Pitifully Ugly

Chapter 25

Breakfast and Hailey in bed.

My phone rang once before I heard Hailey answer it. She was

close by and talking softly.

“I heard her cell phone ringing, but I didn’t feel right

answering it.” Pause. “She’s okay, but she has a bad case of strep.”

Pause. “Yes, Marvin and I took her to the doctor last night. She’s

on antibiotics and is still sleeping off the nausea medicine.” Long

pause. “I took off from work. I’ll be with her as long as she needs

me.” Another long pause. “I know she would do it for me. It’s no

problem, really.” Pause. “I will, I promise.”

“Kalen?” I opened one eye and looked at Hailey as she put

the phone down.

“Sorry, I tried to get it before it woke you. I guess that’s good

in a way. It’s time for you to eat and take your meds.”

“You took off work,” I croaked out.

“Don’t worry about that.” Hailey put her hand on my forehead.

She was still wearing the same clothes she had on the night before.

She looked worn out.

“Stayed here all night?”

“Uh-huh.” Her tired eyes twinkled. “After you eat and take

your meds, I’m going to borrow your shower if that’s all right.”

“Make yourself at home. Is that Grease I hear?”

Hailey smiled back at me as she walked toward the door.

“Yep, is it too loud? I can have Fuzzy turn it down.”

I smiled weakly and shook my head.

Hailey returned five minutes later with buttered toast, juice,

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and a banana. “Have you eaten?” I asked as she set a tray over

my lap.

She patted the tray. “Brought this from home. I like to eat

breakfast in bed and watch TV on lazy mornings. And yes, I have

eaten.”

“Thank you.” I nibbled on a piece of toast as she watched me.

“I can’t tell you how much I appreciate what you and Marvin have

done for me.”

“You should’ve called me.” Hailey handed me the juice and

waited for me to take a sip. “I had no idea you were so sick.”

“Thought I could tough it out.”

“Marvin bought you Popsicles and sherbet last night when he

went to the pharmacy. Although, I wouldn’t suggest trying that

until we see if you can hold breakfast down.”

I managed to eat the two pieces of toast and half the banana.

Hailey gave me the pills I was supposed to take and went off to

take a shower. As soon as the bathroom door closed, I heard the

ticking of nails on the floor beside my bed. Fuzzy looked up at

me with a dog smile.

I patted the bed. “Wanna come up here and—” She was on

the bed curled up next to me before I could finish the sentence. I

turned on the TV and flipped through the channels. Fuzzy yipped

when I landed on the Home Shopping Network. “Surely you jest,”

I said in disgust.

She looked back at me as if to say, I jest not, leave it there.

“What about the Syfy channel?” She grimaced. “Animal Planet?”

We came to an uneasy truce with America’s Funniest Videos.

When Hailey came into the bedroom a while later, she looked

at Fuzzy and me. “Did you invite her up there?”

“I did, so don’t fuss at her. She’s very sensitive. They’re doing

a segment on funny cats. We haven’t seen a dog yet.”

Hailey felt my brow and frowned. “You’re still a little warm.

How’s your stomach feeling?”

“Better, but my throat feels like hamburger.”

Hailey made a face. “How about a Popsicle?”

“Grape would be good.” I felt like I was five, but I had to

admit it was nice to be taken care of.

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“You can sit on the bed with us,” I said when Hailey returned

with my Popsicle and a coffee for her.

“All right, but let me know if we keep you awake.” She settled

on the other side, propped a pillow against the headboard, and

immediately started laughing at the show.

“I have pay-per-view. We could order a movie if you’d like.”

Hailey looked at me and smiled. “Maybe later. Your eyes look

like two slits. I doubt you’d make it through the first scene.” She

reached over and took the melting Popsicle from my fingers and

wiped my hand with a tissue.

I fell into a restless sleep. All sorts of weird dreams played

through my mind. I was on the podium at the conference, and

Hailey was in the audience watching me as Zoe shaved her head.

I tried to yell but couldn’t make a sound. I couldn’t move, either.

My feet were stuck to the floor. It switched to me and Hailey

being in the backseat of my car while someone drove us around.

The car started to go faster, and as we began to complain, we

realized that Fuzzy was at the wheel.

I awoke to find Fuzzy draped over my legs and Hailey

curled up in a ball next to me. They were sound asleep. Both of

Hailey’s hands were tucked beneath her chin. She was off deep in

dreamland as her eyes moved beneath closed lids. I wondered if

Fuzzy was chauffeuring her, as well.

It felt good to have her there. I could see us on Sunday

mornings with the newspaper spread out across the bed. Both of

us nibbling on something and drinking coffee as Fuzzy dozed at

our feet. Playfully arguing over whom would cook dinner, me

winning, her cooking, and choosing what movie we’d see that

afternoon. Okay, maybe I’d cook, I thought as I drifted off with

the blissful image imprinted on my brain.

“A shower?” Hailey shook her head. “I don’t know. You were

staggering all over the place last night.”

I’d just polished off a bowl of soup and was feeling stronger.

“I stink. I’ve been sweating, and my hair feels awful. It’ll make

me feel better.”

Hailey pursed her lips. “If you can make it to the bathroom

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without stumbling, it’s a deal, but I’m going to sit outside the door.

If I hear anything that scares me, I’m coming in.”

I made the short trip without incident and closed the door in

Hailey’s and Fuzzy’s faces. The warmth of the shower and the

feeling of being clean made me feel better. When I dropped a

bottle of lotion, the door opened a crack. I saw one green eye and

a snout much lower that sniffed and backed away.

“I’m dressed. You can open the door if it’ll make you feel

better.”

Hailey put the lid down on the toilet as I brushed my teeth.

“You can sit here and I’ll blow dry your hair.”

