“Can you tell me if I ever do something that makes you uncomfortable? I don’t want a repeat of what happened earlier. I never want to push against any limits or boundaries you have.”
I nodded. It was the least I could do after today.
Chapter 27
Even though I was feeling better, Dawn still wouldn’t let me do much around the house. The only lingering effect after a week was a slight cough that kept tickling my throat.
I didn’t have to tell her that I didn’t have that much energy; she just knew. Hence why I was stuck to beinglazy.Her words, not mine.
I hated sitting around and not doing anything. It gave my mind too much time to focus on the little things that really didn’t matter in the long run. Logically, I knew that cleaning the house wouldn’t take me that long, but right now, I was watching Dawn do it all.
“Don’t give me that look,” she shot me a fake glare that contained no heat at all. “I survived keeping this house clean without you for years. I can certainly pick up the slack while you rest.”
I felt so useless. It’d been a week. Why couldn’t I at least help do something? Anything?
“You really hate just doing nothing, don’t you?” Dawn shook her head, like she knew that answer already. “Since you seem so determined, you can empty out the dishwasher. But that’s the only thing you get to do today.”
I perked up, content to at least do one thing, no matter what it was.
Dawn laughed quietly as I slowly got up from the couch. I knew if I stood up too fast, a dizzy spell would hit and Dawn would take away the one chore she graced me with.
I almost laughed at myself. A few years ago, I’d never thought that I’d be asked to do dishes, or clean, or anything else that I do. Instead, I’d be begging for mychoreto be done and over with.
Thankfully, other than that one time where the past made a bad reappearance, there hadn’t been any other times over the week. Jasper had texted me a few times to check in, but otherwise he hadn’t stopped by again, either.
I still wasn’t entirely sure what to think of him. He was nice, and apparently a part of me trusted him enough to let him touch me the way he did. Or I was just that desperate for human touch.
I shook my head at that last thought. I wasn’t desperate at all. I knew if I needed a hug, Dawn would happily give me one. Jasper was just a different type of person. Someone that was calming, and knew how to not overreact and make me panic.
Which, given his job, he should know how to do that. His job was filled with kids who had issues with panicking, or other mental disorders, so of course he’d know how to deal with my own issues.
I had to wonder, why did someone like Jasper get born to parents who only wanted to have money. He certainly didn’t act like he had tons of money, preferring to keep things simple.
So close to being eighteen, I didn’t know what I wanted to do or where I’d go. Sure, Dawn told me more than once that I was welcome to stay here for as long as I wanted, which I was definitely going to take advantage of. I wasn’t willing to move to the city, where a few places with programs could help me get into. The busy city life wasn’t what I wanted for my life.
I wanted to keep the peace and quiet of being out here.
“Dawn?” I found her in the laundry room, the dishes long since put away, and I even wiped down the counters. What she didn’t know wouldn’t hurt her.
“Yeah?” She poked her head out of the room to see me.
“You. Don’t….date?” My voice was quiet, like it normally was these days when I talked. But that didn’t matter to Dawn. As long as I was trying to use my voice, she’d be happy.
With just the two of us, it was easier to talk more and more. There were times I still clammed up, but it was all part of the process.
“I’ve never found someone worth my time. A few here and there, but when they findout my views of waiting until marriage, they tend to leave me high and dry. I’m happy enough to stay single for the rest of my days. Plus, I got you. You were all I wanted and was – is – my total focus.”
Surely, I couldn’t be her entire life?
“The only thing I gave up was my family, but seeing as how they treated both of us years ago, I wasn’t missing out on anything. You are worth it and more. I wasn’t going to give up on you, and I never will.”
She answered more than one question that had popped into my head.
“Once you are feeling one hundred and ten percent, and not a day before that, Mrs. Lee asked if you wouldn’t mind going over there and helping deep clean some of the rooms that her grandsons have gotten through. She’ll pay, of course. And I’ll be happy to buy whatever cleaning supplies you could need.”
Wide eyes, I nodded a bit too quickly.
I knew Mrs. Lee saw me like her own grandson after spending enough time with her, and with how often I made sweet, but healthy treats, to take to her. But I didn’t expect her to want me to help clean up her house. Some of those rooms hadn’t been cleaned for years, and I tried my best to not look in them when I was over.
