Seeking Relief

An Evening Visit

 Jade sat out on her porch with a glass of ice water.

The sun had slipped behind the other buildings and trees in her complex. The sky was now turning darker as the oranges and pinks faded to blues and purples. She watched as the security lights that were secured on the outside of the apartment buildings flicker on. She kept her porch light off so bugs wouldn’t swarm her little nook.

She watched as bugs did surround and swarm one of the security lights on the side of her building.

A bat had appeared out of the dusk and was making sweeping movements across the light. She’d watch its flight as it grabbed a bug, disappear in the dark then appear again as a silhouette. Its outline becoming more defined and then she could see it clearly again as it came in the circle of the light. She listened to see if she could hear a pattern in its almost indiscernible chirps and clicks.

She realized she was slightly smiling.

She always did like bats and animals that were under appreciated like rats and cockroaches. She empathized with them. They are a cornerstone to their ecosystem and seemed to always be overlooked, detested even.

She felt like that.

That she was always ignored and scorned when she, herself, could contribute strongly to society.

The corners of her mouth turned down as she thought, If only I could figure out what it is exactly I can do to contribute.

She was watching the bat make more passes, then it flew off into the dark and didn’t immediately come back. Her eyes scanned the trees and horizon for its outline and lilting flight pattern.

A hard knock at her door made her jolt in surprise. She jumped so hard her drink almost splashed over the edge of the glass. She quickly opened the screen door and shut it behind her as she walked through.

For reasons she couldn’t explain, her heart started to pound. The pounding became heavier as she approached her door.

Trepidation filled her as she rested her hand on the doorknob.

She jumped and let out a little yelp when another loud knock landed on the door from the other side.

With uneven breaths she leaned to look through the peephole.

Then grinned and opened the door quickly.

There standing in front of her, were her “entourage” in her doorway. The relief that flooded her was just too overwhelming to not act on it.

She flung herself at them and embraced them in tight hugs.

She was relieved after her stupid scare she needlessly put herself through. And the relief that they actually showed up. Even after all their promises while she was at the hospital, she wasn’t entirely sure they’d still want to be with her. She wasn’t sure until they showed up on her step, with grins…and oh, some flowers.

Tears streamed down her cheeks as she continued to hug them. She gave each of them kisses on their cheeks, she was so overjoyed for them to be here.

“Wow! I’m not complaining about this greeting, but is everything okay?” Jake asked.

“No, everything’s fine.” Jade sniffled and smiled at them. Emmett looked at her with an insightful gaze. Jade had a feeling that Emmett had a good idea of the reason to her exuberant reaction. That man seemed to catch anything that was a subtle detail.

Jade grasped at two hands that were closest to her and tugged. One was Jake’s and the other was Adam’s.

“Come in, come in!” She said.

She led the guys into her apartment. Told them to make themselves comfortable while she opened her cupboards hunting down a large glass to put the flowers in. She filled the glass with water and walked over to her small table. Emmett and Adam settled onto the bar stools that sat at her tall breakfast counter. Her table and chairs sat adjacent to the counter. Mitch sat in a chair with his back to the wall and to his right sat Jake. That left the chair that was directly across from Mitch and next to the bar stools, open. After Jade settled the flowers they had brought, into the glass, she took the open chair with a small sighing smile. Being in the middle of the men made her feel at ease. She admired the small bouquet. It was full of summer wildflowers and lilies, with sprigs of lavender and baby’s breath.

“Thank you for the flowers, guys. They’re absolutely beautiful.”

“Well, it would’ve been rude to show up empty handed.” Jake teased.

Jade smiled, then asked, “How’re you guys?”

Mitch snorted, “You’re the one with broken bones, and you’re asking how we are?” he teased.

She shyly looked down at the table. “I care about your wellbeing. All of you.”

Jake reached for her hand. “We care about you, too.” The others nodded their agreement with smiles.

They spent a few minutes catching up, talking about each other’s day. The guys were glad to hear that Linn had already took her to the store. They wanted to make sure that she had everything she needed.

Adam asked, “What’d you have for supper?”

“Oh, just a sandwich.” She said. She wasn’t going to admit it was only half a sandwich because her appetite was still worthless. Emmett raised an eyebrow at her, as if he heard what she left unspoken.

“Did you have anything else with it?” He asked. Jade shook her head.

“Is your pain level high?” Adam asked.

“Uhm. Kind of the same as it has been.” She answered.

Adam sighed. His lips tightened. There wasn’t really a whole lot more they could do for her right now. Once she has her surgeries and is down the road towards serious healing, it should change.

“How much Tylenol have you had today?” he asked. Jade thought about it, then thought out loud as she recanted what she had in the hospital and once she got home. Adam told her how many to take before bed that would max out her daily dose. He also advised her to take a melatonin if she had any. She needs some restful sleep.

Emmett then told her to text them through the evening, when she’s going to bed, and when she wakes up.

“We’ll try and come back over after our shifts.” He finished.

She smiled at them and said, “Okay.”

Mitch looked at his watch, “Sorry, sweetie, we need to get going.”

“That’s fine! Thank you so much for stopping by. You guys have no idea how much this means to me.”

“I think we may.” Emmett said with a small smile as they all got up and walked to her door.

As they walked by her at the door, she gave each of them a tight hug and a kiss on the cheek. As they walked through the door, they all stayed just outside of it while they waited for each other.

Jake was the last one to bid her good bye. She gave him a hug and cheek kiss like she did the others.

Then Jake grasped her face between his hands and planted his lips on hers. She heard the other men chuckle with their deep voices.

Jake’s tongue traced along her lips for a few brief moments, then he kissed her lips again and pulled away. He chuckled at her wide surprised eyes, her mouth hanging open in disbelief.

She was sure he could hear her heart thundering against her chest.

“ ‘Night, Jade.” He said, kissed her cheek and walked through her door.

The men continued to chuckle and waved at her as the walked away from her building to the cars.

She stood in her door way with a smile, leaned against the frame as she watched the 3 vehicles back out and pull out of her apartment’s parking lot.

When they all left, she turned to go back into her apartment, completely unaware of the eyes on her door that saw the whole exchange.