Eisen couldn’t recall a time when he’d been happier than he could cook. Poor Lexie, dealing with broken ribs and cabin fever and hospital food, he wouldn’t wish that on anyone, least of all someone like her. He put the lasagna together and cooked it in the morning, and let it cool while he took his Italian final. On his way home to pick it up, he stopped at the department store and picked a teddy bear up as a get well soon gift, too. A simple one, no fancy messages or sparkles. He wasn’t sure if Lexie would want those and you could never go wrong with something sweet like that.
When he got home, he loaded the lasagna into a Tupperware container, grabbed the bear and a CD of music that he knew Lexie liked, some nice, relaxing folky tunes that would take her mind off of feeling so blah while she was in the hospital. With everything hidden in his school bag – which he didn’t need for a week or so now – he started the walk to the hospital, which wasn’t too far from his place anyway.
The woman at the front desk was very obliging when he asked which room Lexie Tibbits was in and explained who he was and that he was there for a visit, and she told him which room she was in, and he thanked her, then quickly followed the directions. With a smile on his face, he knocked on the door, pushing it open. He was about to greet her, but she practically squeaked in excitement when she saw his face, which made his smile all the more genuine. “Hey, Lex!” he said, setting his school bag down and sneakily rifling through it, pulling out only the lasagna. “How are you feeling today, birthday girl?”