New to the Family

Dishes Discovery

Jared's alarm blared before the sun had risen. He grumbled as he reached over to his clock and shut it off. I yawned and rubbed my eyes as I sat on the edge of the bed. I still had Jared's hoodie on, but I kept the blanket covering my bare legs. I picked my glasses up off of the nightstand. Jared handed me a pile of clothes.

I kept my eyes down as Jared got changed in front of me. He stepped into the bathroom and I took the chance to change into the clothes Jared handed me. It was an old pair of my own jeans, and what must have been one of Jared's T-shirts. The black shirt bagged around me.

Jared came back into the room, and was combing his fingers through his short hair. The corner of his lips lifted into a smile when he saw me.

"You look really cute," he said.

I looked down at myself. Jared walked toward me, and I took a few steps back. Jared let out a deep breath and rolled his eyes.

"Make the bed and then come downstairs," he said. "Don't take too long. Mom may need some help."

I nodded my head and he left the room. I straightened out the sheets on the bed. I also picked up the crumpled wedding dress off of the floor and laid it out across the bed. I went into the bathroom and brush my teeth. I was combing my hair when I heard a scream.

I listened as someone hurried up the stairs and down the hallway. I stood in the doorway and poked my head into the hallway.

Jared was standing in front of the door at the end of the hall. Lindsay left the room cradling her cheek.

"Mom, what happened?" Jared asked.

"Your grandmother is not having a good morning," she said. "I tried getting her out of bed and she scratched me."

Lindsay pulled her hand away from her cheek. Four lines were slashed across her face. Blood oozed onto her pale skin.

"Go clean your face," Jared said. "I will talk to grandma."

"Jared, I think she should just stay in bed," Lindsay said. "Leah and I can get her up later."

"Let me give it a try," he said. "I will call Dad if I need him. We have to cut her nails before you or Leah get near her."

"Be careful."

Lindsay kept her hand at her cheek as she walked down to another room in the hall. Jared rolled up the sleeves of his shirt before walking into the room.

"Good morning, Grandma," I could hear him say.

I followed Lindsay into the room she went into. She was in a bathroom. The vanity was open above the sink. With one hand, she went through the contents of the vanity and placed a few things on the edge of the sink.

"Do you need any help?" I asked.

"No, thank you. I'm just going to clean up these cuts a bit," she said.

"Does this happen a lot?" I asked.

"Not really," she said. "Jenny has some bad mornings or days. She has been getting worse lately though. She has started lashing out on me."

"Do you think that Jared is okay?" I asked.

"If anyone can get Jenny up right now it will be Jared," Lindsay said. "Those two love each other so much."

She handed me a pair of nail clippers.

"Can you give these to Jared?" she asked. "If Jenny is listening to him he should be able to cut her nails."

I took the nail clippers, and brought them over to Jenny's room. The door was shut, so I tapped lightly on it with my knuckles.

"Come in," Jared said.