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"Are you…"

I sit up straighter.

"In the shower?"

A laugh flies from my throat. "Not yet. I was about to be when you called."

She giggles, and it resets every doubt I've felt in the last ten minutes.

"Well," she says, her voice softer now. Steady.

I stand up, wiping the fog from the mirror.

"I'm glad you answered."

I watch my smile grow on my face. The image is faint and a little blurry from the steam.

But it's there.

"I'm always gonna answer for you, Lenny girl."

And I mean it.

Standing here in my dorm room bathroom, the shower still running, Scottie still doing whatever Scottie's doing on the other side of the door—my phone is still pressed between my ear and shoulder, listening to her breathing even out on the other side.

Because if she's still calling, I'm still answering.

And if she's still saying she misses me, well… I'm still holding onto the reckless hope that she won't stop until she's here.

26

Lenny

The clock above the nurses' station ticks over another minute.

5:12.

I stare at it like I can somehow make the numbers move faster if I concentrate hard enough.

Five forty-five would be ideal. Five thirty would be fine. Honestly, five twenty would be enough at this point—anything to get me closer to when I'm guessing Jace might be here.

"Lenora."

I blink slowly, my eyes still locked on the clock.

5:13.

"Lenora."

The second time I hear my name I'm pulled halfway back to earth, but it still takes another drop of the second hand before I finally look down from the wall.

Dr. Cherry is standing in front of our station with a chart in her hand and an eyebrow raised. Judging by the look on her face—which isn't often chipper but is currently even grouchier than normal—she's been there longer than she'd like.

"Sorry," I say quickly, straightening my body from where I was leaning against the counter. I paint a guilty smile. "What did you say?"

Her eyes flit toward the ceiling as she tilts the chart toward me. "I asked if room six's labs were back yet."

"Oh, right." I spin toward the computer, nearly knocking another nurse's water over in the process. I steady the bottle rocking back and forth, avoiding the sudden emotional connection I now feel to the teetering Stanley and the dull ache in my hand from where I smacked the metal.