"They’ll be here, just relax. Why don’t you tell me about yourself in the meantime?" Nikki noticed the confusion on Alex’s face and said, "What do you do for a living? Tell me about your friends and family. I really don’t know anything about you."
Alex scrambled for something to say. "There’s really not much to tell. I'm uh…I’m self employed."
Nikki could tell she wasn’t comfortable talking about herself, but her curiosity forced her to push. "What do you do?"
Alex began to nervously play with one of the ties on the side of her gown. "A little of this and a little of that. I’ve done some motivational speaking, freelance writing, and I work for the University every summer." She quickly looked up at the clock again, wondering what was keeping Dani.
"If you keep looking at that clock, you’re going to give me a complex," Nikki said when she noticed Alex look at it for the second time in just a few minutes. "Am I that boring?"
"No, not at all. I just can’t wait to get out of this gown." When she saw Nikki's eyebrow raise and the corner of her mouth lift ever so slightly, she realized the implication and felt the heat rise to her cheeks. She knew her blush was visible when Nikki smiled. "Stop it." Nikki stared a moment longer then laughed when she saw the blush deepen. Alex sat back and listened to the sound of her laughter. She found she enjoyed it when Nikki laughed, and couldn’t help but smile in return.
She heard the door squeak and looked up to see Dani walk into the room. There was look of joy on her face as she watched her sister laugh. She turned and saw Alex watching her and smiled. She walked over, placed a large shopping bag in her lap, leaned in for a hug, and whispered, "Thank you." As Dani started to pull away, Alex gave her a kiss on the cheek.
"Hey," Nikki called out. "How come you don’t greet me like that?"
Dani shook her head and grimaced. "You’re a pain in the neck, why would I want to greet you like that?" she asked.
Nikki glared at her in mock anger. "I wasn’t talking to you." She turned and gazed at Alex expectantly.
"You didn’t bring me clothes, instead you make fun of my discomfort. Dani deserves far more than a quick peck on the cheek, but that is all I am able to offer at the moment." As Nikki’s eyebrows shot up, she once again felt her face grow warm. In an effort to regain her composure, and put Nikki in her place, she quickly elaborated. "I’d genuflect and kiss her feet, but I can’t put any weight on my leg." Dani chuckled at the look on her sister's face, and held her hands up in surrender when she glared at her again. "Do you mind if I change before meeting Rachel?" Alex asked as she looked up hopefully at Dani.
"Not at all. We’ll just wait out in the hall."
Alex grinned. "You may want to check with the nurses, but I bet they still have an ice cream sundae bar in the children’s unit on the fifth floor. I’m sure Madison would love it."
Nikki stepped up beside the wheelchair and placed her hand on her shoulder. "Will you be okay by yourself, or do you need some help getting into those clothes?"
Alex leaned back in her chair and looked up. "You know, I don’t recall the last time someone offered to help me put my clothes on." She watched as Nikki turned several shades of red. "Thank you for the offer, Nikki."
Nikki cleared her throat and said, "I just…" She looked over at Dani standing just a few feet away. "Shit." She quickly turned and walked out of the door.
Her quick departure concerned Alex. She was afraid she’d misjudged their budding friendship and went too far with her teasing. About to go after her, she looked over at Dani who stood with both hands clamped over her mouth and tears streaming down her cheeks, as her body shook with laughter. Alex smiled at her obvious amusement. "You’d better go after her and apologize."
Dani finally removed her hands from her mouth and wiped her tears. "Me? You’re the one that said it, not me."
"Yes, but you are the one that laughed at her." Dani snickered again. "She needs you, Dani." At her questioning look Alex added, "Trust me." She nodded and quickly followed her sister out of the room.
Alex wheeled into the bathroom and shut the door. She opened the large shopping bag and reviewed the choices before her. A quick inventory revealed several T-shirts and tank tops in various bright colors, and two pair of long cotton shorts in dark gray. As she pulled out a T-shirt and shorts, she noticed the sports bra. With a sigh of relief she pulled it from the bag and placed it with her other choices on the edge of the sink. As she began to place the bag on the floor she noticed something else at the bottom. Quickly digging through the clothing she felt the plastic bag and pulled it out. With a smile and shake of her head she inspected the package of blue boyfriend briefs with a large Batman logo on the front.
She quickly dressed as she chuckled over the underwear. She pushed the door open and wheeled back out into the room, noticing that she was still alone. She placed the bag in the drawer of the side table, and pulled out her phone and the brush provided by one of the nurses. She wheeled over, parked in front of the window, and began to brush her hair. She smiled as she recalled the look on Nikki’s face when she’d teased her earlier. The ringing of her cell phone startled her from her musings, and she pressed the
