You Had Me at "I Hate You"
22
A few hours later, Lincoln's room became open to non-family members.
Jesse, Gavin, and Naomi came bustling into the room
Linc and I had been passing the time by watching Hospital soap operas, and trying to decide which character best matched Laverne, the mean nurse who kept coming in to check that Linc wasn't throwing a party.
"Linc!" Jesse cried, rushing over to his bedside. "Are you okay? How are your stitches? Did they put them in right? Do they itch?"
"Hello to you too, Jesse," Linc replied.
"Hey, baby, are you alright?" Naomi asked, picking at her chipped nail polish.
"Yeah, I'm fine. You can leave," Lincoln told her.
"Okay, good. I've got a manicure, like, right now."
And she left. Without even saying goodbye! I was astonished, but Linc looked as if this was normal for the two of them! I sighed and shook my head.
Gavin, Jesse's brother began talking to Linc.
"Was there blood?" Gavin asked, eagerness lightening his eyes.
"Tons, man."
"Awesome!"
That's when Jesse approached me.
"Look... Vi... I'm sorry about how I reacted..."
"Don't worry about it," I reassured him. "You panicked. No big deal."
He rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly. "No... It is a big deal. I... I don't know. I guess I've just gotten used to being really careful around Linc."
I nodded.
"When... When someone hurts him, it really gets my blood boiling... You know? I'm just over-protective of him. He's been like my little brother ever since we met."
"I understand," I told him.
"Still... You had no way of knowing that he had a disorder... You couldn't have. He doesn't like to talk about himself much. There's no excuse for the way I acted. I should have handled it calmly, rationally... But I took out my frustration on you. And I want to say that-"
"Jesse! I understand. Apology accepted."
"So... We're cool?" he asked.
"Like ice," I grinned, and he winced.
"That was really lame."
I laughed. "That's why I like it!"
-_-_-_-_-_-_-
ONE WEEK LATER
"You've got to be kidding me!"
"Please? Please, please, please?"
"No! No way!"
I jiggled my key in the lock and forced the sticky door open with my shoulder. I dumped my purse by the entrance and then tossed my keys in the key bowl.
"Guys?" I called to my roommates. "I'm home!"
"I'm telling Violet!" Jesse cried. "I'm telling her right now!"
"No! Jesse, don't!" Linc protested.
"Viiiioleeet!"
"Don't!
"Guess what Linc brought hoooome?"
"Tattle-tale!"
Jesse ran out to meet me in the hallway. He snatched my wrist and pulled me into the living room. When I got there, I saw Linc, holding his hands behind his back and looking nervous.
He scowled at Jesse and stuck his tongue out, then turned to me and pretended to be surprised.
"Why, Violet!" he exclaimed. "You look fantastic! Did you do something different with your hair? Your make up? Did you lose weight?"
I didn't even blink. "What's behind your back, Lincoln?"
"Nothing! Why do you ask?"
I folded my arms across my chest and raised an eyebrow.
"Okay..." he admitted. "You have to promise not to freak out."
"What is it?"
"I actually think you'll love it!"
"What is it?"
"Uhhh..." Linc hesitated. "It's... It's..."
"Linc brought home a cat!" Jesse interrupted.
"DUDE!" he complained.
"A what?!"
Slowly, Linc brought his hands out from behind his back. A pure black kitten mewled softly and licked his finger.
"Can we keep him?"
"Kill him!" Jesse shouted, pointing an accusing finger at Linc. "Murder him! Tell him to put it back on the streets where he found it!"
The cat yawned, bearing it's tiny porcelain teeth.
"Can we keep him, please?"
"Oh, you're gonna get it!" Jesse bounced up and down anxiously. "Don't go easy on him, Vi. Imagine all the diseases that thing's got..."
"But look at her wittle face!" Linc said in a baby voice. "You can't resist her wittle face!"
The cat sneezed daintily.
"It's... It's..." I stuttered. "It's SO CUTE!"
I raced over towards Linc and snatched the kitten away from him. It nuzzled against my hands and meowed faintly. I scratched behind it's ears and cooed.
"HA!" Linc yelled at Jesse. "HA! HA! HA!"
"Oh, this is great!" he muttered, throwing his hands up in the air. "I hate cats!"
"How can you hate this little girlie?" Linc asked, taking the kitten from me and planting a kiss on her head.
Jesse sighed. "Well... I guess she is pretty cute..."
"Pretty cute? Pretty cute?! Little Linco-po-Chinko is the cutest thing to ever walk the Earth!" he shot me a look. "With four legs, that is."
"Excuse me? Linco-po-whaty-what?" Jesse asked in disbelief.
"Linco-po-Chinko!" he cried. "Linc for short."
"No!" I exclaimed. "You can't name the cat after yourself!"
"Um... When did someone tack on 'po-Chinko' to the end of my name?" he asked, rolling his eyes.
"How about Harold?" I suggested.
"Oh! That's a good idea!" Jesse agreed. "We can call him Harry for short!"
I giggled at the Harry Potter reference. "Or Ron!"
Jesse laughed. "Fred?"
"George!"
"Proffessor Snape!"
Linc huffed. "Yeah, hate to interrupt the name-fest... But Linco-po-Chinko is a girl!"
"Linc..." I sighed. "You are so dumb."
I lifted "Linco-po-Chinko" towards him, belly up, displaying the nether regions.
His eyes widened.
"Oh!"
"Harry Potter is is, then?" Jesse asked, filling in the awkwardness.
