Once In A Lifetime • Link Neal

forty.

Link Neal laid on his hospital bed with a blank stare at the ceiling; he felt cold and hot all at once, and absently wondered if there was something more wrong with him that he didn't know. It was a fleeting thought, because he already knew the answer. There was something else wrong, but it wasn't anything physical, nothing that could have been dealt with the blunt force of a baseball bat or his best friends tightly balled fists. The nurse had come in earlier, giving him a small dose of painkillers and cheerily said, 'Sleep well, Mr.Neal', before dimming the lights down and leaving him in silence. 

He hated silence. 

It took him some time to diagnose his problem. Link found himself shying away from the entire idea, as though it were blasphemous, as though the entire concept of it was asinine. It was the bitter taste of jealousy that plagued him, and it seemed to eat him from the inside out. He tried to be reasonable to that annoying voice in his head; what have I got to be jealous for? It was obvious, plain as day---He was jealous of Rhett. He softly snickered to himself, 

"Ain't nothin' to be jealous of." He breathed out, quietly. 

What're you jealous of, brother? It was Rhett's voice in his head, crystal clear. Link scrunched his nose and stilled for a minute, then sighed. He was jealous of Rhett and Lucy, and thinking that sentence in his head felt nothing shy of insane. He knew Rhett, his best friend of over thirty years, better than he knew himself. He's seen that subdued sparkle of interest that glimmered in the man's hazel eyes, he's seen it plenty before, although the most recent would have been his wife. Rhett loved his wife, that was without a doubt---then why did he have that damn glimmer in his eye when he looked at Lu? 

Link wondered if Rhett saw the glimmer in his eyes when he saw Lu. Had to, because he remembered their impromptu confessional in the hallway at the studio, where Link found himself admitting his attraction to the younger girl like they were two teens standing in the hallway during passing period. And Rhett, being one of the main staples in Link's life, had silently cheered him on, although surely Rhett hadn't seen what would happen next. Link gave a sigh, bringing his forearm to lay across his head. 

You're gettin' ahead of yourself. 

A soft knock at the door startled him from his thoughts, and before he could say 'come in', it opened a sliver and let in the harsh florescent lights that lined the hallway. It was Lu, poking her head in for a beat, before sliding her slender frame through the crack as though she were sneaking into a room she wasn't meant to be in. 

"Hey, I brought some pasta from the cafeteria. They were closing for the night and gave it to me for free." Lu quietly closed the door, and in her hands she held a small container that smelled faintly like Alfredo. "Did you eat, while I was out?" 

Link shook his head, and he hadn't realized it, but he was smiling. She made him feel that way, like there's a little glowing ball inside him that constantly bounced around and made him damn near giddy. It was a long time since he felt it. 

"Nah, not feelin' very hungry tonight. What, a...What happened to Rhett?" Link found himself wanting to ask something else about Rhett, like 'What did Rhett say to you?', but he thought better of it. Lucy approached, setting the container down on the metal rolling table reserved for the patient, where they would normally place a plastic tray with their daily meals, or keep the remote to the small T.V that mounted to the wall. 

"He went back to get things ready for the tour. I guess Christy talked to him, said she's going to get your stuff together because it's easier that way." Lucy stood beside the bed, her fingers deftly playing with the lid on the container. She had this look in her eyes, a little sad if Link didn't know any better.