I opened my eyes -- I was lying down, on my left side, and someone was pressing something against my head. People seemed worried around me. I tried to move and stand up, but the person crouching next to me pushed me down. "No, don't move, the paramedics are coming." I frowned, trying to understand what was going on. Some things were escaping me -- how I'd come to be there, what had just happened -- and yet at the same time I felt perfectly lucid as I explained to the person next to me where to find my driver's license (in my wallet, rear left pocket), and how to unlock my phone to call my mother (swipe this way, then this way). I was still in a haze when the ambulance arrived. I was put on a stretcher and finally taken to the ER.
About six hours later, I walked out, Mom by my side. It was late afternoon, and I had eventually managed to puzzle together the little bits I could remember of the events of the morning. I had been cycling back home, following my usual route, when a delivery guy in a parked van had opened his door without checking for traffic. I had no recollection of the actual moment, but I guess I ended up flying through the air and hitting my head against the sidewalk -- leaving me with half-a-dozen stitches at the back of my head and a concussion. Nothing too serious, luckily -- even if, for the coming week and to be on the safe side, I had to avoid any significant exercise, as well as avoid being alone in the event of possible dizziness.
The timing couldn't have been worse: my friends and I were supposed to go the very next day for a whole week of canyon adventuring, something that was obviously very much out of question now. Tagging along was not even an option, so basically, my vacation was a no-go.
I had come to this conclusion while trying to munch through a plate of potatoes in a diner located a stone's throw from the hospital. Since I had not eaten anything since the morning (thanks to my little accident), I was ravenous -- and at the same time discovering that my jaw muscles on the left side of my face were painfully clenched, which rendered chewing particularly uncomfortable. Then Mom, who had listened patiently to my complaints, surprised me:
"Chris, listen. Okay, it sucks, you won't be able to go, I get it. But we've got to think first of you getting better."
"Hey, I'm fine, I mean, except for the head, I haven't hurt anything," I shrugged.
She continued. "Yeah, right. I heard the doctor, and I don't want you to do anything foolish. So since there's no canyon trip for you next week, you're going to come with me and Julie to the lake house. This way, I'll keep an eye on you and make sure you get all the rest you need."
"But Mom..."
"No 'but Mom' there, mister. You've had a close call there, consider yourself lucky. And you'd better get yourself a helmet before you go riding that bicycle again."
I sighed, recognizing defeat when I saw it. She was right -- even through my disappointment, I couldn't deny that. So I accepted, reluctantly, and went back to painfully trying to chew my food.
*****
I woke up with a start, and it took me a few seconds before things came floating back to me. I sat up, wincing. I was glad to be awake -- glad to be alive, in fact. I had gone to bed the night before a little worried about what could happen during my sleep, and realizing there had been no reason to be concerned, was the first good news of the day. I still had a major headache, but that was to be expected. I looked at the clock and took a deep breath. I had some time before we were supposed to leave for the lake house, but I had some packing to do this morning.
The lake house was a small wooden bungalow that Julie's family owned upstate, and where we had been to a few times in the past. Julie was Mom's best friend since college, and I had always considered her as part of the family. To be honest, going there wasn't too much of a drag, now that I had got over my disappointment. It was a nice, remote place, and even if it was lacking in terms of high-speed Internet, the idea of spending a week being cared for didn't sound so bad after all.
I got out of bed and started selecting some clothes -- the place could get a little chilly at night. As an afterthought, I also threw in my swimming shorts, though I doubted I'd get much action in that department, considering my current state. I packed my Kindle and laptop, added the necessary assortment of chargers and adapters, and I was more or less done.
I was checking up on the latest news online, when Julie arrived to pick us up. There was no mistaking Julie, even from upstairs -- Julie had an expansive personality, which often made her the life of the party. Mom used to tell me how she was the shy one, and Julie was the one always up to no good, which had always had me wonder a little about how wild they might have been during their college years. I liked Julie; she was fun and flirty, but deep down I knew she also was a good person, and she had more than once been an understanding shoulder when my love life wasn't doing great.
I went downstairs and graciously faced the expected questioning about the accident. I tried to be reassuring and downplayed things a little, while Mom explained that the concussion was something to be taken seriously, and that I had to be kept under surveillance over the next few days. When Julie joked that she was more than willing to take care of me with a saucy wink, Mom rolled her eyes, and we all headed out in good spirits.
