CHANGE
DR. GREEN
(Ten minutes earlier…)
The crash of metal against stone could be heard from the street as Sean rounded the curve of Sunnyvale Court. He wasn’t sure where it was coming from until he parked at Kota’s house, got out of his car and heard it coming from across the street.
Like construction noise.
Nathan’s house was under attack? What were they doing in there?
Sean jogged across the street. As he got closer to Nathan’s house, he heard shouting, another crack of stone and a large thud. The front door was unlocked. He opened it slowly, waiting and listening.
He had a small bit of déjà vu, expecting Mr. Griffin with all the noise and the shouting. Had he flown back without anyone being notified? Had they missed a notification while focusing on Sang?
It was louder inside, but there was nothing immediately evident in the foyer. Sean tensed, eased against the wall, and peered around the corner.
Just in case…
The kitchen and dining areas were fine. Behind them was a hallway…
North stood in the doorway of the open bathroom, blocking the view. He was in his usual black T-shirt, black jeans and boots. He was clean, so he wasn’t hurt, but his shoulders were squared off. He was ready to fight.
“What’s this?” Sean barked at him, coming forward. His heart was racing, but if North had cornered someone, he needed to get in there and help. “What’s the problem?”
North turned around, face red and tight with anger. “Ask Nathan. I just got here. He’s over here, hammering away at the walls.”
Nathan? Sean wedged himself between North and the door frame to peer inside.
The bathroom light was off, but the blinds were open. Nathan stood halfway in the standing shower. He wore pajama pants, no shirt, no shoes. No safety gear of any sort. He held a sledgehammer up. With a quick flex of his muscles as he lunged, the hammer crashed down heavily on top of the half wall of the shower, shaking the whole place.
The glass divider had already been removed. Slate and drywall lay crumbled at his feet. Gray dust drifted through the air. The wooden supports were exposed; a few more hits and the half wall would be gone.
The last swing had Nathan shoulders shaking, and he paused, catching his breath. He put the head of the hammer down on the floor.
He glared at the wall with bared teeth. An angry tension seemed to rise in him all over again as his muscles flexed. He was only waiting to take another swing because he needed to catch his breath.
“Uh, Nathan?” Sean asked, catching the worn-out expression on Nathan’s face and the dark circles under his eyes. It was like he’d jumped out of bed angry and decided to take it out on the wall.
His face was tight. His blue eyes glinted with determination, and he shot a look at Sean, his intensity something Sean had witnessed only on rare occasions, like when he was at a tournament, about to take on a challenger who was trying to bully him to throw him off his game.
You didn’t want to get between a man’s sledgehammer and his target if he had a face like that.
Sean recoiled a bit, checking in with North. What happened to set him off? And how do we get him to stop to talk to us without getting a hammer thrown at us?
North had no answer for him, only glaring and waiting.
Nathan took a couple more swings at the wall, but each swing came a little slower than the one before.
Once the edge of the wall finally started to come apart and crumble at his feet, Nathan stopped swinging, putting the heavy hammer head down, leaning it against his thigh. He wiped an arm against his forehead, creating more of a streak of damp dust rather than actually wiping the sweat away.
A moment passed. Nathan glowered at the wall.
“Uh,” Sean said in the silence that followed. “S’up?”
Nathan leaned against the wall of the shower, catching his breath. His voice came out cracked and raspy. “No one told me she fainted because of the shower.” He tilted his head backward, closing his eyes. “She didn’t tell me she didn’t like showers.”
Oh.
North’s hard face softened. He slid a piece of fallen slate across the floor with his boot. “No one knew,” he said in a darkened voice.
“Victor knew,” Nathan said, twisting the handle of the sledge in his hand. “Kota told me when he was here dropping off stuff. Victor should have told the rest of us.”
Sean rubbed the back of his neck, looking for the words to say. “We don’t know why he kept it to himself. Maybe she asked him to. Kind of not the shower’s fault, though… No need to hit it.”
Nathan rolled his eyes. “I’m changing it out.”
North pressed his palm to his forehead. “You’re doing this now? Why? She’ll be here any minute.”
“She’s been around while we were doing construction before. She won’t care.”
North reached for the sledge. Nathan tugged it away, dodging but with limited ability to move around in the shower.
North shoved an open palm out expectantly. “Give me that before you break a pipe. We’ve got enough to do without breaking the house.”
“I want to put in a bathtub.”
“You didn’t want a bathtub. You wanted a walk-in shower.”
