I pull the hood from my damp sweatshirt over my face. Talk to Charlie with my eyes shut. The sleeve covers the cut on my left arm, and I beg for the wet cold of it to tame the fire carving a crevice through my skin.
It doesn’t.
I push at the heat. Suck in a breath. “Can my arm fall off from infection?”
“No.”
“But maybe?”
“You’re fine, Ruby.”
“They could have to amputate it. To save my life. What if someone has to saw it off to even get me out of here?”
I’d have to go to a hospital. I hate hospitals. Hospitals are where people go to die.
“If cutting off injured body parts is the only way out, they’ll have to saw me in half. So count your blessings.” He coughs. “Think you could talk about something else?”
“Like what?”
“You said your mom’s dating your coach. That sounds salacious.”
“More like weird.”
“You don’t like him?”
“I like him fine. I just don’t like him dating my mom. Except. . .”
“Except what?”
“Nothing. Forget it.”
“Nope. Can’t forget it now. You already started it.”
“It’s weird, isn’t it? How things that seemed like such a big deal yesterday don’t matter as much today? Like if my mom and my coach showed up right now, I’d probably throw them a wedding.”
“I’d eat all the cake.”
I think about the things I was worried about before the earthquake. My mom and Coach. Finding a dress for the water polo banquet. AP tests in May.
“So much doesn’t matter anymore,” I say.
“I know what you mean. I guess now we have to decide what still matters.”
There’s something. Mila. And that’s a big thing.
“My friend has a drinking problem. I’m afraid she’s going to end up like your friend.”
He shuffles. Something creaks. We stay still. Wait for quiet.
“The one on your team? Who lost her ring in Hawaii?”
“Yeah. Mila. I understand you more than you know, Charlie. I just kept everything about Mila to myself, and she ended up in a lot of trouble because of it.”
“What kind of trouble?”
“The kind of trouble people with drinking problems get into. The kind of trouble friends want to be able to fix, but it’s too big. Too much.”
“Yeah, I’m familiar with that kind of trouble.”
“I know you are.”
“I’m sorry,” he says. “I’m sorry you’re going through that. And I’m sorry for your friend.”
“Me too.”
I can hope I’ll get out of here and Mila’s okay and we’ll be okay. I can hope she wants to try.