed Irishman reclining int the chair opposite him.
“Yeah, well about that…,” he joked. “I’ll never be ready for you to leave.”
Jack shook his head with a laugh. “You’re ridiculous,” he replied, but it sure sounded a lot like I love you. He dove in and kissed Mark again, and he tasted a lot like home.