Chapter 42

Dragging himself back to the situation at hand, Danny applied a second treatment of shampoo to be sure to rid Evan of any evidence of his dip in the pond. He followed it up with conditioner. The air in the shower had ceased to smell of pond water. Now a light, fresh, breezy fragrance filled the cubicle.

Evan raised his head and looked at Danny. He was breathing evenly now.

Danny smiled. “Feeling better?”

Evan nodded. Then cleared his throat. “The taste. I can’t get the taste of it out of my mouth.

He turned Evan around to face the shower spray. “Open your mouth and rinse a few times.” Taking a step out of the shower, he grabbed Evan’s toothbrush and squeezed a blob of toothpaste on it. Hopping back in, he handed it to Evan, who used it with force. Danny had to take the toothbrush away so Evan didn’t scrape his gums raw with it.

When Evan had rinsed his mouth, he put his hands on Danny’s shoulders. Looking up into Danny’s eyes, he whispered, “Thank you.”