The Right Mistake

That’s when the man noticed my eyes were open.

"Doctor, she's awake!" he yelled.

My head was pounding. My mind was a total blank. I could only stare at him blankly. "Who are you?"

The man’s expression shifted from agitation to surprise, then to something odd I couldn't place. "I'm Ryan Parker."

I thought I saw a flicker of guilt in his eyes, but it was gone in an instant.

He offered an awkward smile, took a step back, and pushed the man beside him forward, toward my bed.

My gaze landed on the other man. His expression was cool and distant, but his deep eyes betrayed a worry he couldn't hide.

Ryan said, "This is Paxton Sullivan. He's your boyfriend. I'm his roommate and your neighbor. I came with him when I heard about your accident."

The hospital room fell silent. I watched Paxton turn to glare at Ryan, his anger palpable. Ryan just nudged him with his elbow and shot him a look.

Paxton’s clenched fist slowly relaxed.

He ignored Ryan and knelt by my bedside, his voice soft. "How are you feeling? Does your head still hurt?"

I nodded, but the movement sent a fresh wave of pain through my head, making me wince.

"Don't move!" he said urgently. "Watch the wound."

I blinked, my voice raspy. "Are you my boyfriend?"

A flash of hesitation crossed Paxton’s eyes. He opened his mouth to speak, but Ryan jumped in first. "Yes, he is! Pax, you stay here and take care of your girlfriend. I gotta go meet Madison about our project. I'll see you later."

Before I could process, he was gone, shutting the door behind him as if he couldn’t get away fast enough.

After he left, Paxton turned back to me. Meeting my gaze, he gave a short, hesitant nod. "Yeah. I'm your boyfriend."

"Boyfriend," I said, licking my chapped lips. "I need some water."

Paxton had this naturally distant vibe. When he wasn't smiling, he looked cool and unapproachable.

His personality seemed to match.

But surprisingly, he was a surprisingly gentle caretaker. He gently helped me sit up and brought a cup of water to my lips, feeding it to me sip by sip.

Then, he peeled an apple and cut it into small, easy-to-eat pieces.

He was so attentive that even the nurse on her rounds couldn't help but tease us. "Your boyfriend looks so serious, but he's surprisingly good at taking care of you."

Paxton didn't react to the compliment, his focus entirely on me as I ate the apple slices.

The doctor said my memory loss was from the concussion and wasn't serious. It would likely take a month at most for my memories to return.

So far, all I knew was that Paxton and I went to the same college and had the same major. But I couldn't shake the feeling that something about him being my boyfriend was… off.

When we watched movies together in my room, I'd instinctively reach for his hand or lean against him. But the first time I rested my head on his shoulder, his whole body went rigid, his muscles tight as a rock.

I looked up and saw that the tips of his ears were bright red. "Paxton," I asked, "how long have we been together?"

He seemed startled for a second before answering, "Three years."

That only made me more confused. If we'd been together for three years, why would he still get shy over me just holding his hand?

A week later, Ryan showed up at my room again.

The doctor had cleared me for discharge, and Paxton was packing my things—the stuff he’d brought me on my first day in the hospital.

Ryan walked in to see me clinging to Paxton’s arm while he packed. "Paxton," I asked, "are we living together, or are we still in the dorms?"

"Maybe we should move off-campus? You said the other day that the dorms weren't convenient… you know, if we wanted to do other things," I hinted with a wink.

Paxton, trapped with me attached to him, sighed helplessly as he tried to pack. "We can talk about that later."

I pouted at that answer, so I decided to tease him.

I moved behind him and wrapped my arms around his waist, pressing my chest flush against his solid back. I felt him tense up immediately. I brought my lips close to his ear and whispered, my breath ghosting against his skin, "Can we decide in the next few days? Pretty please?"

Just then, Ryan burst into the room, his face dark with fury as he roared, "What the hell are you two doing?"