Twelve hours later Grady walks down the hallway to the room where Amy is staying. He slowly pushes the door open. His head is pounding and he is indeed full of sweat but, for the most part, he feels good. He feels like he has accomplished something. He feels like he has a better idea of what his powers are and how to control them. He is still afraid of doing what his father has done for his entire life and whether or not his father will try to force him to do the same.

Amy’s room is dark. He looks at her on the bed through the shaft of light let into the room from the open door. Her body is turned away from him and she is just a shape beneath the blankets slowly rising and falling with her breathing. Even looking her back his heart swells. He wants to run to her and hold her and make love to her.

He has learned from his father the toll his illness has taken on her. He has learned how many hours she spent on the phone tracking his father down. He knows the additional hours she spent talking to his father. He knows the additional time she spent dealing with doctors and getting him into a place that could isolate him. She did all of this without revealing his abilities to anyone outside of his family.

Grady enters the room and slowly pads across the carpeting toward the bed. He knows he needs to take a shower. Mostly he knows he needs to get to bed because tomorrow he has more of the same thing to go through tomorrow. Despite all of this he wants to hold her and touch her and feel her beneath his hand.

“How was day one, Grady?”

He jumps a little bit in surprise. Then he smiles and sit down on the edge of the bed.

“My head hurts and I smell like a locker room. I am about as tired as a man can be and still function. However, I think today went well and I think this may work.”

She sits up in bed and looks at him. She smiles. Her face is tired but some of the lines are gone. She is relieved.

“And you’re horny as hell.”

“Well, that’s a given. It has been quite some time since I was in any condition, you know.”

“I am very aware.”

“I’m also still worried about my father. Right now we are working on getting my powers under control. Once that happens he’s going to put pressure on me to start working in the family business.”

She moves closer to him. She kisses his neck and puts her hand on his leg.

“What would be so terrible about doing that?”

“I don’t want to do it. I don’t want to get called away at a moments notice. I don’t want to sit in the houses and bedrooms of dying people. I don’t want to destroy my own soul by absorbing the sins of dying people.”

“I think your soul would be just fine. You do good for people, or, I should say, your father does. It’s a noble thing to put yourself at risk to help other people. “

“I know one thing.”

“What would that be?”

“I do not want to be talking about this right now.”

She smiles at him again and slides her hand up the inside of his thigh. Her fingers find just the right spot. He leans in and kisses her and his own hands touch her and he feels how alive she is beneath his fingers. This is what he wants to feel. He wants to be next to live people and not dead people. He wants to feel live people and not those dying or dead.

“Have I told you I loved you recently, Amy?”

“It’s been at least a few hours.”

“I love you.”

“I know. The feeling is mutual.”

“How did I get so lucky to find you?”

“Gee, all you needed to do was watch your best friend die right in front of you.”

“Hm, good point.”

“You do need a shower.”

He pushes her onto her back and puts his own body on top of hers. She laughs and wraps her legs around his waist and her arms go around his neck. He kisses her mouth and her neck.

“You love my manly smell and you know it.”

“Shut up and just do me.”

“And I love your classiness.”