"Yup!" I cried, and then laughed at the shocked look on Linc's face.
Jesse, Gavin, and Naomi came bustling into the room
Linc and I had been passing the time by watching Hospital soap operas, and trying to decide which character best matched Laverne, the mean nurse who kept coming in to check that Linc wasn't throwing a party.
"Linc!" Jesse cried, rushing over to his bedside. "Are you okay? How are your stitches? Did they put them in right? Do they itch?"
"Hello to you too, Jesse," Linc replied.
"Hey, baby, are you alright?" Naomi asked, picking at her chipped nail polish.
"Yeah, I'm fine. You can leave," Lincoln told her.
"Okay, good. I've got a manicure, like, right now."
And she left. Without even saying goodbye! I was astonished, but Linc looked as if this was normal for the two of them! I sighed and shook my head.
Gavin, Jesse's brother began talking to Linc.
"Was there blood?" Gavin asked, eagerness lightening his eyes.
"Tons, man."
"Awesome!"
That's when Jesse approached me.
"Look... Vi... I'm sorry about how I reacted..."
"Don't worry about it," I reassured him. "You panicked. No big deal."
He rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly. "No... It is a big deal. I... I don't know. I guess I've just gotten used to being really careful around Linc."
I nodded.
"When... When someone hurts him, it really gets my blood boiling... You know? I'm just over-protective of him. He's been like my little brother ever since we met."
"I understand," I told him.
"Still... You had no way of knowing that he had a disorder... You couldn't have. He doesn't like to talk about himself much. There's no excuse for the way I acted. I should have handled it calmly, rationally... But I took out my frustration on you. And I want to say that-"
"Jesse! I understand. Apology accepted."
"So... We're cool?" he asked.
"Like ice," I grinned, and he winced.
"That was really lame."
I laughed. "That's why I like it!"
-_-_-_-_-_-_-
ONE WEEK LATER
"You've got to be kidding me!"
"Please? Please, please, please?"
"No! No way!"
I jiggled my key in the lock and forced the sticky door open with my shoulder. I dumped my purse by the entrance and then tossed my keys in the key bowl.
"Guys?" I called to my roommates. "I'm home!"
"I'm telling Violet!" Jesse cried. "I'm telling her right now!"
"No! Jesse, don't!" Linc protested.
"Viiiioleeet!"
"Don't!
"Guess what Linc brought hoooome?"
"Tattle-tale!"
Jesse ran out to meet me in the hallway. He snatched my wrist and pulled me into the living room. When I got there, I saw Linc, holding his hands behind his back and looking nervous.
He scowled at Jesse and stuck his tongue out, then turned to me and pretended to be surprised.
"Why, Violet!" he exclaimed. "You look fantastic! Did you do something different with your hair? Your make up? Did you lose weight?"
I didn't even blink. "What's behind your back, Lincoln?"
"Nothing! Why do you ask?"
I folded my arms across my chest and raised an eyebrow.
"Okay..." he admitted. "You have to promise not to freak out."
"What is it?"
"I actually think you'll love it!"
"What is it?"
"Uhhh..." Linc hesitated. "It's... It's..."
"Linc brought home a cat!" Jesse interrupted.
"DUDE!" he complained.
"A what?!"
Slowly, Linc brought his hands out from behind his back. A pure black kitten mewled softly and licked his finger.
"Can we keep him?"
"Kill him!" Jesse shouted, pointing an accusing finger at Linc. "Murder him! Tell him to put it back on the streets where he found it!"
The cat yawned, bearing it's tiny porcelain teeth.
"Can we keep him, please?"
"Oh, you're gonna get it!" Jesse bounced up and down anxiously. "Don't go easy on him, Vi. Imagine all the diseases that thing's got..."
"But look at her wittle face!" Linc said in a baby voice. "You can't resist her wittle face!"
The cat sneezed daintily.
"It's... It's..." I stuttered. "It's SO CUTE!"
I raced over towards Linc and snatched the kitten away from him. It nuzzled against my hands and meowed faintly. I scratched behind it's ears and cooed.
"HA!" Linc yelled at Jesse. "HA! HA! HA!"
"Oh, this is great!" he muttered, throwing his hands up in the air. "I hate cats!"
"How can you hate this little girlie?" Linc asked, taking the kitten from me and planting a kiss on her head.
Jesse sighed. "Well... I guess she is pretty cute..."
"Pretty cute? Pretty cute?! Little Linco-po-Chinko is the cutest thing to ever walk the Earth!" he shot me a look. "With four legs, that is."
"Excuse me? Linco-po-whaty-what?" Jesse asked in disbelief.
"Linco-po-Chinko!" he cried. "Linc for short."
"No!" I exclaimed. "You can't name the cat after yourself!"
"Um... When did someone tack on 'po-Chinko' to the end of my name?" he asked, rolling his eyes.
"How about Harold?" I suggested.
"Oh! That's a good idea!" Jesse agreed. "We can call him Harry for short!"
I giggled at the Harry Potter reference. "Or Ron!"
Jesse laughed. "Fred?"
"George!"
"Proffessor Snape!"
Linc huffed. "Yeah, hate to interrupt the name-fest... But Linco-po-Chinko is a girl!"
"Linc..." I sighed. "You are so dumb."
I lifted "Linco-po-Chinko" towards him, belly up, displaying the nether regions.
His eyes widened.
"Oh!"
"Harry Potter is is, then?" Jesse asked, filling in the awkwardness.
"Yup!" I cried, and then laughed at the shocked look on Linc's face.