The Way Your Heart Sounds

After dinner, Jimmy was even kind enough to wash the dishes he had used to cook. She couldn’t help but smile at how much of a sweetheart he could be. This was the Jimmy that she knew and loved, not the one from yesterday. Once he was done, he came back to the table to sit with her.

“You look sleepy. You should get some rest,” he mumbled, reaching for her hand across the table so he could hold it.

“Yeah. Early morning again tomorrow,” she said.

“I’ll leave you be then,” he stood up and came over to her. She got up to hug him, and they shared a long hug like they did before.

“Sleep tight, angel,” he murmured. He tilted her chin up with of his long fingers and kissed her gently. She smiled at him, feeling so safe despite everything that had happened. As much as she was keeping his past behavior in the back of her mind, she couldn’t deny her longing to be with him, as long as he was sober.

Once Jimmy had left, she had time to be alone and think about the past few days. Everything seemed to be overwhelming, which wasn’t helping her get to sleep.

The next day, Lauren was still exhausted. During her lunch break, she made her way across the hospital to see Dr. Kramer. He was a well-known addiction specialist and psychiatrist. She thought that if anyone could help Jimmy, it would be him. She had called him this morning and let him know she was coming, so when she got there, she just knocked on the door. He called for her to come inside, and shook her hand.

“How can I help you today?” he asked, returning to his seat.

“It’s something not work related. I thought you may be able to help, or know someone else who can… Anyway, I kind of started seeing someone. And he has a problem with drugs and alcohol. He’s never been in treatment before, but I convinced him to start the process. I was wondering if you’d have the time to meet with him and let me know what you think the best route is to take,” she explained. He nodded, and pulled out a small notebook.

“His name?”

“Jimmy. Jimmy Sullivan.”

“Do you know what kind of drugs?”

“Besides alcohol, cocaine and pills. I don’t know what kind. Narcotics, if I had to assume.” The doctor jotted a few things down.

“I have an appointment slot open for Sunday at 2pm. I’ll put him in for then, and if he can’t make that time just give me a call and we’ll work something out.” Lauren nodded and stood up.

“Thank you so much for your time, I really appreciate it,” she said.

“No problem. I look forward to meeting him.”

With that, Lauren began walking back to the ER. She decided to call Jimmy on the way to tell him about the appointment.

“Angel!” he chirped. “Aren’t you at work?”

“Yep. I’m on lunch. I wanted to tell you I just spoke with the doctor. He can see you Sunday at two. Does that work?”

“Sure, that’s fine. I’ll be there. Thank you so much for getting me the appointment. Can I see you when you get home?”

“Yeah, I’ll be home a little after six.”

“I’ll be waiting. Have a good day, sweetheart.”

A few hours later, Lauren was driving on her way home from work. When she pulled up to the house, she got out of the car and hugged Jimmy, who was waiting as promised.

“Did you see any gross stuff at work today?” he asked, excitedly.

“I pulled an arrow out of someone’s arm,” Lauren shrugged. Jimmy laughed.

“Your job is so cool. Cooler than mine, maybe,” he said.

They made dinner together, then cuddled up on the couch, just quietly relaxing together. Lauren let her head rest on Jimmy’s chest, and listened to his heartbeat. They chatted about nothing for a few minutes. As she was listening to his heartbeat, she noticed the rhythm go out of whack. She grabbed his wrist and started feeling his pulse.

“What are you doing?” he asked, looking over at her.

“Are you feeling okay?”

“Yeah.. I mean, my chest feels a little uncomfortable. But it’s nothing,” he mumbled. Lauren announced that she would be right back, and left him for a minute to grab a stethoscope. When she came back, Jimmy looked at her funny. He then burst out into laughter.

“Do you think I’m dying or something?” he joked.

“I just wanna listen. Be quiet for a second,” she said. She lifted his shirt up and placed the stethoscope on his chest, listening quietly. His heartbeat had returned to normal. Maybe she had imagined it.

“What happened?” Jimmy asked. She noticed a look of concern on his face.

“Your heart beat was out of rhythm. I got worried,” she said, putting her stethoscope down. She gazed at his chest and looked at some of the tattoos she hadn’t seen before. The word ‘Fiction’ was going down his chest in bright red letters.

She allowed his shirt to fall down again. Jimmy explained that fiction was one of his nicknames, because his life story seems like fiction. Smiling, she returned to cuddling him, and was happy to hear his heart’s regular rhythm. She also made a mental note to get Dr. Kramer to refer Jimmy to a cardiologist, just to be on the safe side.

“Can I ask you something?” He mumbled, after a while of silence.

“Anything.”

He paused to think before responding.

“When I have to go through detox, will you stay there with me? I'm sure it's going to be ugly, but I think having you there will help me push through it. I hope he doesn't make me go to a private facility and do this alone…” He trailed off, his thoughts jumping from one to the other.

“I have no idea what his plans will be for you, Jimmy. But I promise I'll be there every moment I possibly can be,” she grabbed his hand. Raising her hand up, he kissed it gently before lowering it back down.

“I'm so scared,” he mumbled, burying his head into her neck in an attempt to hide away from the world.

“I'm scared too, but the result will be worth it. I need you healthy and happy so you can stick around for a long time.” She started to pet the back of his head. All she could do was comfort him while his body trembled, and tears fell onto her shirt.

Notes