Cracked by K. M. Walton Page B

bum leg out of the water.
    Her question about taking a shower makes me go red in the face again. The question!
    “Nah, I’m good. I’m good.” I feel my crotch react, and I am so thankful I’m covered in blankets.

Victor
    I CAN’T STAY IN THE SHOWER ALL NIGHT.
    I have to go out there.
    I don’t want to go out there.
    I can’t do this.

Bull
    THAT JERK HAS BEEN IN THE SHOWER FOR AGES . His dinner tray probably has icicles hanging off it by now. I’m going to be so pissed if he uses up all the hot water. I press the button, and Ellie asks what I need.
    I talk into the plastic box. “That guy’s been in the bathroom a long time. Can you get him out of there? I wanna take a shower.”
    “I’ll be there in a few.”
    I polish off my green Jell-O cubes and the water is still going. I hear a knock on the door and Ellie ask if everything is all right. She knocks harder. “Victor? Are you okay in there?”
    The water shuts off.
    I hear him shout, “I’m good. Sorry.”
    She pulls back my curtain. “He’ll be out in a sec. You sure you don’t need any help in there? It’s going to be hard to keep that leg dry.”
    Oh my God. The thought of her seeing me naked—full-on naked—makes my palms sweat. I wipe my hands on the sheets.
    “And you’re really not supposed to put too much pressure on your one leg yet. Did Rob show you how to use your crutches?”
    I didn’t even notice them leaning against the wall. I assume Rob was the sneezy, complaining dude that rolled me in here. “Nope, no info on the crutches. But I’ll figure it out.”
    Ellie smiles and grabs the crutches. “I know you could figure it out, William. But you have stitches and we don’t need you falling. Stitches are fragile. Like my heart.” She reaches up dramatically and clutches her chest. And winks. She talks as she gets me up to a sitting position. “The bullet went straight through and didn’t hit any bone, which is really good for you, but it did do some damage to your thigh muscles. And it means you have two spots with stitches: the entrance and the exit wounds. You can’t get those wet just yet.”
    I am doing everything in my power not to bawl, becausemoving my leg hurts like shit. Ellie is maneuvering me slow and all, but every inch I move is painful. Maybe I don’t need a shower.I stop moving and squeeze my eyes shut.
    “You okay?” Ellie asks.
    I open my eyes and gaze into hers. Man, she is hot. “I thinkIwanna laybackdown,” I mumble.
    Ellie nods and says, “Take a breather. You’re doing great. And your feet are on the floor.”
    I grasp the bed with both hands and drop my head. All I want to do is lie back down and fall asleep. For a week. I take a few deep breaths and open my eyes.
    “Let’s try again. You ready?” she asks in the nicest voice.
    “Yeah.” Even though I said it, I am not ready.
    Ellie uses her arms to get me up to standing and then whispers, “Woo-hoo, William. I knew you could do it.”
    I have an overwhelming urge to hug her. Like squeeze her so tight that she’d lose her breath. Instead I just nod and say, “Yeah.”
    She adjusts the crutches to my height and shows me the basics. I laugh out loud as she crutches across the room, making her legs fly up like a little kid. “Sorry,” she says. “Do not do that.”
    “I won’t.” And then she makes me go back and forth a few times on my own. I turn around to head back, and I getreally light-headed and stumble into the wall. She’s by my side before I have time to panic, and she leads me back to my bed. I swear it takes me, like, ten hours to lie down again.
    With her hands on her hips, Ellie says, “Shower in the morning?”
    “Yeah.”
    I fall asleep with some pretty filthy scenarios running around in my head.

Victor
    I COME OUT OF THE BATHROOM, AND BULL’S SIDE of the room is dark. I can hear him snoring. My jaw unclenches as relief runs through my veins. I lift the plastic lid off my dinner plate and touch the meatball. It’s like