Page 25 of Death, Interrupted
I stopped her before she could go on any further. “I would like to be taken off his contact info.”
“Alright. I will have to know who his new emergency contact is.”
I didn’t think it through that far, but I told her the one person I knew was invested in Joey’s well-being more than I was. And who lived closest to any of his other family members. “That would be his cousin, Deryk Elrod.”
“Would you be able to give me his number?”
“Yeah.” I lowered my phone and put it on speaker, then looked for Deryk’s number to tell her.
“Thank you. I’ve noted the change. Do you want us to still keep you updated anyway?”
I put the phone back to my ear and thought about it for a moment. “Is he going to be alright? In the long run, I mean?”
She paused for a second, probably choosing her words carefully because this wasn’t an easy thing to talk about. “He had a concussion and lost a lot of blood. The staples are secure, and his scan looks acceptable for discharge. The memory loss may improve. It sometimes comes back in pieces. We can’t promise anything, but we’re not seeing signs that worry us for long-term function.”
“Okay,” I said. “Then no. Please don’t update me any further. Contact his cousin for everything.”
“Of course,” she said. “If anything changes, you can always call the unit directly, but we’ll reach out to his cousin from now on.”
“Thanks,” I said, and ended the call before I could change my mind.
I put the phone face down on the dresser and went back to work.
By late afternoon, the closet only had Joey’s clothes left inside, and the drawer was half-empty too because, apparently, I had left all of my underwear here, and none back at my place. I scanned every room for anything small that I could’ve left behind, like single socks or scarves, but I had done a good job of erasing myself from this house. The only thing that was left for me to do was leave.
First, though, I sent a clear message to Joey’s parents; otherwise, Deryk would tell them I was leaving, and they’d come looking for answers I wasn’t ready to give. We never had much of a relationship. They barely spoke to me at dinners, and when they did, it felt forced. But I knew if I left without telling them, they’d call it disrespect, and they always had loud opinions when they were kept in the dark about things that weren’t their business.
I’m leaving Joey and moving my things out today. The hospital will contact Deryk for discharge and aftercare. I won’t be involved going forward. Please reach out to him or Deryk directly.
It delivered, and Joey’s mother read it immediately. Then the bubble popped up, telling me that she was writing back. I didn’t really care for a response, but I waited for it to come anyway.
Who’s this?
I stared at it, shocked for a second, then I rolled my eyes because I shouldn’t have expected too much. That said everything I needed to know. I deserved so much better. More love and appreciation. More thank yous. But I had never gotten any of that from Joey or anyone in his family.
I decided not to text back and put my phone in my pocket before grabbing the bags to head outside.
It took me two trips to the car, then I went to lock the door and slid the key under the doormat. I didn’t care about this house anymore, or the man who lived in it, and I left without looking back once.
Back at my apartment, I unpacked my clothes and took my time folding them neatly. The tension eased as the closet filled, but then the tears came, and I tried to fight them before I just let them.
I didn’t cry for Joey or the past we shared. I cried for myself. For finally moving on and understanding that the way Joey had treated me for years wasn’t how anyone should ever be treated.
When I felt steadier, I made dinner by pressing buttons on the air fryer. Fries and nuggets would do it tonight, nothing heroic. I put on a show, curled up on the couch, and tried to let my body relax. I thought about texting Sly but decided not to. I didn’t owe him anything, even if he had been extremely kind to me, but I wanted to get through the first evening alone.
I fell asleep early, then woke after midnight with a bad taste in my mouth from not brushing my teeth after dinner, and with my chest tight. Sly was on my mind again, and the urge to reach out to him hit hard.
I stared at my phone in the TV glow and picked it up when the pull got too strong to ignore. I searched for Sly’s number in my contacts and opened a new chat, then sent him a quick message.
I’m okay. Thanks for everything. – Sumner
I didn’t expect him to text me back in the middle of the night, but he read the message instantly, not even giving me time to process that he was already texting back.
Good, I’m glad to hear. I’m here if you need anything. If you don’t, I’ll stay out of the way.
He was giving me more than Joey ever had, and I was grateful for that. Still, I couldn’t let him get tooclose. Not just yet. I exhaled, sent him a quickthank you, then put the phone face down on the coffee table and went back to sleep.
***