Headache Ch. 8

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Dillinger crumpled. Elise stood over him, breathing heavily as the colours leached out of the world and the too-bright lights dimmed.

Everyone just sort of…stood there, stunned.

I had the overwhelming urge to start a slow clap.

Didn’t.

So should have but.

Mr. Penderghast turned around to the crowd.

“Alright you lot, bugger off, I want this week’s accounts in by ten tomorrow.”

No one moved.

“Bugger off!”

They started to move off back to their cubicles, murmuring. Mr. Penderghast crouched down next to Dillinger, curled up on the floor, whimpering and muttering.

“Adam…Adam…hey are you ok?”

Dillinger just kept whimpering.

“Hey, come on Adam, come on sit up…. oh shit, he’s bleeding…”

Elise, hand on mouth like some old movie star.

“Oh my god, did I?”

“No, he’s not bleeding…down there…it’s his nose and his, well, his – “

Ghastly sat him up. Holy flurking shnit, what’s with his

“- eyes.”

“Shee-it.”

“Tom, call an ambulance ok, Elise could you grab some tissues or something.”

Elise bustled off. I just stood there.

“Tom, ambulance, now!”

I fumbled for my phone.

About half an hour later, Elise and I stood in the lobby, watching the paramedics load Dillinger into the ambulance. They’d sedated him, so the whimpering had stopped, and had done something to stop the bleeding, but the dried blood was all over his cheeks, red-black tears. Penderghast walked over to us.

“Look, we haven’t been able to get in touch with Judith, so I’m going to ride with Adam to the hospital.”

Elise nodded. I started to, but the movement sent waves of pain coursing up my neck and through my temples.

“Look, you two take the rest of the day off ok….Jesus Tom, you look like shit…ok, don’t come in tomorrow.”

I tried to nod again.

Fuck, got to stop doing that.

“You don’t look so good either Elise… better than Tom but – “

gee, thanks

“ – so take tomorrow off as well.”

He stood there awkwardly.

“Look, I’m sorry about – “

A paramedic waved from the back of the ambulance.

“Hey, you coming or what?”

“They’re playing my song. I’ll see you in a couple of days.”

“Bye Mr. Penderghast.”

“See you, boss.”

He clambered into the ambulance. It drove off quickly, lights flashing but no siren. Thank God. If it had, I think Elise would’ve been splattered with brains when my head exploded.

Elise and I didn’t talk as we rode the lift up to the office and grabbed our stuff from our cubicles. As I picked up my satchel I looked around over the rows of little grey boxes. I hadn’t noticed it this morning, but almost every other one was empty. Jesus, no wonder Ghastly was freaking out. Maybe there was a gas leak or something.

We got back into the lift and stood there, side by side. Still not talking. This was getting awkward. I opened my mouth to say something. Closed it as the doors slid open. We stepped out into the foyer and walked across it to the revolving doors. Paused to drop our bags and shrug on our coats. I was moving like a puppet that had had half its strings cut, head pounding, the already awkward manoeuvre rendered into some form of bizarre slapstick yoga.

I ended up with one arm behind my head, elbow locked in an excruciating pose, the other hand caught in my inside breast pocket, rather than the left sleeve where it was supposed to go. I looked up, saw Elise standing there, vision of understated elegance, studying me with the same look of frank appraisal she had been wearing at Cheri’s party.

I hadn’t been this embarrassed since I’d fainted during a high-school assembly and the principal had dived off the stage trying to catch me.

Without a word, she stepped in, tugged at my lapel to help me free my left hand, stepped to my right, around and behind me to raise the back of my collar, unlocking my elbow, then stepped around me again, completing a full circle. She stood in front of me, close enough to embrace, fiddling with my lapels. I could smell her shampoo, like apples.

I felt like I was six years old again, being fussed over by mother on the first day of school.

She didn’t move away.

I felt fucking mortified.

“Thanks.”

It broke whatever spell was holding her there.

She stepped back, looking embarrassed. Tried to turn it into a joke, laugh it off, no big deal.

“Buy me a coffee and we’ll be even.”

I stood there, head pounding, sore and aching and embarrassed to hell.

“Yeah, ok.”

Fuck it, caffeine’s supposed to be good for headaches right?

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