by Pepper Pace
Once she felt her hair was clean, Robin gently dried it with the towel and located her own comb from her purse and combed her hair working out any knots. Then she placed a neat braid in the woman’s hair and dumped the basin of water, replacing it with fresh water.
She used the controls to sit the bed straight up and she lowered the top of the woman’s gown and thoroughly washed her limbs and upper body. She was alarmed at how much weight Miss Lucille had lost. She had already been very thin, but now she was emaciated. Robin put on a fresh gown and then lowered the bed. She found a fresh, clean sheet and covered her upper body with it and then removed the covering from her lower body.
The odor coming from her body was unpleasant.
“How is your son, doing?” Robin asked even though they had spent much of their visit talking about him.
“He’s so busy-” and she explained about all of his demanding patients while Robin got rid of the diaper. She cleaned her. Miss Lucille’s legs were bent slightly at the knees and when Robin tried to part them the older woman winced.
“Did I hurt you?” She asked apologetically.
“Sore.” Was the response she received.
Robin gently tried to straighten her limbs and part her legs and when they were finally spread Robin looked up and met the elderly woman’s eyes.
“I’m sorry.” Miss Lucille whispered. “I tried to take a bath but I was too tired...It’s pretty bad I know.”
Robin smiled. “Nothing that a good washing won’t fix.” She lied. In the creases where her thighs met her pelvis were sores that were bloody and raw. The smell was worse than Mr. Baker’s and she felt suddenly ashamed that she had treated that man as disdainfully as someone had apparently treated Miss Lucille. She washed the elderly woman three times before the smell faded. She changed the basin with each washing. When she turned the older woman onto her side to get her backside she saw more sores, even worse. Each time Robin went into the bathroom to change out the water she cried. And then she straightened her face, plastered on a smile and went back out to wash her more.
By the time Miss Lucille was fresh and clean, Robin was exhausted. She changed the sheets, being careful to roll the woman gently to her side so that she could get the fresh ones beneath her. And then she lowered her gown, smoothing it into place. Miss Lucille was dozing and Robin looked around the small, neat room. There was no television in the bedroom. She went to the living room and unplugged the small appliance and placed it on the dresser. There was no cable line so Robin turned it to a local channel where the news was currently broadcasting. She found the remote control and placed it beneath the sleeping woman’s hand.
“I’ll come back.” She said, not sure if Miss Lucille had heard her. She smoothed her hair, reluctant to leave. But it was getting late and she needed to get to Jason. Before her visit with the Miss Lucille she had gone home and bathed, changed and packed a small bag which she would leave in her trunk. Now she was happy that she had done that. Robin picked up the uneaten sack of muffins and placed them back on the table so that Miss Lucille wouldn’t miss them. Maybe they would let her eat one.
After a long time of just standing there doing nothing Robin finally left. She went down the elevator and walked to the front desk.
“I need to see that nurse.” He rang for the woman that had led Robin to Miss Lucille’s room. She was coming from outside where Robin saw her squashing out a cigarette before entering the lobby.
“Are you finished with your visit?” She asked pleasantly.
“For now.” Robin said shortly. “I had to give her a bath.” The nurse’s mouth opened and closed. Her eyes wouldn’t meet Robin’s. “And I had to change her diaper….and her sheets. She was filthy! Her hair hasn’t been washed in weeks-”
The nurse’s nice mask finally slid free and she gave Robin a cold look. “With all due respect, you’re not family-”
“You don’t know what I am.” Robin said calmly. “What you need to concern yourself with is the bed sores that’s between her legs and on her backside.”
“We’re aware of those and have been treating her-”
“Not when she is laying in her own filth!” Several people turned to look at them and the man from the front desk came over to them.
“Is there a problem?” Robin just watched the nurse who finally just lowered her eyes.
“I’ll take care of that.” The woman said discreetly.
“Please do, before my next visit.” Robin turned and walked away without another word. She was seething, shaking. Pinnacle might be assholes, but the aids had taken care of Miss Lucille, much better than this place had!
Chapter 4
When Robin arrived at Jason’s, even the idea of seeing him couldn’t elevate her spirits. She was tired and wanted to crawl into her bed, cover her head with her pillow and fall into a deep, empty sleep. She wanted to cry and she wanted to fight someone. But then Jason opened the door wearing a big smile on his face and standing on his crutches. Even in her funk she couldn’t help but to return his smile.
