Bruised

Chapter 18

Killian walked into the retirement home two minutes before his shift was supposed to begin. He headed towards the front desk and greeted the two of the care staff who were seated behind the desk.

"Morning, ladies," Killian said as he punched in, "Sandra, you look exceptionally lovely today,"

Sandra was the elder member of the staff, she smiled and waved off his compliment,
"Oh, you charmer,"

Another care staff strolled towards them and joined Sandra and the other staff behind the front desk.

"How's Martin doing?"

Killian lifted his gaze to them and frowned,
"What happened to Martin?"

Sandra and the other staff looked at him,
"He had a tumble last night..."

Killian didn't need to hear anymore before he quickly made his way to Martin's room. Sandra called out to him but Killian didn't bother waiting or hearing out what she had to say. He arrived outside Martin's room door and that was when he slowed down and came to a complete stop with his hand on the doorknob.

His shoulders rose and fell but he wasn't sure if it was because he ran or because he was scared about what was on the other side of the door. His shoulders felt heavy and he let them sag under that pressuring weight. Twisting the doorknob, Killian pushed it open and lifted his gaze.

Martin lay on his bed, eyes closed, IV bags hanging off the IV pole. Killian walked inside and then shut the door quietly behind him without taking his gaze off Martin. Swallowing, he stepped further into the room being mindful of making each step as quiet as he could. He paused at the end of Martin's bed and gazed down at the man who looked even more fragile than he had the last time he saw him.

Some of the weight on his shoulders had gotten stuck in his throat which made it hard for him to swallow. Killian's gaze shifted from Martin's resting face to his feet. He glanced at Martin's face once before reaching out and placing his hand on Martin's feet. Closing his eyes, Killian mentally surrendered his feelings to God.

It took a minute for him to be able to honestly call out those feelings and surrender them, but he finally did. He was scared, sad, and angry among other things. But he prayed to God for healing over Martin, asking for strength for him to be able to get through the situation. He also asked for God to open up the hearts of Martin's older grandchildren; for them to remember Martin and visit more. Finally, he prayed for himself that he would be filled with the strength to carry on the rest of the day to do what he was called to do.

Ending with a stretched-out and quiet Amen, Killian opened his eyes, staring at his hand on Martin's feet.

"Amen."

Killian's gaze lifted to Martin's face to find the old man watching him with the tiniest of smiles. He scoffed a smile, grateful to God and thankful that he was ok.

"Pull up a chair,"

Killian noticed Martin's voice sounded normal so he did what he was told. He pulled a chair closer to his bed and took a seat, watching him intently. The two stared at each other in a moment of comfortable silence.

"How are you feeling?"

"Like I took a tumble."

"What happened?"

"You didn't hear?" Martin sounded surprised, "I woke up at night thinking I was David and went down like Goliath."

Killian couldn't help smiling at the reference.
"Next time, be careful."

"A man needs to be able to go to the bathroom by himself,"

"A man also needs to understand that there's nothing wrong with others helping him." Killian said, "Especially when he has a bad leg."

Martin shifted his gaze from Killian to the ceiling and he sighed,
"Even at my age, God is teaching me humility."

Killian blinked, not having anything to say.

"Knowing there are folks like you out there makes me happy knowing that the new generation isn't so far from God." Martin returned his gaze to him, "All that time I wasted not getting to know him, I used to wonder why no one came to yell at me and tell me there was an easier way to live."

"Don't you think it's an easier life that people expect from God and when they don't get it, they turn away?"

Martin was quiet for a second but he nodded,
"It took me years to learn that, but I persevered because I knew there was more to God than being my Genie."

"Not a lot of people stick around to get to that part."

"They want their prayers and every wish to be Amazon-primed."

Killian laughed at the fact that Martin knew what Amazon Prime was and proceeded to use it as a verb.

"Don't stray too far, son."

Killian's laughter died.

"Always find your way home,"

Killian didn't like the way Martin was talking and there was a part of the situation he wasn't ready to acknowledge. Martin was old and the thought of it reminded Killian of what was at the end of the road for not just Martin, but his parents as well as himself. Death was inevitable and just the thought seemed to bring everything into perspective. Life was fleeting, no problem seemed too big anymore, and every second mattered.

Death is tragic but it's a good way to remind ourselves of what is important in life. We get to either head in the same direction we're headed to satisfy our human desires or we could re-access our priorities and figure out if the direction we're headed is a path we want to keep to.

Killian smiled at Martin,
"I'm on my way home."

Martin smiled and nodded,
"Bring others with you,"

The look on Killian's face might have betrayed his thoughts because Martin replied to his unasked question.

"God gave you your gift and talent for a reason." Martin said, "Use it."

Killian was surprised by the fact that he hadn't really acknowledged his talent as a God-given gift. It had always been something he had a knack for and had developed over the years. But now he asked himself if he had really just hidden God's gift in his attic.

Killian smiled,
"I will, Martin. Just don't bail on me now."

"Oh, it's not my time yet."

Killian laughed at Martin's confident tone, glad that he still had time to spend with him. It was a good day to be alive.

We all need a break every now and then and I feel like it's time for me to take one from writing. If most of you don't know, I write full-time, edit Social Media content at the end of the day, and work on my WIP on Saturdays (that being Bruised right now). Sunday is the only day I truly get to rest.

However, I have been feeling overwhelmed lately and I've been thinking about taking a break from writing on Wattpad. I'm just one person and juggling a lot does take its toll. I'm not sure if I'm going to take the whole month off or maybe I just need some weeks off, but I'll pause writing for the entirety of May. That doesn't mean you won't get chapters every Saturday cause you will. This is just something I thought I'd share cause rest too is important.

So, if you're reading this and understand that feeling, it means you need rest. I talked about that in my recent YouTube video and I'd truly appreciate it if you could watch it and support me on there as well. (Direct link --->)

Thank you so much for sticking around for this. Have a blessed day.