Page 27 of Crashing Without Justice

Iwas sitting by Mrs. Tucker’s bed, watching her sleep peacefully. Today was her birthday, and after a busy afternoon of cake and her family coming to visit her, it was understandable that she’d be exhausted when she normally spent her days reading or knitting.

Like most of the residents of Serenity Manor, Mrs. Tucker was here because her family couldn’t give her the quality care that she needed at home. Society was quick to judge when a loved one was sent here, but it wasn’t always possible to keep a loved one at home with you. In this day and age, it was virtually impossible to live comfortably on one income, so unless you were a millionaire, families needed places like Serenity Manor. Luckily for our residents, we were one of the better nursing homes, and so everyone was cared for well.

As I sat with Mrs. Tucker, my phone chimed with a notification, and I couldn’t help but get excited when I saw who the message was from. Digging into Trista Preston’s past, I’d been able to find out that she’d had a semi-serious boyfriend last year, and from the way that he had purged his social media accounts of any pictures of her, my guess was that she’d been the one to break things off, which was what I needed.

The more that Harding didn’t come to heel, the more that I needed an ally on my side. Oh, Heady still called and checked up on me, but she was basically Switzerland right now, only offering an ear, no solutions or suggestions to help me get even or get my husband back. My only guess was that she was still sour about the text that I had sent to Trista about her kids, but I had bigger things to deal with than Heady’s misplaced conscience.

At any rate, when I had reached out to Kirk Nabers, he had immediately messaged me back, and it’d been almost too easy to get him to talk about Trista. Their breakup hadn’t been a mutual one, Kirk wanting to make things serious, Trista wanting something casual, and so he’d had a lot to say about it.

According to Kirk, he’d done everything for her, not caring that she’d had kids with her ex-husband. He’d been all in, something that he’d thought that she’d wanted. However, four months later, she’d still been dragging her feet about making a serious commitment, and he was still bitter about it.He’d been in love with her, but after four months of dating, she still hadn’t introduced him to her children or ex-husband, and so he’d gotten tired of waiting.

Now, while that didn’t seem like a big deal, Kirk’s version of events was that he’d had no problem spending money on her and taking her to fancy places, making him feel like she had used him all that time. Though Trista had worked during that time, and even though Frank had been an active father, Kirk hadn’t wanted Trista using her money for their relationship when she’d been a one-income household.

So, when Trista had finally made the move to end things with Kirk, he’d been furious, and their breakup had been an ugly one, which worked in my favor now. Along with telling me all about his relationship with her, he’d also given up all kinds of interesting titbits about her, including hobbies, mutual friends of theirs, and standard stuff like that.

Kirk Nabers:I was thinking that we could meet up to talk some more.

That’s what I’d been hoping for. Not only was he single, but he was also bitter enough to make him a helpful asset. I hadn’t heard anything from Harding after I had sent him the pictures of me and Gil, and so Kirk could help me give something to send to Trista since Harding was refusing to bite.

Me:That sounds like a great idea. It would be nice to talk to someone that knows what it feels like to be betrayed.

Kirk Nabers:How about dinner at Delson’s?

Delson’s was an expensive restaurant on the west side of town, and it was one of the few places that required a reservation. Their claim to fame was their wine choices, and it was nice that a man was willing to show a little class when entertaining a woman. Harding only ever opened his wallet during special occasions, though I couldn’t lie and say that he hadn’t been supportive whenever I’d wanted to explore other financial endeavors. At one point in time, Harding had been my biggest cheerleader, but that’d been before his fragile male ego had led him to stick his dick in another woman.

Me:That sounds wonderful, but unnecessary. I’m a simple girl with simple tastes. I’m fine with pizza or tacos if you want.

The last thing that I wanted to do was remind him of Trista. I needed him on my side, and acting like a money-hungry floozy was not the way to go. Now, whether Trista Preston was a gold-digger or not, I didn’t really know. All I knew was that Kirk viewed her as one, so I had to come across as the complete opposite of that.

Kirk Nabers:We can do pizza and tacos some other time. I think that Delson’s would be better for our first meeting.

I liked how he hadn’t called it a date, considering how that would be too presumptuous, though it’d work out in my favor. However, with all that he’d told me about Trista, I needed to play this thing carefully. Coy, simple, and timid was the way to go for right now. I needed to appeal to his hero complex and make him believe that I needed someone to save me from what Harding had done to me.

Me:I’ll leave it up to you.

Kirk Nabers:I think a nice early dinner on Sunday sounds like the right idea.

Me:Perfect. I’ll see you then.

Kirk Nabers:I can’t wait.

Seeing that Mrs. Tucker was finally in a deep sleep, I got up, then went to check on my other charges. I had only five, but that worked out for everyone. With only five residents per employee, we were able to dedicate a lot of extra time to whoever needed it. Granted, with all of my health conditions, five people were about all that I could do, and that was another thing that I could lay at Harding’s guilty feet. His health insurance was way better than mine, and if we got a divorce, my prescriptions were going to become more expensive rather quickly.

Once my round was finished, I pulled out my phone, opening up my main trusty social media account. I needed something new to give my friends, family, and followers, so that I could make sure that they stayed on my side of this mess.

Please open your hearts and minds to what I have to say next. Before you marry someone, understand what you’re promising that person. Your vows are about more than just declaring your love for someone; they are about what that person represents as a whole.

For years, I’ve had to live with the agony of too many physical ailments to count, and just because I’ve chosen to rise above my challenges, the people closest to me have never taken my physical health seriously. Because I choose smiling over crying, they say that I must not be suffering too much if I can still help others and enjoy life, but they also don’t ever see me soaking in a tub at night because every muscle in my body aches.

My point is…when you stand at the altar to commit yourself to another person, remember that you are inheriting the good and the bad, and ifyou’re not strong enough to see them through the storms that come raging through life, then let them be for someone else that is strong enough to stand by them.

Love is about the hard times, but with that comes the reward of the good times.

I stared at my post, not sure how I felt about it. Harding used to think that I was overreacting a lot when I complained about my back, hips, spine, and neck, but what did he know? He’d never had to suffer through everything that I’d had to, and his dismissal of my complaints should have warned me of his selfishness sooner.

Needing to get back to work, I posted my latest thoughts, then slipped my phone back in my pocket. I still had a couple of hours left on my shift, and after work, my plan was to go buy myself something nice for my non-date with Kirk Nabers.

Chapter 19

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