1. Part of the Family
The sound of her father, Joe, knocking on her bedroom door woke eleven year old Iris early that morning. Small beams of sunlight crept their way through the gaps in her purple curtains, threatening to illuminate the room and disturb her desirable sleeping conditions. She squinted, looking at her father as he entered the room. His casual attire of grey slacks and a white T-shirt suggested it would be an uneventful day at home; however, the fact he was waking her up, already dressed for the day, suggested there was something to be done.
"Time to wake up, Iris," he declared as he pulled open the curtains, allowing the sunlight to flood the room. The sun only shone with a mild to moderate brightness, indicating to Iris that it was quite early in the morning.
"But Dad, it's too early. I'm too tired," Iris whined. She pulled her blankets over her head to keep the sunlight out of her eyes.
"Barry and I are heading over to his house to collect more of his things and bring them back here," Joe informed her. "I need you to come with us." He proceeded to poke her continuously, hoping the gesture would irritate Iris enough to coax her out from under the blankets.
Iris poked her head out from under the blankets, like a turtle poking its head out of its shell. "Dad, do you think Barry will like being a part of our family?" she asked, her tone of voice a mixture of curiosity and concern.
Joe moved to sit beside Iris on the bed. He tugged playfully on a loose brown curl that appeared to have strayed from her ponytail and now dangled in front of her eyes. He released the curl, and watched it return to its coiled state, before brushing it off her face. He breathed a heavy sigh. "I don't know, baby. I think it'll be hard for him at first. It might always be hard for him. He might not want us to be his family. To him, it might feel like I'm trying to replace his Dad."
"I want to do everything I can to help him, Dad," Iris said with a smile and dark brown eyes full of sympathy for her best friend.
"That's great, sweetheart. I think it may be best if, at first, you give him his space. But make sure he knows you're here for him when he needs you. Then, if he needs your help, he'll come to you," Joe explained. "You think you can do that?"
Iris nodded in response. "You can count on me, Dad."
A smile spread across Joe's face. "That's my girl," he said softly. He kissed her on the forehead before getting up and exiting the room.
Iris pulled her tired body out of bed. She looked at her messy hair in the mirror and dreaded the idea of attempting to get a brush through it. Her matted curls resembled thousands of miniature springs tangled together in an unmanageable, knotted mess. With her eyes only half open, she wandered sluggishly down the hallway. As she passed the bedroom that was now Barry's, she curiously peered through the crack in the door. Barry's face was locked in a sombre expression. His eyes seemed to gaze at nothing as he sat on the bed, staring blankly at he wall. Seeing him in such a state forced Iris' heart to sink deep into her chest. Her best friend was struggling painfully and, at this point in time, there was nothing she could to do the help him.