You don't get to go to a hospital by yourself and have a heart procedure and not tell the people who care about you. That's not how this works now. Robert looked at him for a long moment. I'm not asking, Marcus said. I'm telling you.
Same as you told me about Gerald Patton. Same as I told you about the letter. He paused. That's how this works. We tell each other the hard things.
And then we show up. The old soldier looked at Marcus Williams. This 34year-old man sitting on the edge of his coffee table like he owned the place. Something in Robert's face cracked open. Just slightly.
Just enough. The procedure is a week from Thursday, he said. What time? Marcus said 7:00 in the morning. I'll be at your door at 5:30.
Marcus said we'll go together. Robert pressed his lips together. He looked at the TV screen where Zoe was now narrating the movie out loud to Nadia, who was ignoring her with impressive dedication. You're a stubborn man, Robert said. You keep saying that, Marcus said.
Because it keeps being true. Marcus stood up. He put his hand briefly on Robert's shoulder. Not a pat, not a squeeze, just a steady pressure that said, "I'm here. I see you.
I'm not going anywhere. " And then he went back to the kitchen. Olivia was leaning against the counter waiting. 5:30, Marcus said, "Both of us. " She looked at him. Then she walked across the kitchen and put her arms around him and he held her and she was shaking slightly in the way people shake when they've been holding something together for longer than they should have been and finally let it go. He held her until she stopped shaking.
He's okay, Marcus said into her hair. He's going to be okay. I know, she said. You don't have to handle everything alone either, he said. You know that, right?
She pulled back and looked at him. Her eyes were wet now. "I'm working on it," she said. "I know," he said. "I can see that. " She wiped her eyes with the back of her hand.
Pulled herself back together with the focus speed of someone who'd had a lot of practice. Then she looked at him. "Thank you," she said. "Stop thanking me," he said. "I will not stop thanking you," she said.