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Leaving the bathroom, I try to make my way to the living room when there’s a knock at the door. My head falls back and I curse the timing. Another knock hits the door, louder this time.
“Coming,” I grunt out, trying to walk as fast as possible. With each step my queasiness grows.
“Ouwf, you look like hell,” the Super says as I open the door. I give him a half grimace, half smile as I gesture him in. “You feeling okay?”
“I’m fine,” I reply. Not wanting his focus on me but on the A/C unit. “I haven’t been here for the last 24 hours, but I came home to that,” I point at the puddle of water, “and the unit not even turning on.”
“Hate to break it to you 804 but there’s nothing I can do about your A/C problem. The units are not building property. Only came up here to see the water damage.”
My head starts to spin. I hear what he’s saying but I don’t want to believe him. How could I have been so stupid? Tears well in my eyes as bile turns in my stomach. The need to lay down is starting to overpower me.
“It doesn’t look so bad. I can fix the plaster sometime next – hey, are you alright?”
I shake my head no, hands massaging my temples. “I don’t…I don’t feel well.” Stumbling back to the sofa, I lower myself and lay back. Resting my eyes, I ask the Super if we can reschedule. He quickly agrees, saying none of the damage is severe. That it looks like the unit was hit with something to make it malfunction. My eyes grow heavy and I lose the battle against sleep.
“Is there someone I can call? You don’t look good and I feel weird leaving you alone.”
I don’t respond. I’m already being pulled into the darkness.
???
“You Grant?”
“Yeah.”
“Thank Christ. She just collapsed on the sofa. I didn’t touch her, but she’s completely out of it.”
The voices sound distant and muffled, almost like they’re under water. My eyelids flutter open but it’s a struggle. My body feels too heavy to move.
“I didn’t touch her or nothin’, but it didn’t feel right leaving her. Wife told me to stick around till you came.”
“Thanks man. I have it from here.”
“You look familiar…”
“Again. Thanks so much.”
There’s more shuffling, a click of a door and then silence. Waves of fatigue start to lull me back to sleep only to be startled when something touches my forehead.
“Pix? Baby can you open your eyes for me?”
I don’t want to. Everything in my body is rebelling against the small request but I try, the desire to see his mint green eyes too tempting.
“Hey Pix,” Grant says softly, his hand gliding down the side of my face. “How are you feeling?”
I don’t recognize the voice that croaks out “okay.” Giving me a little chuckle, he reaches for something out of my view. When a glass of water appears, I slowly lick my lips.
“Hate to break it to you Lex, but you don’t look okay to me. You’re sick baby.”
Squinting at him over the rim of the glass, I gulp down the water with a grimace. My throat feels raw and tight, a dull pain hits me as I swallow. “I don’t get sick. This is just heat exhaustion. It’s hot in here.”
“It is hot in here,” he agrees with me in yet another condescendingly sweet voice, “but I don’t think it’s heat exhaustion that has you feeling like this.”
A grunt is the only reply I give him. This conversation is depleting all my energy.
“Okay baby. Go back to sleep. I’ll be here.”
I pass out before he finishes his sentence.
