Maddie’s phone buzzed just as there was a knock at the door.

I’m outside, I picked up a few things

Maddie looked up from her phone at Theo.

“It’s your brother at the door.”

What the “few things” Ben would have picked up for Theo might be, she had no idea, but she hoped at least one of them was useful.

She opened the door to Ben holding two stuffed grocery bags.

“Hi,” he said. “I drove by the grocery store, and I didn’t know what kinds of supplies he had here, and since it seems like he’ll be stuck here for a while, I figured I’d get him some stuff.”

Ben walked through the open door and past Maddie before she could say anything.

“Hey, man,” he said to Theo as he walked past the living room doorway. “You’re already looking better outside that hospital room.”

Theo and Maddie shrugged at each other and followed Ben to the kitchen.

“I know you hate soup,” Ben said as Theo walked into the kitchen, “but Mom told me to get you soup, so I got you lots of it.” Maddie shot a triumphant glance at Theo. He shook his head as Ben pulled a dozen cans of soup out of the bags.

“Please tell me you got me something edible in there, too.”

Ben nodded.

“I also got you four different kinds of crackers.”

Theo leaned against the wall and put his head in his hands.

“You’re all conspiring against me! Do you really have nothing but soup and crackers in those bags?”

“I got you good stuff, too, but number one, this is only for when you’ve stopped throwing up, okay? For, like, a whole day.” Ben paused with his hand in the grocery bag until Theo nodded. “And number two, do not tell Mom I got this. She’ll kill me.”

Ben pulled a stack of frozen pizzas out of the bag and held them in the air.

“But you have to eat all the soup first.”

Theo folded his arms over his chest.

“I only threw up once, okay?”

Maddie grimaced.

“They told us you’d still forget things. No, you threw up at least three times.”

Theo looked hard at her.

“Really? Are you sure? I don’t . . .”

Ben held his finger up.

“Oh, that reminds me.” He pulled eight bottles of ginger beer out of the bag. “I know there are people who like this stuff. I think it’s disgusting, but I keep it around for hangovers, so I assume it’s good for other kinds of nausea, too.” He looked at Maddie. “Make him drink it.”

She picked up a bottle and twisted off the top.

“Drink this.” She handed it to Theo.

“If I’d known that getting hit over the head would make me end up being bossed around by the two of you, I would have reconsidered that choice.” He took a sip of the ginger beer and shrugged. “It’s not bad.”

“Okay.” Ben dropped the bags on the floor and turned to walk out of the kitchen. “Maddie will kill me if I stay too long, and I know you need your rest, but . . .” He shrugged. “I figured maybe at least some of this would be useful.”

Despite how bro-y and careless he seemed, Ben clearly loved his older brother a lot.

Theo clapped his brother on the shoulder as he walked by, and Ben stopped.

“It’s all useful. Thanks for coming by, Benny.”

“No problem, Teddy,” Ben said.

The two brothers walked together toward the door, and Maddie trailed after them.

Maddie pulled her keys out of her pocket and followed Ben out the door.

“I’m going to get your hospital bag out of my car,” she called back to Theo.

Ben followed her to her car and stood there while she popped open the trunk.

“Hey. Thanks for taking such good care of my brother. It means a lot.”

She was glad her face was hidden as she reached into the trunk of her car.

“Oh, it’s no problem. I was there when he fell, and I just figured—”

Ben put his hand on her shoulder.

“You were there all day, and I bet you won’t get any sleep tonight. It’s not no problem. Thank you.”

Maddie took a deep breath and composed her face before she pulled the bag out and shut the trunk.

“You’re welcome. And thank you for bringing the food by.”

Ben laughed on the way to his car.

“He’s already so mad he has to eat soup. I’ll come by tomorrow. Text me if you need anything.”

Maddie turned to walk back up to Theo’s apartment.

“I will.”

Once she got inside, she watched Theo walk back to the couch and sit down. He was still slow, but it looked like his balance was coming back.

