A Thin Ice

“Ugh! My head aches so bad. Leo! Leo!” Jeremy called out, gripping his head and groaning.

“Yes, sir,” Leah rushed in as if she had been waiting to be summoned. She barely had enough sleep the previous night, wondering if Jeremy had found her out or not. She was uneasy.

Jeremy just looked at her and mumbled, “lousy man.”

“Make me some lime juice, for my headache. I'm having a hangover from last night.”

“What? Last night?” She asked even though she had heard him clearly. She was terrified. She had been careless last night and she could've sworn that he heard her. Oh God! She prayed silently in her heart.

“Are you deaf? You better hurry!”

“Yes, sir!” She hurried out and came back with a glass of the lime juice.

“Sir, I have arranged the clothes you'll wear. Will you have breakfast downstairs or should I bring it here?” Leah asked.

“You aren't my babysitter, are you? I'll let you know when I need something. Get lost!” He snapped at her.

Leah couldn't understand why he was so difficult to please.

Maggie explained to her that she was the fifth person to work with her in two months. All the other male caregivers left because of his attitude.

She explained that her boss hadn't always been so. It used to be so easy to work with him until the accident happened, and his fiancee who used to live with them, left. He had become miserable afterward.

“Oh my…that's really sad. I can totally understand why he's frustrated.”

“Frustrated, you say?” A harsh voice interrupted from behind. Both Maggie and Leah turned to see Jeremy wheeling his wheelchair closer. They froze.

“I was waiting for my food upstairs and it was taking forever and…” he didn't finish before Leah interrupted him.

“But sir, you said…” he cut her short abruptly.

“Tell me what you know about frustration,” he commanded. His eyes blazing with anger.

“Sir, … well, my dad passed away two years ago. Everything he ever owned got usurped by someone who is now very powerful. I am saddled with the responsibility of caring for my mom and my siblings, and I have to work here…that's quite frustrating, if you ask me, sir.”

“You must be a weak man. How could someone have just taken everything your father ever worked for while you are still alive? Pathetic!” Jeremy clapped back, looking sternly at her and Maggie.

“I will go back upstairs and wait for my food. If I'm not served on time, you're gone. I hate working with lazy and weak men.” Jeremy said as he wheeled his chair back.

His staff thought he was frustrated and that made him more frustrated. Perhaps he had to be strict with them.

And Maggie…Maggie too was talking behind his back? He felt hurt.

In no time, Leah brought the meal to his room and served him. She stayed until he finished eating.

“Sir, I'm really sorry. I'm sorry, sir, for everything you've been through. I'm sorry for…”

“Get lost!” Jeremy barked.

And as Leah rushed out terrified, he called her back in.

“You must know your place around here.” Jeremy warmed.

“Yes, sir. Sorry, sir.”

Leah was in her room resting at night when her phone rang. Her ex boyfriend was calling. She had gotten over him and his betrayal. She was happy again. She didn't want to remember the pain he had caused her. How he made her feel less of a woman and how he slept with everything in a skirt.

She rejected his call, blocked his line and called Noah.

“Hello, Leo,” Noah teased.

“Yes, buddy,” Leah replied in her deep “Leo” voice, and they both laughed.

She inquired about her mom and siblings, and appreciated Noah for being a good friend and for looking after her family in her absence.

She promised to cook his favorite meal when she came around on her weekend leave.

Noah had been her best friend since childhood. He was a really great guy. Her mother loved him like her own son. She considered him a brother but Noah liked her more than that. He was really hoping a time would come he would be able to express his feelings for Leah and hoped it wouldn't affect their friendship.

Jeremy Harper, who had suddenly become a loner, was sulking in his room. He looked at pictures of his ex-fiancee who had left him for his best friend.

He groaned in pain and smashed the frame.

He took other pictures of her, and pictures of the both of them and tore them to pieces.

Most of his nights had been like that. He thought about how he had lost everything. He legs and his woman. And to whom? His best friend, Conrad.

“That bastard. Bastard!” He cursed.

Jeremy grabbed a bottle of liquor but stopped himself. “Get it together, Jeremy. Wake up!” he scolded himself, smashing the bottle instead.

The landline rang. He picked up and heard an aged woman say,

“Hello, Leah,”

“Leah?” He questioned.

“Sorry. I meant Leo. I'm his mother. I've been trying to reach him but haven't been able to.” Leah's mother corrected herself immediately.

“Oh. Hello, Ma'am. He'll call you back shortly.” He tried to get a hold of Leah but it seemed like her line was busy.

He took it upon himself to go to Leah's room and get her to call her mom.

He wheeled his chair there, and just before he knocked on the door, he heard a feminine voice from inside.

He knocked aggressively and Leah opened, he asked, “are you with a lady in there?”

“A woman? No, sir. It’s just me,” Leah replied in her deep “Leo” voice.

Jeremy raised an eyebrow.

Realizing what was going on, she quickly tried to defend herself, “I was only imitating my girlfriend, so I attempted to sound feminine. I must have really done it well.”

“Your mother called. She has been trying to get a hold of you. Call her,” Jeremy commanded and wheeled his chair back to his room.

As he left, Jeremy couldn’t shake the feeling that something was off. He was certain he hadn’t been drinking that night.