Monday, March 16, 2015

Like it or not

like it or not




It still felt like winter. And there was Jude with all that pizza. Vada wouldn't eat any and neither would Henry. They were both watching their carbs.

Jude was making a fuss about it. "All this food and no one will eat it."

"Well...drop it off at a homeless shelter." Vada glared at him. As it was she'd had to reclean the breakroom. It wasn't in her job description, but she usually got the brunt of it.

"I'm not gonna do that." He looked peeved. Honestly, he was a strange creature to Vada.

"The library is closed. We need to get out of here." She'd already clocked out, but Henry was taking his time in the bathroom. She already had the car running.

Just as she was about to make another snide remark to him, it occurred to her that Henry might not be OK. She jolted down the hallway and beat on the staff bathroom door.

"HENRY! ARE YOU ALL RIGHT IN THERE." Naturally, the door was locked.

In her mind she could see herself calling 911 and some guys coming from City to break down the heavy duty door, and there Henry would be choking on his own vomit, in the floor. Gone. Her pulse took a hold of her as if this was it. This is it.

It was so still for a moment, but finally, he unlocked the door.

"What is it?" He looked kind of confused, but not totally out of it.

"Uh..we need to go home. I..I guess I have to drop off Jude, first." She did her best not to be hasty. But she did manage to get his stuff gathered up and he clocked out.

"Lets go." She looked at Jude.

"I can walk home." He told her, holding his boxes of pizza.

"You're not walking home in this mess." It was beating down ice pellets, an ice storm in the making.

"I'll be fine." Suddenly he was acting a little weird.

"What is it?" She winced.

"I don't like cars." He barely said above a breath.

"Well, you are tonight." She took his stuff. "Just get in. And close your eyes."

He hesitated. But finally he got in the front seat when the ice pellets beat down.

It was a slow go, but Vada managed navigating the car, wondering if Henry was really OK.

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