The Retreat

by Rebecca Kinkade

She wasn’t intimidated by me—at all.

Awesome, so are you going to respond to me, or are you just going to keep staring at me all night?” she asked coolly. “Because I don’t really mind if you stare, Nico Torres, but you can do more than stare if you want.”

He was taking our date so seriously, from sending me a list of three restaurants that he pre-vetted for my selection, to double checking that I didn’t have any food allergies or dietary restrictions because he wanted to take me to get ice cream afterwards.

The funny thing about healthcare in this country was…nothing. Nothing. There was nothing funny about it. It didn’t make any sense. The people who could afford to get sick and hurt were the people with money and insurance. More often than not, people with money and insurance were the people who didn’t get sick and hurt.

“I love you,” I told him. “I’m in love with you. I’m so in love with you that I can barely remember happiness before you.”