“Sang doesn’t like showers!” Nathan tugged the sledge closer, holding it up off the floor with both hands, his chest muscles and biceps flexing.
Sean sharply clapped his hands once to get their attention. “Stop talking,” he said, feeling a pang at sounding a little too much like Owen. “Nathan, you wanted a walk-in shower. You can keep it.”
“I don’t want it anymore.”
“Sang’s staying at her old house now.”
“Maybe for now. What if things change? What if—”
“We don’t play the what-if game, remember?” Sean waved toward the door. “She is where she is right now. We deal with the real issues as they come up. Not create more problems on top of the immediate issues.”
“I want to give her a big tub,” Nathan said, the start of a whine in his voice. “One like Victor’s.”
“You don’t have room for a tub that big,” North said.
“I will if I take out my closet.”
North pushed his palm again toward his own face again, covering his eyes. “We’re not taking out your closet.”
There was a small buzzing of the doorbell.
Sean groaned. Nathan had the worst timing. “Is the door locked? Did anyone give Sang keys?” Sean asked and then waved his hand to dismiss his own question. “Never mind. Stay quiet in here and clean this up. Sang is stressed out enough without this.”
North hurried out, grabbed the kitchen broom and brought it into the bathroom. “Keep her out of here until I can fix this.”
“Just a minute!” Sean called out to whoever was at the door, heading in that direction. He checked the bathroom again. There was some dust in the hallway.
North swept it quickly into the bathroom and closed the door, talking quietly to Nathan.
Sean had a lot of sympathy for Nathan. He honestly couldn’t blame him for wanting a tub. He’d been thinking the same thing about his own apartment. Could he fit a bigger one in?
But he’d considered it like she’d be staying the night more often. At the moment, he didn’t know when she’d get another chance.
He checked the front door quickly through the peephole, found no one and then checked the side door in the garage. A girl stood on the steps…but she looked odd through the peephole. Was it really Sang?
He opened the door and paused, looking at her.
It was her, and it wasn’t her.
The makeup masked every naturally beautiful feature of her face. It covered the freckles, the way she’d blush naturally. It even changed her skin tone into something almost orange.
She had a beautiful face, and with the makeup, it became striking, but way too different from Sang’s natural look.
The dress was okay, but it didn’t really suit her. It reminded him of 50s retro a bit. Maybe for Halloween, it’d be a good thing. And the hair? What had happened there?
Had Carol really sent her to the diner like that?
Sang’s expression was the worst: mortified.
He smiled at her, forcing himself to sound overly pleasant. “You look…amazing?” Ick. Hesitating at the last word didn’t sound great. He didn’t want to encourage this look, which she clearly didn’t like, and he didn’t want to say it looked bad.
“Didn’t have a choice,” she said. “She wanted to dress me up.”
Sean had told Gabriel he could experiment on Sang with blushes and lipsticks, if she wanted to. She hadn’t had much of a chance before; let her see if she liked it.
Gabriel had always refused. A light touch of gloss here, a touch of mascara, maybe. She didn’t need makeup, he’d say.
Now he realized Gabriel was right.
Sang cast her eyes down toward the floor. “They’ve probably already seen this on the cameras if they were watching, but can I get something else to wear, at least?”
Sean checked over his shoulder, sensing the others in the bathroom still. “Yes,” he said and reached for her hand, pulling her into the house to shut the door behind her. “You could wash the makeup off, too. But let’s take a photo. We’ll need Gabriel to reproduce this when you leave.”
“She used fake lashes,” she said, pointing to her eyes. “Maybe I should leave those on. Can you reuse them?”
“I think so. I can find out.” He didn’t want her to be uncomfortable now that she was out of the house.
She sighed and followed him in. She started to walk into the kitchen, and he tugged her toward the master bedroom. “Come in here,” he said.
Dark, rumbling voices erupted from deeper in the house and then quieted quickly.
She turned around, shoulders tense. Sean waited too, expecting the guys to continue to argue, maybe even burst out of the bathroom. When it was clear they weren’t coming to see her just yet, she relaxed. “Who all is here?”
“Nathan and North. More may show up soon.” He shooed her into the bedroom and then to the en suite bathroom. He opened the blinds for more natural light. The space was small, with a tub shower, a small sink and toilet, and the tiniest of linen closets. Sean opened the closet to find a towel and washcloth for her.
She stood near the tub, looking around and then glancing nervously toward the doorway. A finger hovered over her lips, but she stopped herself from touching the makeup. “I keep wanting to wipe the makeup off.”
