Bailey and Danny

by K.A. Brotherton

 

 

Theoretically they should not have crossed paths there was simply no reason for it. Fate is often a funny thing.

Bailey sat on the staircase that led to the tiny two bedroom apartment that contained her life with her daughter.  Laila was safely tucked away at kindergarten in the brick faced school at the end of the street. She was  at that point of the day enjoying her  lunch or the cool fall air as they ran around at recess.  She slipped a ten milligram Vicodin between her lips after a lunch of lettuce soaked in lemon juice and swallowed it down with the warm remnants of a Diet Coke. The high didn’t come the way it once did. It danced on the edge behaving as though it were there then it would slip away. She took another yellow pill from the pill bottle and swallowed it down with the final sip of soda from the can. Bailey slipped out the door and parked her ass on the staircase. She sat in the warm fall sunshine as the analgesic feeling crept over her. No more failed marriage, no more struggle to make ends meet just the pure numbing sensation. It spread from her chest along her arms and back down to her abdomen. She leaned her head again the wall as it crept up her neck to her face causing even her lips to feel as though she had just gone to the dentist. It was about then that he appeared. It was almost cartoonish in nature as he quietly walked past the house unaware of her there on the steps. He was looking along the ground for something. Bailey thought perhaps he was looking for cigarette butts. That he had run out of cigarettes and was resorting to the ends of ones he had foolishly tossed out the window.

“I’ll buy you cigarettes,” It slipped from her dry lips.

Her kidneys and liver were working in overdrive to push the excessive amount of Vicodin out of her body.

Danny paused what he was doing and looked over in her general direction. His face tilted slightly as a smile spread across his mouth. His shadow danced a little longer on the sidewalk as the day crept into the start of midafternoon.

“I lost a blunt,” he retorted matter of fact.

Bailey formed the word “Oh” with her lips and let her eyes flutter shut.

“Okay,” she whispered thankful that she wouldn’t have to stand up. Her limbs had gone completely numb.

He was suddenly there in front of her, his hand reached grabbing her chin turning her face to look at her more closely.

“You are high as a fucking kite, what the hell are you on? Coke?”

Bailey’s eyes fluttered open and she looked to his face. His hair was the color of a dark strong cup of coffee, his eyes close to the same. She had never really paid much attention to the boy man that lived in the apartment next door. Now here he was her face in hand as she was quite sure she was about to slip off into infamy.

“No, I took too much Vicodin,” she whispered. “I don’t feel well.”

“I think I should call an ambulance,” He replied as he lifted her hand into his own.

“You are ice cold chick, you look like shit.”

“No!” Bailey tried to stand but her legs simply were not there.

“I feel sick I need to throw up.”

Danny helped her up into the house. He held her shiny auburn hair back away from her face as she violently emptied the contents of her stomach into the toilet. He covered his own mouth and nose with his free hand as the vomiting subsided to dry heaving and then she simply let her cheek fall to the seat of the toilet. Danny hated throw up. It was the worse smell on earth. He was teetering on losing the cheese burger he had for lunch all over her back and hair as she got sick. He was able to refrain.

“I’m so embarrassed,” Bailey whispered.

Danny helped her to her feet and into her room. He moved the pile of clean laundry that had amassed on the unmade bed to the floor against her feeble attempts at protest.

“I’ll rewash it,” He offered without being overly convincing. He really had no idea how to run a washing machine.

Danny eased Bailey down onto her bed and pulled the covers up over her.

“It is now 2:30 I’m going to go get your daughter from school if you don’t look better when I get back I’m calling 911”.

Danny was a man of his word. He walked down the block and retrieved Laila from school. He shrugged as the teacher looked at him questioningly.

 

“They live next door her Mom is throwing up really bad,” He offered.

The teacher looked to Laila who nodded.

“He smokes cigarettes out the window and his shitty music is too loud,” The percocious child offered.

The teacher ushered them both away before she had to go through the undaunting task of flushing those bad words down the toilet.

 

 

Danny  stood over Bailey’s sleeping form in the bed and observed her with the Laila as she slept.

“Is she dead?” The little asked poking at the soft part of her stomach that had stretch to accommodate a nine pound baby.

“No, you made her tired asking for toys all the time,” Danny placed his hands upon his hips. Bailey was pale, a light glisten of perspiration had spread across her face and neck. Her pulse was no longer skipped along erratically as he pressed his finger against the pale flesh of her wrist. Danny was pretty sure she was going to be okay.

He went about taking care of the Laila while Bailey slept. A frozen pizza was popped in the oven and served on paper plates that were in the shape of animals. The girl looked at the offering in horror then thought it better to not be difficult. He pushed the little girl into the bathroom throwing towels behind them demanding she shower for bed. The children allowed the shower nozzle to spray through the open curtain all over the floor and wall.

Danny  dropped to the floor beside Bailey’s bed and waited. He entertained himself texting and playing games on his IPhone as the sun crept slowly down and night fell into place. He was absently listening to the rise and fall of her breath as he tapped away at his phone. She was okay, he was sure of it. She just needed to sleep until the pain medication left her body. He didn’t want to leave her, not until they had a coherent conversation in the least.

Bailey sat up startled as the clock on the cable box changed over to 11:11.

“She lives,” Danny smiled handing over a can of ginger ale with a straw.

“Oh my God, my daughter,” She panicked.

“They are sound asleep, in bed. I made them a pizza and they showered but all your towels are wet. I don’t clean anything involving a bathroom,” Danny offered with a smile standing to his feet.

Tears sprung to Bailey’s eyes and she brushed them to the back of her hand.

“Thank you Danny,” she whispered trying to avoid contact with his eyes.

“Hey,” He demanded as he stepped backward toward the door.

Bailey turned her gaze to meet his, her eyes glistened with tears and her own humiliation.

“I got you kid,” He smiled as he disappeared out the door to his apartment next door.