Bent.

21. Keep Bending Me

Author's Note: The penultimate chapter! It's kind of short. If you're wondering how I could possibly come up with a whole third book for this idea... just sit tight. :)

21. Keep Bending Me

It was hard to find a fully comfortable groove within the group for the next few weeks. Scott would come around, but interactions were stiff, as though they were all walking on eggshells around one another.

Mitch was desperate to spend time with him alone again, but even he knew that it probably wasn't a good idea. He knew that he wouldn't be able to stop himself from trying to cross the clearly drawn line in the sand, emotionally or physically.

He ached to be in his arms again. He ached for those lips. That body against his, moving with him perfectly, the taste of Scott's sweat as he placed a trail of kisses before biting softly on his collarbone...

"Mitch?"

Mitch jumped six feet into the air, he was sure, and felt himself blush crimson with embarrassment.

"Hey, Scott," Mitch smiled, trying to push his thoughts back down. "I'm sure they'll all be here soon."

Scott smiled softly and sat in the booth across from him as a waitress approached. They ordered drinks with polite smiles, but Mitch wanted to tell her to leave them alone for this rare private conversation time.

"How's the fieldwork assignment going?" Mitch asked as she walked away.

"It's good, it's a lot. A little overwhelming. But the staff there is pretty cool. Dr. Smythe lets me shadow different staff members each time, to get a feel for how everything operates. He lets me pick their brains a bit."

Mitch nodded. "Have you met Carla? She's a nurse there."

Scott smiled. "I have."

Mitch became jittery. "Can... can you tell her I said hello? She's never there when I go for my therapy sessions. She works the early shift."

"I'd be happy to."

Mitch found himself smiling. "She always looked out for me. Oh, and Nurse Bailey? He seemed to always draw the short straw. He got stuck with me a lot. Can you tell him hello for me, too?"

He had no idea why this information was spilling from his lips. He knew that he should probably feel embarrassed, wanting to shield Scott from learning about his time there. But he found that he didn't mind exposing this time in his life to the man in front of him anymore. After all, he had promised that he would tell Scott more about his hallucination. What better way to do that than to let him talk to the nurses who experienced it?

"Bailey's great. He let me follow him around the other day. He really knows his stuff."

Mitch nodded. "He frustrated me a lot at first."

"Yeah? Why?"

"He didn't seem to know what to do with you. I would be begging him to help you... shit... I mean... help him..." Mitch paled as he realized the slip-up. He wasn't even sure why he said it. He didn't confuse them anymore. What the hell was that?

"It's okay, Mitch. I knew what you meant." Scott's words were simply put. Casual. Mitch half expected to be yelled at for the mistake, but then he remembered who he was talking to. Someone with whom he felt safe.

"Anyway... I kept begging him to help. Like, I would literally hear Fake Scott screaming his lungs out, and Bailey would just be looking at me until I yelled at him to go help. And then I realized that he was just looking to me to give him information about where the hell he was supposed to pretend to send someone to restrain my hallucination, while he simply pulled me along to 'give him space'." Mitch laughed nervously, and looked up to find Scott smiling softly again. "Little did I know, he was the one doing all of the heavy lifting, taking care of me, while his other nurses would probably just shut our bedroom door and twiddle their thumbs, waiting for me to calm down." Mitch rolled his eyes playfully, and Scott let out a breathy laugh.

It was cathartic to tell Scott about this, to see his friendly smile, his bright eyes, to hear his questions. Not nosy, but seeking to understand him better.

Only Kirstin had ever done that for him, before.

"I'd be happy to say hi to him for you."

"You can tell him, if you want," Mitch said after a moment. "Carla, too. You can tell them that you were what my hallucination looked like. I'm sure they're always curious about that stuff, to put a face to the ghosts they have to fight."

Scott raised his eyebrows. "I'd rather not."

Mitch's eyes widened. "Of course. I'm sure you don't want them to look at you differently-"

"No, no, that's not it," Scott interjected, quickly. "It's just... not my place. That's your story. Your recovery. It's not for me to speak on."

Mitch smiled, overwhelmed with fondness for Scott's sweet heart. "You passed your first test. Dr. Smythe asked me to tell you that, to see if you'd give up my confidentiality."

Scott paled. "What?"

"I'm totally kidding."

Scott crumpled up his napkin and hurled it at him, playfully.

"You're a dick," Scott laughed as Mitch dodged the incoming attack.

"Uh oh. Fighting already?" Kirstin joked as she and Rozzi approached. Rozzi slid into the booth beside Scott, pecking him on the cheek, while Kirstin mirrored the action beside Mitch.

By February, the group had fallen back into their comfort zone.

But Valentine's Day was coming up, and Mitch's heart hurt each time he thought about it.

Would Scott go out with anybody? If so, would he do it secretly? Or would he sit Mitch down and tell him, in an effort to be completely honest with him?

He thought of what would be worse: A large, broad man like that guy from Scott's class, or someone who looked more like Mitch.

He figured it out quickly. If Scott dated someone who looked like Mitch, he would probably crawl in a hole and die. That was basically like telling him, "I want someone just like you, but not quite you."

And then Mitch realized what a hypocrite he was. That was exactly what he had done to lose Scott in the first place.

"What's everyone up to for Valentine's Day?" Kirstin asked on February tenth.

Kevin looked bashful. "I'm taking Leigh out."

A chorus of oohs and aahs filled the table of the diner, and people turned to glare.

"She's so perfect for you, it's sickening," Rozzi replied with a smile. "Anyway, Kirstin and I are gonna go to a frat party, because what better way to drown your single sorrows than to do some keg stands and dance to horrible music with strange men?"

The group laughed, and Chet facepalmed. "I'm going home this weekend, so I'm sorry to say that I can't join you," he joked. "What about you, Mitch?"

"Maybe I'll come to that party." Mitch offered, nervously. He hadn't thought about it. He certainly didn't want to go, but he didn't want to be alone, either.

"Yes, come!" Kirstin replied excitedly. "Scott, you should come too."

Scott smiled and shook his head. "Sorry guys, I can't."

Jealousy panged in Mitch's chest. He wondered who the lucky man was...

"I have to work."

Somehow, that made Mitch even more upset.

"Who the hell goes to a strip club on Valentine's Day?" Kirstin asked with a raised eyebrow.

Scott laughed. "I would imagine it's a similar clientele to the people you'll see at that party. Singles. Lots of them."

"You can't get out of it?" Rozzi pouted.

"Why would I want to get out of it? I requested the shift. People are generous on Valentine's Day."

"Make that money, boy," Chet smiled goofily, but the rest of them rolled their eyes.