Exceptional Dilemmas and decisions Anna's Gift by Realist101

Gary's old Taurus sputtered to a choking halt in front of yet another in a string of fancy homes that could only be described as opulence gone wild. But his mind wandered back to his wife. Anna needed surgery. And not just any old surgery. It was a controversial procedure to help block nerves that kept her in constant, intense pain throughout her neck and upper back. She was in agony ninety percent of the time and the morphine only served to give her nightmares and an upset stomach. He leaned back, his cigarette's hot ash falling, unfelt, onto his worn blue jeans and a sigh of despair escaped his lips. Gary Thomas had laid countless carpets for countless wealthy people and on this warm June morning, he forced a smile, as his boss, Jim Lunford drove up. "Hey Gary!" "How's it hangin', Jim?" The cackle that responded to this sounded like a choking dog with tapeworms, but Gary laughed at Lunford's joke anyway. "Low, long and slightly left of center, my man!" Lunford's face seemed to beam with happiness and success. Gary gritted his teeth with annoyance. He just wanted to get the job done and be gone. "When's the delivery gonna be here?" He didn't feel like joking. He thought of a hog everytime his boss was around. The man was pasty, sloppy and had close set eyes, much like the pigs his dad used to raise. And Mr. Lunford also sold mirrors along with the carpet, so rich people could walk in comfort while they admired themselves. Gary shifted in the seat of his car and got out. It was going to be a long day. "Well, if they ever get that carpet here, I can be done by four or five. Is the new kid coming to help? Or am I on my own?" "He's working over in Hartford Addition this time. They just want the three main areas done today anyhow. I know you can handle that, right?" "Yeah, no problem." He leaned on the hood of Lunford's shiny new F-350, bumping his boot-toe into the huge tire, nervously awaiting the right moment to ask his boss for a raise. The only other sounds were a few songbirds and a dog off in the distance. Gary wished he could give his wife a house like the ones he constantly worked on. He flicked the last ashes from his cigarette out onto the new asphalt driveway and summoned a shred of willpower and courage. "Hey Jim ... , I been wonderin' about some kinda raise? What with Anna needin' surgery 'n all?" "How is she doing, by the way?" Lunford allowed a serious look to cross his pudgy face. It was fleeting though and Gary once more couldn't help but think of his father's hogs. His stomach roiled in apprehension. He felt like a bug about to be crushed. He had worked so much overtime and still, it wasn't enough. He really needed a raise. For Anna's sake. He looked down at his reflection in the black paint and wished he were anybody else in the world. "Well, I gotta tell you Jim, she's not good. She's in a helluva lotta pain. It just won't quit. And our insurance is balking ... , I just don't know, I really just don't know ... I'm dying inside, not being able to help her, ya know?" , "I'm sorry to hear that Gary. Tell you what. I'll see how the books look, okay? I'll see what I can do. Hang in there, it's got to be tough." Gary thought he recognized compassion in his boss' tone and said a little prayer that he was right. As they started to shake hands the carpet arrived, giving them both a reason to exhale. "Thanks Jim. Thank you." "Sure Gary, you've been a good man, but no promises okay?" "I appreciate that Jim." Gary let his thoughts shift back to the task at hand and both men helped unload the mauve colored Berber, each huge roll carefully placed inside the double doors of the mansion. "I forgot how heavy those rolls can be!" Lunford wiped his face with a red handkerchief, his pink face now a beet red. Going back outside, Lunford allowed Gary to take stock of the first room. The old carpet was a bland beige color. Typical nineties. He quickly began pulling it up. He had nine hours and could probably get all three rooms done, even without the new guys help. He saw one problem with the job. The fireplace was gas powered and it looked like the lid to the junction box had been dented with heavy furniture or something, so he dialed the office, dreading asking for anything now, but the new lid would only cost three or four dollars. Surely Lunford wouldn't mind bringing one over, he was only a couple of miles away and a hop skip and a jump from Lowe's. Good old Lowe's. He couldn't count the number of trips he and Lunford had made to that store, or the amount of money they had spent there. Gary Thomas sighed, the tired, heavy sigh, of a worn and beaten man. The June sun moved into afternoon, making the light inside the house change to a soft gold and Gary went into the kitchen to take his lunch break. It was astounding. A chef's wet dream. He glanced around, wondering who was moving into the place. They had to have money. Probably a doctor or lawyer. And successful ones at that. He wasn't jealous. Not really. Just heartsick ... heartsick over the unfairness of it all. If a rich man's wife had Anna's problems, she would be cared for and fixed already. He crumpled the paper coffee cup into a tiny ball, his anger almost overwhelming him. He wanted to just get into his car and drive. The world could just kiss his ass. But he loved Anna. And he would not, could not, abandon her. He stood on the back deck, peering out over a lush lawn that needed trimmed, and the green, healthy beauty of it made him want to cry. Ready to break down, he didn't even hear the front door open and someone go in and out of the house. A full twenty minutes later, Gary went back inside, to wash his tear stained face and make good his promise to finish the three rooms by five o'clock. He had cursed God. He had begged God. He made promises to God. And now he felt like he and Anna were out of options. He let his anger regenerate his energy and he went back to the living room to get his job done. Something was different. He smelled a familiar smell. Sort of like Lunford's cigar. He smoked Cuban's and sometimes the odor would linger after he was in a room. But Lunford had left hours ago. And Gary had opened several windows. He looked outside, no F-350. He was alone, his old Taurus still sat beneath the huge white oak, unmoved. He shrugged and returned to the fireplace. There sat a new Lowe's sack, Lunford had brought the new lid to the junction box. That was who had been here! But why hadn't he spoken? Jim was odd at times so Gary shrugged it off as just a quirk in his boss' personality. It was no big deal and it was then, that he lifted the old lid off, finding out just how wrong it was, to judge a book by it's cover ... . He sat stunned. There in the square opening sat a brown paper lunch sack. It was folded over and Gary picked it up, curiosity getting the best of him. Gingerly, he parted the top of the sack as he held his breath in nervous anticipation. He recognized the longhand on the note. It was Lunford's distinctive writing and Gary Thomas read the words softly, as more tears rolled down his cheeks. The twenty-thousand dollars in cash would just about cover Anna's surgery. And he stood up, a new man. A man with hope and gratitude. Recognized Author Notes Sometimes people can do extra-ordinary things for each other. You just never know...thank you for reading and to moriarty for the use of a lovely picture...(1,418 words)

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