Page 3 of To Hades & Back
“Anáthema,Mamá, évales to pódi sou se aftés tis glykopatátes (Damn, Mama, you put your foot in these sweet potatoes),” Zeus complimented after finishing a big mouthful of them. “I need to get this recipe from you.”
I side-eyed the hell out of my brother then our mama. My mother blushed then said, “Well, baby, you need to get the recipe from your brother. Hades made these.”
Damn right, I did!Zeus knew that shit. His ass was trying to be funny. Our parents had had us in the kitchen since we were in our single digit ages to help them cook. They took pride in the fact that they were raising children who could be completely independent from another person. Now as adults, we alternated who helped cook with our parents for family dinners.
Zeus’s smirk told everyone that he knew that. “Oh, my bad, Bro. I forgot you knew how to cook.”
Before I could say anything, my niece, Aiode, got the attention of the table. Her little ‘excuse me’ shut all the conversation down. “Theíos (Uncle) Dee, I love your tatoes.”
My smile widened. No one’s praise was more important than hers. Baby girl saw no wrong in me, and I loved that for myself. The same was true for my nephew, Ocean. “Thank you, ómorfos (beautiful).”
I admired and respected the fact that my brothers were actively and intentionally teaching their children the Greek language. A lot more Greek was spoken when Ocean and Aiode were around for that benefit. They also had a teacher come over to teach them formally. Dindi and Melody sat in on those lessons to learn as well.
We all talked about different topics over dinner. My dad’s attention was occupied by Ocean who thought his grandfather was a superhero. In his almost two-year-old logic, if Poseidon was a superhero, then his dad would have to be as well. That was the same logic that my brothers and I had about our dad and granddad, so we all understood.
The kids were down shortly after dinner which left us all to chill in the den. By us, I meant the Basil children. Our parents were too cool for us to hang out with. “Aye, y’all know Christian and Christopher’s birthday is this weekend? They want us to fall through.”
My entire family worked out at Leota Fitness and Fight. Christian and Christopher Leota were the only set of identical twin boys in the family. Malo and Manu were fraternal twins. My siblings and I practiced mixed martial arts since we were kids, at my father’s insistence. We’d known the Leotas for years and mixed from time to time. Both of our families being from mixed heritages gave us a common denominator.
“Oh, Megan told Hestia and me about it when we were at The Queen’s Palace the other day, getting our nails done,” Hera said. Megan was Christian’s wife. “We planned to go anyway, so yeah. I’ll call to make sure we have a section.”
Between our family and theirs, if they all came, we would for sure need a section. “Bet! It’s about to be a good time.”
My smile illuminated the room.“I’m so happy that you’re taking your lil munchkin home today. It’s been a long road, but look how far he’s come,” I said to one of my patients’ parents.
This was one of the love-hate things about my job as an intensive neonatal nurse (NICU). I always wanted to see the babies that I cared for go home, but I missed them so badly when they did. The munchkin that was leaving today was born at twenty-three weeks gestation. He’d spent the last three and a half months here at the hospital. The doctor’s prognosis on his survival was slim, but he beat the odds like I knew he would.
“Jin’jer, I don’t know how we could every repay you,” Mrs. Culliver said with tear brimmed eyes. “You loved our baby like he was yours. You went above and beyond.”
Her words made me warm and fuzzy inside. “Awe, thank you. The only way you can repay me is to love this lil munchkin. Oh, and send me updates and pictures.”
Mr. Culliver tittered. “You know that we will send you updates. She’s already got you on the christening guest list.”
That excited me. “Oh, I can’t wait to see him in all his christening glory.” With final hugs, the Cullivers were on their way home with their baby boy.
It wouldn’t be the first time that I’d attended a christening for a former patient. I’d attended birthdays, christenings, and school plays. I had an entire wall in my apartment dedicated to my babies. I’d been a registered nurse for six years and a neonatal intensive care nurse for two of those six. I knew I wanted to be a neonatal nurse since I was a teenager. I went to the University of Massachusetts to get my Bachelor of Science in Nursing. Once I received my ATT (authorization to test), I registered to take my NCLEX (National Counsil Licensure Examination), and I passed.
That was the beginning journey of me getting to where I was today. The need for traveling nurses was high, so I jumped on it to get the hell out of Massachusetts. I traveled a lot, trying to get my foot in the door of a neonatal unit. It was almost impossible because a lot of times, nurses in those units never left. Three years ago, I took an assignment in Charlotte, North Carolina. Six months after I got here, by pure luck of the draw, I was asked to help with a patient or two in the neonatal intensive care unit for a few days.
Three months later, I was still helping in the unit and doing a great job. When one of the nurses resigned so that she could move out of state to be with her husband, I was offered the job full time to replace her. What turned into a travel assignment ended with me permanently moving to Charlotte. It was the best decision ever.
“I’m hungry as hell. They’re working me today. Girl, are you ready for lunch?” Hera asked when she stepped up to the nurses’ station.
I giggled at her dramatic ass. Hera worked in the emergency department. She’d worked at the hospital longer than I had, but we just got acquainted with each other a few months ago because of a patient case we both had that crossed over. I was a to myself type of person because females could be petty and catty as hell. Sometimes hospitals were no different than adult ass high schools. From the beginning, Hera felt like a breath of fresh air, and it hadn’t changed.
“Yeah, girl. I just finished what I was doing.” I told the others behind the desk that I would be back. The Cullivers’ son was my last patient until I received another. When I didn’t have a patient, I assisted with others that needed it. There was always something to do in this unit.
Hera and I walked to a close by restaurant that a lot of the hospital staff frequented. You would think that we’d be tired of the place, but nope. They changed their specials daily, so there was always something new to try.
It took no time for us to be seated. Once we were seated and given a menu, we started to scan it. “Oh, before I forget. We’re going out this weekend,” Hera blurted.
“Wait, who is we?” I asked with a slanted head. After she told me that it would be me, her, and her family, I became leery. “I’m not sure about that. You know I don’t like being around a ton of people. You and Hestia are enough.”
Her sister Hestia was cool as hell too. I knew that they had brothers from conversation, but I’d never met them. I’d been invited to hang out with them before at events that their bike club held, but I always declined. I rode, but I was more of a solo rider, which they thought was dangerous.
Hera sighed. “Jin’jer, your ass can’t just come to work, go home, and ride your bike alone all the time. We’re going to be in a section, so it’s not like we’ll be all in the mix.”
Before I could say anything, the waitress came over to take our orders. After that was done, I put my slitted eyes back on Hera. “First, I don’t always ride alone. You and your sister have ridden with me before. I go to other places, too, I’ll have you know.”
