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“This is my way of showing my appreciation for you.”
“Everything that I’ve done, Casimir, was just me doing my job.”
“Maybe, or maybe you genuinely cared, and I felt that, and it impacted my life.”
“I care about all of my patients.”
“Because you have a beautiful heart. Now are you going to let me appreciate you or not?” I asked.
“Well, considering that you brought food from Soldier’s, a girl can’t complain, can she?”
I followed her as she removed a couple of magazines from the coffee table.
“You can set the food here. I’ll be back. Let me go to the break room and grab some paper towels and—”
“No need. I’ve got everything, including this beautiful vase for your flowers,” I remarked and handed the peony and rose bouquet to Giselle.
“They’re so beautiful, and they smell amazing.” She closed her eyes and sniffed them.
“I’ve got forks, spoons, a couple of knives, and napkins.”
“I know something you didn’t remember,” she declared as she set the flowers on a bookshelf underneath a window.
“What’s that?”
“Drinks.”
I opened the second bag and pulled the sweet teas and straws out. I lifted an eyebrow, and she giggled.
“I don’t know why I underestimated you.”
I shrugged and asked, “May we please eat now?”
“Sure.”
We sat down and ate our meal. Giselle told me how her day had gone, and I shared a little of mine. When we finished, Giselle sat back and asked, “Casimir, what are you doing?”
“Trying to show you all the reasons that you need me in your life.”
It was her turn to lift an eyebrow as she asked, “Need you?”
“I told you. You need a shoulder to cry on, someone to tell how your day went, and someone to take care of you when you forget the little things . . . like getting out early enough to grab something to eat.”
“How do you know that I haven’t eaten?”
I pointed to her trashcan and answered, “That Kind bar and water bottle is not a complete meal, ma’am.”
“It has vital nutrients.”
“What else have you eaten all day?”
She turned her head and bit her bottom lip to hide her smile.
“Precisely,” I replied. “You need someone who will think about all the things that you don’t.”
“I can take care of myself, Casimir.”
“But isn’t it nice to have someone who will take care of you when you forget to?”