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Chapter Twelve
Hadley
Shaking my head, I stared down at the mountain of food in the break room. “Oh, Georgie, you didn’t have to get me all of this.”
She waved her hand dismissively. “Nonsense. We’re finally losing you, and it sucks, but I’m glad for you. Besides, the girls pitched in and made you something. They’re using your last day as an excuse to sneak in here and snack.” That made me snicker as I grabbed a plastic plate and piled it with food. “When do you start at the hospital?” she asked after we sat down.
“Monday. That gives me the weekend to relax and spend time with my babies.”
Georgie shook her head and sighed. “I don’t know what we’ll do without you.”
“I’m sorry,” I told her, and I meant it. CNAs worked long hours with low pay. CNAs did all the brute work and everything else. I’d have the same duties at the hospital and more, but a nursing home and a hospital were different. At a nursing home, we didn’t have patients. We had residents and our job were these people’s home. We had to make sure it felt like home for them despite the care we gave. Not all, but most patients at a hospital could more or less take care of themselves. Most of the residents at the nursing home required absolute care. We tended to their every need. There was a variety of health problems—people suffering from strokes, dementia, Alzheimer’s, and people on bedrest. Some walked into this place seemingly capable and then their disease progressed—the devastating part was watching them steadily decline.
That was why the hardest part of leaving would be the residents. I’d become attached to them and when one passed, I felt it. The sadness worsened when Bethany—a ninety-year-old resident—asked why I had to go.
“Don’t be. You’ve worked hard, and it paid off,” said Georgie.
I knew I did. Between nursing clinicals, classes, tests, and endless hours on the job, I was due for almost four years of sleep, but my hard work had paid off. I passed the NCLEX exam with flying colors! All of that worrying the week before was for nothing.
“I’m ready for more time with Lucy and Eli,” I said cheerfully.
“Well, you’ll be getting a lot of that now. Do you know what shift you’re getting yet?”
“Mornings,” I told her. The nurses at Sassafras’s Hospital did twelve-hour shifts. The options were seven a.m. to seven p.m. or seven p.m. to seven a.m. Three days on and four off was my new work schedule. I couldn’t freaking wait. The only time I took a break from work was during the six weeks after having Eli, other than that, it felt like I was always at the nursing home.
So, yes, I was so ready to leave. This was a great step forward for my little family and me.
Lucy’s bright smile when I had told her, “No more sleepovers at Mamaw and Papaw’s after tonight,” was the highlight of my entire week. She jumped up and down on the bed, making her brother gawk at her like she was crazy. That was the moment I knew there was no love purer than a mother and her child. She wanted to be with me more than anyone else. Lucy loved me without fault, and I didn’t want to ever fail her or Eli.
“Oh, here.” Georgie got up and walked toward her locker. “I won’t be able to make it to Lucy’s party tomorrow since I’ll be stuck here.”
It was her birthday present. She would be four tomorrow which was another anxiety entirely. Mom talked me into putting her in preschool. I knew it would be great for her, but it didn’t ease my worries. My baby was ready for school, but I wasn’t ready. It was a week into June, and her first day was constantly on my mind.
“I’ll take pictures when she opens it tomorrow and send them to you,” I said as I placed the present beside my plate.
“Thanks.” When I glanced up from my food, Georgie stared at me. “I’m going to miss you, child. Don’t be a stranger, ya hear?”
Her words made me a little sad. One part of my life, the part that’s kept us afloat the last few years, was ending, but I was ready for whatever came next.
______
“It’s okay, Hadley.” Mom patted my back the next day as I fought off my tears. “You tried.”
“She shouldn’t have had to try,” Dad pitched in. I could tell by the sound of his voice that he was angry. “Scott’s family has never been good to her. Why does she have to try for them now?”
“We’ll just have separate birthdays from now on,” Mom added with another tender pat.
It was my initial plan, but then Scott made me feel guilty. He claimed that he couldn’t afford to do anything for Lucy and didn’t want her disappointed in him. He even said that his parents wouldn’t help. All that changed when his family showed up to the lake for the party I prepared for Lucy. As soon as the Jameson’s arrived, all I heard was Scott’s mom nagging.
“Why, Hadley, this party has no decoration.”
“I didn’t know you liked Trolls, Lucy?”
“Meme Lilly will buy you a cake bigger than this one.”
“I knew a woman who did cakes. Hadley, if you would have asked for our input, we could have gotten a bigger one for Lucy.”
“Does Lucy look like she’s lost weight?”