“In a second,” he said. He put the towel and washcloth down and took out his phone. He found the camera app and opened it. “Okay, show me a smile.”
She did, halfhearted and not looking directly at him.
He took enough pictures that Gabriel could duplicate the look when she left and then reached for her cheek, pressing a reassuring palm to her face. The feel of makeup dusting his fingers…so not like how she really felt. “Now wash that face back to your normal pretty self. I’ll get you some clothes.”
“Thanks,” she said.
“Did you eat anything?”
“No. Not yet. Nothing since dinner last night.”
“Good. I’ll do what I need to, and then we’ll get you some breakfast.” He smiled and was about to leave when he itched to hug her. He reached for her.
She seemed to hesitate at first, but then shook her head and her smile brightened. “Sorry,” she said. “I didn’t want to get this makeup on your clothes.”
He laughed. “I think I’ve learned how to wash a shirt.” He tugged her by the elbow, and this time she didn’t hesitate. She tucked her head into his shoulder.
He pressed his cheek against her head, trying not to breathe in the hairspray, and just held her. She was so warm and cuddly. He couldn’t wait for the day when he could snuggle up on the couch with her, watching her play her games again. That was fun. A sigh escaped his lips.
“Get cleaned and come tell us about everything. We’ve got a few hours to plan.” He chuckled. “And then we get to have dinner together! Who knew that would actually happen?”
She giggled and then tugged herself free. She shrugged her shoulders, turning her eyes away. “I can’t believe she asked. I don’t know how we’ll get away with this. Doesn’t Marie know you’re my teacher?”
“I don’t think she’s ever seen my face at school. I can’t remember. I’m more worried that your dad might remember me from when I was the EMT when your mom…” He stopped himself and turned toward the door. “Never mind. We can talk in a bit. Stay right here. I’ll get those clothes.”
He left the bathroom door open, hurried through the bedroom and closed that door for her. Hopefully it blocked any noise the other guys were making.
North and Nathan were still in the bathroom. Sean knocked gently and then opened it.
North blocked the way at first, but once he realized it was Sean, he took a step back. North was holding a broom. Nathan was bent, ready with a dust pan half-full of a pile of slate.
“We’re going to do the tub,” North said in a low voice. “But not while she’s here. Maybe the master bathroom can fit a bigger tub.”
“We want to surprise her,” Nathan said, glaring at the dust pile. “North’s right. Updating the other bathroom needed to be done anyway.”
North leaned into Sean to whisper. “The only way to get him to stop beating up his shower was to promise a tub somewhere else.”
Good thing Owen wasn’t here, or he’d stop them before they could start. Sean checked the size of the space and then thought of the master bathroom. “That space is tiny.”
“There’s that laundry room next to the master bathroom, behind the wall,” North said. “There’s extra space there that’s not really needed. I can put in a bigger tub and a better linen closet.”
Sean nodded. They didn’t have to worry about Nathan’s father wanting to come back. He was on the other side of the globe and already writing people to say that when Nathan moved out, he’d sell the house. Anything they did now was just increasing the value of the house. “We’ll have her go to Kota’s from now on. Or whatever, we’ll figure it out.”
North ushered Sean out so he could close the door so they could finish cleaning up.
In Nathan’s bedroom, the bed was a wreck of pillows, and the blanket was on the floor. There were a few bags from camp.
Some of Sang’s clothes were on the floor. Stuff from when she was sleeping here?
There was a clip that had fallen behind the dresser.
Sang had stayed here for a while, and it wasn’t until that moment that Dr. Green really thought about Sang staying in the same room as Nathan.
Kota’s words came back to him. Not all of them were at the same place in their relationship with Sang. Someone like Nathan had spent way more time with her.
How was he supposed to compete with that?
He pushed those thoughts aside and focused on the closet. He was here with her now. He was going to do whatever he could for her.
Sean went through the closet, finding more than half of the clothes to be Sang’s.
Hadn’t they given her a huge bag of clothes, too, to take into the house?
How much were these guys spending on her?
Not that he cared…but why didn’t he get to take her shopping? He liked shopping.
He pulled out what he thought looked comfortable: pink pajama pants and a soft long-sleeved sleeping T-shirt in a pale purple. They weren’t taking her anywhere, so why not let her lounge all day and relax?
Hadn’t they bought her slippers? Maybe he could buy her some.
He took the clothes to the master bedroom. The sink was running inside. The bathroom door was closed now. He knocked gently at the door.
