Because youse guys have been so patient as I scratched myself out of the pit, (not completely, mind you, but I can feel the sun's warmth on my face finally) here's an extra long teaser holding the information you most desire. It's the absolute least I can do to make up for disappearing on you.
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“Mr. Twist! Behave!”
“Ah, come now, Edna, don’t tell me you haven’t noticed.” Somewhere at the other end of yards of plastic tubing spider legging from his arm, behind Ringers Lactate flushing enough fluid in to make him piss Lake Erie, beside the squat square force feeding packed cells, Type B Negative, under the sidecar of Levaquin – the all-purpose antibiotic, and futzing with the IVAC producing a tune reminiscent of the dance mix version of Cher’s “Believe” was his ER nurse. And she’s smiling! Saucy little minx! “I’m the one with the extra hole here, and I noticed.”
“I’m a professional.” Three buttons, three beeps. “And a grandmother.”
“What, the AARP frowns on ass admiration now?” Head flop to the left didn’t quite make it there thanks to what the blankets wedged against his spine cocking him sideways, the pillows next to his ass and knees to keep him there, the implement borrowed from the KGB’s toy chest immobilizing his left shoulder and Edna all laughingly referred to as a comfortable position. “Daniel, you noticed, didn’t you?”
The ADA shifted, noveau riche sensitivities oil to chintzy plastic chair water, Jack’s message bag between his feet, Jack’s blood crusted on his shirt. “Don’t know who you’re blathering about, Jack.”
“Jameel, the orderly, don’t tell me you didn’t notice his – what the fuck am I saying? No doubt you’ve been there, hit that…” - a prolonged moment of concentration to prod the snarky comment out of the morphine mire – “moved up one floor to PT.”
“Not talking out of your ass is always an option, Jack.”
Oooo! A direct hit! One more and…I’ve sunk his…his…battle…thingee!
“I think not talking at all would be advisable, Mr. Twist. You need to rest, jumpstart the healing process.”
Though whispered from the other side of the pharmacological chasm, Jack still heeded Edna’s suggestion of peace, snuggling under his narcotic comforter to wait, the absence of pain - or any sensations really, except for the hazy weights tied to his limbs with cottony, but unbreakable threads – soothed iron clenched muscles, quieted the high pitched shriek of fear, lullabied thoughts away from hospitals and Jacky’s memories to wander more pleasant meadows.
Daniel noticed, I know he did…watched him watching…the whole time Jameel was in…and then when he went…I know Daniel was…not that I give a…flying fuck…don’t care where he…not my, not anymore, ’cause I got…now there’s an ass! Should be one of the seven wonder…much finer than that… overgrown…Baby…lonian backyard…don’t want Daniel looking at…tell him to…it’s all mine…can’t have…can’t take…Daniel will look and what Daniel wants… goddamnit!…he’s mine… “Keep the fuck away from Ennis!”
“Oh, goody. Ennis again.” The chair not even marginally working for him anymore, Daniel stood up to pace the hobbit-sized trauma room, five steps one way of irritated tension. “Haven’t heard that name evoked for all of five minutes.”
“Allow me to recti…recti…” Jack was experiencing some difficulty in accessing his extensive vocabulary, opiates bogging down the connection. “…fix my oversight. Ennis, Ennis, Ennis, Ennis…oh, yes,” a sloppy, silly, sideways, simple and pure smile of unabashed love and devotion, warming Jack from the inside out. “…Eeeeeeennnnnnnnnniiiiiiisssssssss.”
“Ennis?” A quick notation in the patient’s chart. “Who is Ennis?”
“Ennis is…is…”
How does one describe perfection? The solution, the answer, it? Jack squeezed in tight, curling toes, clenching fist, squniching eyes, willing his floating on a drug cloud mind to focus on one thing, the only thing - Ennis this morning in their doorway, he and Jack nose to nose, clinking belt buckles, palms resting on the small of his back, denim frictioning wool, lips slick with kisses and turned up in the way that Jack knew was for him alone.
"Ennis is..." curls and freckles and brown – “…is...” - BBQ and whiskey and raisin bagels and Chinese and birthday cake – “…is…” – basketball, Cigar Butt, handcuffs - “…is…” waiting and dreaming and hoping and needing and completing – “…is…” - sweat and semen and spit and sex and sex and sex and fucking incredible sex - “…is…” – truth and strength and honesty and light and joy and life and home and me – “…Ennis is…”
“I’m Jack’s partner.”
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Those of you still with me, see you tomorrow!
B