“We really have to get you a key, Sweetheart.” She closed the door behind her and gave him a kiss, lingering into it. He hugged her and she sighed, leaning her head against his chest.
“I’m tired and hungry. Let’s think about dinner so that I can sit down and rest.”
He pulled back and looked at her. “What have you been up to?”
“Oh…I’m too tired to explain right now. I’ll tell you in a minute.” She was really mentally and physically exhausted. He gestured with his head to the reclining chair. “Sit down, Sweetheart. We can just order something for dinner.”
“Are you sure?” She sank into the comfortable chair and felt the tension ease out of her body.
“Yep.” He walked to the kitchen for several menus. “Hmmm, pizza…we got pizza, and guess what; pizza!”
She smiled. “How about…pizza?”
“Good choice.” He named several pizza restaurants and she chose one that she knew served chef salads. Jason quickly placed the order and then he went to his wheelchair and sat in it. He wheeled to her and gently lifted her feet.
“What’s wrong, baby?” He removed her shoes and rubbed her feet.
“Mmmm….” She hummed. “That feels good. I should be rubbing your feet. I get paid to take care of you-”
“Stop changing the subject. What’s wrong?”
She sighed. “Remember my first client?”
“The old lady?”
“Yeah.”
“She okay?”
Robin explained about her visit and the condition that she had found the woman in. Jason’s expression had taken on a sad cast.
“Unfortunately things like that happen all of the time, and not just to the elderly. People with handicaps like mine are just…left…unattended all of the time.”
Robin watched him. “Did…that ever happen to you?” Of all of the things that they had discussed, Jason had never broached the subject of his childhood neglect. There were very few fond memories that he had of his childhood and to him, no reason to dredge up unpleasant memories.
“Yes,” he said neutrally. Robin sat up straight.
“What happened to you?”
“I had some aids that didn’t do their jobs half as well as you do.” He smiled slightly at her. “And the past is the past. Now the question is what are you going to do with the information that you have?”
“I’m pretty sure that she knows I have her number and she’s going to be more careful. I just need to make sure to visit on a regular basis. I’d tell her son, but…it’s not like he really cares.” She wasn’t saying that she thought Bentley didn’t love his mother. She just thought that his love was that distant thing that people had for those that were too much effort or trouble. Sometimes that type of love was easy to put on the back shelf. Robin definitely thought that Bentley had placed his mother on the back shelf.
The food arrived and Jason paid for it. Robin offered to pay half but he dismi
ssed her offer with a wave of his hand. They sat down with pizza and salad and had a comfortable conversation that did not include neglect or abuse. There were no dishes to do so Robin wiped everything down while Jason worked at his studio. She sat on the couch and listened to him digging for breaks, every once in a while he would explain the origins of a beat or she would ask him to play something again, but soon his deep concentration lent to her nodding off on the couch.
She was awakened when he cut off the lights and she sat up quickly and looked around the darkened room. Her eyes latched on to the hands of the clock; eleven pm!
“Oh god, Jason! I’m so sorry!” She leaped to her feet and began to wring her hands.
“What are you sorry about?” He asked giving her a curious look. He was now in his wheelchair and was just turning off the computer equipment.
“I swore that I would never fall asleep on you again.”
He smiled. “That’s a promise you’ll have to break; because I really enjoy when you sleep on me.”
She paused and whispered. “At night when we’re in bed…but not while I’m supposed to be your assistant.”
He reached for the crutches and left the chair behind as he walked to her. She noticed that his legs were moving a lot easier, he wasn’t just swinging them any longer. He was actually moving one leg in front of the other. It wasn’t smoothly and he was still slow but he was doing it.
“Robin, I kept you up awfully late last night and honestly…I wanted you rested because I was hoping to keep you up again tonight.” He gave her a hopeful look. “Will you stay tonight?” The current that ran through her body seemed to spark to life. She smiled.
“I can’t stay every night.”
“No, but you can tonight, right?”
She nodded and closed the space between them to kiss him. “I’ll get my bag.” When she returned from the car Jason was in the bedroom and already partially undressed. She went to the bathroom and brushed her teeth. She resisted the urge to leave her toothbrush in the medicine chest. The last thing she needed was for Mrs. H to find it and…well cause her problems at Pinnacle.
By the time she got to the bedroom Jason was again beneath his sheets and presumably nude. She placed her bag on the chair in the corner and then began removing her clothes. Jason started humming an old burlesque strip tease. Robin giggled.
