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Her perkiness was brighter than the sun, and I suspected my other sister, Mia, was rubbing off on her. They got all the sunshine, and I got all the rain, metaphorically speaking.
“Are you doing the lab trip today, or am I?”
I grabbed the schedule off the side of the fridge, completely forgetting about Vera’s blood draw today as part of her annual physical. “Shit.”
“It’s all good. I don’t mind.”
The appointment was at one, but at the hospital in Spirit Bay, since they had the best pediatric lab tech in the area.
“Know what, I can take her. I’ll be back in time from the consult to pick her up from camp and take her to the lab.” I set a reminder on my phone. “I’ll just pack her a lunch too.”
Yesterday, I’d caved and set up an appointment with David Dean for his customized artwork for ten-thirty this morning. Taking Libby’s advice, and assuming he approved the project, I’d inflate his prices. Marginally. Not enough that he should turn me down, but if he did end up haggling, at least I wasn’t going to take it out of my actual costs.
“Well, if you need help…” Francesca set her black coffee down.
“I know, and I love you for offering.”
She’d been a huge help already. After she and her long-time guy split up a year ago, she understandably didn’t want to move back home with Mom and Dad and couldn’t afford her own place on her meager salary, so instead, moved into the spare room in my house. She helped cook and clean and paid a modest rent payment each month, but more importantly, she became a friend and confidant to me, now that we were older and the age gap wasn’t as noticeable. Plus, she and Vera had the best relationship. I loved how Vera adored her auntie, and the two of them always had some secret adventure every Saturday while I was at the market.
“I’m just saying, I’m here if you need me. Don’t let your stubborn pride get in the way.” Francesca turned her head as my sleepy-eyed daughter dragged herself into the kitchen.
Hair matted on the left side of her head, Vera slumped into a chair beside Francesca and released a slow, drawn-out breath. Turning to me, she whined in a voice that was becoming more and more high pitched as the days went by. “No camp.”
I tapped my ear, fingers and hands moving as I spoke. “Where’s your aid?”
“Bathroom.”
“Go.” I signed.
I’d been working on sign language with her since she was first diagnosed with hearing loss as a toddler, and now at almost seven, she was fluent in ASL, a skill she’d need. Her audiologist predicted by age ten, if not sooner, she’d be completely deaf, and no hearing aid in the world would help. According to her doctor, her hearing loss was so profound that right now, when she was just two feet in front of me, it sounded like I was talking through a wall layered in absorbent foam rather than not at all. She was dependent on lip reading, and sign language, especially when her listening device was absent.
For now, the strongest hearing aid I could purchase only helped a little, and the staggering cost of the latest bill was sitting unpaid on my credit card.
Vera returned in a minute with the beige devices nestled into her ear canals.
When she spoke, it was high-pitched, and I often wondered if she could hear the sound of her own voice as clearly as we did. “I don’t wanna go to camp.”
“You’re going. Sorry, Vee, but I know you’ll have fun. You’ve been looking forward to it.”
“Aww.”
It was a half-day scientist camp at the public library, and the price had been ridiculously cheap that it would’ve been a sin to not have signed up Vera.
Francesca piped up and signed as she spoke. “Why don’t you grab your hairbrush, and I’ll do your hair Rey style? And then you’ll be the coolest kid at camp.”
“Can I bring BB8?” Vera’s gaze jumped from Francesca to me.
I nodded, speaking as I signed. As long as she didn’t lose her toy, it didn’t bother me. “Of course.”
“Yay.” With a jump from her chair, she nearly launched herself down the hallway and ran back into the bathroom.
“Any bets on if she’ll wear her Rey wear?” I sent a questioning eyebrow raise to Francesca.
My sister nodded. “No bets needed, she will.”
Vera was obsessed with Rey from the Star Wars movies. I’d managed to find her a costume at a garage sale at the start of summer, and it was one of the only Halloween costumes that was wearing out from wear.
While Francesca did her hair and sang a song in a deep voice, I made Vera’s breakfast and packed her lunch. In addition to her hearing loss, she also had dietary restrictions and was allergic to practically everything under the sun. Finding products that lacked soy, peanuts, shellfish, and wheat was hard in the small town, so I often had to make the drive to Courtenay, a few hours away, and stock up. Those trips were costly, as gas on the island wasn’t as cheap as on the mainland, and because the food products were more specialized, naturally, they were more expensive. Money just wasn’t a luxury I had, but I also didn’t need Vera spending more time in the hospital.
