Page 11 of When Ben Loved Tim

“Nah, it’s fine.” Tim grabs the brace next to him. “Just put this on it. Tight, but not too tight, you know?”

I do as he says, feeling horrible with each stifled whimper I hear.

“If it hurts that bad—” I begin.

“That’s what these are for,” Tim says, jiggling the bottle of painkillers. “Get me something to drink before you go.”

I wasn’t planning on leaving, but it’s his choice, not mine. I go to the kitchen and grab a can of soda from the fridge. After I hand it to him, I can’t get myself to turn away.

“When do your parents get back?” I ask.

“Next week,” he says.

“But they’ll come home early, right? When they hear what happened?”

Tim snorts. “I’m sure they’ll paddle across the ocean just as fast as they can.”

“My mom would swim if she had to. Wait, what do you mean the ocean? Are they out of the county?”

“I’m fine,” Tim says, tossing a pair of pills into his mouth before washing them down. “And soon I’ll be even better.”

“Maybe I should stick around,” I suggest. “What if you need something?”

“I’ll crawl. It really isn’t that hard.”

I gnaw on my bottom lip, but he’s looking less patient by the second, so I finally turn away. I grab my backpack and dig through it to find a piece of paper and a pen. I write down my phone number. “Just in case,” I say, holding it out to him.

He stares instead of taking the paper from me. I feel vulnerable.

“Okay?” I prompt, stretching my arm out farther. “Whatever you need. I’ll come running.”

Tim finally grabs the piece of paper. “I’m good. But okay.”

“So I guess umm… See you around.”

He merely smirks in response.

I see myself out, deciding that I will indeed move to a different town to begin a new life, because this has been one of the most humiliating experiences of my life. And simultaneously one of the most exciting.

Chapter Four

Tim is all I can think about while I’m eating dinner with my family. As soon as we finish and I’ve cleared the table, I leave Karen to fill the dishwasher so I can do medical research. I feel like I’m fighting against the clock to find a desperately needed cure, although all I come up with is bad news. Tim isn’t okay.

“I’m gonna go hang out with Allison!” I tell my parents as I race past the living room.

“Don’t forget that it’s a school night!” my mom shouts after me.

Jogging isn’t an interest of mine, and by the time I show up on Tim’s doorstep sweaty and panting, I decide that it never will be. I ring the bell and knock before worrying that he’ll fall in the entryway again, so I try the door, which is still unlocked.

“Hello?” I call, sticking my head in. “It’s me!”

I hear laughter before he responds. “Get in here, you weirdo!”

I find Tim exactly where I left him, except now the television is on, and he’s pulled the blankets close to cover himself. His face is pale.

“How do you feel?” I ask.

Tim raises the remote to mute the TV. “Great! Kind of cold though.” He shoves off the blanket. “Although now I’m kinda hot. And hungry.”