Chapter 60
KC
The ladies’ night turned into a couples’ night, and we all hung out at Skyler’s house. He must do very well cage fighting; his home is big and beautiful. I might even say the place is elegant.
Obviously, Beau and Ajani are more than just friends; they shared a guest room that night. The next morning, Jared, Beau, and Skyler made breakfast while Ajani, Brittney, and I sat back, admiring them shirtless. It was a memory I’ll never forget.
It’s been a few days since I’ve been to work. It was a nice break spent with Jared. It really has felt like no time has passed, and we haven’t talked about the years spent apart. I’ll have to ask him what his plan is for after his contract is up.
I’m grabbing two bottles of beer for a customer when I hear Shelah’s voice. “There’s my favorite bartender.”
I twirl around quickly and smile at her. She’s rocking dark green scrubs today. “How are you, pretty lady?”
“Eh, you know. Living the dream.” Shelah sits at a barstool.
I hand the guy his beers, then start to make Shelah her drink. “What kind of shift was it? Do we need a strong drink to start with?”
Her palm smacks the bartop. “Actually, it was a decent day in the ER. Those kinds of days are few and far between, but today was one of them.”
I continue to make her drink strong anyway. When I place the glass down in front of her, she grabs my hand. “You look beautiful, happy, KC.”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” I pat the top of her hand.
“Oh, I think you do know. So you gave Jared another chance, didn’t you?”
I scoff. “Am I that easy to read?!”
“What can I say? An ER nurse makes for a great reader of people. Their facial expressions, body language, their tone...” She lifts a shoulder then takes a sip of her drink. Her lips pucker. “Mmhmm, that’s good.”
Leaning my body toward hers, I cup my mouth with my hand like I’m telling a secret. “But yeah, I am happy. Like really fucking happy, Shelah.”
“You deserve it. Tell me all about it.”
“Give me five minutes.” I then make my rounds on all of the bar's other customers, refilling drinks and taking their orders. I’m sitting down next to her before she’s had time to finish her drink.
Shelah shifts her body to face me. “Alright, so you chose Jared?”
I lean my head on her shoulder. “Yeah, I did.”
“Do you still worry?”
“I just feel a pit of sadness and regret sometimes. That I could’ve been this happy years ago, with Jared.”
She waves me off. “Nonsense.” Her hand goes to my heart. “You needed to heal, or you’d never be truly happy.”
“Okay, fair enough, pretty lady. What’s new with you? How’s the family? How’s work?”
“Everyone’s good, growing up on me. Wish they lived closer.
Maybe when I retire I’ll move to their town.
And the ER is okay; same shit different day.
We’ve got the nurses who are having affairs with doctors.
We’ve got the regulars coming in acting like we’re their primary care providers.
And, of course, I get to enjoy the most random crazy shit that walks through those doors.
” She finishes her drink and waves to the bartender for another.
“Which reminds me, I’ve got a good rectum story for you!”
I squeeze her shoulder. “My hero, always reminding me of what I’m missing.”
“This one was particularly rare for me also. Actually, I don’t think I’ve seen it happen before today.”
“Oh, you’ve got me on pins and needles. Let’s hear it.”
“This guy and his wife come in. A little purple bullet, with a full battery charge, was being used in the wife’s ass, when her sphincter swallowed it inside her.”
“What?!” I smack the table.
“Girl, you could still hear the vibration with a stethoscope.”
“Did they rush the lady into surgery?”
“Nah, the surgeon walked in. Told her to drink the stuff we tell people to use to clean themselves out when they’re preparing for a colonoscopy. Told her if she didn’t poop it out that night to come back tomorrow morning.”
“How long do you think the battery life is on her toy?”
“Shit, I hope it's not too long. It was still vibrating when she left. That sensation alone for that long had to be unbearable.” Shelah shakes her head.
“Wow, I’m speechless. At least it wasn’t an animal this time.” I make a gag face at the memory.
“Uh-huh, for sure. So when do I get to meet this handsome man of yours?”
“Hey, he could be ugly.”
“No way. The glow radiating off of you tells me he’s the whole package.” Shelah touches my dimple on my right cheek. “Are your friends and family happy for you too?”
“See, that’s the thing: I haven’t told my family yet.” I rest my forehead on the bartop.
“Are you worried?” Shelah rubs my upper back in a comforting pattern.
“I just don’t know how they’re going to react, honestly. Or if they’ll be disappointed in me.” I lift my head up, and my eyes lock onto hers as I bite my bottom lip.
“Hmm, I bet they’ll take it just fine. But you won’t know unless you talk to them. The longer you keep this information from them, the more it’ll tear you up inside.”
I slowly nod. “You’re right. Maybe I’ll do it on our next weekly call.”
“You’ve got this, babe!”
“Thank you. You are my favorite customer, in case I haven’t told you that lately.”
“I always love to hear it.” She laughs around her glass.
“Hey, KC!” Taylor hollers to me from the other side of the bar.
“Hey, girl. What’s up?”
“There’s a box with your name on it in the break room.”
“Oh shit. Yeah, Val had mentioned there was a delivery I missed. Thank you!”
“No problem.”
“Alright, enjoy your drink, Shelah. I’ll see you next time. I might have to tell Jared to make an appearance so you two can officially meet.”
Shelah raises her drink. “Deal.”
“Make sure she gets the family discount,” I tell the bartender. She nods with a wink.
Damn. I can’t believe I forgot about that package.
Wonder what it could be? When I walk into the break room, there’s a medium-size brown box on the table in the middle of the room.
No information is listed on the box. I pick it up, slightly giving it a shake.
I grab a knife from a drawer and slice through the tape on the lid.
Pulling it open, I look inside the dark box.
It looks like flowers. Reaching in, I pull out a small bouquet of sunflowers, wilted and dead. A piece of paper falls to the ground. Bending over, I grasp it with my fingertips and unfold it to read it.
These reminded me of you.
Did Jared send me flowers?