The drive there was uneventful -- Mom and Julie were chatting together in the front, checking on me once in a while, while I was at the back, listening to my iPod while absentmindedly looking at the landscape rushing by outside. We stopped for lunch at a diner close to the lake, did some shopping at the nearby store, and eventually got to the bungalow early afternoon. We settled down quickly, rediscovering the familiar rooms and listing the few improvements that had been made along the years. Soon, we were enjoying the warm afternoon on the deck at the back, Mom and Julie sampling the temperature of the lake while I was reading on the deck chair.
I looked up from my book, taking in the lovely, quiet panorama. The sun was low and bathed everything in a warm light, giving a magical feel to it all. Mom and Julie were drying themselves off, and Julie noticed me looking in their direction.
"Hey, no peeking, mister!" she said jokingly, and I shook my head, resigned to having to endure this kind of banter over the next few days. To be honest, they looked good in their bikinis -- both were in their late forties and were women with curves. They clearly looked after themselves and would probably have made more than one head turn had we been on the beach. I smiled and returned to my book. True, it was a shame I had to give up on the canyon trip, but this alternative wasn't bad at all.
By the evening, my opinion on the matter was much less positive. For some reason, Julie seemed bent on teasing me, and her witty remarks had made me blush on numerous occasions. Some compliments I had already heard (and didn't really take seriously), as I said, she was pretty much part of the family. Growing up, I had received my fair share of praise from her, something that had become some kind of a flirting game when I turned twenty. That doesn't mean I was entirely comfortable with it -- I was definitely struggling with self-confidence issues, and I received any kind of praise with a fair share of wariness, wondering if there was not biting sarcasm hidden beneath the nice words.
The mood was light and friendly, so I wasn't unduly worried about that last part. But Julie (being Julie) was loud and entertaining and definitely on the prowl, eliciting exasperated eye rolling from my mother, and half-successful attempts at repartee from myself. I ended up cutting short the after-dinner chat and called it an early night.
*****
I woke up wincing the next morning. I had only a light headache now, and the muscles in my jaw had eventually loosened up, but my left hip and shoulder felt sore and I had a large, purple welt on my right calf. I showered and went to the kitchen to grab breakfast. Mom soon joined me, later followed by Julie, who had obviously just stepped out of the shower, since she was wearing only a short towel wrapped around her. The towel kept slipping, letting me catch more than a glimpse of cleavage, and I couldn't shake the impression that she was putting on a show for me. Mom seemed oblivious to that, brushing it off as just another of Julie's antics, and it is true she was fooling around in her usual way, but more than once I felt she was watching me and gauging my reaction. I played along, but was still puzzled about how much show there was in that.
A little later, around eleven, as Julie was sunbathing on the deck, I took the opportunity to talk about it with Mom as we were putting together a light salad and sandwiches for lunch.
"Julie seems to be in a very good mood..." I mentioned, innocently.
"Hmm, you think so?" Mom seemed dubious.
"Wait, that's not the case?"
"I don't know. She broke up with Steve a couple of weeks back, and it was tough on her at the beginning."
"Oh, I didn't know."
"Yeah, it hit her hard, but she doesn't like to show much. That's usually when she gets the loudest and the silliest, kind of a coping mechanism. Maybe it's a way for her to convince herself that she should be like that, until she actually is, see what I mean?"
"Putting on an act, until the act is an act no more?"
"Something like that, yeah. But I think the worst is over now."
"She sure is flirty though."
"Oh, you noticed? (Mom giggled) She was genuinely happy when I told her you'd be joining us for this little... escapade. She does like you, you know?"
"You mean -- like me, like me?" I frowned.
"What do you mean, baby?"
"I don't know, there was a strange vibe this morning, the thing with the towel and all."
"You know how foolish she can get."
"True, but she's always been more talk than action, if you see what I mean. This felt... different."
"You may be right. But maybe she's just trying to convince herself she's still sexy, you know?"
"Mm hmm"
"Why, did it make you uncomfortable?"
"Not really, it was just... unexpected, that's all." An idea popped up in my head, and I smiled.
"What is it, Chris?" Mom asked, curious. "What's funny?"
"Oh, nothing, just a silly idea."
"Please share."