“Come on, baby. Make it sexy!” He yelled.
“No.” She laughed in embarrassment. When she was down to sexy underwear she relented a bit and shook her boobs allowing them to fall out of her unhooked bra. Jason sucked in a sharp breath.
“Robin.”
“Hmmm?” She purred.
“You have no idea.”
“Of?” She asked suggestively as she bent to lower her panties.
“How unbelievably sexy you are. How fucking sexy you are.”
She bit her lip. “It’s you who doesn’t know how badly you make me want you.” He gave her a surprised look and then reached out for her to come to him. When she reached the end of the bed she pulled the sheets down to reveal his nudity, and then she climbed onto the bed on all fours and crawled to him.
Jason whimpered like a child as Robin lay her body on top of his, trapping him beneath her and teasing him with her lips and tongue. And then when she came up on all fours straddling him, she again teased him with her breasts, grazing his chest lightly with her nipples. When she moved down the bed, she once again teased his penis with her belly, and then her breasts and lastly with light kisses that she left on the head of him.
She thought his jerking and groans were signs of a seizure, but it was just pleasure and when he was almost overwhelmed with her erotic torture he urged her onto her back and did the same thing to her. Robin writhed and bucked beneath him until he ended her torture by gently lapping at her clitoris and granting her the ultimate release.
Then Robin did a thing that she had always wanted to do, she placed Jason’s penis into her mouth—as much as she could fit—and gave him a blowjob. It wasn’t the most successful blowjob; she gagged and choked and drooled but Jason had no complaints and later when she asked him if it had been okay he told her truthfully that it was the best orgasm that he’d ever had.
The next day was Wednesday and Robin had an appointment later that evening with the gastroenterologist. Jason wanted to go with her but first there was school. At lunch Robin noted that Amberly was watching the two of them closely.
“Where did you all go yesterday?” Jason stared down at his grilled cheese sandwich and concentrated on pulling off a small section to place into his mouth. Amberly wasn’t quite her friend so she felt it wasn’t her place to answer. Link and Patty were both turning slightly red.
“Uh…” Link stammered. “We just stopped by the van for a sec and kinda lost track of time.”
“All three of you?” She asked, excluding Robin, who didn’t mind at this point.
“Sorry.” Patty apologized. “No one knew it would take up the entire lunch break.” Amberly didn’t seem satisfied but she got up and limped over to Jason and sat lightly in his lap.
“What are you going to do, play with that food, Top?” He reached around her to continue fiddling with his sandwich, essentially cradling her in his arms. Robin stared straight ahead and tried not to think anything of it. After all, Amberly has sat in Link’s lap, too…but mostly Jason’s. She sipped her fruit juice and munched on a cracker. For lunch she had opted on a plate of chicken salad on a wedge of lettuce with slices of tomato surrounding it. Her stomach was good but no use in pushing it.
“So have you thought about it?” Link asked, directing the question at Jason.
“What?” Jason asked, giving him a distracted look.
“What we talked about yesterday.”
Jason’s face flamed. His mouth opened and then closed and both Robin and Amberly looked at him curiously.
“The dj gig?” Link prompted.
“Oh!” Jason gushed in relief. “Oh that.” Link rolled his eyes to the top of his head.
“There’s going to be another?” Robin asked curiously.
“Oh man.” Amberly sighed. “Just what we need; another fiasco.”
Robin was at a lost for words. She felt hot embarrassment course through her body.
“That’s not fair.” Patty said. “Most everyone has at least one bad experience with liquor.”
Jason nudged her off his lap and turned to Robin. “What do you think, Sweetheart? Shall we try it again?”
“Of course, Jason. Making music is what you do. Yes, do it.” She said honestly. Some of the others at the table began chattering about it and if they were going to do another theme like they had the last time by using Beat Street as their musical influence. So yeah, people did catch on; some people did get it.
Patty reached into her bag and withdrew a small brown paper sack. She shoved it into Robin’s hands. “Here. This is Top’s. Put it in your purse.” Robin did as she was told, giving Patty a curious look. But Patty just had an odd twinkle in her eye like there was a joke that Robin didn’t know about.
Amberly just watched them all silently. “Jason.” She said suddenly. “Are you ever going to come back to the group meetings?” Meaning the diversity group for the University students with disabilities. “You haven’t been to a meeting in weeks.”