Page 103 of Purchase Power
Sometimes, when Stacey was frozen in her chaotic memories, it was best for a man like him to stay back. He was about the same size Ronald used to be, and the wrong move, the wrong tone of voice could make Stacey claw at his face or kick him in the ribs.When she’s like this, she only recognizes my voice.That was the only real difference he had from that man now. Ronald had sounded as fake as the charm oozing from his lips. Noah was more soft-spoken.
“Stacey,” he repeated, keeping his distance. “It’s all right. Nobody wants to hurt you. Nobody wants to touch you. I promise we can take the test without anybody touching you. Just the swab. You watched me take it a few minutes ago, remember? You laughed at how much snot came out of my nose.” Not Noah’s finest moment. While he knew it was merely a side-effect andeveryonehad their snotty days, the last thing he appreciated was Stacey chuckling and Lucy barely keeping her composure.Yes, they yucked it up since I’m always Mr. Put Together.It would be the only time either of them saw him dash toward the bathroom with his hand over his nose.Although I will admit the amount of snot was quite impressive…Not the point, was it?
Stacey wasn’t paying attention to his anecdote, however. She was lost in the world of her own making, the one that existed purely to torment her soul for so many formidable years.
“I don’t wanna,” she whispered into the space between her chest and knees. “You can’t make me. Don’t let him touch me.”
Noah’s heart melted into the recesses of his soul. He made the human mistake of attempting to sit next to his sister, who shuddered away from him, squealing.
“All right, all right.” He backed away, hands out. “I won’t sit next to you, but you have to understand that this is for your health, Stace. We all had to take that test.” He had hoped that by watching everyone else doing it first, Stacey would realize it had nothing to do with her, personally. “I would be incredibly sad if you got sick, Stacey. You remember when you had that cold last year? When you couldn’t get out of bed for three days straight? This is a little worse than that.” He’d leave it at that. No sense scaring her with more details.
“I don’t wanna,” she continued to mutter.
Someone lightly knocked on the opened door.
Noah was the only one who looked up. Was he surprised to see Lucy standing in the doorway, her tentative movements heralding her arrival? No. Did he wish she would go away before something bad potentially happened? God, yes. As empathetic as Lucy might be, she was in no way prepared for Stacey’s episodes.This is it, Lucy. This is the thing I was most afraid you might see while you stayed in this room.Right now, Stacey stayed in place and kept her hands to herself. That could change at any moment.
“Hey,” Lucy softly said to announce herself. “How’s it going?”
“Could be better,” Noah murmured. “The test makes her very uncomfortable.”
“I can understand.” Lucy closed the door behind her. Much to Noah’s chagrin, she approached with a wan smile on her face. “It was super uncomfortable for me, too. I can still feel that thing right next to my brain.”
Noah grimaced. The last thing they needed was a graphic description in Stacey’s head.
Yet Stacey didn’t lash out at Lucy or grunt into the fold of her arms. She briefly looked up before shoving her head back down. Lucy took a few precarious steps toward the sofa before braving to sit next to Stacey. The tension mounted. Noah was afraid to move.
“Your brother is worried about you, honey.” Lucy’s hand rested at the top of Stacey’s back. No matter how many seconds passed without incident, Noah couldn’t believe that it would stay that way. “He’s a pretty good brother, huh? Always there to take care of you. You know, I’ve never had a brother. I only have my little sister, but I can sort of relate to what it must be like. My sister has a very strong will. Stronger than mine I think, sometimes.” Lucy lowered her hand to her lap. “She might have taken more care of me than I have of her, but I can remember this one time when we were little kids. There was a huge thunderstorm outside, and Lacey isterrifiedof thunder. As soon as I heard those storms starting, I’d go to her room and curl up in bed with her. If I pulled the covers over our heads, everything was okay.”
Stacey said nothing.
“I won’t lie to you, Stacey. That test is super uncomfortable, but it’s also over in a few seconds. Then we can go back to playing Old Maid in your room. Would you like that?”
Finally, Stacey nodded.
“Can I tell you what the worst part of that test was? It wasn’t the actual part where the swab was shoved up my nose. Nor was it when the doctor got in there really good and moved it around to get the best bit possible. Honestly, Stacey, my nose is still a little raw, but it really wasn’t the worst part. Do you know what it was?”
Stacey shook her head.
“It was the anticipation. The not knowing. I knew it was going to feel uncomfortable. And it would probably make me feel like I was back at the dentist, you know, when they’re putting all that crap in your mouth and it hurts a little. Then it’s over, and you’re like… wow! It really wasn’t as bad as I thought it would be. We would be lying if we said we liked doing it, Stacey, but we’re not lying when we say you’re going to be okay. The doctor doing it is someone we all trusted to shove a swab up our nostrils. So, what do you think? What if I told you that your brother and I would be there to hold your hand the whole time? And we’ll make sure everything is done correctly. No re-takes. We’ll make sure the doctor doesn’t do anything else. Oh, I know.” Lucy pulled her phone out of her pocket. “We could listen to my workout playlist. Remember? We were dancing to the songs yesterday. I bet they give you something to distract yourself with. Bet it would be over before the first chorus of the first song.”
Noah had to admit that everything Lucy said sounded as trite as taking a small child in for her vaccinations.It’s not that simple, Lucy.Yet he had to admire her for trying. She could have run in the other direction the moment he told her the truth about Stacey and what used to happen in this room. Instead, she stepped up to be Stacey’s friend. She was more sympathetic toward her than half the staff, who only “put up” with her because they were paid to deal with Stacey Gabriel’s strange personality.
“I don’t wanna…” Stacey repeated with a sob.
“I know. Trust me when I say I know.” Lucy sighed. “But it’s going to be okay. I promise. I’ll be with you the whole time. Want me to go get Lacey? We’ll help you together with your brother.”
Finally, Lucy looked directly at Noah, who shuffled closer and braved sitting next to his own sister. Stacey relaxed with his weight now on the sofa. Together, he and Lucy each put a gentle hand on Stacey and urged her to get up.
While every step was heavy with lead, Stacey did not put up a fight as they slowly trudged down the hall and returned to the doctor’s testing site near Stacey’s room. She also made it loudly known that she would rather jump off the balcony than have some strange man shove a giant Q-tip up her nostrils and “pluck my brains.” Yet as she squeezed her brother’s hand for dear life, the swab quickly making its ascent up her left nostril, Noah had to admit he was proud of her for sticking through it. As long as it was done, that was all that mattered.
He was also feeling a sort of kind of way toward Lucy. Something that went beyond the mere romantic love he had been harboring for so long. As soon as this was over and they had Stacey safe somewhere else in the house, he wanted to have a long, honest chat with her about what might still work between them.
Deep down, however, he knew a long chat was likely to turn into something much more carnal. Assuming she would have him, of course.
