Page 233 of Finding Us

“I need to fix this. And I need help. I need you to help me.”

“You know I will. Whatever you need.”

“We’ll talk later?” Her eyes are shutting.

“Yeah, we’ll talk later. Get some sleep.”

I’m so relieved Jade finally admitted she’s struggling with her classes and is willing to do something about it. And given how stressed she’s been, I think she’s struggling with other stuff, too. I’ve been trying to get her to talk to me for weeks but she wouldn’t. Maybe now, or when she feels better, she’ll finally tell me what’s going on.

In the afternoon, I try to get Jade to eat some crackers and she does, but they come right back up. Looks like we’ll be sticking with liquids for now.

When Jade falls asleep again, I call Grace to ask her what else I should be doing for Jade. I didn’t know who else to ask. My dad doesn’t know about this stuff and I don’t think Frank and Ryan would either. Grace raised two kids and I’m sure they got sick so I figure she knows what to do.

“Hi, Grace. It’s Garret.”

“Garret, this is a surprise. Usually Jade’s the one who calls.”

“Yeah, she’s sick. That’s why I’m calling. Sorry, I should ask how you’re doing. How are you doing, Grace?”

She laughs. “I’m doing well. Thank you. So Jade is sick?”

“She has the flu and I’m not sure what to do for her. I’m trying to keep water in her but she can’t eat and she has a high fever and chills. I figured since you’re a mom you might have some experience with this.”

“I’ve had a lot of experience with it, with my sons as well as my granddaughters.”

Grace goes through a list of things I should try. I take notes as she talks. I’m glad I called her. She knows a lot more than I do about this and I trust her advice more than I trust the advice on the Internet.

“Thanks,” I say when she’s done. “I’ll try that stuff and hopefully she’ll feel better.”

“You have to let it run its course but this will help with the symptoms. So how have you been, Garret?”

“I’m okay.”

“Garret.” She says it like she knows I’m lying. I barely know Grace but sometimes I think she understands me better than my own family does.

“Things have been a little stressful around here. Jade’s classes are taking up all her time and there was a burglary at a house just a few down from ours.”

“And your father told me about your shoulder.”

“Yeah, there’s that, too.”

“Jade hasn’t called me for a while. Is it because of her school work?”

“Yeah, she’s feeling overwhelmed with everything. I think she took too many classes this semester.”

“Is there any way I can help? I’m not sure what I could do, but if you think of anything, please let me know.”

“Actually, is there any way you could make it out here for her birthday? Frank and Ryan will be here so I’m planning to have a small party for her.”

“I would love to be there. Thank you for inviting me.”

“It would be great if you could spend the weekend. I know Jade would like that.”

“I’ll plan to arrive Friday morning and leave Sunday afternoon. Does that work?”

“Sounds perfect. Maybe we should make this a surprise.”

“Yes, I think that would be nice.”

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