His Last Hope | Ream Exclusive

03: Sometimes flowers aren't very nice.

If I was given the opportunity of never again having to suffer through an unbearable task it would be washing dishes.

Hands down.

Especially after being bestowed the responsibility of washing, sanitizing, drying and putting away approximately two hundred cups, plates and utensils five days a week. It was a tedious task and if I never again had to scrounge through a soapy tub of water it would be too soon.

As the mountains of drool covered cups and mush infested bins began to slowly disappear my heart sang a happy tune. It was a melody that reminded me that I could soon escape from the suffocating four walls of the daycare kitchen and return to the real world. Being almost through allowed me to fight the urge to send my foot flying into the industrial sanitization machine. The roar it created sounding like it was doing more harm than good to the load inside anyways.

I was on my second last load of dishes — just drying up the last of the clean cups while I waited for the sanitizer to work its unnoticeable magic. Stretching to reach the top cupboard caused my sweatshirt to ride up and a shiver to rack my body. Tugging it back down I scrambled onto the counter top.

Why the most vertically challenged employee was chosen for this job, I will never know.

With my knees planted on the grey, sturdy surface I was able to slide the cups into their respectable spots. Being so indulged in not falling off the counter I had no realization someone had entered the kitchen until a scraping met my ears.

Melanie, a middle aged coworker of mine, stood there sending me a slight wave. Her expression resembled that of a young girl who just got caught doing something she wasn't meant to. I was confused until I took notice of the white snack tray that materialized on the once clear countertop.

I held back a sigh at the sight of the leaning tower of dirty cups. I didn't mind this happening the odd time. The classrooms sometimes became hectic and delays in schedule were only to be expected. To my distaste, however, this was becoming the norm.

"Sorry!" Melanie quipped at the sight of my dropped expression. "Tammy just showed up to my room honestly, thirty seconds ago. She was meant to cover Jess when she left for bus duty but you know how punctual Tammy is."

Oh, do I ever...

I offered a polite smile telling her not to worry even though I wanted to stomp my foot in frustration.

"I could finish them up for you if you want? I feel bad. You'd be done by now if it weren't for my room's snack dishes."

Shaking my head at her I responded, "No, really it's okay. It shouldn't take me that much longer — isn't your shift over in ten minutes?"

Melanie swung her head to peek at the clock above the green doorframe making her short ponytail flick along with the movement.

"Are you sure?" Melanie pressed.

"Completely. Don't worry about it."

The reassuring smile I wore was enough to convince her and she backed herself out of the kitchen threshold, thanking me a hundred and ten times before disappearing down the hallway. "I owe you!"

"Yes. Yes you do..."I muttered under my breath glaring at the disaster in my wake. Looking over the catastrophe I scowled. It looked as if through the Cookie Monster blew chunks onto a rainbow. With an unhappy groan I took the entire tub of too-bright dishes and dumped the contents into the sudsy water.

That's when I was met with a face full of bubbles. The murky liquid slowly dripped down my face, drenching my top and making me look like I'd found the one thawed lake in all of Ontario and jumped in.