Waiting

Tap, tap, tap.

The sound of his heel hitting the floor seemed to echo around the entire room. He wasn’t the only one in there, and he was sure that his bouncing leg was distracting everyone. They were all staring at him. They knew.

He raised a hand to his mouth and began chewing on the nail of his pointer finger, leg still bouncing, heel still tapping.

How did it happen? He knew how it happened, but why? He and Jason had been careful; they’d been safe. Did Jason cheat? Or did something else happen to him to cause it? All he knew was that Jason had it now, and he was waiting to see if he did too.

Tap, tap, tap.

What if the test was positive? That would be the end of his life. Everything would be all about sticking to a schedule; taking a million pills at specific times.

No one would want to be with him. People would know that he had it, just like the others in the waiting room knew what he was waiting for. Everyone would be afraid that they’d catch it, like it was just the common cold or something.

It could get worse from there. He could die. And he didn’t even know why.

“Eric?”

The sound of his name caused him to jump. His leg stopped bouncing as he slowly stood up. He pulled his finger from his mouth and followed the nurse the short distance that seemed to take longer than it should have. Once inside the tiny room, the door was closed behind them.

“We got the results of your test back,” she said. “Please, have a seat.”

He sat.

Tap, tap, tap.

All he could do was hope for the best. His heart beat faster than it ever had before, threatening to jump straight from his chest.

Tap, tap, tap.