Fuck. Now I’m crying.
Graham
Graham slammed the laptop closed without sending the email. He’d known the second he started typing he wouldn’t send it to Claire, but he wanted to write it, anyway.
Angrily swiping at his cheeks and relieved Chris wasn’t in the apartment to witness his breakdown, he leaned forward and put the computer on the coffee table. Using that sixth sense dogs had, Gertrude snuggled her way into his lap. He fell back onto the couch, aka his makeshift bed, and held his tiny dog, accepting her offer of comfort.
He let himself wallow for a few more minutes before pushing to his feet. He’d been cast-free for weeks now, and was pretty fucking motivated to bust through physical therapy with flying colors. He’d been religious about doing the recommended daily exercises, and continued his upper body regimen and riding the stationary bike set up in Chris’s living room. He’d lost a lot of muscle tone in his legs, which was expected but frustrating nonetheless.
It would be another month before he could climb again, and even then, he’d need to stick to easy routes for a while. He’d take what he could get, and planned to head to the mountains the very day his doctor cleared him.
Staying with Chris had been great for the most part. They got along well, and Chris didn’t mind that Graham came with a dog. But it was hard watching Chris leave for the mountains every few days, knowing if it weren’t for his accident, Graham would have been with him. But he didn’t want to wear out his welcome, so he’d started looking for other places.
Nothing was as good a deal as what he’d had living with Claire and Reagan, which only pissed him off. He tried to direct his anger to a third party, like the drug company who’d priced his mom’s medication so high and effectively reduced his monthly income by several hundred bucks.
She’d had fewer flares since starting the new drug, though, so it was worth every penny.
Speaking of his mom, she presented another issue entirely. She’d asked about Claire several times in the last few weeks. His dad even joined in, and when Graham asked why they were suddenly so interested in her specifically when they’d never been with past girlfriends, his mom had gone and wrecked him.
You were different when she was around, she’d said. It wasn’t the first time I’ve seen a woman look at you with interest, but it was the first time you seemed to realize you were worth looking at.
He’d ended that phone call pretty damn quick.
So far, he’d been able to avoid telling them he and Claire weren’t on speaking terms and had effectively terminated their relationship, if he could even call it that. But it wouldn’t be long before they figured it out.
A knock sounded at the door and Graham frowned as he stood. The only entrance to the apartment was directly from the store below, so Chris must have let someone up.
Graham opened the door to find Noah.
“Hey, man,” Noah greeted.
Graham stepped aside to let his friend in. “Hey. What are you doing here?”
“Had to drop my bike off for a tune-up and thought I’d say hi. You haven’t taken me up on any of my offers to grab a beer, and Chris says you haven’t gone much of anywhere other than work and physical therapy.”
Graham looked away and sat at the small kitchen table. “Just trying to focus on getting my strength back.”
“Are you sure that’s all it is?”
Glancing up to see Noah leaning against the counter, arms crossed, Graham lifted an eyebrow. “What do you want me to say?”
“Nothing in particular. I just want you to know I’m here if you want to talk.”
“I appreciate it,” Graham said. And he did. “I’ve actually been, um, journaling. It sort of feels like I’m talking it through, even if it’s not with another person.”
Not that Graham would have ever expected it out of Noah, but it was still a relief that his buddy didn’t bust up laughing.
“That’s cool. I’ve never thought about doing that before,” Noah said. “Might have come in handy ten years ago.”
Graham had thought about that, too. He was surprised how much he’d taken to it and wished he’d had an outlet like it after Nathan died. “Claire suggested it, actually. I’ve been doing it since a few days after I got out of the hospital.”
“Well, I’m glad you have something that’s helping. As long as you know I’m always happy to listen, okay?”
“Thanks.”
“How’s the physical therapy going? What are you allowed to do now?”