YOU & ME | JENLISA

Chapter 88

Jennie

Mike - an overly perky man in his forties drove us in the back of his ambulance, he played cheerful tunes on his radio system and cracked the most awful dad jokes ever but I was thankful for that because he posed as a distraction from the awkwardness going on between Lisa and I.

We had spent the last hour in each other's company and exchanged a grand total of one word - Hi.

It was awkward and I felt a nervous tightening in my stomach, making me feel a little queasy. My instincts told me to avoid her, to not bring up the kiss and just stay out of her way but that was impossible when I was literally trapped inside the same ambulance as her and she was holding my hand to keep up a pretence for her sick mother.

Lisa's mom placed her cold hand on my cheek and smiled softly at me from behind a plastic oxygen tube. "My sweet girl, you have made me one very happy lady. Thank you so much for doing this, you will never understand the full depth of what this means to me."

I smiled at her kind words. "It's ok. You'll make me cry, Mrs Manoban." I admitted.

"I'm so glad that Lisa has found herself a girlfriend like you. I never thought that I would see it happen in my lifetime. She always kept herself too distant to get attached but I see her happy with you and I take comfort in that." I glanced nervously at Lisa and she blushed a little.

"Mom, I'm sitting right here." she pointed out.

"You raised a fine child, you should be so proud."

She smiled at Lisa, an expression filled with love and adoration.

"I am immensely proud, Jen."

Lisa wore this shy smile, it was sweet and beautiful. Like her heart was filled to the brim with love and it was showing on the outside as clear as day.

"We're here guys!" Mike called from upfront.

It took us a lot of careful time and effort to get unloaded from the ambulance safely with all of the equipment. Lisa's mom pulled the blanket up to her neckline and took a moment to pull up her oxygen stats after moving, with the help of the canister, of course. She coughed a lot and Lisa fluttered around her like one of the damn butterflies, tending to all of her needs, panicking about her comfort. Lisa had fear cloaking her eyes.

Mike kept reassuring Lisa that her mother was fine but it didn't stop the worrying expression or her getting in the way. It was heart-breaking and I wanted to just save her from all of the stress and grief that she was struggling through but I couldn't. All I could do was be there for her and not make things harder.

I intertwined our fingers and made her step away, letting the medical professional take over, she looked down at our hands and I gave her a small smile. She knew she was being a helicopter child, she swallowed down a gulp and nodded her head.

Mike pushed the wheelchair at a slow pace and we followed beside them. Stepping into the butterfly park was like walking into a tropical paradise. It was a small piece of heaven on Earth that I didn't even know existed - and I've lived here my whole life.

Flowers covered every inch of the ground, spreading vibrant colour and scent everywhere. They were formed into arty-floral pictures and attracted so many beautiful butterflies. Delicate wings fluttered all around me, so iridescent and mystical. I couldn't help but look around in complete awe, entirely wowed by the place.

"Isn't it wonderful, Jen?" Lisa's mom wheezed.

"It's amazing, I want to dance." I replied, while walking further into this forest of nature.

"Dance?" She laughed.

"Jennie's a dancer mom." Lisa pointed out.

My smile faded and I looked at her in questioning. She looked away, focusing on the flying insects. She reached her hand out to try and encourage one onto her finger but it flew away.