“Pink is a good color on you!” Kahrin snuggled closer to Innes. They had the entire pulled-out davenport where Ma had set up what Da affectionately called the sick bay, yet she still tucked into his side.
He winced, then let a soft puff of helpless laughter as his fingers brushed against the dots of calamine along his face and neck. “Every color is a good color for me, but I’m not sure this is my shade.”
“Debatable.” She wiggled about, trying to get comfortable, only to suck air over her teeth at the pain in her rear. Literally.
He noticed. “Maybe try lying on your stomach?” He knew she wouldn’t.
“It’s not that bad,” she insisted.
“I saw you hit that tree.” Ah, yes. The tree. The tree that rudely got in their way when they took the toboggan out.
“That was like, a whole day ago. I’m a fast healer.” She shrugged one shoulder. She had no regrets. Being cooped up in the house was boring, and chicken pox wasn’t a bed sentence. It hadn’t taken much to talk him into sneaking out into the snow. She felt his arm move, stretching further under her neck to wrap around. “Stop that.”
“Stop what?” It was barely noticeable, but the small twitches of tendons as his fingers lightly scratched against the pock marks was there.
“Ma’s going to put the oven mitts back on your hands.” Which was better than his jerk father would have done. He couldn’t even be bothered to get Innes his vaccine which was why her best friend was here, in a house full of immune Quirkes, where he would be watched over.
“Maybe she should put some over your butt, too, so you can lie on your own side.”
She huffed. “It won’t help.”
“I thought it didn’t hurt?”
She half-heartedly smacked at his hand. He’d thank her in a couple of weeks when he got out of this without scars on his face. “Shut up.”
©b.r.hill-mann 2019
PS: If you like Kahrin and Innes, and want to see more of their friendship and shenanigans, buy The Hole in the World. If you purchase it here, I’ll send you a signed copy!
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