“I’m going to make you the soup now,” she said. “Which one do you want?”

He made a face.

“If I have to have soup, I don’t even care what kind it is. Can I have a grilled cheese sandwich with it?”

She turned to walk to the kitchen.

“Yes, if your imagination is good enough to think some of those crackers are a grilled cheese sandwich.”

After he ate half the bowl of soup and a pile of crackers, she patted him on the knee.

“Okay, time to get you into bed.”

Theo leered at her, and she rolled her eyes.

“If you are even thinking there will be any of that, you are very much mistaken. No exercise for two weeks, and that includes sex!”

His mouth dropped open.

“Are you serious?”

She nodded.

“Look, I’m not any happier about it than you are.” She stood up and reached out her hand. “I feel like you blocked out the nurse saying that on purpose.”

He took her hand and stood up.

“Two weeks. Good God.”

After he fell asleep, Maddie prepared herself for a long night. The nurse had told her to watch him for dizziness or if he stopped being lucid, and she was worried that the nausea would come back, especially with all the crackers he’d eaten. She knew she needed to stay awake in order to be able to help him to the bathroom, especially if he got sick.

She took off the sundress she’d been wearing all day and was now ready to burn, and changed into the yoga pants and T-shirt she’d left there a few weeks ago. She wanted to take a shower, but she wasn’t ready to leave him alone for that long.

Maddie sat gently on the other side of Theo’s bed, checked to make sure she hadn’t woken him up, and then settled herself more comfortably. She leaned her head back against the headboard and turned to look at Theo. He seemed like he was sleeping peacefully, thank God.

She might never forget that moment when he got hit and dropped to the ground. She didn’t think she’d ever been so scared. Or felt so helpless. She’d spent all day holding that fear at bay, keeping it together so Theo wouldn’t see how scared she was, so she could talk to the doctors and Alexa and Drew and Ben and not let her panic and fear out, acting as calm as possible, not letting herself feel anything. It had been so awful. She brushed her hand against her face to wipe away the tears that ran down her cheeks. This time she didn’t try to hold the tears back, and just let herself cry, as silently as she could, until they finally dried up.

She got up to go wash her face, and when she looked in the mirror, she was even more relieved she hadn’t cried while she was at the hospital, because she had mascara all over her face. She used one of the makeup wipes she kept in a corner of the bathroom cabinet and splashed cold water on her skin to attempt to pull herself back together.

When she got back in bed with Theo—this time with a box of tissues next to her, just in case—she contemplated what to do all night while she watched him. She stuck her phone in to charge, and stared at the screen.

She plugged her headphones in and checked all her streaming video apps to see what she was in the mood for. Oh hell with it, she was emotional anyway tonight; she might as well lean in to it.Say Yes to the Dress it was.

After every episode, she looked up from her phone and over at Theo to check on him, but each time, he was still sleeping soundly.

But after the fourth episode, she looked over at him as she mopped the tears from her eyes, and he was looking back at her.

“You okay?” he asked.

She nodded and grabbed another tissue. This was so embarrassing.

“Fine,” she said as soon as she could talk. “It’s just that this show . . .” He would laugh at her as soon as she told him the show, but she felt like she needed to explain her tears. “You’re going to think this is so stupid, but it’s Say Yes to the Dress, and . . .”

Theo smiled.

“The show Alexa said always makes you cry.”

Maddie nodded.

“She always makes fun of me for it, but, like, this one was with a woman with cancer, and all her friends helped her find the perfect dress, and then at the end during the credits it said it’s in memory of her, and . . .” The tears started flowing again. She couldn’t help it. Hadn’t she cried enough tonight? Obviously not.

Theo took her hand. He rubbed his thumb back and forth across the back of her hand until the tears stopped.

“I’m supposed to be taking care of you; you’re not supposed to be making me feel better,” she said. “Speaking of, are you okay? Why are you awake? Do you need anything?”

He shook his head.

“Just you.”