She opened, using the door to mask her body. She must have taken the dress off already. Her face was wet, red from scrubbing, but clean now. Her eyes were streaky, and the dark mascara and eyeliner were still there. The lashes were still on her eyes.
Sean focused on the wall. “Hopefully these are comfortable.”
She took them through the door. “Thanks.”
“Need anything else?”
Her face turned redder. “I don’t really know how to get these lashes off. I’m pulling, but it feels like I’m ripping my eyes.”
He wasn’t actually sure. He looked them over on her eyes and then pulled out his phone. “The Internet knows.”
She waited while he looked it up, touching the false lashes and then massaging her eyelid.
Sean realized while glancing at her that she was standing in her underwear and bra, by the way she was covering herself, and yet she didn’t shoo him out.
He zeroed in on the phone, unsure how he could possibly focus at all when she was very casually waiting for him.
Half-naked.
When he’d examined her before, he’d been in doctor mode. He had gone through the motions rather than thinking about it. She was showing trust and how comfortable she was around him, and he was having a hard time controlling himself not to just look.
He read from an article, “Hold a cotton ball with makeup remover over the eye…” He made a clicking noise and shook his head, squinting at the words. “What? That sounds dangerous. That can’t be good for your eyes.”
She motioned to the face wash she’d been using. “Is this not the same thing?”
He glanced at it, but it was positioned at the mirror in such a way that he got a view of…
Purple underwear.
Goddamn…
He turned away a bit to avoid looking any further. “Oh,” he mumbled. “I’ll go…get…some…” He’d go buy some. Or find some. This was too much.
How had Gabriel… No. Don’t think about what Gabriel saw when he spent so much time with her in the bathroom. Don’t…
She pouted her lips while she thought. So cute. “I was wondering if I should wash my hair, but is there a hat? Or something else?”
Good idea. It would save some time. “I’ll find something,” he said and then he snapped his fingers with an idea. “I’ll be right back.”
She shut the door on him.
He left the bedroom, shut that door, and then leaned against it. He rolled his head back, closing his eyes.
Purple…cotton…bikini cut…
He groaned and then shook off the thoughts.
He raced through the house, through the front door and out into the lawn.
No real need to run, but he was feeling good. She seemed in a good mood. Despite the scary week she’d had, and the rough time, she was in good spirits. She’s such a sweetheart. Bounces back so brilliantly.
Sean jumped the steps to the front door of Kota’s house, reached for the doorknob.
He paused. It was still early, and there was no reason to scare anyone by just barging into the house. He knocked and then rang the doorbell and waited.
The dog barked inside. Little Jessica answered the door, bleary-eyed behind her pink-framed glasses. She was still in her pajamas. “Oh,” she said to him. “Should I get Kota?”
“I don’t think he’s here, but could you do me a favor? Do you have like a hair band type thing? I’ve seen your mom wear it before. An elastic one to keep hair out of your eyes while washing your face? Or for running? And can you grab some makeup remover?”
Jessica thought about it, nodded, left the front door open and walked toward the hallway. “I’ll be right back.”
She was so awesome. Never even thought to ask why he needed any of it. Sean stepped inside out of the cold, closing the door.
Max padded over from the kitchen. The retriever sat at his feet, panting happily. Sean gave him a scratch behind his ear. It was mostly quiet. Erica usually came out to say hello, but when she didn’t, he realized Jessica was on her own today.
When Jessica came back, she held out a black-and-white striped headband and a blue bottle of liquid. “Will these work?”
“Perfect,” he said as he took them. “You’ll be okay by yourself here?”
“A friend is picking me up in a couple of hours. We’re going to the mall.”
He was almost envious of her having a relaxing day at the mall. Sean waved goodbye to Jessica. “Be safe.”
“Are you going to be around for Kota’s birthday?”
Oh crap. Kota’s birthday. He corrected his smile, hoping she hadn’t noticed him faltering as he was trying to remember what day it was. “Oh…yeah. We’ve got a surprise for him.”
“With makeup remover?”
He laughed. “No, that’s for Sang.”
She brightened. “Is she planning something?”
“Sure is.” He winked at her. “Don’t tell Kota. Okay?”
Jessica closed the door on him, and he could hear her skipping through the house.
Kota. Crap. His birthday.
Now he’d have to come up with something for Sang. She had enough to deal with, but she wouldn’t want to miss it. He’d have to think about what they could do.
Especially if she was stuck in that house with Carol.