“I’m going to get on without the block today,” he announces.
“You got it,” I encourage. Because I know he does.
CHAPTER 12
Lily
I feellike I’ve been run over by a truck, picked up and tossed against a wall, then run over by a semi, before being rolled down a hill and then stabbed by a blackberry bush.
Some people call me dramatic. I have no idea why they would say that.
After working night shift and finishing my orientation shifts, I don’t know how long I can handle this. I’m sure I’ll get used to it, but right now my body is screaming from exhaustion. It’s not even like I’ve been doing much physically. The shift in schedule has me so thrown off.
I roll over in the empty bed, not even sure what time it is, but I don’t work tonight and I already feel the life breathing back into me. Even though I’m probably going to be up most of the night now, I’ll have to figure out what I can do to entertain myself while everyone is sleeping.
Maybe Bailey and Sutton will become night owls with me. I guess not Bailey, she has to wake up super early because she runs acoffee stand. But Sutton will have a baby soon, so I’m sure she’ll be up at all hours.
Aaron has never been a night owl. He’s someone that goes to sleep at 10:00 p.m., and wakes up at 6:00 a.m.. He also said he can’t get any work done in the house and has had to find different places to go. He talked about a coffee shop, but the only one in town in Roasted Bean, which is owned by my friend Bailey and is more of a coffee stand than a full coffee shop.
He must have found somewhere because he doesn’t come back until later in the afternoon. My parents are also both at work, and Ethan…well I don’t know where Ethan is, but I don’t hear him. I manage to pull myself out of bed because my stomach is demanding I eat. That’s been the other problem with working nights. I never have a full meal, just a variety of snacks whenever I get the chance.
All I want right now is a vat of mac and cheese.
When I get upstairs Jerry Lee starts barking at me, like he always does. “You want out of here for a little bit?” I ask, opening up his cage so he can stretch his wings.
“Shut up Vern!”he squawks, pulling himself out of the opening, using his beak. He gets to the top of his cage and perches there, celebrating with a loud, “Hot guy, Jameson!”
“You know, Jameson isn’t even here. I think you need to expand your vocab a little bit,” I tell him while pulling out a pot that’s about to be filled with the greatest mac and cheese ever.
He just barks in response, and I think about what could be fun to teach him as I cook the meal that I hope will change my entire life.
“What if I teach you some weird word—Oh! Or, what if I teach you to ask other people for things. Like, ‘Ethan bring Lily gummy worms.’”
“Lily worm!”
“Close enough.” I shrug, continuing to cook the pasta.
“Hi bitch!”
“I could teach you more cuss words. You seem to like those.”
“Jizz!”
“Yeah, like that.”
I finish cooking, and Jerry Lee seems to be entertained enough for the time being, so I’m able to get myself a bowl and stuff my face without needing to hold conversation with the bird. I continue to think of words I can teach him for my own pure selfish entertainment.
He flies over to the window that looks out toward where the horses spend their days. “Hunky Parker!”
“Okay,thatis something we’re not going to continue. Don’t be an asshole, how about you say something about Aaron.”
“Asshole Aaron!”
“Shit, no, that’s not what I meant?—”
“Hunky Parker!”
“That’s it, you’re going back in your cage, it’s your bedtime.” I push out of the chair while he keeps barking out the window.