He nodded with a blank expression, then stepped inside the house. Clearly, she was delivering too much information. Nervous about his reaction, she silently prayed he wouldn’t throw a fit.
“See how spacious it is in here?” She waved a hand toward the great room with vaulted ceilings. “It’s bigger than it looks from the outside.”
“Uh-huh.” He slowly nodded. “Nice.”
She sighed in relief. “And the master bedroom is nice too. Bigger than the one you and mom share now. With an attached bath. Very handy.” She led him into the master bath.
“Uh-huh,” he repeated. “Nice.” He tried one of the sink faucets, then frowned. “Broken?”
“Not hooked up yet. But by the end of the week, the water should work.”
“Oh? Okay.” He peeked at the shower. “Big.”
“Yes. Very easy access too.”
“Access? Uh-huh.”
“Want to see the kitchen?”
“Uh-huh.” He slowly followed her out, looking on with appreciation as she showed him the stainless appliances. She talked up each item and each speech was followed by his repetitive comments. But at least he wasn’t criticizing the place. She wasn’t sure if it was because she sounded so happy and upbeat or if he really liked it, but she wasn’t complaining.
“I know it’s hot in here right now.” She opened a window. “But when the electricity is on, it will have AC.”
“AC?” He cocked his head to one side. “CT? AC CT?”
“Yes. AC for CT.” She smiled. “Good joke. We’ll have to tell Mom that there’s AC for CT. That should make her laugh.”
He chuckled. Then she showed him the two smaller bedrooms and bath on the other side. “That’s pretty much it,” she told him.
“Big,” he said again. And although most wouldn’t describe it that way, she understood what he meant. To his confused mind, it probably did seem big. Especially since he’d never seen it before. “Who lives here?” he asked again.
“Whoever wants to,” she answered. “It’s such a nice house.Maybe Cooper and I will live here. Or you could live here, Dad. If you wanted.”
“Me?” He frowned. “I don’t live here.”
“Youcouldlive here ... if you wanted,” she repeated herself, more slowly now to make sure he understood.
“Too big. Too much for me.”
She shrugged. “Well, we can wait and see. You might decide you like it.”
“No chairs. No bed,” he proclaimed like that settled it. “Not my house.”
Without saying anything, she led him to the front door, pausing to look out before she helped him down the step. “It’s nice to have just one step,” she told him. “And it will be bigger and sturdier soon.”
He nodded with an absent look as he patted the exterior siding. “Like my bees.”
“Huh?” Now she felt confused. “Your bees?”
He patted the house again. “Like bees. And honey too.”
“You mean the color? The yellow?” She frowned at the bright paint. “I guess so. Yellow like bees and honey.” She laughed. “Good call, Dad.”
“It’s a bee house.”
“Well, they probably like their beehive houses better. Should we go check on the bees, Dad?” She didn’t really care to get that close to the hives, but it seemed a good distraction at the moment. Keep him in good spirits.
“Uh-huh.” He turned in that direction, and she linked her arm with his, walking slowly alongside him.
