Lydia groans at the sound of her alarm. She has gotten used to getting up when she wanted during her time off work and so the early start is unwelcome. She peeks at the time, deciding whether she can fit a ten minute snooze into her morning schedule: 7:30am... maybe a snooze isn't a good idea.
Lydia sits up and stretches, hoping this will wake her some more. She then tiptoes towards her dresser and finds some suitable clothing for her first day of her new job. After getting ready, she climbs into her car and pulls up the sat nat route that the sheriff gave her.
"Lydia, this isn't what we agreed to at all. It's temporary!" Natalie whinges through the loud speaker.
"Mom, I get enough money to pay rent and have a comfortable lifestyle around it. That's better than my previous job!" Lydia defends her choice. "Besides, it gives me time to find a job I'll actually enjoy for the long run."
"I'm just saying..."
Lydia sighs and prepares for the lecture. And then, as if by some miracle, the destination comes up ahead. "Got to go mom, I'm here. Work to do." She rushes and then hangs up. She loves her mother but work and coming home are the worst conversations she can have with her. Lydia begins to sweat nervously and so she doesn't get out of the car yet. She patiently waits to calm herself down and then exits the vehicle and walks towards the front door.
"Lydia, thanks for coming." Sheriff Noah, as Lydia found his name to be, greets as he invites her inside. He shows her around the parts of the house she needs to go and teaches her how all of the appliances work, such as the microwave and stove. He then gives a brief comb through of the rules once again. He also tells her about his son. His name is Stiles, he is 21 years old and he used to play lacrosse. He drove around a jeep that was barely hanging on, meaning it was no surprise when it conked out in the middle of the road. Problem was, he was on a bend and then another car came around the corner and... Noah kept the details to himself. Just that Stiles' eyes were damaged and he has had surgery to try and restore vision. Noah then says his goodbyes and leaves for work
Lydia looks at the time and realises she has half and hour to go before she was told to wake 'Stiles' for his appointment. She searches the cupboards for something to make for breakfast. Craving them for herself as well, she hunts for the ingredients for pancakes and gets to work on making her breakfast specialty. Maybe this would be enough to win Stiles over and avoid the terrible attitude she has been warned about. They are bloody good pancakes! With some time to kill after making pancakes, she decides to wander around and be nosy. Lydia looks around for a picture of Stiles, hoping for a preview before she meets him. She doesn't have to look far, he is framed everywhere. She smiles at the loving family he comes from, pictures all smiling and cheerful. She can easily admit that Stiles is attractive, very attractive. She looks at her clock again and decides its time to finally meet him.
Lydia knocks on the bedroom door just to check he's not already awake. With no response, she decides to enter. Stiles lays in a mass of sheets, a peaceful look spread across his features. Lydia scans over him with her eyes for a moment, taking in how much more attractive he is in person. She didn't think that was possible. Suddenly she gets a surge of nerves and her cheek flush red in embarrassment for some reason. "Stiles?" She whispers in a low voice. She repeats his name a few times, getting louder each time and he eventually stirs. His eyes open and look right at her, but she can tell they're not seeing her. They're raw, red and bloodshot. It must be uncomfortable for him. "Hi, I'm Lydia. I'll be-"
"My patches." Stiles' groggy voice croaks, interrupting her. Lydia pauses for a moment. "So my eyes don't get infected?" He clarifies, clearly irritated.
"Right, sorry..." Lydia scrambled around searching for his patches for his eyes. She locates them and covers Stiles' eyes like Noah had explained. "So, I'm Lydia." She continues and he barely takes notice, just gives her a small nod.
"What happened to Kayla?" He asks but sounds uninterested in the answer. He sits up, his legs hanging off the side of the bed.
"Um, I'm taking over for her." She answers, assuming Kayla was a previous carer. One of the ones who couldn't do it.
"Good. I didn't like her." He states matter of factly and begins to push himself up onto his feet. Lydia grabs his arm but he quickly shakes her off, flinching as if her touch had burnt him. "I can do it myself!" He raises his voice in frustrating and Lydia backs off.
"Alright." She agrees, her cheeks burning such a bright red she's thankful he can't see her. Stiles stands up and Lydia makes a grab for his arm when he wobbles a little. "I said I got it!" He shakes her off once more. Lydia follows close behind as Stiles walks towards the door. She panics as he tries to locate the bathroom, which is way too close for comfort to the stairs. He steps into the room and slams the door shut behind him. Lydia leans back on the wall and closes her eyes in embarrassment. This day is already not going the way she wants it to.
