THINNER
by
Antigone
Chapter 41
The Chapters
“Would
you like a visitor?”
Joe
turned over, blinked at the nurse in the doorway.
“What
time is it?”
“Around
four.”
Four.
His family wasn’t coming until seven; he wasn’t expecting anyone
else.
“Who
is it?”
The
nurse glanced behind her, stepped aside as Vanessa Bender came the
doorway, resting her hand on the frame.
“Hey
baby,” she murmured.
Joe
felt his breath catch, forced it in and out. “Van.”
She
nodded and crossed the room to sit beside him. She reached for his hand;
he turned away.
“How’re
you holding up?” she asked after a moment.
Joe
shivered and pulled his blankets closer. Two days into treatment and he
was already desperate to go home. The doctors told him that was part of
it; an almost-punishment for failing to appreciate the goodness of your
life. At least, that’s how it felt to Joe.
“I’m
drinking supplements,” he murmured.
“That’s
good,” she said gently.
“It’s
hard.”
“I
know.”
A
beat.
“Everyone’s
asking about you. Chet and Callie and Phil and Biff…they all want to
come, if you want to see them.”
“No,”
the younger Hardy snapped, “I don’t. I don’t want to see anyone. I
shouldn’t even see you.”
Vanessa’s
eyes widened. “Joe…”
“I’m
afraid, Van,” Joe’s voice suddenly began to tremble.
“Of
what?”
“I’m
afraid…you won’t want to touch me anymore. I’m afraid you won’t
love me. I never knew why you loved me…”
“Baby,”
Vanessa murmured, stroking Joe’s hair back from his forehead. “I’m
afraid to touch you now.
It’s like…if I do, you’ll break. You seem so fragile.
But that doesn’t mean that I don’t love you. I’ll love you no
matter what your weight. I’ll love you if you’re overweight,
which you won’t be. Your body isn’t you. If I suddenly gained thirty
pounds, would you feel any different about me?”
Joe
shook his head.
“So
why would I feel that way about you?”
The
younger Hardy looked away, tears streaming down his face.
“Because
I’m dirty,” he whispered.
“What?
Dirty? Why do you think that?”
“I
don’t know.”
Tears
stung Vanessa’s eyes as she ran her fingers through the dirty—Joe was
too weak to shower—blonde locks.
“Trust
me baby,” she murmured, “trust all of us when we say that we love
you. None of us would lie to you, Joe. You just have to ignore yourself
for now and believe in us. Can you try that?”
Joe
shut his eyes and didn’t answer.
“I
love you,” she murmured, taking his hand in her own. “Joe? Do you
hear me? I love you. Not this disease. I miss you. I miss…” her voice
caught, broke, “…my big, strong man.”
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Disclaimer
The Hardy Boys belong to Simon and Schuster and the Stratemeyer Foundation. The Hardy Boys Fan Fiction authors of the Hardy Detective Agency have just borrowed them for an adventure or two. The authors promise to put the boys back when they are done with them. The authors do claim copyright to the original characters in this story. Please do not borrow original characters without express permission of the authors.