Miranda:Tears are mirrors I use to see your love.
Me:You need a better hobby.
Miranda:I’m working on it.
Snorting, I tossed my phone into my purse and headed for the hospital, feeling a little lighter after her teasing.
Mom’s arm was in a splint when I arrived, and she was resting.
“She told me to tell you to go to work,” her nurse said.“She said there’s nothing you can do for her and that she’s fine.”
I sighed.“Yeah, that sounds like Mom.Did she get anything to eat?She’s been skipping meals lately.”
“I’ll make sure she has a good dinner.”
“Thank you.”
I left the hospital and went home to change.Mom’s laptop sat open on the table, bills spread out beside it.Her new spreadsheet projected what would happen in two and four weeks without her income.The numbers weren’t terrible.
If only four weeks were the end of it.
Mom would be out of work for at least double that and needed to replace her car before getting a job, since we lived in the suburbs.
Making a sandwich, I considered the possibilities.Mom’s insurance wasn’t great and wouldn’t cover much of the hospital bills.She’d have to ask for a payment plan and hope the other driver’s insurance would cover at least part of it.Even then, I wasn’t sure we could manage on my income alone.My pay was higher than hers had been when she fell behind, but the bills would be higher now, too.
My thoughts churned the entire drive to work, searching for solutions.
Uncle Jay took one look at me and said, “What happened?”
“Mom got into a car accident.She’s fine.It’s just…a lot.”
“Damn, Sophie-Girl.You weren’t kidding about your mom’s luck.What do you need?What does your mom need?”
“Well, she’s going to need about eight weeks to heal her arm.And I’m not sure what I need yet.I’m still processing.But as soon as I figure it out, I’ll let you know.”
“All right.Are you sure you want to be here?I can manage without you if you need a few nights out to stay with Abbye.”
“No, I’m okay.There’s not much I can do for her.”Except for keep working,I silently added.“Maybe once she’s home, I’ll need to start a little later so I can make us both dinner; otherwise, she’ll go back to skipping meals.”
“Whatever you need, whenever you need it,” he said firmly.
If only Steele Corporation had that level of employee compassion.
Thankfully, the Friday night crowd didn’t give me much time to think about my woes.My new shoes from Konni came in handy as I moved back and forth, mixing and serving drinks.
Miranda showed up around nine.
“Girl, I thought you were ignoring me,” she said over the music.
“Nope, just working.”
“How are you doing?”
“Fine.”
“No, she’s not,” Uncle Jay called to her.
Miranda’s gaze narrowed on me.“How long are you going to work?”
