Back to the grind

Henry was grateful to have his job. No questions asked. Still. It was strange.

He couldn't quite explain it to Josie. After all, they were looking for a place to live. And that was all they lived and breathed at the moment. Finding their own place.

He hated to get sidetracked. But he was doing a whole lot more than tending to patrons at the library. There were never ending books to put away. And it couldn't be helped, making sure all the MYSTERY stickers were on the Mystery books?

Maybe that's when it happened, reaching for all those old mystery books on the high shelf that Mae couldn't reach. After all, she didn't have Ben to help her. He was only there a few days a week in the afternoon.

It felt as if the place was a zoo. Jude was usually never in the right place to be found. And the teenagers were of some new breed. The kind that wanted to terrorize the shelvers and even threaten to burn books. Thankfully, the police took care of that.

There was so much to keep a watchful eye on.

And then..he got out of bed one morning and threw his back.

"Its OK. I'm going to be fine." He promised his mom he'd shake it off. Well, it didn't quite happen with a shake. Although, he felt very old with the wave of misery that hit his lower back. He felt physically ill, but he couldn't stay home. He couldn't.

Then the happy call from Josie. There was a one bedroom opening in the apartment complex where Derrick and Rozzie lived. How exciting was that? The manager wanted to show it to them.

"Great?" He kept smiling, but his back was breaking. Why? Why did this have to happen now?

"OH MY GOD!" Sam was thrilled when she got the call on her cell. Of course, she and Sky were taking it easy at their room at the Boarding House.

"What!" He looked at her, rising up on his elbows in bed... that she couldn't be that excited, could she?

"Remember, when I filled out that application at that apartment complex, last month?" She grinned.

"No. Don't think I remember." Sky sighed, looking at her blankly. He'd been working extra hours. All he really wanted to do was sleep and maybe something else with Sam that would only make him sleep better. He yawned, ready to go back to bed while she was getting ready for work.

"You know, the place with the pool ..and..we can afford it." She grinned happily.

"A pool?" He winced. He'd gone to several places with her on their apartment hunt that had pools. Some better than others.

"This place has the bar and the gym." She made it sound as if it were more of a spa than a home.

"Really?" He wasn't sure they needed all those things.

"They called! There is this one bedroom. They want us to look at!" She gritted a fabulous smile and kissed him. "We can see it this afternoon!"

"Great." Sky evened a smile. He really liked it here. He didn't think they needed all this newfangled lifestyle change. Weren't they saving their money?

Sam explained they'd been saving up, for this very place.