“Excuse me… You?”
“Yes, Carla?” She gave a startled gasp, dropping the blue crayon on the floor as she leaned back in her chair. The young man looked up from his book with nervous eyes. Carla was scared, and he didn’t know why. “What’s wrong?”
“How do you know my name?”
“Well…” Joey sat there for a moment, thinking of a good excuse. “All the pretty girls are named Carla.”
“What?” said Carla, blinking those blue eyes. “You really think I’m pretty?”
“I think that you’re beautiful.” Joey flashed a smile before looking back at his book, a collection of short stories from Australia. As much as Joey loved Australia, he was not really reading. Hidden behind the pages of the book was an ipod, his baby-sitting saviour.
“No, you’re just saying that,” she giggled, flipping her hair with a flick of her wrist. “I don’t remember the last time a boy called me pretty…”
Oh bother! She’s flirting with me again! When Carla wasn’t busy with her coloring books or watching the Disney channel, her favourite thing to do was flirt with Joey. He was a young high-school kid who loved soccer and hated the Disney channel. Long blond hair flopped over his narrow face, and he had a little scar on his nose where a friend hit him with a shovel last year. Carla just thought that he was so handsome. Joey hated it. Sometimes she was really creepy. That was one of the reasons he was afraid to have friends over anymore. They just wouldn’t understand Carla.
A familiar rattling sound echoed through Joey’s empty house. Carla was shaking in her chair, trying to bend down and break free. He quickly put his book down and stepped to her side.
“What are you doing?” Joey cried, a little more forceful than he meant to.
“I can’t get out!” screamed Carla, banging on the sides of her chair. The straps that held her in place were too complicated for a girl like Carla to understand, and it made her so angry. She began to cry, her voice raging with terror and anger. “I can’t get out!”
“God in Heaven, help me!” Joey prayed desperately. He saw the crayon on the floor and put it on the table in front of her, but she flicked it away. Her face was turning red as the tears poured down. She was finding it hard to breathe, and Joey knew he had to do something fast. Without a second thought, he spun her chair around and flicked on the TV. As sing-a-long music filled the room, Carla began to breathe slowly. The crying died down as she swayed her head to the music. Within three minutes, she was singing along, the terror of the chair forgotten as she immersed herself in the world of Disney. Instead of going back to Angry Birds, Joey pulled up his chair beside Carla and for the next hour, they watched the children’s shows together.
***
As the front door opened, a dry voice called Joey’s name.
“We’re in the dining room, mom!” he replied, looking up from the dinosaur picture he was coloring.
“Your mom is here?” Carla asked, still working on the bird picture. “What is her name?”
“Emily,” Joey said quietly. “Her name is Emily. I’m going to say hi.” Carla nodded without taking her eyes off her page. Joey stepped out of the room to greet his mother.
“Thanks for baby-sitting, Joey. How was she?” his mom whispered, leaning forward so they wouldn’t be heard.”
“Grandma had one fit, but I put on the TV and she calmed down good. We’ve been coloring mostly.” Emily slipped a twenty-dollar bill into Joey’s hand. “Thanks. What did the doctor say?” His mom shook her head, fighting back hopeless tears.
“Mom’s heart is so bad, she only has a few months to live. Don’t tell her though. She wouldn’t understand.”
“Grandma’s dying?” The words felt like lead on Joey’s tongue. Alzheimer’s was hard enough, but he couldn’t even imagine life without Carla, even if she thought she was a child. He was stunned. Without saying another word, he stepped back into the dining room.
“Little boy?” Carla said, sitting straight in her wheelchair. “I finished coloring the bird!”
“Wow! Great work! Help me with the dinosaur.” Joey sat back down and continued coloring with his Grandma. He knew she was eighty-six, but Alzheimer’s had rendered her ageless forever, and that was just fine.