Her nails against my scalp felt like heaven. My hair didn’t

look like it did when Marvin got a hold of it, but I have to say I

enjoyed Hailey’s technique much better. Hailey switched off the

dryer. “I’ve changed your sheets, so everything is all fresh. Time

for you to go back to bed.”

“That is so sweet.” I looked forward to snuggling in. “How

am I ever going to make this up to you?”

She ignored my question and smiled. “They were easy to find

since you had them filed in the cabinet marked ‘sheets.’”

“You’re just jealous,” I said as I climbed into bed. “Not

everyone is as organized as I am.”

Hailey looked kind of awkward as she watched me get settled.

“Climb in.” I tossed the covers back on what I considered her

side of the bed. She smiled and crawled in. Fuzzy took that as an

invitation for her, as well, and hopped up on my side.

“I’m sorry.” Hailey sat up and opened her mouth to say

something to Fuzzy before I stopped her.

“She’s fine. She keeps my feet warm. Let her stay.”

We decided that a scary flick was perfect for the overcast

gray day. A Haunting in Connecticut scared the shit out of us.

After it was over, we lay a bit closer while we told scary stories

of our own.

“I was terrified of the house we lived in when I was a little

girl,” Hailey confessed. “It was old and it creaked all the time.

When Dad was away, which was often, I used to crawl into bed

with my mom.”

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I couldn’t help but smile at the mental image I had of Hailey

as a child. All curls with big green eyes beaming out beneath

them.“I don’t know why, but my mother’s closet always gave me

the jitters.” Hailey turned on her side like she had done when she

was sleeping. She toyed with a lock of my hair as her eyes took

on a faraway look. “One night, she was taking a bath, and I was

lying in her bed staring at the closet door that was open. I was too

chicken to get up and close it.” Hailey laughed. “I kept asking my

mom when she was going to be done, and I think she got irritated

with me for bugging her while she was trying to relax. Anyway, I

worked up the nerve to go and close the door, but when I got out

of bed, the door swung open wide like someone pulled it.”

“Did you scream?” I asked as chills ran down my spine.

“Did I? Mom had to drag me in there to show me there was

nothing to be afraid of. I remember how the shag carpeting felt

like it bunched under my feet as she pulled me.”

“What was in the closet?” I looped my pinky around hers.

“Clothes, boxes, shoes, but nothing out of the ordinary.”

Hailey shivered. “It just gave me the creeps to go in there. Now

tell me your story. Everybody’s got one.”

“Mine actually happened as an adult.” I shivered this time.

Hailey tightened her finger around mine as if the connection

would protect us from the stories we shared. “Kalen and Todd

had just gotten married, so I moved into a place of my own. A

small house out in Harahan. The landlord was a friend of Todd’s

and made me a good deal. There was a lot of stuff left in the attic

from former tenants, and he told me if I’d take it to the curb, he’d

knock off the first month’s rent.”

Hailey made a face. “Was it creepy up there?”

“Not in the daylight. It had a large window that let in a lot of

light, so I wasn’t too freaked out. But there were a lot of boxes of

junk. Some had some good books that I kept, but one was full of

notebooks, the spiral-bound kind like kids use for school. Every

one of them was full of eerie drawings. I couldn’t imagine the

mind that sketched them.”

“What, what were they of?” Hailey asked wide-eyed.

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“Creepy-looking figures mostly. Some were cloaked, others

had long dark hair that covered most of their garish-looking faces.”

“You threw those out first, right?” Hailey moved closer.

“I’m enjoying the closeness, but I’m afraid I’m going to get

you sick, too.” I scooted back, Hailey scooted closer.

“You’ll take care of me?” she asked with a smile.

“Pinky swear,” I said as I squeezed hers.

“Okay, is there more?”

I nodded. “Unfortunately. You’re enjoying this, aren’t you?”

“Yes.” Hailey nudged me with her foot. “Now go on.”

“A week after I was all moved in, I climbed into bed and

read for a while. As I reached to turn off the lamp, it sounded

like someone stomped the attic floor above my head. It shook

the house. I sat there frozen as whatever it was marched over my

bedroom and the living room and came back.”

Hailey looked as terrified as I did that night.

“I called Kalen and told her what was going on. She and

Todd only lived a few blocks away, so they got there in a flash.

The stomping noise was still going on as they pulled into the

driveway but quit when they walked up on the porch. Neither

of them believed me, but I wouldn’t let them leave until Todd

agreed to take a look around the attic. We went into the hallway

and were about to pull down the ladder when the noise happened

right above our heads. It shook the whole house and Kalen turned

as pale as a sheet.”

“What was it?” Hailey asked as one leg moved over mine.

“We don’t know. It took me and Kalen nearly twenty minutes

to get Todd to go up the ladder. He searched the whole attic and

didn’t find a thing.”

Hailey shivered. “Could it have been someone on the roof?”

“Todd didn’t think so, and neither did I. It sounded too close.

Needless to say, I stayed with Kalen and Todd until I found this

place. They lived in that neighborhood for another year, but Todd’s

friend couldn’t keep anyone in the house.”

Hailey looked at me long and hard as she bit her lip. “Do you

mind if I stay with you again tonight? Purely to make sure you’re

okay,” she said with an impish grin.

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“No,” I said seriously. “You snore.” I couldn’t help but laugh

at the indignant look that crossed her face. “Of course, you can. I

was going to ask you to stay after the first thirty minutes of that

movie, and that had nothing to do with my illness, either.”

I woke during the night feeling like I was trapped between

two blast furnaces. I nudged Fuzzy with my elbow. She grunted

in response but was kind enough to move to the foot of the bed. I

pushed the covers off my back so that I could continue spooning

Hailey. She felt so good in my arms, yet it was painful. We were

just friends, and the sweet torture was becoming unbearable.

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