HEARTBLOOD - Paul Lahote

TWO

The next day, I woke up early. I never really slept well, and when I did finally fall asleep, I was up only a few hours later. I got up and did the mundane things everyone else does. Brush my teeth, make my bed, do my makeup, get dressed. It was something small I could rely on every day.

I go downstairs and smell breakfast, I smile. I missed this.

As I sit down, I see two heads. My face forms into confusion. I see my dad and Paul.

"Good morning, Nicky," My dad says, getting up and kissing me on the forehead. I nod at him. "I'll get you a plate of food,"

I sit down and see Paul. "Good morning, Nic," I nod. "What's good morning in Sign Language?" He asks. I was surprised he even thought about it.

"Good morning," I sign the movements. He mimics me.

"Sorry to intrude. I know it's your first morning back, but I wanted to give Sam and Emily a break from me. You know how awesome I am, only so many people can take it, I guess," He says with a grin on his face. I shake my head.

"You're always welcome here. Even if your awesomeness is taken over by my greatness," I sign. I knew he didn't understand any of it, but it was for my amusement. He looked at me in confusion.

"What did you say?" He asks. I wave him off with my hand. He chuckles at me, waving my hand, "come on, tell me what you said," He says jokingly and lightly poking the top of my head.

I look around for a pad of paper and pencil. Dad hands me one, already expecting me to need it. "Just that you're always welcomed even though you're a weirdo,"

He frowns at my words jokingly. "weirdo, huh, I think you misspelled awesomely," he says, crossing his arms in mock offense. I shake my head in amusement.

"Sure," I write out. I take a bite of the food and say goodbye to my dad. He smiles in excitement. He's so happy that he understands Sign Language.

Paul watches me sign; he notices how excited my dad looks when I thank him in sign language, he smiles, he thinks it is pretty adorable. He looks back at me with a smirk on his face. "what about me? Don't I get a thank you?" he says jokingly.

I shake my head. I go to thank him but just flip him off. Dad smacks me on the back of my head.

"That's not a nice way to treat the people who make you food," he says jokingly while poking your side playfully. I shake my head and finish up my food. I thank my dad once again and say bye to Paul. I went outside with a book and a blanket. Enjoying the Forks air while I still like it.

I didn't close the screen door all the way, and I heard Dad and Paul talking.

"You know, she communicates the most when you're around. I guess I can't be 100% sure of this since she's only been here a day, but she doesn't try that much when it's just me," He says.

Paul nods at my dad's comment, happy that he seems to be bringing out my communication skills. "well, I'm glad I can be here to help her then," he smiles "I care about her, I'll do anything I can to make sure she's happy. She helped me when my parents weren't around. I just wanna help her after.. well, you know,"

After that, it gets silent, and I go back to reading my book. It was so calming to be in Forks. I forgot how much I missed being in a small town. My mom dragged me to a big city, and I was trapped there. Don't get me wrong, it was nice to walk everywhere and not need a license. But the family I have in Forks could never beat it.

The next few hours had been me reading alone. Dad popped out a few times to check on me. He was always nervous when it came to me being silent. When he found out I went mute, I heard him on the other side of the hospital door crying.