“Oh my God. Oh my God.” Mel shouts as I scoop up her mom. “I killed her. See, this is what happens when you tell the truth.”
Carefully walking up the steps, I say, “She’s not dead. She’s just in shock.”
“Door,” I motioned with my chin for her to open it, and she quickly obliged.
“Do I need to call 911? Should I call for help? What do we do? I-I”
It’s always apparent when you're around someone who has never been faced with death. Typically it annoyed me, but with Melanie, I just thought she was so damn adorable. She looked like a deer caught in headlights.
“This is why they say no good deed goes unpunished. Isn’t there a prayer we can say? I-I remember your pastor saying something about prayer and power.”
I grab a large glass from the cabinets and fill it up with water then walk over to her mother who’s lying on the couch.
“W-what are you doing? Nick No!”
Too late.
Her mom gasps the second the water hits her face, jolting her body in an upright position.”
“Welcome back, Mrs Thompson,” I say, setting the glass on the table. Loco wags his tail as he pants up at me and smiles. “You’ve wanted that to happen too, huh boy?”
He barks, and I can’t help but smile.
“What is wrong with you!” She stands up and points a long, manicured finger at my face.
“Mom,” Melanie says softly. And just like that, her mom's frown vanishes and realization sets back in at the situation at hand.
“You’re welcome. Now, I know it’s early, but I’m more than willing to make you ladies some breakfast. Melanie, you need to eat and check your blood sugar. I’ll get your mom a towel.”
Her mom turns to face Melanie, not saying a word. Melanie looks like she could use a hug, but her mom just stands, stiff as a statue and cold as ice. Silence passes before Melanie says,
“Okay,” sadness brimming in her eyes again.
I watch as her mom braces herself with one hand as she sits back down on the couch, staring off into space. I whipped up some scrambled eggs and toast, within five minutes and placed a coffee mug and breakfast in front of her mom the same time Melanie was coming back down the stairs.
“Would you like some creamer, Mrs. Thompson?”
She stares up at me and says, “No, I need something stronger.” Then she gets up and goes to the bathroom. Turning on the light a clanking noise is quickly followed after.
Is she lifting the top of the toilet seat?
Then she shuts the light off and Melanie and I watch her come out of the bathroom with a bottle of vodka in hand.
I turn to face Melanie.
“I kept it there for emergencies.” Heat filled her cheeks as embarrassment set in from revealing the truth..
Now I know where the alcohol came from last night that Melanie was drinking, and now I know where she gets her drinking problem from.
Her mom plops back down on the couch and pours a generous amount into her coffee mug.
“Oh, ya,” She says, smacking her lips together. “That hits the spot.”
She then tips her head back and downs the rest of her coffee and pours more vodka. She chuckles to herself.
“Man, ya know. I had my suspicions of him being a ladies' man, but I never thought.” She blew out a breath. “He got me there,” she smacked a hand on her thigh. “Fooled me for sure.”
She laughs.
