Chapter 95: Acceleration-Deceleration
Miller
Everything was white. It wasn’t just the room, but the high hum that vibrated in the back of my skull. My head felt like it had been raked open and stuffed with cotton.
I tried to shift, but a sharp, stabbing pain behind my eyes made me hiss and stay still. The last thing I remembered was the roar of the crowd, being pushed hard against the boards, being rushed to the hospital—and then nothing.
I blinked, my vision slowly coming into focus. This wasn’t the Glacier Dome clinic, even though the smell of antiseptic and the rhythmic beep-beep-beep of a monitor told me I was in a hospital.
I groaned softly, my hand twitching on the bedsheets, and that was when I felt it.
Something warm. Something solid.
I turned my head slowly, even though every inch of movement felt like an ordeal. There, right at the edge of my mattress, was a head of blonde hair.
Leo.
My eyes widened at the sight of him. He wasn’t in a chair across the room; he was right beside me, his body folded uncomfortably as he leaned over the edge of my bed.
His arms were crossed on the mattress, acting as a pillow for his head. I stared at him for a long time, blinking, thinking he would disappear—because there was no way Leo Ackerman was actually here with me.
But he was, and he looked worn out, like he had been through a war.
Slowly, fighting the dizziness that threatened to pull me back under, I lifted my hand and reached out, letting my fingers rest on his head.
I traced the short, bristly hair of his low buzz cut. It was soft, and I should have stopped right there, but instead, I trailed my hand lower until I met the piercing on his brow.
The small movement must have been enough. Leo’s eyes snapped open and he jerked upward so fast he nearly knocked over the water glass on the bedside table.
"You are awake," he blurted out, his voice gravelly from sleep. He looked at my hand, which was still hovering near his face, and then he scrambled to sit up straight in the uncomfortable plastic chair beside the bed.
He cleared his throat, adjusting his shirt. "It’s not what you think. I wasn’t... I was just monitoring your vitals."
I couldn’t help it. Even with my head throbbing, a smirk tugged at the corner of my mouth at his reaction. His face had turned red immediately, and I never expected that Leo would look that flushed—especially in front of me. "Relax, Doc. If you had wanted to cuddle me, you could have asked for a bigger bed."
Leo’s expression flattened into that classic stoic mask of his. "Well, that is not what happened. I am just fulfilling my duty as the primary medical consultant for the Northern Avalanche. Your neurological state required constant observation following the blunt force trauma you sustained."
He stood up and started checking the IV bag. "The impact caused a significant acceleration-deceleration injury to your cranium. Science dictates that the first twenty-four hours are critical to ensure there is no subdural hematoma or escalating intracranial pressure. My presence here is a matter of medical necessity, not sentiment."
I let out a hearty laugh when he finished talking. It made my head wince, but it felt good to hear him talk. "There it is," I teased. "The science nonsense that always comes from you. Honestly, Leo, when I hit the ice and everything started going black, I actually thought I wouldn’t be able to hear the strange things you say anymore. I kind of missed it."
Leo paused, his hand still on the IV line. He didn’t look at me, but I saw the slight tension in his shoulders soften. "Your cognitive functions seem relatively intact if you’re already back to being insufferable," he murmured, though his voice was much gentler than his words.
"You are so full of it, Leo," I croaked, my eyes tracking him as he moved around the bed. "You were worried. Just admit it. It’s scientifically proven that your heart rate spikes when I am in trouble."
Leo didn’t even look up from the monitor as he spoke. "Actually, my heart rate remains consistent with a healthy adult male in a high-stress environment. It’s called professional composure."
I waited until he stepped close enough to check the dressing on my temple, and with a sudden burst of energy I didn’t know I had, I reached out and hooked my arm around his waist, pulling him down into my arms.
Leo stiffened instantly, his hands hovering awkwardly over my chest. "Miller, what are you doing? Release me. This is a highly sterile environment for this level of proximity."
"Make me," I challenged, grinning despite the ache in my skull. I tucked my face against his neck, breathing in his scent. "You enjoy being in my arms. Because if you didn’t, you could have pushed me away easily."
Leo went still and let out a groan, but he didn’t pull back. Instead, he spoke through gritted teeth. "You are irresponsible, you stupid boy. I am merely exercising caution," he muttered. "If I were to apply the necessary force to disengage, you would likely fall back and crack your skull again. I don’t have the time to fill out more paperwork for your second concussion!"
"So it means you care," I whispered, tightening my grip around his small waist.
Leo let out another frustrated groan. "You are tempting me, Miller. Truly. It’s a miracle your brain functions at all given how much you rely on impulse over logic," he said, but still, he didn’t move. For a second, it felt like he might actually lean into me, but then the heavy click of the door handle echoed through the room.
The door swung open, and a man in a lab coat walked in, clipboard in his hand, and behind him was Coach Reddick. "Good morning, let’s see how our patient is—"
Thud. I had landed on the ground.
In a blur of panic, Leo had jammed his palms into my chest and shoved me with a force that felt like a defensive lineman’s hit. I went flying off the other side of the bed, landing in a tangled heap of blankets and IV wires on the cold floor.
"Ow! Dammit, Leo!" I yelped from the ground.