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Trip doesn’t want to talk about his feelings? Given what little I know about him, I’m not at all surprised by this revelation. He seems cruel, aloof, and downright feral at times. That doesn’t scream ‘emotionally stable’ to me. But it seems that Trip’s attitude isn’t solely directed at me. While that information doesn’t make me feel any better, it does make me understand things between them a bit. Clearly, Jason and Grant are simply used to Trip’s callousness.
“Oh.” I’m not sure what to say. I don’t even really care, but if talking this out with Jason will get him to leave me alone quicker, I feel like I need to give some input. “Do you know what’s wrong with Trip’s dad? Is this something you could address directly with him?”
Jason shakes his head. “Carlos sat us down and told us what’s going on, but since then, he’s wanted to handle this all by himself. He and Trip are a lot alike in that regard.”
“Do you—I mean, can you tell me what’s wrong?” I hedge as I swipe a misplaced book off a bookshelf. I add it to the growing pile on my cart.
Jason hesitates before letting out a sigh. “Don’t tell Trip I said anything, ok?”
I don’t know why he would trust me not to do that, especially knowing that if I was feeling vindictive, I could tell Trip to cause a rift between the two, but I nod just the same.
“Trip’s dad has pancreatic cancer and needs treatment. Unfortunately, he doesn’t have health insurance and paying for the doctor’s appointments and chemo is super expensive. Trip’s been trying to take on more projects to make ends meet and so Carlos will just relax, but his dad insists that he needs to keep working. They’re butting heads like crazy and it’s taking a toll on the both of them. It’s crazy because it’s not like we—” Jason pauses before shaking his head, clearly thinking better about something. “Anyway, money and health,that’sCarlos’ problem.”
Strangely enough, this is something I’m vaguely informed about. I slow to a halt and look up at Jason.
“I’m sure he’s looked into this already, but has he contacted Delmora’s Angels?”
Jason’s brows furrow. “Who?”
“Delmora’s Angels, they serve the Midwest area and are pretty great.”
“Like I said, they don’t really talk about these things, but I doubt it. Trip and Carlos don’t have a lot of downtime. Tell me about it.”
“They’re a nonprofit that helps people who don’t have health insurance get the care they need, especially in regard to cancer treatment. The organization will either help with some of the payments for medical costs, or, depending on the case, they completely take it on so families can focus on getting better and not going into financial debt.” I push my cart over to another table to pick up a pile of books resting there. Jason takes a few and helps me organize them on my cart. “They’re who helped my foster father when he got sick. Not only did they pay for half of all the treatments, but when he got really sick, a truck would come out and give us a few frozen family-sized meals.”
There’s a short pause as Jason digests this information. As I continue through the rows of bookshelves, he slows to a halt and pulls out his phone and types away. Leaving him to do his own research, I continue on my way. I’m not alone for long.
“I’ll look into that for them, thanks.” He quickens his stride so that he comes to walk beside me. “And I’m sorry to hear about your foster dad. Is he ok now?”
“He didn’t make it.”
“Oh, shit.” Out of the corner of my eye, I see him reach for me. I stiffen hoping that he won’t touch me. How do I explainthatto a coworker who just happens to look over at the wrong time? Thankfully, Jason seems to rethink the gesture because his hand drops before it gets to me. “I’m really sorry for your loss.”
“Don’t be, I’m not. He was an asshole.”
Patrick Hollies and his wife, Martha Hollies, can rot in hell for all I care. He’d died a few months after I aged out of the foster care system, and I hadn’t even bothered to call Martha to see how she was doing. That’s what they get for neglecting the child they were supposed to be taking care of. Thank god for Mrs. Gonzalez. She took me under her wing when my foster parents were too drunk to function, which was a lot of the time.
“Anyway, that nonprofit is great. As for your parents, it sounds like, until they feel comfortable stepping back from working so hard, they’re going to keep trucking at it. I think the best thing to do is make sure they know you love them, and that you’re there to support them in whatever decision they make whether that’s to work or retire.” I pause before adding, “Whatever decisions they made to get to where they are have been made, so there is no point harping on them. All you can do is help them when you can and be a shoulder they can lean on when they’re emotionally spent. By constantly reminding them of what they already know, you’re making them feel worse than they already do. So just be there and quietly support them until they decide to do something different.”
Jason opens his mouth to say more but a student approaches. To my relief, rather than stay and potentially get me into trouble, he says,
“I’ll see you around.”
With that, he turns and leaves, giving me space and the ability to relax. Once I’m done with the student, I head to the break room where the books will be organized and then reshelved later. When I get there, I finally cave and grab the small box Jason left behind. I open it up cautiously, expecting something awful.
Instead, I find six chocolate-covered strawberries. White chocolate is drizzled on top, and there are some pink sprinkles in the mix. I stare in wonder at the treat in front of me. I’m both flattered and suspicious, leaning heavily toward the latter. Why would he give me these? And why come to talk to me? This seems… odd. Like a setup of some sort.
With a huff, I toss them in the trash can.
But, in case this was some sort of test or trick, I do want him to know that I opened his present. Pulling out my phone, I pull up Jason’s number and type out a quick text just to him:
Me: Thanks for the strawberries.
I don’t expect him to answer, so when my phone vibrates as I start to put it away, I start in surprise.
Jason: UR welcome.
Jason: You never did tell me what you were studying so hard on your phone.
