“I’m not smiling, because nothing is funny—”
“I took a picture.” He held up his phone, the photo showing me in profile.
“You what!”
“And I just sent it to everyone in the hospital!” He clicked a button.
I was tempted to cause him bodily harm. “Are you twelve? What is wrong with you?”
“No one would believe me if I said you smiled.” He shrugged. “I had to prove it.” What is this, junior high?
“I smile all the time, you ass,” I muttered, grabbing the shoes and undoing the laces.
He snorted, licking the lid to his second yogurt. “That thing you do with your face to patients does not count as a smile.”
“You are an—” I stopped when I slipped my feet in, and sure enough, the shoes fit perfectly. My feet relaxed into the soft foam. How in the hell did she know my shoe size?
Click. Glancing up, I saw that the asshole had taken another photo of me.
“You were doing it again! Now you’ve got to tell me.”
Putting on the other shoe, I got up and grabbed his stupid phone from his grimy little fingers, walked over to the bin, and dropped it inside.
“Hey! I just got that!”
“Not my problem,” I replied, turning to leave, but stopping when he came over to the trash. “Take any more photos of me, and I will tell the chairwoman what you did in the fourth floor lab.”
“That’s your big threat? You'll tell Mommy?”
I pulled out my phone and began to dial.
He sighed. “Fine.”
“Goodnight, Ian.”
Leaving the lounge, I tried my best not to make eye contact with any of the staff who I could tell had gotten his bloody photo. They giggled, and it made me want to go over there and grab all of them.
Making it to the front entrance, I stopped when I saw her, still in her dark ripped jeans, yellow v-neck shirt, combat boots, and hat. She leaned against the wall under the hospital sign, bopping her head to whatever she was listening to as she drew.
She’s busy. But, I should thank her for the shoes. Without realizing it, I had already walked to her. She was so into her own little world, she didn’t notice me until I dropped down in front of her and waved.
“Jesus Christ of Nazareth, you scared me.” She jumped, hugging her drawing to her chest. I couldn’t deny my eyes were glued to her breasts for a half a second as she pulled out her earphones.
“I scared you?” I replied, sitting next to her.
“All day, no one has seen me.” She laughed, closing her book.
“What are you, a ghost? What do you mean no one saw you?” She was kind of hard to miss.
She shrugged. “You doctor folk are focused. I spent most of my time floating, looking for ideas for your mother’s mural.”
“It’s not my mother’s mural, so don’t go painting a giant portrait of her just because she is paying you.”
She rolled her eyes. “Don’t worry, I’ve come up with some pretty good ideas. It came a lot faster than I thought it would.”
“Let me see?” I reached for her book.
She hugged it again.
“What?”
“No one is going to see it until it’s finished. I have a process.”
“Jeez, you artists are so emotional.” I backed away.
She kicked her foot against mine.
“Watch it, I just got these.”
“Hey.” She leaned up off the wall, grinning. “You’re wearing them! They fit?”
“I wouldn’t be wearing them if they didn’t fit. How in the world did you know my size, anyway?”
“I was pretty much a tomboy growing up—”
“Shocker.”
She glared at me. “I’m sure you were a charmer as a teenager.”
“Of course. Just look at me.”
“I am—”
“Anyway, you were a tomboy?” I pressed on, before she forgot what she had originally been saying.
“Oh yeah. I spent most of my time with this group of boys from my neighborhood. We all basically grew up together, and we were always barefoot in the rivers. I can kind of guess a guy's shoe size when I compare it to theirs in my head.”
In the rivers? “Where are you from?”
“Cypress, Alaska, home of the best wild salmon in the country.” She raised her head up and nodded.
“Wow.” I couldn’t stop laughing. “Is that really a place? Cypress? Alaska? You?”
“It is a real place, and it’s more beautiful than a city boy like you can handle.” She pouted.
“It is the home of the best wild salmon in the country…I’m sure I could handle it just fine,” I repeated back with a smile.
She got up. “You are such a—”