I’m quick to come to her defense.
“No. Not really.”
“You don’t sound so convincing.”
“I guess my body still thinks I need to sleep during the day and be awake all night.” She hesitates for a moment. “And it didn’t help that he tried to pull a little stunt last night either.”
“Oh yeah?” I knew there was more going on. Hopefully, talking about it will help.
“Yeah, well, it’s not uncommon for Rebecca to call me at night while she’s working. I didn’t think anything about seeing her number show up on my phone so late since I know her shift ends at eleven, but she usually sends a text first just to see if I’m still awake. Only it wasn’t Rebecca on the other end of the call.” She hesitates before finishing the story. “It was him calling me from her phone. Something happened at the hotel and Brian was able to take Rebecca’s phone from behind the counter. I got a little spooked thinking he may be outside or something but my mind was just going crazy.”
“I’m so sorry. You know if you ever get scared you can call me. I don’t mind coming down to the house to sit with you. Besides, I’m usually up pretty late anyways.” I didn’t want to tell her I noticed the lights on, but I would have been there in a moment’s notice if she had only called.
“Thanks, but I didn’t want to bother you. I know you’ve got your own life to live rather than being bothered by me and my problems.” She drops her head to stare down at her plate.
“Seriously, call me next time. I mean it. Sometimes I’m still wired from studying so much it’s hard for me to fall asleep.” I hope I sound convincing enough to her.
Mom sits down at the table with us and my dad joins us minutes later. Everyone starts making small talk and before long we are all finished and thanking mom for another great meal.
“You know, if your dad would find a tech to help him open up in the morning, I’d make sure all of you ate like this every morning.” Mom teases.
We all laugh knowing my mom would love to be able to stay home instead of working so much but she’s dedicated to helping my father with the pharmacy.
My dad doesn’t take long before adding to my mom’s comment. “I’m trying to talk Jennifer into helping out. I told her how you started out being a tech before deciding to attend pharmacy school.” He looks at me before continuing. “There’s a program at the local Community College that offers accelerated classes for tech certification. You should really consider it.” I know he would appreciate it I contributed to the discussion, but I also don’t want her to feel pressured.
“Maybe after the baby is born.” She finally tosses in as though she may seriously be considering it after all.
“Well, I hate to crash this party, but I need to be on my way to class. I would hate to miss something important.” I push my chair underneath the table, relieved to know the slight situation I had earlier is now under control.
I leave the three of them sitting at the kitchen table and grab my keys and bag before heading out to the truck. I really can’t handle hearing my dad talking to Jennifer about a job. I know she mentioned looking for work but I don’t know if I could handle being near her all the time without going crazy.
I arrive at school with plenty of time to spare before my first class. I pull out my laptop to check over a few of my notes then start getting everything ready for my lab work. The instructor is running behind this morning so I click off of my notes and check my email. There are a couple of messages pertaining to graduation and reminders of important dates, but other than that, it’s mostly advertisements and spam. Before closing out my email, I notice an ad for flowers.com. Would I be out of line if I sent Jennifer an arrangement or something? Just something simple to brighten her day because she was so sad this morning. I click on the link and start the process of ordering
“No. Not really.”
“You don’t sound so convincing.”
“I guess my body still thinks I need to sleep during the day and be awake all night.” She hesitates for a moment. “And it didn’t help that he tried to pull a little stunt last night either.”
“Oh yeah?” I knew there was more going on. Hopefully, talking about it will help.
“Yeah, well, it’s not uncommon for Rebecca to call me at night while she’s working. I didn’t think anything about seeing her number show up on my phone so late since I know her shift ends at eleven, but she usually sends a text first just to see if I’m still awake. Only it wasn’t Rebecca on the other end of the call.” She hesitates before finishing the story. “It was him calling me from her phone. Something happened at the hotel and Brian was able to take Rebecca’s phone from behind the counter. I got a little spooked thinking he may be outside or something but my mind was just going crazy.”
“I’m so sorry. You know if you ever get scared you can call me. I don’t mind coming down to the house to sit with you. Besides, I’m usually up pretty late anyways.” I didn’t want to tell her I noticed the lights on, but I would have been there in a moment’s notice if she had only called.
“Thanks, but I didn’t want to bother you. I know you’ve got your own life to live rather than being bothered by me and my problems.” She drops her head to stare down at her plate.
“Seriously, call me next time. I mean it. Sometimes I’m still wired from studying so much it’s hard for me to fall asleep.” I hope I sound convincing enough to her.
Mom sits down at the table with us and my dad joins us minutes later. Everyone starts making small talk and before long we are all finished and thanking mom for another great meal.
“You know, if your dad would find a tech to help him open up in the morning, I’d make sure all of you ate like this every morning.” Mom teases.
We all laugh knowing my mom would love to be able to stay home instead of working so much but she’s dedicated to helping my father with the pharmacy.
My dad doesn’t take long before adding to my mom’s comment. “I’m trying to talk Jennifer into helping out. I told her how you started out being a tech before deciding to attend pharmacy school.” He looks at me before continuing. “There’s a program at the local Community College that offers accelerated classes for tech certification. You should really consider it.” I know he would appreciate it I contributed to the discussion, but I also don’t want her to feel pressured.
“Maybe after the baby is born.” She finally tosses in as though she may seriously be considering it after all.
“Well, I hate to crash this party, but I need to be on my way to class. I would hate to miss something important.” I push my chair underneath the table, relieved to know the slight situation I had earlier is now under control.
I leave the three of them sitting at the kitchen table and grab my keys and bag before heading out to the truck. I really can’t handle hearing my dad talking to Jennifer about a job. I know she mentioned looking for work but I don’t know if I could handle being near her all the time without going crazy.
I arrive at school with plenty of time to spare before my first class. I pull out my laptop to check over a few of my notes then start getting everything ready for my lab work. The instructor is running behind this morning so I click off of my notes and check my email. There are a couple of messages pertaining to graduation and reminders of important dates, but other than that, it’s mostly advertisements and spam. Before closing out my email, I notice an ad for flowers.com. Would I be out of line if I sent Jennifer an arrangement or something? Just something simple to brighten her day because she was so sad this morning. I click on the link and start the process of ordering
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