“What still kind of hurts, Baby Doll?” Tippy asked as she waltzed in and gave him a big hug and a kiss.
“Never mind.” Ian said. “Where’s Ronnie? I thought you were bringing my son?”
“Calm down, Baby Doll.” Tippy kissed Billy’s cheek. “He’s here. He ran into a friend, but he’ll be right in.”
“A friend? I didn’t think Ripley’s shift was until later.”
“Ripley’s not out there.” Tippy said going to the bags she plopped in the window before all the kissing and hugging. “It’s that Noseworthy boy, the one with the glasses? You know his wife is pregnant. I thought it would be nice if we threw him a little shower. Wouldn’t that be fun? No one ever throws the father a baby shower…”
“Tippy…” Ian tried to get her back on the subject. “That’s a wonderful idea, but Ronnie? Where’s my son?”
“Oh, I’m sorry Baby Doll. He’s with that sweet lady from the grocery store. The one you always see when you’re shopping. What’s her name?”
“Miss Inez?” Ian asked.
“That’s the one.” Tippy pulled a few things out of one of the bags. “Apparently she’s here in the hospital. We got off the elevator, there she was and Ronnie ran right over to her and started chatting away.”
“Is she visiting someone?” Ian asked.
“I don’t think so. She’s in a wheel chair.” Tippy cut the tags off a pair of flannel pants. “You like this color, Baby Doll?”
“They could be bright pink with silver shiny stars and I wouldn’t care. Just get some pants on me please.” Ian begged.
“Billy Boy, do you think you can help me try and slip these on him?”
“I’ll give it a shot.” Billy stood and pulled the blanket off of Ian. “Let us know if we’re hurting you.”
“Taking the blanket off was painful.” Ian said. “Even if I start spurting blood, get those things on me.”
“I got a large.” Tippy blathered as she started slipping the pants over Ian’s feet. “Thinking they’d be big enough to go over that one leg.”
“Looks like it may be tight but they’ll do the trick.” Billy helped slide the pants up. “Ian can you lift your butt up?”
Ian gave him a dirty look. “If I could do that, do you think I’d need two of you to dress me?”
“Are we changing the doll’s clothes?” Reese laughed has he walked in.
“Yeah, I thought a sun dress and a smart hat for the ride around the living room in the plastic convertible.” Billy said. “Can you help lift him up enough for us to get these pants the rest of the way up?”
“Yeah.” Rease slipped his arms under Ian. “This may hurt a little. We’ll go on three?”
Ian nodded. The count down completed. He tried not to wince or yell as the pants we’re finally in place. “Thank you. I don’t feel so exposed now.”
Tippy cleared her throat and held up the cell phone Ian had been hiding in the bed. “What is this young man?”
“How did that get there?” Ian feigned innocence.
She gave him a chiding look and slipped it in her purse.
“Oh, come on Tippy. It’s not like I can even use it.”
“Then there’s no need for you to have it, is there?”
“Look I promise to stop dialing those 900 lines…”
“Papa! Look who come to see ya!” Ronnie rushed excitedly to his father’s bedside, not seeing the wince when he gave him a hug and a kiss. “It’s Miss Inez!”
Ian looked to the elderly African-American woman in the wheel chair being pushed in the room by a handsome young woman. “Mr. Ian.” The woman said with relief. “I am so glad to see you all smiles. You had me worried, young man.”
“You are a sight for sore eyes, Miss Inez.” Ian was genuinely happy to see her. “I’d give you a hug and a kiss, but they keep taking links out of the chain to my dog house.” He looked to the woman with her. “And who is this beautiful young lady? Is this…Rose?”
Miss Inez beamed. “Why, yes. This is my grandbaby Rose Marie. Rose honey, this is Mr. Ian Justyn.”
“It is so good to meet you, Mr. Justyn.” Rose started to take a step forward to obviously shake his hand, but looked at Ian in the bed and simply blushed.
“Ian.” He said. “You need to call me Ian.”
“Granny talks about you and the boy all the time.” She put her hand to her modest sweater. “I have to be honest I thought she was just…”
“Senile…” Miss Inez snorted. “Go ahead and say it, you thought I was goin’ senile.”
“Well…” She blushed again.
“We see each other at the market two or three times a week.” Ian confirmed. “She and Ronnie always run off and leave me to shop by myself.”
“Pooh!” The old woman said. “You couldn’t tie your own shoes, Ian Justyn. Twice now we’ve had to come to customer service and get you a sucker and a tissue to dry your eyes.”
Billy and Reese rolled. “Now that I believe.”
“Forgive me. Inez and Rose Morning, some of the rest of my family; Reese and Billy and of course Tippy Shores.” He let the little group all say hello and shake.
Of course, Tippy had to be Tippy. “Now Miss Inez, honey, why are you here?”
“Oh, I done cracked this ol’ hip again.” Miss Inez shook her head in disgust.
“Again?” Tippy asked.
“Third time.” Rose confirmed.
“You didn’t fall down in the ice cream aisle again, did you?” Ronnie asked.
“Shhhh!” She warned him as she noticed her grand daughter’s eyebrow peak. “I was just a walking out to get the mail and tripped up the front stoop.”
“Fortunately I was home.” Rose added. “The last time she fell I was at work and she lay there for four hours.”
“Aw, darlin’. That’s just awful.” Tippy said.
“Don’t you all fret about me none. I’m old and stuff is bound to happen.” She shot a finger toward Ian. “Now this young man. What you divin’ off a balconies in the dark for? You’ll give a old lady a heart attack.”
“I’m going to be just fine.” Ian said. “It was just a nasty, horrible tragedy. As soon as they unhook me, I’ll be back to my normal self.”
“Don’t you go pushin’ it.” Miss Inez scolded him. “You young folk think you can just go from first to third gear in two seconds. Don’t you rush it now.”
“He won’t, Miss Inez. I’m in charge.” Ronnie smiled.
“Well, I should get her back to her room.” Rose smiled. “It was a pleasure meeting all of you.”
“Now Miss Inez, obviously I’m going to be here a few more days…”
“Weeks.” Tippy coughed into her hand ignoring the dirty look from Ian.
“…So you just roll down here any time. We’ll keep each other from being bored.”
“Oh, I’m sure the two of you can find some kind of trouble to keep you occupied.” Rose smiled.
Miss Inez laughed into her hand. “I bet we could, lawdy, I bet we could.” She patted the corner of Ian’s bed she could reach. “I see you soon. Ronnie, child, come give Miss Inez a big kiss.”
He did, and she waved as her grand daughter began to back up her chair to roll her out.
“Rose?” Ian asked making the young woman stop and turn to him. “After you get your Grandmother all tucked back in, would you mind coming back to see me?”
“If you’d like…” she hesitated.
“Everyone is about to take off and I could use the company.” Ian smiled. “Just a minute or two if you could.”
“Of course.” She rolled her Grandmother out of sight.
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