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Eli burst out laughing, and a little saliva trickled down his stubbled chin. Jude reached to get a tissue and pat it dry, but Eli sat back up in a hurry, pushed him aside, and did it himself. Jude realized at that moment that Eli liked Iris, and probably thought she was pretty, too. Eli enjoyed being catered to and taken care of at times, but when pretty women were around, he resisted those advances. It was humorous to witness.
“Eye-risss.”
“Yes?”
“Eye-risss, like fly-were?”
“Yes, just like the flower.”
“I.r.i.ssss.”
“Yup, that’s how you spell it. You spell your name, E.L.I, right?”
“Mmm hmmm. I will… I will see you two-mor-row, Eye-risss. I…I’m tawk-king slow… so you…” he pointed at her, “un-dur-staaaand me.”
“I understand you just fine. You can talk anyway you wish, and if I miss somethin’, I’ll ask you to repeat it. It’s just that simple.” Iris made her way around Jude, leaned down, and kissed the top of Eli’s head. She then tucked him back in the bed. “I’m not a nurse. I don’t know anything about care takin’. I don’t want to be a nurse, either, and I doubt you want another caretaker any ol’ way. Good thing is you already got that in the times you do need that sort of help. All you need right now is a friend. Isn’t that so?”
“…Yesss.”
“I need a friend, too.” She pecked his forehead, and his eyes lit up like Christmas trees. “Go on back to sleep. Me and Jude are leavin’. I’ll see you soon.” Eli’s cheeks turned bright red as Iris made her way towards the door.
“Eli, are you okay with Iris? You want her to come back?”
“…Yesss.”
“Fine. You said tomorrow, but we have to make sure she can do that first. We need to work out her schedule. I’ll call and let you know, okay?”
“Okay.” Eli tugged on the edge of the sheet, and curled his knees towards his torso.
“Good night.”
“Jewwwd.”
“Yes?”
“Issss I-ris, yuh…. Yooour girl friend?”
Iris chuckled and headed on out the door, leaving the two of them alone.
“…She ain’t right now. I have a feeling she won’t make it easy on me, either. I think she likes me, but there’s things about me she doesn’t like, either. Let’s just say since I like her enough to bring her to you, I’ll have to get creative with my efforts to make the answer to your question a ‘yes.’”
Eli’s cheeks turned red and he giggled like a little boy. Jude waved, locked the door, and closed it behind him. When he stepped out into the hall, Iris was about twenty feet away, looking down at her phone.
“Am I hired?” she asked while keeping her eyes on her device. He stopped walking when he reached her. Placing his hands on his hips, he sucked his teeth for a bit and looked around, finding it a bit odd the area was so deserted. Typically, he’d see at least another patient or two, a nurse here and there, but all he could hear was the water cooler and the soothing sounds of Paul Mauriat’s, ‘Love is Blue.’
He waited for her to look up and meet his gaze.
“You really have no idea who I am, do you? You genuinely are completely oblivious…” He stroked the sharp end of his thick beard.
“I don’t know who you are totally, but I have a good idea of the kind of influence you have, and I know there’s bits of you I don’t want to know any further than I already do. I know that much.” She looked dismissively back down at her phone.
“Then why did you agree to take the job?”
“Because I like people. I need the money. And though it’s not much, I’ve seen you for so long that on some level, it seems like we’ve known each other for quite some time. Gives a sense of comfort. If you spend enough time with even a devil, you begin to learn his patterns,” she said with a smirk. “Then, after a while, you navigate the fiery maze around him, keep your distance, and in the right light, he don’t seem so bad. I saw you when I was workin’ second shift sometimes, and now, the third shift, too. I know you don’t live ’round there, but I see, this adult care center isn’t too far from where I work, just like you said. I realize now why you’re in there so much. Mainly to get things for your friend.”
“I saw you before you ever saw me in the store, Iris. You think I’d trust just anyone with that man?” He pointed down the hall towards Eli’s door. “For two fuckin’ years, I’ve tried to find someone I could trust to keep him company. One after a fuckin’ nother, they were nothin’ but a disappointment. Laughin’ at him behind his back, or coming late and leavin’ early if they showed up at all. I went through nurse after nurse, caretaker after caretaker, and then it hit me. I needed just an ordinary person. Not someone in the system. Someone who knows right from wrong. Preferably, a woman. Someone who is hard workin’. Someone who cares about someone other than her damn self.” Anger swelled inside of him, burning the back of his throat like lava. Iris’ eyes sheened over. She looked afraid… curious… intrigued.
“…Where’d you see me at before Kroger?”
