The Way You Look Tonight

Part 5: Panic Order

She wasn't mad or even surprised Max forgot her present. How could he not be distracted by his parents, Luna, and Alice to not get her one? She figures if Max did get her a present, it was most likely a book of Knock Knock Jokes or a calendar of Cats in Boxes- which she has no idea, how that became their "thing". If Max got her one of those things, she would have loved them, no matter how cheesy. Hell, she would have accepted a whoopie cushion or a pen that said New Amsterdam. At least she wouldn't have felt left out and unthought of. She decided after her shift that she wasn't going to Max's home for Christmas with his family. Alice would most likely be there and how odd would that be? Being the third wheel, never worked out for anyone. Being the squeaky third wheel was worse than being the smelly kid in school or the kid who was always picked last because they seemed weird and had no athletic ability. She imagines that's what her friends see her as now. The child no one wants to play with. They had accepted Alice so easily and have slowly forgotten about Helen. Yet how did that happen? Has she really been that distant or was it just them proving a point that Max's new love interest is more interesting than his previous confidante? Granted all of their friends accept everyone, but they have slowly lost interest in Helen.

She didn't hear from Max Christmas Day, other than a Merry Christmas and a picture of Luna in a cute red and white dress Helen got her, along with a beautiful bow and matching dress shoes and tights. The baby looked adorable. Max assumed Helen was mad at him and decided not to come to his home to be with his parents and Luna. He wanted to drag her there, but if being married to Georgia taught him anything, it was let a woman have her moment to stew and be angry. Never poke the bear more than you already have. This helped a lot actually. If he would have showed up to Helen's, she probably would have kept the door locked, took away the hide a key, and pretended she wasn't home.

So today, the 26th of December, Helen walks around the Oncology floor, checking in on her patients and enjoying some of their warm smiles and funny stories. She feels for them. A lot of them are older and haven't been home in months due to different problems and circumstances. One of her favorites, Ethel- a 84 year old woman who has seen more in her life than many others her age- is by far Helen's favorite. Helen has been treating her for the last three months and often feels sympathetic for her. She is also a Brit, who's family never came over from England. She has no children and her husband died eight years ago from pneumonia.

Walking into her room, Helen smiles wide as the old woman crochets her scarf. She's been working on it for about a week now and it seems every time Helen comes in to check on her, she's added either another color or another 20 stitches.

"Wow! Quite the rainbow you've got going." Helen says cheerily and Ethel scoffs.

"Oh posh, this is nothing. One time I made a blanket for Garrison that was every color under the sun and more. It fit our king sized bed we had. He hated that blanket though. Said it was too itchy because of the type of yarn I used. Jokes on him, I buried him with it." The women laugh and Helen sits at the end of the bed. She crosses her legs and pats down her eggplant colored dress.

"I'm sure he didn't actually hate it."

"Oh no he did. Tried to light it on fire one night at the bluffs when we went camping in the south of Cambridge. Only thing that stopped him was my freezing arse after falling in the water."

"Oh my. I bet your Garrison was quite cheeky."

"You are indeed correct. Cheekiest bastard there was. Such a gobshite he was...Lord I miss him. I talk to him some times. Bastard never talks back. In the living I couldn't shut him up and in death I can't get him to speak." Ethel stops crocheting and looks down at the thin gold band around her ring finger. Helen feels a pain in her chest. "So, what about you? You haven't shared your love life with me. I go on and on about mine, but get no courtesy in return."